This week in Christian history: Brownsville Revival, John Chrysostom exiled, Jonathan Edwards fired

By Michael Gryboski, Mainline Church Editor Sunday, June 16, 2024

John Chrysostom exiled – June 20, 404

John Chrysostom (c. 347-407), a prominent early church leader and preacher. | Wikimedia Commons

This week marks the anniversary of when Archbishop John Chrysostom, a prominent early church leader and preacher, was exiled from Constantinople, the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire.

Chrysostom was exiled due to his efforts to reform church authority and his criticism of the royal family, with a military escort sending him to a small community in Armenia.

“Separation from friends and raids from Isaurians (tribes from mountainous southern Turkey) continually plagued his last years — as did the climate and his poor health,” wrote professor Christopher A. Hall in 1994.

“Three years of these severe hardships would end with death, yet Chrysostom remained faithful to Christ. He also remained a source of encouragement to friends and followers. To paraphrase Chrysostom himself, the gold of his life undergirded the currency of his words.”