Search

Philosophical and religious voices in the imperial period and Late Antiquity emphasized individual responsibility and free will, including, from the early Christian side, anti-"Gnostic" (and later anti-Manichean) defenses of free will against determinism. This essay concentrates on the rather neglected author Bardaisan, who rejected the deterministic astrological arguments maintained by Stoics, "Gnostics," and "Chaldeans," and, like Origen, argued that human free will, as a gift of God, is not influenced by stars and zodiacal configurations at one's birth but depends on one's intellect ("ethical intellectualism"). New convergences between their ideas are pointed out, as well as Bardaisan's novel argument against "climatic" astrological determinism and its influence on later Christian authors. The essay investigates the impact that Bardaisan's antideterministic ideas exerted—sometimes without being recognized—in Late Antiquity and the ways in which his novel argument against climatic astrological determinism was received and reused. A network of reception that is ultimately closely linked to Bardaisan thus emerges. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Nearly two decades ago, Neil Spiller and architect and teacher Derek Hales had a conversation about analogue computers. With its Surreal and 'pataphysical concerns, the conversation resonated with Spiller and inspired his design for the Chicken Computer, one of the centrepieces of his 'Communicating Vessels' series of drawings and writings. Hales reflects on the curious and extraordinary ideas that this chunking engine of pecking, haptic chance provokes in him. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In his many homilies, Gregory of Nyssa contrasts Christian belief to earlier forms of belief that were still very present in the Roman empire during the fourth century, namely the classical polytheistic faith and Judaism, with the explicit intention of showing its superiority over them. Even though Gregory is clearly against any belief that is not Christian orthodoxy, he presents these other beliefs from two different perspectives: at times, he presents them as the enemies of Christianity, showing clearly how they seek to harm the true faith; at other times, he also seeks to show how, in a way, they are of benefit to Christianity because their very presence and the behaviour of their followers help to show how much the Christian way of life outshines any other. This discussion on other faiths in relation to Christian belief is present in many contexts; however, attacks on paganism are more evident in the sermons in honour of martyrs, while invectives addressed to Jews are present mainly in his sermons on biblical books. In this paper, an attempt will be made to present in detail what Gregory has to say about these other faiths and their relation to Christianity (desired and factual), concluding with how his attitude towards other faiths can be classified and described. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper aims to demonstrate the differences in the interpretation of the relationship between the concepts of matter and spirit in the works of St. Gregory of Nyssa and Pierre de Chardin. The author analyzes this problem from the point of view of Gregory's and Chardin's vision of the end of the universe, which is only apparently identical and it implies the union of everything that exists with God. What unites Grigory and Chardin is not only the fact that they base their philosophical (in Chardin's case scientific) explanations on their religious beliefs but also an attempt to overcome the dualism between matter and spirit. The author believes that the way in which they try to overcome this dualism is crucial in differentiating their conceptions of the end of the universe. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Transhumanism presents a view of human progress by transcending the human, regarding finitude and suffering to be fundamental problems that must be overcome by radical bioenhancement technologies. Recent theologians have compared Christianity and transhumanism as competing deifications via grace and technology, respectively. Ron Cole-Turner is a cautious yet optimistic interpreter of the relationship between Christian deification and transhumanism, regarding them, on the one hand, to be incompatible based on self-centeredness vs. kenosis, while on the other hand, they can be compatible through a robust theology of creation and transfiguration such that creative human efforts via technology will be an active agent in transforming the world in glory. In this way, Christian transhumanism offers a vision of human progress in deification that transfigures creation through technology. In this paper, I challenge this proposal. I wish to show how transhumanism in any stripe, whether secular, Christian, or other, is fundamentally incompatible with Christian deification for two reasons: (1) incompatible views of progress and (2) incompatible views of human agency in deification. I will address each in turn. I then propose that human progress is infinite growth in the love of Christ. Finally, I suggest how a view of human agency affects how we think about suffering as a means to human progress. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Taking into account the Trinitarian debate that spanned the 4th century, this article explores the anthropological articulation of being "in the image and likeness" of the divine, starting from the divine intentionality revealed in Christ as an open and intrinsically relational configuration. The distinction between essence and disposition (eudochia) made by Gregory of Nyssa allows the creature to consider God's freedom in creating and thus to turn to Him with the freedom to respond with ones own love to the love of the origin. Gregory, as a father and pastor, will indicate this through the image of the source, the mirror, and growth, making it possible to maintain that the Christian's relationship with others and with the world is to be taken as that of the Son turned toward the Father, in the divine Trinity, and of the Bridegroom turned toward the bride who seeks him, in the economy of salvation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Perhaps in 383, Gregory of Nyssa wrote a eulogy for the Day of Lights, which fell on 6 January and replaced the previously celebrated Epiphany. The introduction of Christmas in Cappadocia on 25 December prompted the bishop to link the January feast with the baptismal theme. In the middle part of the speech, Gregory successively cites and interprets ten different events from the Old Testament that illustrate the mystery of baptism. The combination and interpretation of these testimonies in the key of baptismal typology prompts the article’s author to look at the sources of inspiration for Gregory’s exegesis and the extent of its influence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gregory of Nyssa's interpretation of the Lord's Prayer's request for daily bread is difficult to place in the history of the petition's exegesis. Early interpreters—among them Tertullian, Cyprian, Origen, Cyril of Jerusalem, Ambrose, Augustine, and Peter Chrysologus—stressed what is often called, in Henri de Lubac's phrase, a "spiritual interpretation" of the bread as knowledge, the Eucharist, or Christian doctrine. The majority of modern commentators, in contrast, understand the petition to ask for material food. Gregory, however, troubles simple contrasts between ancient and modern and spiritual and material interpretation. In his fourth homily on the dominical prayer, he draws upon Origen's exegesis, interpretating the bread within a metaphysical framework distinguishing between the perceptible and intelligible, but Gregory understands the bread to be material bread and the necessity of eating to be central to the human creature's imitation of the impassible and immaterial God. Even more unique than this departure from the spiritual interpretation of the bread is Gregory's argument that luxury and excess—eating more than the minimum required by the body—are practices not only bad for the soul but harmful and unjust to one's neighbors. This article takes both these dynamics in turn: first, putting Gregory's interpretation in relief by comparing it not only to the spiritual interpretation of bread by Origen but also the materialist interpretations offered by Chrysostom and Theodore; and second, bringing to light Gregory's remarkable deployment of a perceptible/intelligible ontology to argue for the purpose of material sustenance and its importance for a just society. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The central postulate refers to an exercise of recovery of the category of divine philanthropy in Gregory of Nyssa, from which a connection is established with Christian life, as its model and foundation. The process starts from an exploration of the category in question in Greek philosophy, then, the use given to it in the Judeo-Christian environment, particularly in Philo of Alexandria, Clement of Alexandria, Origen of Alexandria and Athanasius of Alexandria. The exercise of reflection on the connection between divine philanthropy and Christian life can serve as an inspiration to redefine Christian life at the beginning of this century and millennium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

If the states and goals proper to the mystic are not accounted for in conceptions of moral formation and knowledge, then the object of the mystic's pursuit – the infinitely greater God – inevitably likewise lacks the centrality it deserves. Consequently, our moral wisdom is finitized. To discover afresh a way for moral theology to take the infinitely greater God as its source and end, this paper draws on Gregory of Nyssa's Life of Moses. I argue that Gregory's depiction of moral progress, epektasis, along with his corresponding scriptural hermeneutic, anagogy, present a foundation from which moral and mystical theology can exist in their proper harmony. By contextualizing moral formation within the infinite mystery of God, epektasis establishes an essential continuity between seeing and following God. Likewise, in discovering behind every literal detail of Moses' life a spiritual meaning, Gregory's anagogic hermeneutic opens the virtuous life to the mystic's transcending vision. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay addresses challenges that emerged during Advent through recent experience of lecturing at Berkeley Divinity School, the Episcopal Seminary at Yale. For many of my students, Advent 2020 presented particular challenges since they found that the recurring utilization of 'darkness' as a metaphor for sin and death did not sit easily with their commitment to anti-racist thought and practice. This essay does not attempt to provide a definitive model for how Anglicans might engage fully with Advent themes, but serves as a paper to 'think with' in which the author (a) engages with Michael Battle's work on Anglican spirituality and (b) describes how her own expertise on Gregory of Nyssa was brought to bear on present needs. The Advent focus on darkness and light, I propose, does not need to be circumvented but provides Anglicans who are attentive to the problems of racism with an opportunity to examine further their own approach to 'darkness'. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gregory of Nyssa's critiques of various forms of social injustice hinge on his rigorous theological anthropology. For Gregory, slavery, the accumulation of wealth, and the mistreatment of the poor are evil because they deny the freedom proper to human creatures created according to the divine Image. However, Gregory's anthropology also contains, we will argue, a distinct account of the ways in which humanity's difference from God – particularly its poverty and limitation – reveals important aspects of the particular and ultimately Christological mode in which finite humans imitate the infinitude God. The aim of this present essay is to articulate how both likeness and unlikeness to God – mirrors of God and mirrors of death – are integral to Gregory's theological anthropology as it pertains to various forms of social critique. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gregory's Homily 12 on the Song of Songs offers one opportunity to trace the legacies of the compelling claim, in Galatians 6:17, that Paul bears "the marks of Christ" on his body. Gregory appeals to this verse to aid his exegesis of Song 5:7 (a violent passage he calls "repellant in its plain sense") and develop his claims that "the wound", after all, is "an admirable thing". My paper probes social and ethical dimensions of this exegetical and cultural conceptual lineage. It surveys wounds and marks in Homily 12; suggests how other works by Gregory support "striking and wounding" as enacting spiritual healing (ἴασιν); considers contexts for violence in the name of guardianship and instruction in late antiquity; and closes by considering violence enacted in the name of Christianization and "civilization" in Canada's residential schools. This study embeds Gregory's treatment of Gal 6:17 in a larger attempt to raise critical questions about the persistence of benevolent understandings of trauma and violence across diverse Christian exegetical contexts and the harms such understandings may perpetuate. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Gregory’s Homily 12 on the Song of Songs offers one opportunity to trace the legacies of the compelling claim, in Galatians 6:17, that Paul bears “the marks of Christ” on his body. Gregory appeals to this verse to aid his exegesis of Song 5:7 (a violent passage he calls “repellant in its plain sense”) and develop his claims that “the wound”, after all, is “an admirable thing”. My paper probes social and ethical dimensions of this exegetical and cultural conceptual lineage. It surveys wounds and marks in Homily 12; suggests how other works by Gregory support “striking and wounding” as enacting spiritual healing (ἴασιν); considers contexts for violence in the name of guardianship and instruction in late antiquity; and closes by considering violence enacted in the name of Christianization and “civilization” in Canada’s residential schools. This study embeds Gregory’s treatment of Gal 6:17 in a larger attempt to raise critical questions about the persistence of benevolent understandings of trauma and violence across diverse Christian exegetical contexts and the harms such understandings may perpetuate.

The article is devoted to the famous alternative readings in the Gospel text ― the Only Begotten Son/Only Begotten God (John 1:18), which has a rich history in ancient theology. In the history of biblical studies, this verse is an interesting case of interaction between various types of Scripture ― Alexandrian and Byzantine. The reading under consideration ― the Only Begotten God ― refers to the ancient Alexandrian text, which has high characteristics and deservedly enjoys great confidence in biblical studies. A review and analysis of manuscript evidence based on the most recent and authoritative critical editions of the text of the New Testament Scripture, involving the latest special scientific literature. The internal expressive features of the New Testament theology and the theological language of St. John the Theologian, supporting the argument in favor of evidence of the unity of the Son and the Father. Opinions and conclusions are drawn regarding the considered phrase between the most outstanding and contemporary bibleists, including native scientists. Finally, an extensive patristic tradition of using the term Only Begotten God is attracted, which is localized in Alexandrian theology and in the adjacent individual theologians and calls for an extensive period of time of a quarter millennium from Clement to Cyril of Alexandria. On the example of this phrase, an assumption is put forward about the relationship between the Alexandrian type of the text of the New Testament and the Alexandrian theological school and tradition. The oldest cases of the use of the expression Only Begotten God in patristics also reveal another feature, possibly related to his appearance, namely, his primary circulation in the Gnostic script of Alexandrian origin (Valentine, Ptolemy, Heraclion), where, however, this name was endowed with very peculiar meanings. The most intensive period of use of the expression falls on the time of Trinitarian disputes of the fourth century, moreover, for all three conditional periods ― Arian, Omiousian and Eunomian. Relevant historical evidence is attracted and considered and a certain dynamics of use in heterodox theology is traced. Finally, the most important Orthodox theologian who widely used the name Only Begotten God turns out to be St. Gregory of Nyssa, who significantly enriched his initially Trinitarian sound by identifying Christological shades in it. For the theological interpretation of the material, the latest development of the Orthodox patristic scholar and theologian father John Behr ― the distinction of "high Christology" and "low Christology"

Abstract. The “race” to virtue is important in Gregory of Nyssa’s spiritual theology. In this article, De Vita Moysis (The Life of Moses) became the key texts for everyone who ended his life still striving for the “finish line.” The biblical patriarch Moses never set foot in the promised land but had to be content to gaze on it from afar. In a similar way, final perfection, typified in the Platonic sense as a state of undisturbed rest, eludes readers of Gregory’s The Life of Moses. In the “divine race along the course of virtue,” they are to strain “constantly” for the “prize of the heavenly calling.” The true perfection consists not in reaching the destination itself but rather in taking part in the journey, which is a process of incessant “becoming” through participation in the life of God. It means that “becoming Christian” is continuous improvement of the quality of the interior and exterior aspects of a Christian life. Abstrak. “Perjalanan” menuju kebajikan penting dalam teologi spiritual Gregorius dari Nyssa. Dalam artikel ini, “Kisah Musa” menjadi teks kunci bagi setiap orang yang mengakhiri hidupnya masih berjuang untuk “garis finis.” Tokoh Alkitab Musa tidak pernah menginjakkan kaki di tanah perjanjian tetapi harus puas melihatnya dari jauh. Dengan cara yang sama, kesempurnaan final, yang dilambangkan dalam pengertian Platonis sebagai keadaan istirahat yang tak terganggu, meloloskan pembaca “Kisah Musa” karya Gregorius. Dalam “perjalanan ilahi di sepanjang jalur kebajikan,” mereka harus “terus-menerus” berjuang untuk “hadiah panggilan surgawi.” Kesempurnaan sejati tidak terdiri dari mencapai tujuan itu sendiri melainkan mengambil bagian dalam perjalanan, yang merupakan proses “menjadi” tanpa henti melalui partisipasi dalam kehidupan Tuhan. Artinya, “menjadi Kristen” adalah perbaikan terus-menerus kualitas dalam aspek interior dan eksterior kehidupan Kristen.

Copyright of Cuestiones Teológicas is the property of Cuestiones Teologicas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Cuestiones Teológicas is the property of Cuestiones Teologicas and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Scripta & e-Scripta: The Journal of Interdisciplinary Mediaeval Studies is the property of Bulgarian Academy of Sciences, Institute of Literature and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Copyright of Comprendre: Revista Catalana de Filosofía is the property of Herder Editorial S.L. and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article explores the relations between the idea of deep incarnation and scientific ideas of an informational universe, in which mass, energy, and information belong together. It is argued that the cosmic Christologies developed in the vein of Cappadocian theology (fourth century) and the Franciscan theologian Bonaventure (thirteenth century) can be interpreted as precursors of an informational worldview by consistently blending "formative" and "material" aspects of creativity. Reversely, contemporary sciences of information can enlarge the scope of the contemporary view of deep incarnation. I propose three hypotheses for showing how and why. First, mass, energy, and information have an equal causal importance for explaining reality. Second, just as transformation presupposes communication, so communication presupposes information. Third, contemporary science can elucidate seminal concerns of the idea of deep incarnation, insofar as informational structures pave the way for information capture, communication, and transformation. At the level of organismic life, new features of embodied cognition and emotion come up, important for understanding the organismic depth of the concrete incarnation in Jesus of Nazareth. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Nasleđe is the property of University of Kragujevac, Faculty of Philology & Arts and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

Progress in virtue and perfection are central themes in Didymus the Blind. This article analyzes a series of relevant passages about the concept of perfection in virtue in the writings that have come down to us from the Alexandrian theologian and exegete, in order to clarify its articulations and briefly compare it with the notion of epektasis or endless progress, illustrated by other authors from the East, chief among whom is Saint Gregory of Nyssa. While some recent commentators have argued that Didymus himself was a proponent of epektasis, his texts reveal that he most often inclined to see spiritual perfection in a static way, closely associated to a final limit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article studies six sermons related to proper social behavior from a Christian perspective by fourth-century theologian Gregory of Nyssa. A brief comment on the dating and the context of the sermons is given before the different themes discussed in the different liturgical seasons are analyzed, and then the content of each of these sermons is explored in some depth. Following this, an analysis of the persuasive and instructive styles in these sermons is made, underlining the different ways the bishop exhorts his people according to the matters at hand. When discussing issues that set a bad example, such as the practice of usury and the rejection of correction, the language used is very harsh; in other cases, the tone is softer, such as when it comes to deciding whether one should postpone his baptism or not or how one should behave vis-à-vis the more needy in society; when dealing with sensitive issues like fornication, given the natural human weakness in this aspect, the language is much more pastoral. Finally, a comment on the narratives used concludes the study. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Progress in virtue and perfection are central themes in Didymus the Blind. This article analyzes a series of relevant passages about the concept of perfection in virtue in the writings that have come down to us from the Alexandrian theologian and exegete, in order to clarify its articulations and briefly compare it with the notion of epektasis or endless progress, illustrated by other authors from the East, chief among whom is Saint Gregory of Nyssa. While some recent commentators have argued that Didymus himself was a proponent of epektasis, his texts reveal that he most often inclined to see spiritual perfection in a static way, closely associated to a final limit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article investigates mystic apophaticism in a set of Greek Patristic theologians, profoundly informed by philosophy, especially imperial Platonism: Clement, Origen, Gregory of Nyssa, and Pseudo-Dionysius. Both the terminology and the argumentative structure will be examined in each author and important connections among themselves and with ‘pagan’ Neoplatonists (including Plotinus, Porphyry, and Proclus) will be drawn. The reciprocal interrelations among epoptics, ἔρως and ἀγάπη, epektasis, and ἐπιστροφή and ἀποκατάστασις will be pointed out. The article will argue for the intended double-reference strategy to both ‘pagan’ and Christian Platonism, as well as Dionysius’ veiled response to Porphyry qua accuser of Origen, and the meaning of the charge, levelled against Dionysius himself, of “making unholy use of Greek things”—which is what ‘pagans’ had already charged Origen with. Dionysius retorted, “it is the Greeks who make unholy use of godly things to attack God!”, and this is again what Origen had responded.

This article discusses the historical development of negative theology from its formulations in early Christianity to its later forms in Medieval Neo-Platonism. First analyzing how in early Christian thought negative theology was often used for a Christological purpose, the article goes on to discuss the implications of the Neo-Platonic notion of God as beyond being. While primarily applying a historical methodology, the article concludes by encouraging a rediscovery of the Christological orientation for negative theology found in its early Christian formulations.

This work studies the concept of moral virtue in two Saint Gregory of Nyssa'works: De professione Christiana and De perfectione, belonging to the stage immediately prior to the maturity of its author, marked above all by De vita Moysis. However, some of the characteristic theses of this last work are already traced in the first two, especially the proposal that virtue it's an overwhelming and infinite task, as infinite is the nature of God. For this reason, the article studies, first, what divine infinity consists of according to Saint Gregory, specifically following the Contra Eunomium, then does the same in relation to philosophical anthropology and, finally, exposes what moral virtue consists in the two works mentioned. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Copyright of Teologia w Polsce is the property of Society of Dogmatic Theologians and its content may not be copied or emailed to multiple sites or posted to a listserv without the copyright holder's express written permission. However, users may print, download, or email articles for individual use. This abstract may be abridged. No warranty is given about the accuracy of the copy. Users should refer to the original published version of the material for the full abstract. (Copyright applies to all Abstracts.)

This article explores the relationship between anthropology and Christology in the thought of Gregory of Nyssa. On the basis of some texts of De hominis opificio, the correlation between the anthropological paradox and the Christological paradox is analyzed. The answer to the question, how can the human being, enveloped in evil, be the image of the one who has no relationship with evil, is given by the conspiracy of opposites in Christ: life comes through death and glory through the dishonor of the cross. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This essay explores the way in which early Christian writers held an eschatological understanding of what it is to be human, something that is to be attained, through the transformation of death and resurrection, and something that requires our assent. In this context, the article offers a new reading of the late fourth‐century work entitled On the Human Image of God (otherwise known in English as On the Making of Man) by Gregory of Nyssa. It argues that Gregory structured his text in parallel to the three parts of Timaeus' speech in Plato's dialogue. The resulting picture sees creation as a dynamic ascent from the lower forms of life to the higher, a growth which is recapitulated in the life‐span of each human being, and also the growth of the human race into the totality of human beings that together constitute the human being in the image of God, the body of Christ. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article contributed to a project about Nature and Theology (Prof. Dr. J. Buitendag). The text questioned why our modern concept of nature must be reformulated in a contemporary concept of nature as the anthropocentrism of the modern concept of nature is criticised by a growing knowledge about the cohesion of many phenomena in the evolution of life on planet Earth. This criticism confronts theologians with fundamental deficiencies in their ongoing anthropological approach of life, especially human life. The article looked for a reinterpretation of mystical texts of Gregory of Nyssa in order to question whether this offers a new framework of a theological approach of a contemporary concept of nature. Contribution: Within the project about Nature and Theology new questions arise as the concept of Nature has to be reformulated based on new insights in the evolution of life. Within the debates about the Anthropocene, the planet Earth is approached as being a living reality in one way or another. So theologians have to look for new theological approaches as well. This article suggested that concepts of Gregory of Nyssa contribute in this respect. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article deals with some issues of reception and interpretation of early Christian doctrines by Russian religious thinkers of the first half of the 20th century: the teachings of Dionysius the Areopagite in A. F. Losev’s works and Gregory of Nyssa’s teachings in the works of V. I. Nesmelov. Written at the junction of two research areas — philosophy and theology, the work examines the points of intersection between the Russian religious philosophy of the Silver Age and the Christian theological teachings of the period of Orthodox dogmatics formation. For the first time, within the framework of one study, two parallels of succession are analyzed, being chosen due to some typologically common features. The author aims to search for common motives in the views of theologians and philosophers in each of the analyzed pairs, as well as to study the reasons for the emergence of interest among Russian religious thinkers in a detailed consideration of the corresponding dogmatic teaching. The paper is based on the early works of A. F. Losev, dedicated to the Areopagite Corpus, and the work of prof. V. I. Nesmelov “Dogmatic System of St. Gregory of Nyssa”. The method of comparative analysis used by the author allows identifying similarities and differences between these parallels. Some assumptions of the author shed light on the reasons that prompted Russian religious philosophers of the early 20th century to turn to the patristic teachings of early Christianity. In the course of studying, a commonality of views on certain points is revealed with both the authors, which makes it possible to justify the direction of continuity. Characteristic of the accents of V. I. Nesmelov and A. F. Losev’s own religious and philosophical views has become an important aspect of the study. Through the prism of their philosophical individuality one can see and realize the ideas on which this or that line of succession is built. As a result of the comparative analysis of both lines, the conclusion is made about the special significance of soteriological issues in the concept of V. I. Nesmelov and the onomatodox ones in the concept of A. F. Losev, as well as about the important role of patristic theological teachings in the formation of Russian religious philosophy of the Silver Age.

In the intimacy of the cordial dialogue between Macrina and Gregory in De Anima et Resurrectione, it is possible to perceive a dialectic: pathos-logos, teacher-disciple, faith-science; as well as a structuring of the dialogue inspired by the Phaedrus, in which after the thesis and the antithesis, a synthesis of the elements in question is sought as a pedagogical fruit of the dialogue. This paper will analyze the symbols of the horse and the eyes, the relationship between them in pedagogical and mystagogical terms, and the possibility of understanding education as a cor ad cor dialogue. These two rhetorical devices also present in De Vita Moysis and In Canticum Canticorum, allow the Nyssen to dialogue with philosophy and Sacred Scripture amid his theological procedure. With this in mind, this paper will analyze the introduction to the dialogue, its structure and relationship with the Phaedrus (1), the symbols of the horse and the eyes (2), some relationships with De Vita Moysis and In Canticum Canticorum and the cor ad cor pedagogy present in the texts (3). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Modern readings of the Council of Nicaea (325) show how the homousios should be considered an undue encroachment by Hellenic philosophy into the space of the purity of the biblical datum. In today's context, however, we can read such a judgement as anachronistic, as the opposition between exegesis and metaphysics is historically unfounded. Plato's own thought was born as an exegesis of myths, so the council fathers found themselves having to resolve a tension inherent in Origen theology, linked precisely to the relationship between his exegesis and the metaphysical thought inherited from the Greek context. The imperial choice of favouring a mere orthopraxis proved to be unsuccessful and therefore, in the course of the 4th century, the Cappadocian Fathers, in particular Gregory of Nyssa, had to reconcile metaphysics and exegesis with a new orthodox thought, in the light of which the krisis (judgement) operated by the Council of Nicaea acquires a new and potentially very useful value in the post-modern context. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Although the Ambigua of St Maximos the Confessor are devoted to expounding passages from St Gregory of Nazianzus, the background for Ambig. 41 lies instead, as has often been noted, in St Gregory of Nyssa. Building on my new edition and translation of St Gregory of Nyssa's On the Human Image of God (previously known as On the Making of Man), this article will examine the play in St Maximos' text between being human, on the one hand, and existence as male and female on the other, and offer new insights into the best way to translate this difficult text and into the mystery of being human. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

As Moreschini rightly pointed out (Gregorio di Nissa, Omelie sul Cantico dei Cantici, a cura di C. Moreschini, Roma 1996, p. 9), Gregory of Nyssa's Homilies on the Song of Songs "sono costruite sullo schema dell'epektasis", and it is no exaggeration to say that "esse vogliono rappresentare una serie di esperienze successive dell'anima la quale, dopo avere avuto un contatto, sia pure parziale, con lo sposo divino, approfondisce sempre di più il suo rapporto spirituale con lui". But above all about the exegesis of Ct. 1:5-6 (I am dark, but lovely, You daughters of Jerusalem, Like Kedar's tents, Like Solomon's curtains. Don't stare at me because I am dark, Because the sun has scorched me) the epektasis is placed in a wide-ranging context and takes on a new meaning in a soteriological perspective. Hence the purpose of the present study is to analyze specifically the Homilies 2 and 4, concerning the exegesis of Ct. 1:5-6, and to focus on all the theological topics (the gratuity of grace, the free acceptance of the gift of grace) with which Nyssen, now at the end of life, attributed the spiritual progress of the soul to the saving action of God, in accordance with what he had claimed, many years earlier, in De virginitate 12 ("In fact this likeness to the divine is not our work at all [...]; it is the great gift of God bestowed upon our nature at the very moment of our birth"). [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This article explores the theological thought of Gregory of Nyssa, a Church Father from the 4th century. It focuses on his understanding of the distinction between God's transcendence and immanence, and his use of apophatic and kataphatic images of God. Gregory emphasizes the unknowability and infinity of God's nature, and the limitations of human understanding and language in describing Him. He also discusses the ontological polarity between God and creation, highlighting the radical otherness of God's nature. Gregory's theology emphasizes the unity, power, and energy of the Holy Trinity, and the endless journey of relationships and knowledge of God. [Extracted from the article]

Does the idea of human enhancement presuppose a goal or an ideal to direct technological modifications? In the absence of such an agreed ideal in today's culture, can Christian theology help clarify the goal or the meaning of "perfection" when applied to human beings? A theological perspective rooted in scripture and in the writings of theologians such as Irenaeus, Athanasius, and Gregory of Nyssa suggests that theology instead of offering its own definition of the human ideal, theology rejects the possibility of any defined human goal. An analysis of the biblical word teleios ("mature" or "perfect"), along with Gregory's view of infinite ascent, leads to the conclusion that the human goal is found in relationship to the triune God and not in any anthropologically-definable status. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this article is to rethink the way scholarship conceives Gregory of Nyssa's so-called mystical theology by directing attention to his account of hostile powers in the Homilies on the Song of Songs. In recent decades, debates on "divine darkness" have governed scholarly readings of Christian progress in the homilies. However, through his allegorical commentary, Gregory also provides an extensive account of the history, ontology, and activity of the devil and demons, while also instructing Christians on how to defeat them. According to this account, only Christ is victorious in the proper sense. Therefore, believers must participate in Christ's victory by journeying the way of the Homilies on the Song of Songs. This begins with baptism and continues with self-knowing, prayer, pure thoughts, and correct worship. Therefore, these homilies—communicating Gregory's vision of "divine darkness"—also provide an extensive account of how to overcome adversarial powers whose goal is to prevent the bride's union with God. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Basil and Gregory criticized dialectics on the grounds that it tries to usurp the truths that could only be known through Revelation. Nevertheless, the Church Fathers developed natural theology in which they deliberately used arguments based on sensual cognition, human logic or philosophical tradition, and especially on common notions. Although their terminology is often inconsistent and they use technical terms interchangeably, the context provides us with clear ideas of their theses. We should admit that as, far as dialectics and philosophy were concerned, the orthodox authors despite many reservations used all possible methods to reach the truth. They favoured the Scripture and the Tradition, but also respected such sources as sensual perception, human logic or common notions and preconceptions.

This article compares the mysticism of 4th-century Church Father Gregory of Nyssa to the nomadology of 20th century philosophers Deleuze and Guattari. In their book A Thousand Plateaus, Deleuze and Guattari returned to the figure of the nomad in order to free multiplicities from the "despotic unity" of modern Enlightenment thought. Though Deleuze and Guattari compare this nomadology to spiritual journeys, they claim that their nomad, unlike the mystic, resists a center, a homecoming, a destination. Yet Gregory of Nyssa, writing before the Church itself became a hegemonic power that would confine truth to a single reified code, described the Christian as a wandering nomad, for whom the path itself is the goal. Contrary to the static vision that would be developed in the onto-theological tradition that would lead Western metaphysics to interpret mysticism as the private experience of union with the divine, Gregory of Nyssa proposes a communal movement "from beginning to beginning" with no end, and no union in sight. By placing the postmodern secular nomad alongside the premodern Christian nomad, this article will draw on similarities between the two in order to accentuate the contemporary relevance of Gregory of Nyssa's vision of mysticism. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In late Roman Egypt, a woman of high-standing named Caesaria corresponded extensively with Severus of Antioch, a bishop who had relocated to Egypt in exile. A few complete letters from their correspondence survive, and many fragments are scattered in florilegia, in biblical catenae, and as quotations in other works. The present paper argues that a reading for the Thursday after Easter found in an Ethiopic homiliary for the season of Pentecost contains three genuine excerpts from their correspondence. These three excerpts discuss the origin of evil and the resurrection of the dead, drawing on both the biblical text as well as the writings of Gregory of Nyssa. The excerpts offer important information about Severus's correspondence with Caesaria as well as the circulation of early Christian writings in early Solomonic Ethiopia. An edition and translation of the excerpts follow in the appendices. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]