St. Peter Chrysologus (about 380–450) was bishop of Ravenna, then the capital of the Western Roman Empire, whose short, warm and vivid sermons earned him the name Chrysologus, “golden-worded.” About 180 of his sermons survive, on the Gospels, the Creed, the Our Father, the Annunciation and the Christian life; the most famous teach that prayer, fasting and mercy belong together. Pope Benedict XIII declared him a Doctor of the Church in 1729. His feast day is July 30. Below are his story, his teaching on prayer, fasting and mercy, and a prayer to St. Peter Chrysologus.
A short prayer to St. Peter Chrysologus, written for this page:
St. Peter Chrysologus, you preached the Gospel with golden words and a loving heart.
Pray that my prayer may be sincere, my fasting humble, and my mercy generous,
so that my whole life may please God. Amen.
Who was St. Peter Chrysologus?
Peter was born around 380 at Imola, in northern Italy, and was ordained a deacon by the bishop of Imola, Cornelius, whom he always revered as his spiritual father. Around 433 he became bishop of Ravenna, where the Empress Galla Placidia, who ruled for her young son, supported his work. He was a pastor more than a scholar: his sermons are short, so as not to tire his people, full of images, and practical. He fought the remnants of paganism, cared for the poor and worked for the unity of the Church; when the monk Eutyches appealed to him in a dispute over the nature of Christ, Peter answered that he should accept the judgment of the Bishop of Rome, St. Leo the Great. He died around 450 at Imola.
Prayer, fasting and mercy
In one of his Lenten sermons (Sermon 43), St. Peter teaches that prayer, fasting and mercy are three that cannot be separated, giving life to one another. In a famous phrase, oratio pulsat, impetrat ieiunium, misericordia accipit, “prayer knocks, fasting obtains, mercy receives.” Whoever fasts, he says, must show mercy, and whoever wants to be heard by God must hear the poor. The prophet Isaias taught the same (Isaias 58:6–7, Douay-Rheims):
Is not this rather the fast that I have chosen? loose the bands of wickedness, undo the bundles that oppress, let them that are broken go free, and break asunder every burden.
Deal thy bread to the hungry, and bring the needy and the harbourless into thy house: when thou shalt see one naked, cover him, and despise not thy own flesh.
See Lent and the works of mercy.
Feast day
The optional memorial of St. Peter Chrysologus, bishop and Doctor of the Church, is July 30.
Frequently asked questions
What does Chrysologus mean?
“Golden-worded,” a name given to him for his eloquent preaching.
What did St. Peter Chrysologus teach about fasting?
That fasting must go together with prayer and mercy; fasting without mercy does not please God.
When is his feast day?
July 30.
More saints
Texts and sources
- Isaias 58:6–7 (Douay-Rheims). The phrase from Sermon 43 is translated from the Latin for this page.