Saint Gregory of Nyssa (335-394)


Saint Gregory of Nyssa (335-394)
            Gregory of Nyssa was greatly influenced by his eldest sister, St Macrina, and St Basil, his elder brother. Gregory was born about the year 335, and was educated chiefly by St Basil. Hubertus Drobner wrote that Gregory was the most gifted among the three Cappadocian Fathers.[1] He first served as a lector, then later became a master of rhetorics, and got married. However, under the influence of St Gregory of Nazianzus, he joined the monastery in Pontus founded by St Basil, devoting himself to prayer and contemplation.[2] He was appointed Bishop of Nyssa. His initial years as Bishop were marked by difficulties which culminated in his deposition in 376. He returned in 378 following the death of the Arian Emperor Valens. [3] Gregory advocated for orthodoxy, and participated actively in the synods of Antioch (379) and Constantinople (381, 382, 383, and 384). He died in 394. His works include; Antirrheticus adversus Apollinarem and Oratio Catechetica Magna.



[1]  Cf. Hubertus Drobner, The Fathers of the Church, p. 277
[2]  Cf. Johannes Quaster, Patrology, p. 277
[3]  Cf. Hubertus Drobner, The Fathers of the Church, p. 278

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