John Chrysostom on the person of Christ
Affirms both deity and humanity before the categories were fixed
For that Essence did not change to flesh, (it is impiety to imagine this,) but continuing what it is, It so took upon It the form of a servant... for by an Union and Conjoining God the Word and the Flesh are One, not by any confusion or obliteration of substances, but by a certain union ineffable, and past understanding.
THE POSITION
He affirms both sides firmly and has no formula for holding them together. Against the Docetists, "was made" means real flesh; against any notion of change, the divine essence "did not change to flesh" but remained what it is. The union he states as "an Union and Conjoining" and the distinction he states as a distinction of essence between what dwells and what is dwelt in. "Not by any confusion or obliteration of substances" anticipates Chalcedon's language; "one person in two natures" is nowhere in it.
14 The Word became flesh and made His dwelling among us. We have seen His glory, the glory of the one and only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.
1 OTHER HOLD THIS
ABOUT THIS FIGURE
Archbishop of Constantinople and the most prolific preacher of the patristic era — the largest surviving body of Greek expository preaching is his. This entry rests on the Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers translations of his homilies on Romans, 1 Corinthians, John, Hebrews and 2 Thessalonians, together with the Instructions to Catechumens.
Cite this page
"John Chrysostom on the person of Christ", Examined Doctrine, July 2026 edition, https://examineddoctrine.com/position/chrysostom/christology (archived at https://examineddoctrine.com/editions/2026-07/position/chrysostom/christology).