Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, and the Transformation of Divine Simplicity

Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, and the Transformation of Divine Simplicity
Author: Andrew Radde-Gallwitz
Publisher: Oxford University Press on Demand
Total Pages: 284
Release: 2009-10
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0199574111

Divine simplicity is the idea that, as the ultimate principle of the universe, God must be a non-composite unity not made up of parts or diverse attributes. Radde-Gallwitz explores how this idea was appropriated by early Christian theologians from non-Christian philosophy with particular reference to Basil of Caesarea and Gregory of Nyssa.

Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, and the Transformation of Divine Simplicity

Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa, and the Transformation of Divine Simplicity
Author: Andrew Radde-Gallwitz
Publisher: OUP Oxford
Total Pages: 288
Release: 2009-10-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0191571997

Divine simplicity is the idea that, as the ultimate principle of the universe, God must be a non-composite unity not made up of parts or diverse attributes. The idea was appropriated by early Christian theologians from non-Christian philosophy and played a pivotal role in the development of Christian thought. Andrew Radde-Gallwitz charts the progress of the idea of divine simplicity from the second through the fourth centuries, with particular attention to Basil of Caesarea and Gregory of Nyssa, two of the most subtle writers on this topic, both instrumental in the construction of the Trinitarian doctrine proclaimed as orthodox at the Council of Constantinople in 381. He demonstrates that divine simplicity was not a philosophical appendage awkwardly attached to the early Christian doctrine of God, but a notion that enabled Christians to articulate the consistency of God as portrayed in their scriptures. Basil and Gregory offered a unique construal of simplicity in responding to their principal doctrinal opponent, Eunomius of Cyzicus. Challenging accepted interpretations of the Cappadocian brothers and the standard account of divine simplicity in recent philosophical literature, Radde-Gallwitz argues that Basil and Gregory's achievement in transforming ideas inherited from the non-Christian philosophy of their time has an ongoing relevance for Christian theological epistemology today.

Gregory of Nyssa and the Concept of Divine Persons

Gregory of Nyssa and the Concept of Divine Persons
Author: Lucian Turcescu
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 186
Release: 2005-02-17
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0195174259

Turcescu offers an in-depth analysis of Gregory's writings about the divine persons. Turcescu's work not only contributes to our knowledge of the history of Trinitarian theology but can be helpful to theologians who are dealing with issues in contemporary ethics.

Divine Simplicity

Divine Simplicity
Author: Steven J. Duby
Publisher: Bloomsbury Publishing
Total Pages: 274
Release: 2015-12-17
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0567665690

Steven J. Duby examines the doctrine of divine simplicity. This discussion is centered around the three distinguishing features: grounding in biblical exegesis, use of Thomas Aquinas and the Reformed Orthodox; and the writings of modern systematic and philosophical theologians. Duby outlines the general history of the Christian doctrine of divine simplicity and discusses the methodological traits and essential contents of the dogmatic account. He substantiates the claims of the doctrine of divine simplicity by demonstrating that they are implied and required by the scriptural account of God. Duby considers how simplicity is inferred from God's singularity and aseity, as well as how it is inferred from God's immutability and infinity, and the Christian doctrine of creation. The discussion ends with the response to major objections to simplicity, namely that the doctrine does not pay heed to the plurality of the divine attributes, that it eradicates God's freedom in creating the world and acting toward us; and that it does not cohere with the personal distinctions to be made in the doctrine of the Trinity.

Gregory of Nyssa's Doctrinal Works

Gregory of Nyssa's Doctrinal Works
Author: Andrew Radde-Gallwitz
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 324
Release: 2018
Genre: Biography & Autobiography
ISBN: 0199668973

Gregory of Nyssa is firmly established in today's theological curriculum and is a major figure in the study of late antiquity. Students encounter him in anthologies of primary sources, in surveys of Christian history and perhaps in specialized courses on the doctrine of the Trinity, eschatology, asceticism, or the like. Gregory of Nyssa's Doctrinal Works presents a reading of the works in Gregory's corpus devoted to the dogmatic controversies of his day. Andrew Radde-Gallwitz focuses as much on Gregory the writer as on Gregory the dogmatic theologian. He sets both elements not only within the context of imperial legislation and church councils of Gregory's day, but also within their proper religious context-that is, within the temporal rhythms of ritual and sacramental practice. Gregory himself roots what we call Trinitarian theology within the church's practice of baptism. In his dogmatic treatises, where textbook accounts might lead one to expect much more on the metaphysics of substance or relation, one finds a great deal on baptismal grace; in his sermons, reflecting on the occasion of baptism tends to prompt Trinitarian questions.

Against Eunomius

Against Eunomius
Author: St. Basil of Caesarea
Publisher: Catholic University of America Press
Total Pages: 224
Release: 2011-04
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0813227186

Basil of Caesarea is considered one of the architects of the Pro-Nicene Trinitarian doctrine adopted at the Council of Constantinople in 381, which eastern and western Christians to this day profess as ""orthodox."" Nowhere is his Trinitarian theology more clearly expressed than in his first major doctrinal work, Against Eunomius, finished in 364 or 365 CE. Responding to Eunomius, whose Apology gave renewed impetus to a tradition of starkly subordinationist Trinitarian theology that would survive for decades, Basil's Against Eunomius reflects the intense controversy raging at that time among Christians across the Mediterranean world over who God is. In this treatise, Basil attempts to articulate a theology both of God's unitary essence and of the distinctive features that characterize the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit--a distinction that some hail as the cornerstone of ""Cappadocian"" theology. In Against Eunomius, we see the clash not simply of two dogmatic positions on the doctrine of the Trinity, but of two fundamentally opposed theological methods. Basil's treatise is as much about how theology ought to be done and what human beings can and cannot know about God as it is about the exposition of Trinitarian doctrine. Thus Against Eunomius marks a turning point in the Trinitarian debates of the fourth century, for the first time addressing the methodological and epistemological differences that gave rise to theological differences. Amidst the polemical vitriol of Against Eunomius is a call to epistemological humility on the part of the theologian, a call to recognize the limitations of even the best theology. While Basil refined his theology through the course of his career, Against Eunomius remains a testament to his early theological development and a privileged window into the Trinitarian controversies of the mid-fourth century.

Divine Simplicity

Divine Simplicity
Author: Jordan P. Barrett
Publisher: Fortress Press
Total Pages: 242
Release: 2017-12-01
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 150642483X

Divine Simplicity engages recent critics and address one of their major concerns: that the doctrine of divine simplicity is not a biblical teaching. By analyzing the use of Scripture by key theologians from the early church to Karl Barth, Barrett finds that divine simplicity developed in order to respond to theological errors (e.g., Eunomianism) and to avoid misreading Scripture. The volume then explains how divine simplicity can be rearticulated by following a formal analogy from the doctrine of the Trinity in which the divine attributes are identical to the divine essence but are not identical to each other.

Gregory of Nyssa, Augustine of Hippo, and the Filioque

Gregory of Nyssa, Augustine of Hippo, and the Filioque
Author: Chungman Lee
Publisher: BRILL
Total Pages: 380
Release: 2021-08-24
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 9004465162

In The Filioque Reconsidered, Chungman Lee offers a concise yet thorough evaluation of the contemporary discussion on the filioque and examines the trinitarian theologies of Gregory of Nyssa and Augustine of Hippo.

Christ, the Spirit, and Human Transformation in Gregory of Nyssa's in Canticum Canticorum

Christ, the Spirit, and Human Transformation in Gregory of Nyssa's in Canticum Canticorum
Author: Alexander L. Abecina
Publisher: Oxford University Press
Total Pages: 289
Release: 2023-09-12
Genre: Religion
ISBN: 0197745946

This book provides a comprehensive literary and theological analysis of Gregory of Nyssa's theology of union with God, culminating in a fresh reading of his final written work, In Canticum Canticorum (c.391), a collection of fifteen allegorical homilies on the Song of Songs. Part I gives the essential background for the study of In Canticum Canticorum by analysing several of Gregory's earlier works (c.370--385), tracing the main contours of his account of the human transformation and union with God. Author Alexander Abecina explores topics such as Gregory's theology of virginity and spiritual marriage, his theology of baptism, his trinitarian theology, and his Spirit-based Christology. In Part II Abecina builds on his key findings in Part I to structure a detailed analysis of In Canticum Canticorum. Engaging with the latest contemporary scholarship on Gregory of Nyssa, the author shows how Gregory's allegorical interpretation of the Song of Songs represents a corresponding account of human transformation and union with God from the perspective of subjective experience of this reality. Rather than marking a new development in Gregory's mature thought, Abecina demonstrates that the subjective experience gained from Gregory's reading of the Song of Songs recapitulates the key elements of his objective account and therefore renders coherent his earlier soteriological doctrine.