Caitlyn McCloskey and Kelsey Newman 2P Gregory of Nyssa

Caitlyn McCloskey and Kelsey Newman 2P Gregory of Nyssa - Transcript

Gregory of Nyssa Caitlyn McCloskey and Kelsey Newman

Gregory of Nyssa


was born in Caesarea in the year 394 Was brother of Basil the Great and best friends with Gregory of Nazianzus His fame rests on his theological





Gregory of Nyssa


Gregory was a highly original thinker drawing inspiration from the pagan Greek philosophical schools as well as from the Jewish and Eastern Christian traditions and formulating an

Family Life


He came from a large Christian family of ten children five boys and five girls Although they did not have a lot of money Gregory was born of a very religious family





His mother Emmelia was a martyr s daughter two of his brothers Basil of C sarea and Peter of Sebaste became bishops his eldest sister



St Basil the Great and St Macrina

Gregory s Theology


As a youth he was considered a lukewarm Christian However when he was twenty some of the relics of the Forty Martyrs of Sebaste were transferred to a chapel near his home and their



He considered the priesthood decided it was not for him became a professional orator like his father married and settled down to the life of a Christian layman However his



Gregory s Theology Cont


Gregory is remembered above all for two major contributions to theology The first is his doctrine of the Trinity and second



Gregory s second main contribution is his spiritual theology

The Trinity


Gregory argues that the three Persons of the Trinity can be understood along the model of three members of a single class thus the Father Son and Holy Spirit are three in the same way that Peter Paul and Timothy are three men So why do we not say there are three Gods Gregory answers that normally we can distinguish between different members of the same class by the fact that they have



T Click icon to add picture h e T r i n i Trinity Symbol t

Infinity


Gregory is the first Christian theologian to argue for the infinity of God Gregory had argued that God is limited an essential notion in Platonism since to be limited is to be clearly defined and knowable Gregory said that since God is infinite he cannot be comprehended





Gregory s Writings


His philosophy was a form of Christian Platonism In his approach to the Scriptures he was heavily influenced by Origen and his writings on the Trinity and the Incarnation build on and develop



A central idea in Gregory s writing is the distinction between the transcendent nature and immanent energies of God and much of his thought is a working out of the implications of that

Gregory s Writings


On Making of Man deals with God as Creator and with the world as a good thing as something that God takes delight in and that ought to delight us His Great Catechism is



Bishop Gregory


In about 371 Gregory became Bishop of Nyssa a small town outside of Caesarea His brother Basil persuaded and ordained him a bishop Gregory did not







Gregory did not get along well with his flock was falsely accused of embezzling church funds fled the scene in about 376 and did not return until after the death of Valens about two years later

Cappadocian Fathers


Gregory of Nyssa St Basil the Great and Gregory of Nazianzus are known as the Cappadocian Fathers They made major contributions to the definition of the Trinity finalized at the First Council of Constantinople in 381 and the final version of the Nicene Creed which was formulated there At the council Gregory was referred to as Father of the Fathers



Cappadocian Fathers


Together the Cappadocians are credited with defining Christian orthodoxy in the Eastern Roman Empire Basil was the most politically skilled churchman of the group Gregory of Nazianzus was a brilliant orator best known for his five theological orations which succinctly summarized the Cappadocian consensus But the deepest thinker of the three was Gregory of Nyssa



Cappadocian Fathers

Basil and Gregory


Basil had a great influence on Gregory s religious life Basil persuaded Gregory to join the priesthood and ordained him a bishop even though Gregory did not want to As the eldest boy Basil was the only one of Gregory s siblings to receive a formal education So Basil in all probability became the teacher of his younger brother Gregory wrote a letter to his younger brother Peter In the letter he refers to Basil and





Gregory s Life After Basil Died


After Basil died in January 379 it became and era of activity for Gregory In 379 he assisted at the Council of Antioch which had been summoned because of the Meletian schism After the Council of Antioch he was sent to Palestine He was sent officially to remedy the disorders of the Church of Arabia He was also present at the Council of







Life After Basil Cont


He attended the Second Ecumenical Council in Constantinople which added the final section concerning the Holy Spirit to the Nicene Constantinopolitan Creed For the rest of his life Gregory continued to attend church councils discuss doctrinal matters and combat various heresies



Gregory s Death


St Gregory of Nyssa died of old age after 385 or 386 St Gregory s feast day is March 9th