08 February 2009
Patristic Quote of the Day
"Listen, I entreat you, all that are careful for this life, and procure books that will be medicines for the soul…get at least the New Testament, the Apostolic Epistles, the Acts, the Gospels, for your constant teachers. If grief befalls you, dive into them as into a chest of medicines; take from there comfort for your trouble, be it loss, or death, or bereavement of relations; or rather do not merely dive into them but take them wholly to yourself, keeping them in your mind." (Hom. IX On Colossians) - St. John Chrysostom
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3 comments:
A chest of medicines? Yowza!
Tom Fast
Pastor Weedon,
Medicine means healing. Healing means the presence and administraion of Him who is the "Life." What does this say of the Apostolic Word? I'd love to hear you unpack this phrase.
Tom Fast
I suspect St. John is running it in the way of St. Clement of Alexandria who wrote: "That is truly sacred literature that makes people holy and deifies them." The healing medicine is no doubt in imparting the mind of Christ to the devout reader, so that one is blessed to think God's own thoughts after Him and in this come to grow up into the fullness of Christ Himself. There are many, many more good quotes to come in this series of St. John citations on the benefits of reading the Scripture. I can't thank my friend Trent enough for passing along this catena from Bishop Basil of Wichita.
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