notes for the weekend: cyril of jerusalem's catechetical lectures

I’ve always been fascinated by the early church fathers, then mystified when I read them. It’s a workout, but it’s good for me. So I try to push myself pretty regularly to plumb the depths of the church, which is what led me to read St. Cyril of Jerusalem’s Catechecital Lectures.

It’s impossible for me to summarize these lectures, as they are an expansive series meant to prepare new believers for baptism, then to set them on a trajectory for faithfulness to Christ after.

What I can do is offer a few impressions/things that surprised me/things I’m still thinking about:

• Cyril clearly has a more priestly view of his ministry than most Protestants, which connects with his:

• Very high view of the sacraments. Clearly, Cyril sees any purely symbolic understanding of baptism and communion as something that does not accord with Christian belief.

• Baptism is a complicated one: he does not see it as magical, because it must be received in faith. But he certainly believe something supernatural and momentous happens when non-believers are baptized, and equates baptism with salvation-ish.

• Same with communion: Cyril clearly talks about invocation of the Spirit turning ordinary bread and wine into spiritual food.

• The ordained offices of the church were clearly much broader than those we have today, and included the ordination of deaconnesses (women).

• The demonic realm plays a large part in Cyril’s worldview. The exorcisms performed with baptism are treated as essential, and are discussed extensively.

• Cyril’s view of apostolic authority it pretty clear, and his view of the closed canon is clear as well.

• Cyril clearly has a very high view of the body, and violently opposes the idea of a “half-resurrection” of the soul only. He lectures extensively on the beauty and goodness of the body, and the resurrection. But this goes hand in hand with:

• His dedication to ascetic practice. All candidates for baptism were expected to fast and pray extensively before baptism, and periods of fasting, and chastity, are talked about as normal Christian practices as they devote themselves to prayer.

• Cyril is very concerned about the sin of “pomp”, which includes any form of frivolous entertainment, which he sees as a reflection of Satan’s character, and is extended to all forms of Greco-Roman culture. This one’s really worth thinking about, for us: the sin of frivolity.

• Catholicity is a core concept which is meant to preserve the church from error: we must believe what everyone, everywhere, has taught about the Bible.

All in all, an interesting and challenging read. I don’t pretend to follow/understand all the technicalities, but that’s also why I try to swim regularly in these waters, so that I’ll come to see Church Father as a second language.

You can find the book here.