Golden Mouth: The Story of John Chrysostom, Ascetic, Preacher, Bishop [Hardcover]

J. N. D. Kelly (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: July 1995

"No other author has delved so deeply into the life and work of this complex, influential, and tragic figure of the fourth century and produced such a far-ranging but precise, solidly researched, and eminently readable account. . . . Chrysostom emerges as a sympathetic and tragic figure of great integrity, whose human failings contributed and perhaps led to his downfall. . . . Kelly has used a careful analysis of many of John's writings and sermons to present new insights and to confirm details of Chrysostom's life previously considered doubtful; his comments and summaries stimulate one to turn to the originals. Those who are interested in Chrysostom or in this historical period must read this book."--Catholic Historical Review

"A rewarding . . . read as well as a rich mine of historical information. . . . [The book] is peppered with new, revisionist insights about . . . Chrysostom's life."--Bryn Mawr Classical Review

"A monumental achievement, which examines with fairness and thoroughness both the primary sources and continuing scholarship on John and his often-stormy episcopacy in Constantinople."--Christian Century

Editorial Reviews

Review

Kelly knows the texts, and is a master of the ecclesiastical background and of the scholarly literature. -- Journal of Ecclesiastical History

Looking at what Kelly has produced, it is clear that the educated reader and the scholar will find this story informative and interesting, and any serious student of Chrysostom will have to begin with this book. -- Theological Studies

No other author has delved so deeply into the life and work of this complex, influential, and tragic figure of the fourth century and produced such a far-ranging but precise, solidly researched, and eminently readable account. . . . Chrysostom emerges as a sympathetic and tragic figure of great integrity, whose human failings contributed and perhaps led to his downfall. . . . Kelly has used a careful analysis of many of John's writings and sermons to present new insights and to confirm details of Chrysostom's life previously considered doubtful; his comments and summaries stimulate one to turn to the originals. Those who are interested in Chrysostom or in this historical period must read this book. -- Catholic Historical Review

This is a book to relish rather than take apart, and I fully recommend it to historians and theologians alike. It is a fitting climax to a lifetime of distinguished scholarly output. -- Journal of Theological Studies --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

From the Publisher

A Choice magazine "Outstanding Academic Book" --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 310 pages
• Publisher: Cornell Univ Pr (July 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0801431891
• ISBN-13: 978-0801431890
• Product Dimensions: 8.8 x 5.9 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,337,130 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A good book that occasionally gets bogged down, June 17, 2003

By 

Robert Huffstedtler (Cary, NC United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Golden Mouth (Paperback)

This book is a very serviceable biography of John Chrysostom, the most famous preacher of the ancient church. It chronicles the entirety of John's life, from the monasticism of his youth, to his subsequent tenure as a priest in Antioch, his bishopric in the imperial capitol, and the quarrels with the bishop of Alexandria and the empress that eventually brought about his downfall.

Kelly does an excellent job of showing John's character. We get to see that those things which in some ways were the best of John's traits, his forthrightness and lack of fear, were the very things which due to his intemperate nature led him into conflict with those who were easily made jealous and those who did not care for their misdeeds to be honestly spoken of.

There is, however, one serious flaw in this book. Kelly seems undecided about who his audience is. He alternates between gripping narration and lengthy passages (sometimes several pages in length) wherein he dissects the arguments for and against the authenticity of a particular sermon of John's or the dating of one of his writings. In my opinion, the book would have been strengthened had Kelly simply based the main text on what he believes to be correct, and moved the disputation either to end notes or to an appendix.

14 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Intriguing story of an Eastern Church Father, November 19, 2002

By 

Joshua V. Schneider (Hawaii) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Golden Mouth (Paperback)

In this account of St. John Chrysostom's life, J.N.D. Kelly does an excellent job of gathering a thorough and balanced biography of John's rise to fame, his role as a bishop and preacher, and his subsequent deposition and exile. He details how John began his life as a humble monk with a startlingly severe lifestyle, and gradually became a deacon in Antioch, where he was to earn renown for his remarkable preaching (and hence the nickname "Chrysostom", i.e. "Golden Mouth"). Not long after filling that role in Antioch, John was assigned the office of bishop of Constantinople, one of the primary sees in Christianity. His preaching was characterized by sharp denunciations of the rich and powerful, and advocacy of aid to the poor and downtrodden. Thus he was the champion of the common people, but he developed many bitter enemies among the rulers and clergy in the government and church.

Kelly tells the story of John's relationships, the bitter controversies he was caught in, and his eventual exile in a lively manner, but without embellishing the facts. His book is very well written from a historical perspective, but I had a few minor complaints. First of all, since Chrysostom was primarily famous for his preaching, I was disappointed to find meager quotation from his sermons. There were many terse references to various sermons in the book, but none of them gave any extensive examples that helped the reader to understand their popularity or controversial nature. Instead the reader must rely on his brief paraphrasing and summarizing of the sermons' content, and the occasional excerpt. Secondly, the evaluation of John's personality was very focused historically, but barely described John's theological viewpoints. That would have been something of considerable interest in a biography of a Father of the Early Church. Otherwise the book is certainly recommended, and with few exceptions the author remained objective in his treatment of the historical evidence.

13 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A magesterial overview of an extraordinary life, July 15, 1996

By A Customer

This review is from: Golden Mouth: The Story of John Chrysostom, Ascetic, Preacher, Bishop (Hardcover)

J.N.D. Kelly, well known to students of the Early Church for his classics, "Early Church Doctrines," "Early Church Creeds," and for his biography of the brilliant, bitter saint, "Jerome," has written what will certainly be for the foreseeable future the standard life of Saint John Chrystom. Kelly clearly admires the great man, but is not blind to his flaws. His is a balanced portrait of a complicated man living in complicated times