Peter Chrysologus

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Saint Peter Chrysologus (Greek for golden word) (406–450) was the Archbishop of Ravenna from 433 to his death. He is revered as a saint by the Roman Catholic Church, and was declared a Doctor of the Church by Pope Benedict XIII in 1729.

Peter was born in Imola, where he was ordained a deacon by Cornelius, Bishop of Imola. He was made an archdeacon through the influence of Emperor Valentinian III. Pope Sixtus III appointed Peter the bishop of Ravenna in 433, apparently rejecting the candidate elected by the people of the city. He was a councilor of Pope Leo the Great. Eutyches appealed to Peter to intervene with the pope on his behalf after he was denounced by the Synod of Constantinople. The text of Peter's letter in response to Eutyches has been preserved in the Acts of the Council of Chalcedon; in it, Peter admonishes Eutyches to accecpt the ruling of the synod and to give obedience to the Bishop of Rome as the successor of Saint Peter.

Known as The Doctor of Homilies, Peter was known for his short but inspired speeches; he is said to have been afraid of boring his audience. After hearing his first homily as Archbishop, Galla Placidia is said to have given him his surname, she became the patron of many of Peter's projects. He spoke against the Arian and Monophysite teachings, condemning them as heresies, and explained topics such as the Apostles' Creed, John the Baptist, the Blessed Virgin Mary, and the mystery of the Incarnation in simple and clear language. Peter advocated the daily receipt of Holy Communion.

Peter taught Christian universalism. In one sermon on the Good Shepherd, he said the lost sheep represents the whole human race lost in Adam, and that Christ, followed the one, seeks the one in order that in the one he may restore all.^[1] He also said that "in the world to come, those who have done evil all their life long, will be made worthy of the sweetness of the Divine bounty. For never would Christ have said, 'You will never get out until you hqave paid the last penny' unless it were possible for us to get cleansed when we paid the debt."^[2]

Peter died on December 2, 450, while visiting his birthplace. His feast day is July 30. In the eighth century Bishop Felix of Ravenna preserved 176 of his homilies. Additional writings can be found in other collections.

The contemporary portrait of Peter was situated in the Church of San Giovanni Evangelista in Ravenna. On the mosaics of this church the bishop was depicted among the members of the eastern and western imperial family showing his extraordinary influence.

[edit] Quotes

"Anyone who wishes to frolic with the devil cannot rejoice with Christ."
"He is the bread sown in the virgin, leavened in the flesh, molded in his passion, baked in the furnace of the sepulchre, placed in the churches, and set upon the altars, which daily supplies heavenly food to the faithful."