then expounded on it, and finally closed with a summary and a prayer of praise. Sermons from highly regarded rabbis of this period have been preserved in the Midrash, forming part of the Talmud. Homiletics is taught as part of the typical curriculum at modern-day rabbinical seminaries. Early church According to middle second-century writer Justin Martyr, the practice of the early church was for someone to read from the "Memoirs of the Apostles or the Writings of the Prophets", meaning readings from what was to become the Christian Bible. A discourse on the text followed the reading. This was the same practice as that of the synagogues, but now with the New Testament writings added, except that in Christian churches the same person who read the scripture also explained it and there was no set lectionary of readings. Origen, a third-century theologian, preached through most books of the Old Testament and many of the New, which we have today. Origen's sermons on the scripture are expository and evangelistic. By the fourth century, a system had developed where a readings from the Law, Prophets, Epistles, and Gospels were read in that order, followed by a sermon. John Chrysostom is recognized as one of the greatest preachers of this age. His sermons begin with exegesis, followed by application to practical problems. According to the Catholic Encyclopedia: Decline in the West After the age here described preaching was on the decline in the West, partly because of the decay of the Latin language (cf. Fénelon, "Dial.", 164), and in the East, owing to the controversies on Arianism, Nestorianism, Eutychianism, Macedonianism, and other heresies. But still preaching was regarded as the chief duty of bishops; for instance, Cæsarius, Bishop of Arles, gave charge of all the temporal affairs of his diocese to deacons, that he might devote all his time to the reading of the Scriptures, to prayer, and to preaching. The next great name in preaching is that of St. Gregory the Great, particularly as a homilist. He preached twenty homilies, and dictated twenty more, because, through illness and loss of voice, he was unable to preach them personally. He urged bishops very strongly to preach; and, after holding up to them the example of the Apostles, he threatened the bishops of Sardinia. An edict was issued by King Guntram stating that the assistance of the public judges was to be used to