Saint Gregory Nazianzus
Saint Gregory Nazianzus (born c. 329 AD in Arianzus, Cappadocia, modern Turkey; died c. 390 AD in Arianzus, Cappadocia, modern Turkey) was Bishop of Sasima, briefly Archbishop of Constantinople, one of the three Cappadocian Fathers, and a Doctor of the Church. Together with Saint Basil the Great and his brother Saint Gregory of Nyssa, he articulated the definitive Trinitarian theology that was ratified at the First Council of Constantinople (381 AD). He is called the Theologian — a title shared only with Saint John the Apostle — for his five Theological Orations which are among the greatest masterworks of Christian theology. He is co-patron of the Eastern Church. His feast day is January 2 in the Roman Calendar (January 25 in the East for the Translation of his relics).
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| Saint Gregory Nazianzus | |
|---|---|
| Feast Day | January 02 |
| Profession | Bishop; theologian; Doctor of the Church; poet; preacher; archbishop |
| Rel. Affiliation | Catholic Church; Eastern Church; Cappadocian Fathers; Doctor of the Church; called ''the Theologian'' |
| Patronage | Theology; theologians; poets; those who leave high office voluntarily; the Eastern Church; Constantinople; Cappadocia |
| Attributes | Bishop's vestments; book or scroll (his theological writings); dove (the Holy Spirit, whom he defended); flame (Trinitarian theology); Cappadocian Father with Basil and Gregory of Nyssa |
| Birthplace | Arianzus, Cappadocia (near Nazianzus), modern Turkey |
| Death Place | Arianzus, Cappadocia, modern Turkey |
| Cause of Death | Natural causes; died at his family estate at Arianzus c. 390 AD after years of retirement and writing |
| Primary Shrine | Church of the Holy Apostles (historical) then Hagia Sophia / Topkapi, Istanbul — his relics were kept in Constantinople for centuries; partial relics went to Rome (at Saint Peter's Basilica and at the Church of Santa Maria in Campo Marzio); the Ecumenical Patriarchate of Constantinople also holds relics |
| Liturgical Class | Memorial (Roman Calendar, January 2, with Saint Basil the Great) |
| Historic Class | Feast (May 9 in the 1962 calendar for Gregory alone; the joint feast with Basil is post-Vatican II) |
Biography
Gregory was born around 329 AD in Arianzus, a village near Nazianzus in Cappadocia (modern central Turkey). His father was Saint Gregory the Elder, who became Bishop of Nazianzus after a late-life conversion from the Hypsistarian sect; his mother was Saint Nonna, a devout Christian who had prayed for a son and dedicated him to God before his birth. His sister Saint Gorgonia and his brother Saint Caesarius of Nazianzus (a physician) are also venerated as saints.
He studied at Caesarea in Palestine, Caesarea in Cappadocia, Alexandria, and finally Athens — where he spent ten years becoming one of the finest classical scholars of the age. At Athens he formed a deep friendship with Saint Basil the Great that would last the rest of their lives and define the Cappadocian theological project.
Against his will he was ordained a priest by his father (c. 361 AD) and then consecrated bishop of the obscure post of Sasima — a bleak crossroads town — by Basil, who needed him as an ally in the ecclesiastical politics of Cappadocia. Gregory resented this appointment bitterly and never actually lived in Sasima; he helped his aged father in Nazianzus and then withdrew to solitude at Seleucia.
In 379 AD he was called to Constantinople, which was in the hands of the Arians; the small Nicene community had been driven from its churches. Gregory began preaching in a private house he called the Anastasia (Resurrection), and gradually the tide turned. His five Theological Orations (380 AD) — on the nature of theological language, the Trinity, the Son, and the Holy Spirit — are among the most rigorous and beautiful theological texts in Christian literature. He persuaded the hesitant to affirm the full divinity of the Holy Spirit alongside Father and Son.
When the Emperor Theodosius I promulgated the Edict of Thessalonica (380 AD) making Nicene Christianity the official religion of the empire, he called Gregory to preside over the First Council of Constantinople (381 AD). The Council ratified and expanded the Nicene Creed with the Pneumatomachian additions (the Filioque was not yet in dispute) that are still recited in the liturgies of the Catholic Church, the Orthodox Church, and most Protestant denominations.
Exhausted by the theological quarreling and personal attacks during the Council, Gregory resigned the archbishopric and returned to Cappadocia. He spent his final years at Arianzus writing poetry — including his celebrated autobiographical poem De vita sua — and theological verse. He died around 390 AD.
His title the Theologian was granted by the universal Church — a title held by only two others: Saint John the Apostle and Saint Symeon the New Theologian. He was declared a Doctor of the Church.
Significant locations
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Shrines
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Known shrines
- Saint Peter's Basilica, Vatican City — partial relics; returned to the Ecumenical Patriarchate by Pope John Paul II in 2004 (partial gift of solidarity).
- Church of Santa Maria in Campo Marzio, Rome — partial relics; historically important.
- Ecumenical Patriarchate, Istanbul — relics returned from Rome.
Feast day
January 2 (with Saint Basil the Great)
Veneration
Saint Gregory Nazianzus is venerated in the Roman Catholic Church on January 2 (jointly with Saint Basil the Great) as a Memorial, and in the Eastern Churches on January 25 and January 30 (the Three Holy Hierarchs). He is a Doctor of the Church and is called the Theologian.
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