favourite
counsellor, Eutropius, had been at Antioch a short time before, and had
been very much struck with Chrysostom's preaching; so he advised the
emperor to choose him. Chrysostom was appointed accordingly; and, as he
was so much beloved by the people of Antioch that they might perhaps
have made a disturbance rather than part with him, he was decoyed
outside the city, and was then secretly sent off to Constantinople.
Eutropius was so worthless a man that we can hardly suppose him to have
acted from quite pure motives in this affair. Perhaps he wished to get
credit with the people for making so good a choice. Perhaps, too, he may
have hoped that he might be able to do as he liked with a bishop of his
own choosing. But if he thought so, he was much disappointed; for
Chrysostom behaved as a faithful and true pastor, without any fear of
man.

The new bishop's preaching was as much admired at Constantinople as it
had been at Antioch, and he soon gained great influence among his flock.
And besides attending diligently to his work at home, he set on foot
missions to some heathen nations, and also to the Goths, who, as we have
seen,[23] were Arians. But besides the Goths at a distance, there were
then a great number of the same people at Constantinople; for the Greeks
and Romans of those days were so much fallen away from the bravery of
their forefathers, that the emperors were obliged to hire Gothic
soldiers to defend their dominions. Chrysostom, therefore, took great
pains to bring over these Goths at Constantinople to the Church. He
ordained clergy of their own nation for them, and set apart a church for
them. And he often went himself to this church, and preached to them in
Greek, while an interpreter repeated his words to them in their own
language.

[23] Page 93.

But unhappily he soon made enemies at Constantinople. For he found the
church there in a very bad state, and, in trying to set things right, he
gave offence to many people of various kinds; and, although he was
indeed an excellent man, perhaps he did not always act with such wisdom
and such calmness of temper as might have been wished. The last bishop,
Nectarius, was a man of high rank, who had never dreamt of being a
bishop or any such thing, until at the council of Constantinople he was
suddenly chosen instead of the good Gregory.[24] At that time Nectarius
was not even baptized; so that he had first to receive baptism, and then
within a week he was