In our BCP calendar, today we remember St. John Chrysostom, an important early Church Father. He is known for his preaching, but also because he spoke out against the abuse of authority, both in the Church and in the political sphere. He is also very well known for the “Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom,” which helped to define our Trinitarian theology and also to combat heresy. John’s guidance as Archbishop (398–404) helped to finalize this liturgy, and as the offical worship of the Church of Holy Wisdom, Hagia Sophia, it quickly became the standard within the Byzantine Empire. It has been set to music by many classical composers, and there are still people who find inspiration in it and continue to use it for their more modern musical compositions.
He was exiled (though the reasons for this are not entirely known to us), though soon after his death he began to be venerated as a Saint of the Church. He has several feast days, and on the 27th of January, we remember the translation of his relics from Comana to Constantinople.
