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This work was conceived two or three years ago. As my life approached the biblical age (Psalm 89:10), the idea of celebrating my 70th birthday with this work also matured.If the reader finds in this work the path of life indicated by the great teachers of the Church, my work will not be in vain.May it serve as a constant reminder to me in the remaining days of what an Orthodox Christian should be!Saints of Christ John Chrysostom († 407) and Ambrose of Milan († 397), Venerable Fathers Blessed Diadochos of Photica (5th century), Abba Dorotheus († 620), Gregory the Sinaite (14th century), John Cassian († 435) and all the saints who shone forth in the land of the East and West, pray to God for us, that He would show us His infinite mercy and not deprive us of His eternal Heavenly Abodes!August 29, 1999Constantine Skurat

The Eastern Holy Fathers

This work was conceived two or three years ago. As my life approached the biblical age (Psalm 89:10), the idea of celebrating my 70th birthday with this work also matured.If the reader finds in this work the path of life indicated by the great teachers of the Church, my work will not be in vain.May it serve as a constant reminder to me in the remaining days of what an Orthodox Christian should be!Saints of Christ John Chrysostom († 407) and Ambrose of Milan († 397), Venerable Fathers Blessed Diadochos of Photica (5th century), Abba Dorotheus († 620), Gregory the Sinaite (14th century), John Cassian († 435) and all the saints who shone forth in the land of the East and West, pray to God for us, that He would show us His infinite mercy and not deprive us of His eternal Heavenly Abodes!August 29, 1999Constantine Skurat

St. John Chrysostom to the God-loving Olympias

"I know the nobility of your mind, I know the strength of your God-fearing soul, I know the abundance of prudence, the power of wisdom... Blessed art thou and thrice blessed..." St. John Chrysostom.Letters to Olympias. From Letters No II and No XVII, the epistolary heritage of St. John Chrysostom is very rich. Most of the letters appeared during the years of his deprivation of the Constantinople cathedra and expulsion from the capital (403-407). Saint John wrote to various persons: to clergymen, deaconesses, monks and laymen, and twice he addressed letters to the Bishop of Rome Innocent [pp. 550-558] [1], as well as to bishops, presbyters and deacons imprisoned for their piety [pp. 563-565; 717, 718]. But especially informative, useful and therefore valuable are the seventeen letters of the Constantinople saint to the holy deaconess Olympias [pp. 549-565]. They give deeply spiritual instructions to this wondrous deaconess of the Church of Constantinople, praise her exemplary virtues, her lifelong podvig for the glory of God and for the good of people. At the same time, the radiant personality of the saint himself stands out brightly in them.Although they describe the misfortunes that befell him, not only hatred for enemies and offenders is not revealed, but also a sign of complaint. Illness, suffering, hunger and cold, as St. John Chrysostom testifies, in no way weaken his faith in God's Providence and do not make him unworthy of the priestly rank. Volume III. St. Petersburg, 1897. ^

The Life of St. Olympias