Medieval and Patristic Preaching

A Comparative Study

PS 502 Source & Structure of the Homily

Rev. Denis McManus

Br. Paul M. Nguyen, OMV

Congregationis Oblatorum Beat Mari Virginis
December 18, 2015

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All the baptized share in Christs prophetic office by incorporation into the Mystical
Body of Christ, the Church. Some of these are called to the consecration of Orders, and to these,
bishops first, is given the office of authoritative teaching in Jesus name. A privileged place for
this prophetic office is preaching in the homily as an integral part of the public worship of the
faithful in the Eucharistic sacrifice. The homily was not always as integral in the rites as it is
following the Second Vatican Council, however. Preaching in the Christian tradition stretches
back to Jewish preaching and through Jesus own innovations, to His apostles preaching, to their
successors especially after the imperial persecutions of the first centuries, through the medieval
period, and to the present day. Here we seek to characterize the preaching of the Fathers of the
Church and show the developments and continuities into the middle ages.
Preaching in the medieval period was more academic, and it was organized according to a
more analytical philosophical model than its inspiring and emotionally-pointed, though no less
skillful predecessor in the patristic period.
We will first study the structure and content of patristic and then medieval homilies, then
turn to the audience, homiletic style and rhetorical devices used by the patristic preachers and
then by their medieval successors. We will study these dynamics as employed by Fathers
Augustine and John Chrysostom, and by the medieval preachers Thomas Aquinas, Anthony of
Padua, and Hildegard of Bingen, together with some secondary sources that help to illumine the
trends we will treat.
We turn first to a treatment of the structure and content of patristic preaching. In the
Fathers, the organization of a homily often incorporated Hellenistic structures. Chrysostom
follows the scriptural story fairly closely, opening the word scene by scene and line by line of
dialogue as he identifies vices and virtues exhibited. He also continuously exegetes the listener

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by naming vices and tendencies that people often have, suggesting what might be in the hearts of
listeners or characters in the story (e.g. exaggeration for persuasion, fear and hesitation, faith,
excessive mourning, fear of death).1 Augustine proceeds using a chiastic structure, organizing
parallel elements around a central interpretive key. He also stays with the chosen scriptures,
though they may be two passages for the occasion, as Chrysostom treated both Matthean and
Pauline texts in Homily 31.2 The Fathers seem to stay close to a single topic, or a single topic
with two main thrusts, and they may even bring in parallel texts to reinforce this message, as
Chrysostom did. The aspect of moral exhortation is more continuous, and the kerygmatic
mystagogic dimension remains strong, even if didactic elements are introduced as an apologetic
against certain errors of their times. Another important note is that the Fathers often decontextualize the Jewish roots of Gospel passages, taking the text literally and then building their
own allegorical and layers on the characters, places, and interactions recounted therein.3
We now turn to the structure and content of medieval preaching. The representative
samples of Thomas and Anthony betray a very deliberate organization that imports scholastic
categories appropriated from the strong tradition of Aristotle and Bothius. For example,
Aquinas Pentecost sermon opens with a short introduction and a very deliberate preview account
of the structure to follow; its delivery would have been spread over a daytime sermo and evening
collatio.4 He divides Aristotles four causes such that the formal and final cause of the descent of
the Holy Spirit are treated in the daytime sermon and its efficient and material causes are treated
in the evening collation. Within the text itself, he previews and numbers his points, a technique
1
2
3
4

Chrysostom, Homily 31 on Matthew, in vol. 10 of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First Series (Buffalo, NY:
Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1888).
Ibid. and Augustine, Sermon 12 on the New Testament, in vol. 6 of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First
Series (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1888).
cf. Augustine, Sermon 12 on the New Testament.
Peter Kwasniewski, Aquinass Sermon for the Feast of Pentecost: A Rare Glimpse of Thomas the Preaching
Friar, trans. Peter Kwasniewski and Jeremy Holmes, Faith and Reason 30:1-2 (2005): 99.

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not found in the homilies of the Fathers. It seems that any exhortative component in medieval
preaching was obtained by demonstrating truths of the faith and moral life with sufficient clarity
that the action to be undertaken became obvious; such an intellectual method is particularly true
of this Pentecost homily. The content is therefore systematic theology rooted in Sacred Scripture
and the moral Tradition of the Church. We see this in Anthony of Paduas homily on the
temptations of Christ from the First Sunday of Lent.5 Here, Anthony identifies the chief vices
that are associated with each temptation of Christ, and proceeds to treat each with their various
manifestations that we all experience (but especially monks). Again, by presenting the truths of
the faith clearly and naming the moral dynamics at work in a scriptural passage, the astute
audience (often fairly learned monks or ecclesiastics) would be able to locate themselves and
perceive the path to greater conformity to the Gospels counsels. This method is particularly
useful for monks who have professed these counsels in solemn vows and contemplate their state
in life continuously. There is also an underlying message to endure this passing life and look
forward to the next life, where the monastic marriage to Christ will be fully realized. The
monastic component is so strong because both preacher and those assembled are monks (or lived
an intensely monastic life during their training), and because monasteries had flourished as the
centers of learning and service in both word and deed.
With respect to patristic style, we find an approach that is somewhat meandering, rich in
images (especially drawn from the scriptures), and tends to mull over the topics, seeking deeper
meaning and impact from various perspectives. Chrysostom weaves the Synoptic Gospels
accounts together to obtain the composite story on which he preaches in Homily 31 on Matthew,
and continuously adverts to thematically parallel episodes in both Testaments to reinforce the

Anthony of Padua, Sermons for Sundays and Festivals, trans. Paul Spilsbury (Padova: Messaggero di
SantAntonio, 2007).

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subject of his preaching; stylistically, the homilies are replete with scripture. His treatment,
though the structure is unified, takes many detours, seeking the motivations for each characters
actions. This gives him the opportunity to explain the dynamics of various emotions, vices, and
virtues, and affords him ample room to use more figurative language. The basic themes of faith
and trust in Jesus, however, remain central. He uses rhetorical questions in both Homily 9 and
Homily 31 to engage the audience and to make the treatment personal.6 This style of questioning
introduces the next sub-point and also engages each listener to consider himself as part of the
story and the story as already part of his own life. He then employs enthymemes in order to lead
the audience along to the conclusion of moral impact. Chrysostom also constructs his own
parables, into which the audience may enter personally, and thereby feel the weight and charm of
the virtues he lifts up and the vices he condemns.
As patristic preachers often followed the text of the day very closely, so this continues
into the medieval period. As we already suggested, the additional audience of the monastery has
come into common place. This internal setting of training then colors the occasions on which
preachers would speak at universities, cathedrals, and even the country parish. Hildegard von
Bingen, an influential abbess and mystic, preached publicly with special permission, and her
preaching exemplifies the continuity of the patristic style in her twin homilies on Mark 7.7 She
steps very carefully through each verse, giving a poetic and allegorical interpretation to each
phrase after quoting the integral passage of scripture (italicized): Going out from the region of
Tyre, Jesus went through Sidon to the Sea of Galilee, through the region of the Decapolis. Born
from the Jewish people, Jesus went through the prophets to crowds of peoples who were tossed
this way and that by many things, through the region of angels and humans. We see here that
6
7

Chrysostom, Homily 9 on Matthew, and Homily 31 on Matthew, in vol. 10 of Nicene and Post-Nicene
Fathers, First Series (Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1888).
Hildegard von Bingen, The Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost, in Homilies on the Gospels, iss. 241 of
Cistercian Studies Series (2011).

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she associates Sidon with prophets, crowds tossed about with the Sea, and angels and humans
with the Decapolis. In a style reminiscent of patristic allegory, this allows her to build up her
invitation, open your hearts! while she maintains the pressure of the power of scripture and the
necessity of faith together with repeating key words of a balanced Christology that affirm both
the humanity and Divinity of Christ (Homily 49).8 In her second homily for the same feast, she
takes up a similar approach, but shifts her emphasis to the effect of the sacraments of healing and
restoring to new life in Christ. She weaves the efficacy of the gifts of the Holy Spirit (following
upon the intercession and mediation of priests) together with the inner transformation of the deaf
and mute man, who begins to preach by his humility and joy rather than out of pride.
Stylistically, Hildegard maintains frequent mentions of all of these themes as she weaves
together the homily that persistently proceeds to its conclusion, never failing to place man in
relation to God in a way that maintains his Divinity, while at the same time demonstrating how
man may truly stand together with Him. In this way, Hildegard and her contemporaries bring the
poetic appeal of the Fathers, together with their engagement of the interior life, to the
systematized and more focused treatments of the medieval monastic period.
We have explored the structure, content, audience, and style of patristic preaching and
medieval monastic preaching. We saw that patristic preaching maintained a strong scriptural
component, often using a chiastic structure layered upon the order of topics given in the text of
the day, and that the Fathers preached to the people in a way that was engaging and exposed the
interiority of the preacher as well as that of each listener. We also saw that the Fathers employed
abundant metaphors and allegorical interpretations along with rhetorical questions and parables
to achieve this effect. As we move into the medieval period, preaching becomes much more
monastic, taking on a more academic character while not abandoning the elements of preaching
8

Ibid.

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that these preachers inherited. Scholastic categories from the Aristotelian school supported an
analytical way of preaching that easily lent itself to roadmaps, numbered points, and summaries
in an innovation not seen in the Fathers. It is important to note that neither was less a master of
his craft and neither took his faith or his preaching office less seriously. Both sought to employ
all the skill they could muster to communicate saving truth to the souls in their care.
This study could have been more precise in studying either a single preacher or limiting
the inquiry to structural components, rhetorical devices, or content themes, or even the use of
scripture. Another angle would be to take up rhetorical devices that preceded a period of
preaching and determine to what extent they were incorporated into the preaching of that period.
Any one of these studies could easily yield a paper twice this length and stay within the patristic
medieval time period.

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References
Anthony of Padua. Sermons for Sundays and Festivals. Translated by Paul Spilsbury. Padova:
Messaggero di SantAntonio, 2007.
Augustine. Sermon 12 on the New Testament. In vol. 6 of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers,
First Series. Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1888.
Chrysostom. Homily 9 on Matthew. In vol. 10 of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First
Series. Edited by Philip Schaff.
Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1888.
Chrysostom. Homily 31 on Matthew. In vol. 10 of Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, First
Series. Edited by Philip Schaff.
Buffalo, NY: Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1888.
Hildegard von Bingen. The Eleventh Sunday after Pentecost. Homilies on the Gospels.
Cistercian Studies Series 241 (2011): 181-184.
Kwasniewski, Peter. Aquinass Sermon for the Feast of Pentecost: A Rare Glimpse of Thomas
the Preaching Friar. Translated by Peter Kwasniewski and Jeremy Holmes. Faith and
Reason 30:1-2 (2005): 99-139.