Book contents
- Food, Virtue, and the Shaping of Early Christianity
- Food, Virtue, and the Shaping of Early Christianity
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgments
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The Medicine of Moderation
- 3 From Dinner Theater to Domestic Church in Late Antique Antioch
- 4 Shenoute’s Botanical Virtues
- 5 The Places of God
- 6 Meals, Mouths, and Martyrs
- 7 Conclusion
- Bibliography
- Index
2 - The Medicine of Moderation
John Chrysostom and the True Fast
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 11 August 2020
- Food, Virtue, and the Shaping of Early Christianity
- Food, Virtue, and the Shaping of Early Christianity
- Copyright page
- Dedication
- Contents
- Figures
- Acknowledgments
- 1 Introduction
- 2 The Medicine of Moderation
- 3 From Dinner Theater to Domestic Church in Late Antique Antioch
- 4 Shenoute’s Botanical Virtues
- 5 The Places of God
- 6 Meals, Mouths, and Martyrs
- 7 Conclusion
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
Ordinary Christians in 4th century Antioch had a wide range of ideas about how to achieve Christian perfection – and whether they should even try. Some competed with each other to exceed the established fasting customs during Lent, eating only bread and water for forty days, or going for several days at a time without food. Others observed the fasting regimen but spent their afternoons attending horse races or playing dice in the marketplace. Still others argued that they could not be expected to fast or pray rigorously: “I’m not a monk, am I? [These disciplines] are not for me!” These attitudes, reported in sermons by John Chrysostom, reflect a contemporary argument among church leaders about the value of an ordinary – that is, nonascetic – Christian life.
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- Food, Virtue, and the Shaping of Early Christianity , pp. 22 - 68Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2020