John Chrysostom, On the Acts of the Apostles

call upon Him for the salvation of your soul; then He will be present, then you gladden Him; but now you provoke Him. Call upon Him, as Stephen called. Saying what? Lord, do not hold this sin against them. Call upon Him, as the wife of Elkanah called, with tears, with lamentations, with prayer. I do not forbid, but even strongly advise it. Call upon Him as Moses called, and cried out, entreating for those who had cast him out. And if you mention some venerable man lightly, the act is an insult; but when you bandy about the name of God, not only lightly, but also unseasonably in your words, do you consider it to be nothing? And of how great a punishment would you not be worthy? I do not forbid having God always in mind (for this I both pray and desire), but not contrary to His will, but praising, but honoring Him. This would have worked great good for us, if we called upon Him only when we ought, and for the things we ought. Why, tell me, in the time of the apostles were so many miracles performed, but in our time not? and yet it is the same God, the same name. But it is not the same. How? Because they called upon Him only for these things which I have mentioned; but we, not for these, but for other things. But if one disbelieves, and for this reason you swear, say, "Believe me"; however, if you wish, swear by yourself. I do not say this to legislate against Christ, far from it; for He says, "Let your 'Yes' be 'Yes,' and your 'No,' 'No'"; but I condescend to you, in order to lead you more to this, and to lead you away from that tyrannical habit. How many who were well-reputed in other respects have been ruined by these practices? Do you want to learn why they permitted the ancients to swear? (For even for them, swearing falsely was not permitted). Because they swore by idols. Are you not ashamed to persist in these laws by which those weak ones were led? For even now if I take a Greek, I do not immediately command this of him, but for the time being advise him to know Christ; but if the believer, who has learned of Him and heard Him, should need the same condescension as the Greek, what is the benefit? what is the gain? But is habit a difficult thing, and are you inseparably attached to it? Therefore, since the tyranny of habit is so great, transfer it to another habit. And how is this possible? he says. What I have often said, this I say now also: Let there be many accountants of what is said, let there be examiners and correctors. There is no shame in being corrected by others; rather, it is a shame to push away those who correct, and to do this to the detriment of one's own salvation. And if you put on your garment the wrong way, you permit even a child to correct you, and you are not ashamed to learn from him, although in this there is much shame; but here, when your soul is being harmed, are you ashamed, tell me, to be instructed by another? and you tolerate a servant dressing you with regard to your clothing and putting on your shoes, but you do not tolerate one adorning your soul? And of how much folly is this? Let even a servant be a teacher of these things, let a child be, let 60.93 a woman be, let a friend and relative and neighbor be. For just as a wild beast pursued from all sides cannot escape; so it is not possible for one who has so many guards, so many reprovers, who is struck from all sides, not to be on his guard. And on the first day he will bear this with difficulty, and on the second, and on the third; but afterwards it will be very easy, 60.94 and after the fourth day the practice itself will not even exist. Make the attempt, if you disbelieve; take care, I beseech you. It is no small matter that is sinned, nor that is done rightly, but on either side it is great, both the evil and the good. May it be that the good is done, by the grace and loving-kindness of our Lord Jesus Christ, with whom to the Father, together with the Holy Spirit, be glory, dominion, honor, now and always, and unto the ages of ages. Amen.

60.93.10 HOMILY 11. And being let go, they went to their own company, and reported all that the chief priests and elders had said unto them.

κάλεσον αὐτὸν ἐπὶ σωτηρίᾳ τῆς σῆς ψυχῆς· τότε παρέσται, τότε εὐφραίνεις αὐτόν· νῦν δὲ παροξύνεις. Κάλεσον αὐτὸν, ὡς ἐκάλεσε Στέφανος. Τί λέγων; Κύριε, μὴ στήσῃς αὐτοῖς τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ταύτην. Κάλεσον αὐτὸν, ὡς ἐκάλεσεν ἡ τοῦ Ἑλκανᾶ γυνὴ, μετὰ δακρύων, μετὰ θρήνων, μετὰ εὐχῆς. Οὐ κωλύω, ἀλλὰ καὶ σφόδρα παραινῶ. Κάλεσον αὐτὸν ὡς ἐκάλεσε Μωϋσῆς, καὶ ἐβόα παρακαλῶν ὑπὲρ τῶν φυγαδευσάντων αὐτόν. Καὶ σὺ μὲν ἄν τινος μνησθῇς ἁπλῶς ἀνδρὸς αἰδεσίμου, ὕβρις τὸ πρᾶγμα· τὸν δὲ Θεὸν περιφέρων, οὐ μόνον ἁπλῶς, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀκαίρως ἐν τοῖς σοῖς λόγοις, οὐδὲν τὸ πρᾶγμα νομίζεις; Καὶ πόσης οὐχὶ κολάσεως ἄξιος ἂν εἴης; Οὐ κωλύω τὸν Θεὸν ἔχειν διαπαντὸς ἐν διανοίᾳ (τοῦτο γὰρ καὶ εὔχομαι καὶ βούλομαι), ἀλλὰ μὴ παρὰ τὸ δοκοῦν αὐτῷ, ἀλλ' αἰνοῦντα, ἀλλὰ τιμῶντα. Μεγάλα ἂν τοῦτο εἰργάσατο ἡμῖν ἀγαθὰ, εἰ ὅτε ἔδει, καὶ ἐφ' οἷς ἔδει μόνον ἐκαλοῦμεν αὐτόν. ∆ιὰ τί, εἰπέ μοι, ἐπὶ μὲν τῶν ἀποστόλων τοσαῦται δυνάμεις ἐγίνοντο, ἐπὶ δὲ ἡμῶν οὐχί; καίτοι ὁ αὐτός ἐστι Θεὸς, τὸ αὐτὸ ὄνομα. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἔστιν ἴσον. Πῶς; Ὅτιἐκεῖνοι μὲν ἐπὶ τούτοις, οἷς εἶπον, αὐτὸν ἐκάλουν μόνον· ἡμεῖς δὲ οὐκ ἐπὶ τούτοις, ἀλλ' ἐπ' ἄλλοις. Εἰ δὲ ἀπιστεῖ, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ὀμνύεις, λέγε μὲν, Πίστευσον· πλὴν εἰ βούλει, ὄμοσον κατὰ σαυτοῦ. Οὐκ ἀντινομοθετῶν τῷ Χριστῷ λέγω, μὴ γένοιτο· Ἔστω γὰρ, φησὶν, ὑμῶν τὸ Ναὶ, ναὶ, καὶ τὸ Οὒ, οὔ· ἀλλὰ συγκαταβαίνων ὑμῖν, ἵνα μᾶλλον εἰς τοῦτο ὑμᾶς ἐναγάγω, καὶ τῆς συνηθείας ἀπαγάγω τῆς τυραννικῆς. Πόσοι ἐν τοῖς ἄλλοις εὐδοκιμοῦντες ἀπώλοντο ἀπὸ τούτων τῶν πραγμάτων; Βούλεσθε μαθεῖν, διὰ τί συνεχώρουν τοῖς ἀρχαίοις ὀμνύειν; (ἐπιορκεῖν γὰρ οὐδὲ ἐκείνοις συγκεχώρητο). Ἐπειδὴ ἐν τοῖς εἰδώλοις ὤμνυον. Οὐκ αἰσχύνεσθε τούτοις ἐμμένοντες τοῖς νόμοις, οἷς ἐκεῖνοι ἐνήγοντο οἱ ἀσθενεῖς; Ἐπεὶ καὶ νῦν Ἕλληνα ἐὰν λάβω, οὐκ εὐθέως αὐτῷ ἐπιτάσσω τοῦτο, ἀλλὰ τέως εἰδέναι τὸν Χριστὸν παραινῶ· ὁ δὲ πιστὸς καὶ μαθὼν αὐτὸν καὶ ἀκούσας, εἰ μέλλοι τῆς αὐτῆς τῷ Ἕλληνι συγκαταβάσεως δεῖσθαι, τί τὸ ὄφελος; ποῖον τὸ κέρδος; Ἀλλ' ἡ συνήθεια χαλεπὸν, καὶ δυσαποσπάστως ἔχεις; Οὐκοῦν ἐπεὶ τοσαύτη τῆς συνηθείας ἡ τυραννὶς, εἰς ἑτέραν αὐτὴν μετάγαγε συνήθειαν. Καὶ πῶς δυνατόν; φησίν. Ὃ πολλάκις εἶπον, τοῦτο καὶ νῦν λέγω· Ἔστωσαν λογισταὶ τῶν λεγομένων πολλοὶ, ἔστωσαν ἐξετασταὶ καὶ διορθωταί. Οὐκ ἔστιν αἰσχύνη τὸ ὑφ' ἑτέρων διορθοῦσθαι· μᾶλλον μὲν οὖν αἰσχύνη τὸ ἀπωθεῖσθαι τοὺς διορθοῦντας, καὶ ἐπὶ βλάβῃ τῆς οἰκείας σωτηρίας τοῦτο ποιεῖν. Καὶ σὺ μὲν τὴν ἐσθῆτα ἂν ἐναλλὰξ περιβάλῃ, καὶ παῖδα ἐπιτρέπεις διορθῶσαι, καὶ οὐκ αἰσχύνῃ παρ' ἐκείνου μανθάνων, καίτοι γε ἐν τούτῳ πολλὴ ἡ αἰσχύνη· ἐνταῦθα δὲ τὴν ψυχὴν βλαπτόμενος, αἰσχύνῃ, εἰπέ μοι, παρ' ἑτέρου παιδεύεσθαι; καὶ κοσμοῦντα μέν σε περὶ τὴν ἐσθῆτα φέρεις τὸν οἰκέτην καὶ ὑποδοῦντα, κοσμοῦντα δὲ τὴν ψυχὴν οὐ φέρεις; Καὶ πόσης οὐ ταῦτα ἀνοίας; Ἔστω καὶ οἰκέτης τούτων διδάσκαλος, ἔστω καὶ παιδίον, ἔστω 60.93 καὶ γυνὴ, ἔστω καὶ φίλος καὶ συγγενὴς καὶ γείτων. Ὥσπερ γὰρ τὸ πάντοθεν ἐλαυνόμενον θηρίον οὐχ οἷόν τε διαφυγεῖν· οὕτω τὸν τοσούτους ἔχοντα φύλακας, τὸν τοσούτους ἐπιτιμῶντας, τὸν πάντοθεν πληττόμενον, οὐκ ἔνι μὴ φυλάξασθαι. Καὶ ἐν μὲν τῇ πρώτῃ ἡμέρᾳ χαλεπῶς οἴσει τοῦτο, καὶ κατὰ τὴν δευτέραν, καὶ ἐν τῇ τρίτῃ· λοιπὸν δὲ ῥᾷστον ἔσται, 60.94 καὶ μετὰ τὴν τετάρτην οὐδὲ τὸ πρᾶγμα ἔσται αὐτό. Ἀπόπειραν ποιήσατε, εἴ γε ἀπιστεῖτε· φροντίσατε, παρακαλῶ. Οὐκ ἔστι τὸ τυχὸν ἁμαρτανόμενον, οὐδὲ κατορθούμενον, ἀλλὰ ἑκατέρωθεν μέγα, καὶ κακὸν καὶ καλόν. Γένοιτο δὲ καλὸν γενέσθαι, χάριτι καὶ φιλανθρωπίᾳ τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, μεθ' οὗ τῷ Πατρὶ, ἅμα τῷ ἁγίῳ Πνεύματι, δόξα, κράτος, τιμὴ, νῦν καὶ ἀεὶ, καὶ εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.

60.93.10 ΟΜΙΛΙΑ ΙΑʹ. Ἀπολυθέντες δὲ ἦλθον πρὸς τοὺς ἰδίους, καὶ ἀπήγγειλαν ὅσα πρὸς αὐτοὺς οἱ ἀρχιερεῖς καὶ οἱ πρεσβύτεροι εἶπον.