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Sermo catecheticus in pascha

John Chrysostom · khazarzar

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machine-draft · no human review 2 passages · 431 words

Work dossier · summary and historical context

Summary

The Sermo catecheticus in pascha is a Greek homily traditionally attributed to John Chrysostom, intended for catechumens or the newly baptized during the Paschal celebration. It employs rhetorical questions and anaphoric series to invite universal participation in the feast, regardless of one's fasting or ascetic merit. The text uses metaphors such as the denarius and the abundant calf to illustrate spiritual rewards and the end of Lenten fasting. Its survival in numerous Greek manuscripts from the 9th–10th centuries, and its incorporation into Byzantine Paschal liturgy, attest to its enduring influence, though its authenticity remains debated due to stylistic differences from Chrysostom's undisputed works.

This homily is a key witness to the development of Paschal catechetical preaching and its integration into Byzantine liturgy. It exemplifies the rhetorical and theological themes of early Christian initiation, such as universal invitation and spiritual reward. Its disputed authorship highlights the challenges of attributing late antique homilies, and its transmission history illustrates the role of manuscript culture in shaping the patristic canon.

Historical context

The homily is set in the late 4th to early 5th century, likely in Antioch or Constantinople, where Chrysostom served as a presbyter and later bishop. It reflects the catechetical and liturgical practices of the post-Nicene church, particularly the baptismal and Paschal rites. The text was transmitted through Byzantine monastic and liturgical manuscripts, with the earliest complete copies dating from the 9th–10th centuries. Its inclusion in the Byzantine Paschal liturgy as a standard reading indicates its widespread acceptance. The present edition, based on Migne's Patrologia Graeca (19th century), reproduces a single manuscript tradition without critical collation, limiting its textual authority. The attribution to Chrysostom is traditional but contested; some scholars note stylistic divergences from his authentic corpus, suggesting possible later composition or redaction.

Apparatus · what the pipeline recorded

Annotation and terms

12 commentary units 2 structure2 background2 reception2 caution1 sense1 parallel1 scripture1 term 0 derived notes 3 open questions 2 narrative
What the kinds mean

Pipeline notes

  • coverageNo English translation could be identified: a language model asked twice could not name one, though it could not rule one out either. That is not proof that none exists — translations in dissertations, recent books and other modern languages are easily missed.
  • limitThe English is a machine draft produced passage by passage from the transcribed Coptic; no human has verified it. The commentary is model-written and cites only keys the pipeline could resolve.
  • registerRegister: homily in ancient Greek; the English keeps the liturgical formulae and the vocatives rather than normalising them.
  • structurePassages: 2 narrative.
  • sourceSource edition: khazarzar — Migne PG text (public domain); khazarzar host and the digitising project state no licence for this layer

Term index

CopticRenderingCountFirst
no glossary terms recorded
khazarzar-john-chrysostom-sermo-catecheticus-in-pascha:1 · narrativehigh
Source
Κατηχητικὸς εἰς τὸ ἅγιον πάσχα. Εἴ τις εὐσεβὴς καὶ φιλόθεος, ἀπολαυέτω τῆς καλῆς ταύτης πανηγύρεως· εἴ τις δοῦλος εὐγνώμων, εἰσελθέτω χαίρων εἰς τὴν χαρὰν τοῦ Κυρίου αὐτοῦ· εἴ τις ἔκαμε νηστεύων, ἀπολαβέτω νῦν τὸ δηνάριον· εἴ τις ἀπὸ πρώτης ὥρας εἰργάσατο, δεχέσθω σήμερον τὸ δίκαιον ὄφλημα· εἴ τις μετὰ τὴν τρίτην ἦλθεν, εὐχαριστῶν ἑορτάσῃ· εἴ τις μετὰ τὴν ἕκτην ἔφθασε, μηδὲν ἀμφιβαλλέτω· καὶ γὰρ οὐδὲν ζημιοῦται· εἴ τις ὑστέρησεν εἰς τὴν ἐννάτην, προσελθέτω μηδὲν ἐνδοιάζων· εἴ τις εἰς μόνην ἔφθασε τὴν ἑνδεκάτην, μὴ φοβηθῇ τὴν βραδυτῆτα. Φιλότιμος γὰρ ὢν ὁ Δεσπότης δέχεται τὸν ἔσχατον, καθάπερ καὶ τὸν πρῶτον· ἀναπαύει τὸν τῆς ἑνδεκάτης, ὡς τὸν ἐργασάμενον ἀπὸ τῆς πρώτης· καὶ τὸν ὕστερον ἐλεεῖ, καὶ τὸν πρῶτον θεραπεύει· κἀκείνῳ δίδωσι, καὶ τούτῳ χαρίζεται. Καὶ τὴν πρᾶξιν τιμᾷ, καὶ τὴν πρόθεσιν ἐπαινεῖ. Οὐκοῦν εἰσέλθητε πάντες εἰς τὴν χαρὰν τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν, καὶ πρῶτοι καὶ δεύτεροι τὸν μισθὸν ἀπολάβετε, πλούσιοι καὶ πένητες μετὰ ἀλλήλων χορεύσατε, ἐγκρατεῖς καὶ ῥᾴθυμοι τὴν ἡμέραν τιμήσατε, νηστεύσαντες καὶ μὴ νηστεύσαντες εὐφράνθητε σήμερον. Ἡ τράπεζα γέμει, τρυφήσατε πάντες· ὁ μόσχος πολὺς, μηδεὶς ἐξέλθοι πεινῶν. Πάντες ἀπολαύσατε τοῦ πλούτου τῆς χρηστότητος.
English
Catechetical Homily on the Holy Pascha. If anyone is pious and God-loving, let him enjoy this beautiful festival. If anyone is a grateful servant, let him enter rejoicing into the joy of his Lord. If anyone has grown weary from fasting, let him now receive the denarius. If anyone has labored from the first hour, let him today accept the just payment. If anyone came after the third hour, let him celebrate with thanksgiving. If anyone arrived after the sixth hour, let him have no doubt, for he suffers no loss. If anyone was late until the ninth hour, let him approach without hesitation. If anyone reached only the eleventh hour, let him not fear his slowness. For the Master is generous, receiving the last as well as the first. He gives rest to the one of the eleventh hour as to the one who labored from the first. He has mercy on the latecomer and tends to the first. He gives to that one and bestows gifts on this one. He honors the deed and praises the intention. Therefore, let all enter into the joy of our Lord, both first and second receive your reward. Rich and poor, dance together. Self-controlled and lazy, honor the day. Those who fasted and those who did not, rejoice today. The table is full; all of you, feast. The calf is abundant; let no one leave hungry. All of you, enjoy the wealth of kindness.
khazarzar-john-chrysostom-sermo-catecheticus-in-pascha:2 · narrativehigh
Source
Μηδεὶς θρηνείτω πενίαν· ἐφάνη γὰρ ἡ κοινὴ βασιλεία· μηδεὶς ὀδυρέσθω τὰ πταίσματα· συγγνώμη γὰρ ἐκ τοῦ τάφου ἀνέτειλε· μηδεὶς φοβείσθω τὸν θάνατον· ἠλευθέρωσε γὰρ ἡμᾶς ὁ τοῦ Σωτῆρος θάνατος· ἔσβεσεν αὐτὸν ὑπ' αὐτοῦ κατεχόμενος· ἐκόλασε τὸν ᾅδην κατελθὼν εἰς τὸν ᾅδην· ἐπίκρανεν αὐτὸν γευσάμενον τῆς σαρκὸς αὐτοῦ. Καὶ τοῦτο προλαβὼν Ἡσαΐας ἐβόησεν· Ὁ ᾅδης, φησὶν, ἐπικράνθη. Συναντήσας σοι κάτω ἐπικράνθη· καὶ γὰρ καθῃρέθη· ἐπικράνθη· καὶ γὰρ ἐνεπαίχθη. Ἔλαβε σῶμα, καὶ Θεῷ περιέτυχεν· ἔλαβε γῆν, καὶ συνήντησεν οὐρανῷ· ἔλαβεν ὅπερ ἔβλεπε, καὶ πέπτωκεν ὅθεν οὐκ ἔβλεπε. Ποῦ σου, θάνατε, τὸ κέντρον; ποῦ σου, ᾅδη, τὸ νῖκος; Ἀνέστη Χριστὸς, καὶ σὺ καταβέβλησαι· ἀνέστη Χριστὸς, καὶ πεπτώκασι δαίμονες· ἀνέστη Χριστὸς, καὶ χαίρουσιν ἄγγελοι· ἀνέστη Χριστὸς, καὶ νεκρὸς οὐδεὶς ἐπὶ μνήματος. Χριστὸς γὰρ ἐγερθεὶς ἐκ νεκρῶν, ἀπαρχὴ τῶν κεκοιμημένων ἐγένετο· αὐτῷ ἡ δόξα καὶ τὸ κράτος εἰς τοὺς αἰῶνας τῶν αἰώνων. Ἀμήν.
English
Let no one lament poverty, for the common kingdom has appeared. Let no one bewail their failings, for forgiveness has dawned from the tomb. Let no one fear death, for the death of the Saviour has set us free. It extinguished him who was held by it. It chastised Hades by descending into Hades. It embittered him who tasted of his flesh. And foreseeing this, Isaiah cried out: Hades, he says, was embittered. Meeting you below, he was embittered, for he was overthrown. He was embittered, for he was mocked. He took a body and encountered God. He took earth and met heaven. He took what he saw and fell where he did not see. Where, O Death, is your sting? Where, O Hades, is your victory? Christ has risen, and you are cast down. Christ has risen, and the demons have fallen. Christ has risen, and the angels rejoice. Christ has risen, and no dead remain in the tomb. For Christ, raised from the dead, became the firstfruits of those who have fallen asleep. To him be the glory and the power unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Citation. Tergwame, “Sermo catecheticus in pascha”, khazarzar-john-chrysostom-sermo-catecheticus-in-pascha:1, machine-draft, 2026. https://naxiai.com/christian/works/khazarzar-john-chrysostom-sermo-catecheticus-in-pascha#s1
Colophon. Source: khazarzar · licence: Migne PG text (public domain); khazarzar host and the digitising project state no licence for this layer · model: deepseek/deepseek-v4-flash:floor · provider: Relace · cost: $0.0017 · generated 2026-11-15.