Fathers

Loading…

What the Fathers say

Mark 4:18

Eastern Fathers

John Chrysostom

When the Word is choked, it is not merely due to the thorns as such, but to the negligence of those allowing them to spring up. There is a way, if there is a will, to hinder evil growth and use wealth appropriately. For this reason he warned not of "the world" but of the "care of the world"; not "riches" as such but "the deceitfulness of riches." Let us not place the blame on what we possess, but on our own corrupt mind. For it is possible to be rich and not be deceived. …

The Gospel Of St Matthew, Homily 44.7 ↗

Western Saints

Gregory the Dialogist

It should be noted that the Lord, in His explanation, says that cares, pleasures, and riches choke the word. For they choke it because by their importunate thoughts they strangle the throat of the mind; and since they do not allow good desire to enter the heart, they kill, as it were, the passage of the breath of life. It should also be noted that He joins two things with riches, namely cares and pleasures, because indeed they both oppress the mind through anxiety and dissolve it through abundance. …

Forty Gospel Homilies, Homily 15 ↗