oa Erasmus’ Life of John Chrysostom

John Chrysostom’s writings were very important for Erasmus. He frequently refers to them in the Annotationes in Novum Testamentum and in the Ecclesiastes he pictures the “Golden Mouth” as a model for all preachers. In the “Praefatio” of his five-volumed edition of John’s Opera (Basle 1530-1531) Erasmus included a biography, which is primarily based on the Historia ecclesiastica tripartita. In posthumous reprints of this preface in 1538 and 1539 this biography has been considerably enlarged with several passages which derive from Traversari’s Latin translation of Palladius’ Dialogus on John’s life, published in 1533. It is reasonable to assume, but not certain that Erasmus had prepared these additions himself.