E02298: John Chrysostom delivers a homily On the Cemetery and the Cross during a Good Friday service held at the Antiochene extramural shrine (martyrion) and cemetery, known as the Koimeterion. The service is held there, because the site has more graves than the other martyria of Antioch. Written in Greek at Antioch (Syria), 386/397.

John Chrysostom, On the Cemetery and the Cross (CPG 4337, BHG 434e)

ΕΙΣ ΤΟ ΟΝΟΜΑ ΤΟΥ ΚΟΙΜΗΤΗΡΙΟΥ
Καὶ εἰς τὸν σταυρὸν τοῦ Κυρίου καὶ Θεοῦ καὶ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ.

'On the name of the Cemetery and on the Cross of our Lord and God and Saviour Jesus Christ.

αʹ. Πολλάκις ἐζήτησα πρὸς ἐμαυτὸν, τίνος ἕνεκεν οἱ πατέρες ἡμῶν τοὺς οἴκους τοὺς εὐκτηρίους τοὺς ἐν ταῖς πόλεσι παραδραμόντες, ἔξω τῆς πόλεως ἡμᾶς σήμερον καὶ ἐνταῦθα ἐκκλησιάζειν ἐνομοθέτησαν· οὐ γὰρ ἁπλῶς, οὐδὲ εἰκῆ μοι δοκοῦσι τοῦτο πεποιηκέναι. Διὸ καὶ τὴν αἰτίαν ἐζήτησα, καὶ εὗρον τῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ χάριτι δικαίαν οὖσαν καὶ εὔλογον, καὶ τῇ παρούσῃ πρέπουσαν ἑορτῇ. Τίς οὖν ἐστιν ἡ αἰτία; Σταυροῦ μνείαν ἐπιτελοῦμεν· ὁ δὲ σταυρωθεὶς ἔξω τῆς πόλεως ἐσταυρώθη· διὰ τοῦτο ἔξω τῆς πόλεως ἡμᾶς ἤγαγον. Τῷ γὰρ ποιμένι, φησὶν, ἀκολουθεῖ τὰ πρόβατα· ἔνθα ὁ βασιλεὺς, ἐκεῖ καὶ οἱ στρατιῶται· καὶ ὅπου τὸ πτῶμα, ἐκεῖ καὶ οἱ ἀετοί. Ἀλλ’ ἔξω μὲν τῆς πόλεως διὰ τοῦτο· [.......] Τίνος δὲ ἕνεκεν ἐν τῷ μαρτυρίῳ τούτῳ, καὶ οὐχὶ ἐν ἑτέρῳ; Καὶ γὰρ τῇ τοῦ Θεοῦ χάριτι ἐξ ἑκάστης πλευρᾶς ἡ πόλις ἡμῖν τοῖς λειψάνοις τῶν ἁγίων τειχίζεται. Τίνος οὖν ἕνεκεν ἐνταῦθα, καὶ οὐκ ἐν ἄλλῳ μαρτυρίῳ συνάγεσθαι ἡμᾶς ἐκέλευσαν οἱ πατέρες; Ὅτι ἐνταῦθα τῶν νεκρῶν κεῖται πλῆθος. Ἐπεὶ οὖν σήμερον Ἰησοῦς πρὸς τοὺς νεκροὺς κατέβη, διὰ τοῦτο ἐνταῦθα συλλεγόμεθα. Διὰ τοῦτο καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ τόπος κοιμητήριον ὠνόμασται, ἵνα μάθῃς ὅτι οἱ τετελευτηκότες καὶ ἐνταῦθα κείμενοι οὐ τεθνήκασιν, ἀλλὰ κοιμῶνται καὶ καθεύδουσι.

‘I have several times asked myself why our fathers, bypassing the prayer houses which are within the cities, established that today we should hold church outside the city, at this place – for I do not believe that they did this in a meaningless or random way. I have therefore investigated the reason and, by the grace of God, have found it to be just and plausible and fitting with the present celebration. What is, then, the reason? We are celebrating the memory of the Cross, and the Crucifix was crucified outside the city, hence they brought us outside the city: for, it says, the sheep follow their shepherd; where the king is, there are also the soldiers; where there is a carcass, there the vultures gather [Matthew 24.28]. So this is the reason why we are outside the city. [.......] Now, for what reason do we gather at this shrine (martyrion) and not at another one? For, by the grace of God, our city is walled by the relics of the saints on each one of its sides. For what reason, then, did our fathers order us to assemble here and not at another shrine (martyrion)? Because here lies a multitude of dead people. Therefore, since Jesus descended to the dead today, for that reason we gather here. For this reason has this place been called koimeterion (= ‘dormitory’), so that you may learn that the deceased lying here have not died, but are asleep and resting. […]'

There follows an explanation of why death after Christ is no death, but sleep, and the sermon proceeds to the subject of the Crucifixion.

Text: Migne 1859. Translation: Efthymios Rizos..