John Chrysostom and the Transformation of the City

John Chrysostom was one of the most prolific and admired Christian preachers of the fourth century AD. Operating in both Antioch and Constantinople, he was constantly concerned for the spiritual welfare of his flock, especially when he saw them surrounded by the secular temptations of city life in the later Roman Empire. His preaching was tailored to combat these temptations and to encourage his congregation to live more obviously orthodox lives. Previous studies of Chrysostom have been almost entirely biographical in nature. This book conducts a much needed thematic exploration of his preaching, shedding light both on gender relations in late antiquity and also on the practical processes by which Christianity established itself as a dominant social structure in the Roman Empire.