Christianization and Communication in Late Antiquity: John Chrysostom and His Congregation in Antioch (review)

Modern scholars read the sermons of the churchmen of late antiquity, but during late antiquity almost all Christians would have only heard those sermons. We read but they listened and watched. During the fourth century one bishop in western Asia Minor argued that since God did not have actual physical hands, he could not speak at all. Like churchmen, God, too, spoke more effectively with his gestures than with just his words. Ancient sermons were visual performances, and to be heard, preachers had to be seen. This contrast between their predominantly oral and visual culture of theology and pastoral care and our exclusively textual culture remains a significant obstacle to a proper appreciation of preaching in late antiquity.

One of the great preachers from late antiquity was John Chrysostom, who made his reputation first as a priest at Antioch during the 380s and 390s, then as bishop at Constantinople. His extant “writings” consist largely of sermons on all sorts of topics, including current events, the activities of laypeople, and, of course, biblical exegesis. John’s sermons are the primary sources for Jaclyn Maxwell’s excellent study of the communication of Christianity to audiences at Antioch. As reinforcement for other recent studies, Maxwell likewise emphasizes that this communication was, in fact, a dialogue between preacher and congregation, in which the laypeople often seized the initiative from the clergy.

Two themes are especially important in Maxwell’s analysis. One is John’s pedagogy. John had grown up in the “culture of public speaking” (42) that characterized Antioch in late antiquity. Public displays of eloquence were everywhere, in political panegyrics, legal hearings, and performances in the theater (Chapter 2). John now figured out how to channel the enthusiasm for public rhetoric into the promotion of Christian values. “The orator, legal advocate, actor, and preacher all fed and were fed by the general enthusiasm for eloquence” (63). John became a star in part because of his sensitive awareness of the limited capabilities of his audience (Chapters 3–4). Because he faced “an audience without intellectual pretensions” (103), many of his listeners would not have been able to comprehend complex rhetoric and sophisticated theology. Hence, John had to adapt: “Chrysostom preached with the lowest common denominator in mind” (98). One consequence was to minimize the amount of preaching about doctrinal issues and “to slow down and focus upon behavior instead of theology” (153).

The second important theme is what we might call the pedagogy of the congregation, as the preacher became the listener. Maxwell’s most interesting chapters discuss the bottom-heavy inertia of tradition and habit (Chapters 5–6). John may have wanted ascetic practices to become central to mainstream Christian life, but “the laity tended to perceive more distinctions between the sacred and the ordinary” (129). With regard to swearing oaths and celebrating raucous public festivals, their “bad habits” (145) tended to prevail. As he stood in the pulpit, it was John who was receiving an education in the values that his parishioners found acceptable. The power of rhetoric had its limits: “he . . . had limited success in reorienting the tastes and attitudes of the mass of Christians” (148). Maxwell can even conclude that we might better read these sermons not for John’s teachings but as “extremely valuable sources for learning about the world-views and experiences of ordinary people” (169).

This sort of analysis of oral and visual culture will certainly require more study. Because John’s sermons are difficult to date with precision, the specific circumstances are often unknown. Because his sermons are long-winded and rambling, it is a challenge to stay engaged and not resort to conflating the best anecdotes. Because his sermons reflect the views of clerical elites like himself, it is not obvious that they can be read as transparent sources “to learn about the world of non-elites” (174). Because his sermons survive only in manuscripts and printed editions, the relationship...