Vigils Reading

THE MIRACULOUS SPREAD

OF THE GOSPEL MESSAGE

A reading from “Against the Pagans” by St John Chrysostom3

◊◊◊

It was…marvelous that these few ignorant, poor, undistinguished,

unlettered, worthless men of foreign tongue were entrusted with setting straight

the whole world. They were commissioned to lead the world to live a far more

difficult life and they did not accomplish this mission at a time of peace but

while countless wars were being stirred up against them from every side. And

this was the case in every nation and every city.

Did I say every nation and every city? In every home a war was fanned to

flame against them. For when their teaching entered a home, many a time it

split a son from his father, a bride from her mother-in-law, a brother from his

brother, a servant from his master, a subject from his ruler, a man from his wife,

a woman from her husband, and a father from his children. For everybody did

not all at once accept the faith. Their teaching was harassed by hatred every day

that passed; it stirred up one war after the other and brought death to more

people than you could count; it had people avoiding one another as if they were

common enemies and foes.

For everybody drove the apostles out. Emperors avoided them, as did

lesser rulers, common people, free and slave; whole peoples, entire cities

shunned them. Not only did they drive out the apostles but, what is worse, they

drove out those who were but newly fixed in their faith, those whom the apostles

had instructed. It was one and the same war which was waged against the

apostles and their disciples, because people saw that their teaching was opposed

to the edicts of their emperors and their ancestral ways and customs.

Even though the apostles told so harsh a story, they still won people over

to believe. This is how they built up the Church. How did they do it and by what

means? They did it through the power of Him who had commanded them to do

it. He made ready the way; he made all the hard things easy. If it were not the

power of God which accomplished this, the Church would not have had a

preface, much less a beginning.

How could all this be done? It was God who said: “Let there be heaven,”

and showed forth his work; it was God who said: “Let the earth be founded,”

and he produced its substance; it was God who said: “Let the sun shine,” and he

showed forth the star; it was God who caused all things to be. And it was the

same God who planted the Church. And that word: “I will build my Church” is

what produced all this. For this is the power of the words of God. They create

works which are wondrous beyond our expectation. God said: “Let the earth

produce the grassy plant,” and suddenly everything was a garden, everything

became a meadow; the earth heard God’s command and plumed itself with

plants beyond number. In the same way God later said: “I will build my

Church,” and this was done with the greatest of ease.

3 St. John Chrysostom, Apologist. Catholic University of America Press, 1983, pp. 242-243.7