Ancestry of the Three Cappadocian Fathers:

2. Ancestry of the Three Cappadocian Fathers:

3. Council of Constantinople (381): 2nd Ecumenical Council: The Cappadocian Fathers: Basil the Great (329-379) Gregory of Nazianzus (329-391) Gregory of Nyssa (330-394)

4. Basil the Great: - Baptized in 357, went to Egypt to examine monasticism - Returned to Cappadocia, brought order to monasticism there, became the ‘Father of Eastern Monasticism’ - Strong antagonist of Arianism - Treatise On the Holy Spirit rejected the heresy of subordinating the Holy Spirit - Introduced the term ‘consubstantial’

5. Basil the Great: Summary of St. Basil’s theology: “Every created spirit, human or angelic, was made with a natural spark of desire for God. The release and the realization of this built-in urge is not spontaneously achieved, but depends on the willingness of the created spirit to mould itself into conformity with the wishes of God and so to become like Him. Finally, this likeness once achieved, the spirit is free to see the beauty which it had so long desired.” - Anthony Meredith in The Cappadocians

6. Basil the Great, on the Holy Spirit: “Through the Holy Spirit comes our restoration to paradise, our ascension into the kingdom of heaven, our return to the adoption of sons, our liberty to call God our Father, our being made partakers of the grace of Christ, our being called children of light, our sharing in eternal glory, and in a word, our being brought into a state of all fullness of blessing both in this world and in the world to come, of all good gifts that are in store for us.”

7. Basil the Great on Essence and Energies of God: “Only the Son and the Holy Spirit are able to penetrate the essence of the Father, which always remains hidden from humanity. However, humans have intimate communication with God through the experience of God’s operations or energies. Thus, although the inner being of God remains a mystery inaccessible to the human mind, God enters into the lives of believers through His divine energies.”

8. Basil the Great, on the Scriptures and Tradition: “Both written and oral traditions have the same force. Rejection of legitimate oral traditions would injure the Gospel in its very vitals. Thus, the Holy Scriptures are only one manifestation of the Gospel, while the other, equally valid manifestation of the Gospel is the unwritten Tradition of the Church.”

9. Gregory of Naznianzus: - Ordained in 364, but tried to flee from being a priest, believing himself unworthy - Made Bishop of Sasima in 372 by Basil; remained in Nazianzus - Five orations in Constantinople in 375 established him as theologian, and led to his election as Bishop of Constantinople. Protested on canonical grounds, he returned to Nazianzus -Uncompromising advocate of Doctrine of the Holy Spirit and the co-eternal Trinity -Introduced the phrase ‘one nature, three hypostases’ -Introduced principle of progressive revelation of God -Could be considered the ‘theologian of divine light’ - called Mary the “Theotokos”

10. Gregory of Naznianzus: “The Father is the source of the Son, who is begotten of the Father. The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father. The begetting of God must be honored by silence… It was in a manner known to the Father who began, and to the Son who was begotten. Anything more than this is hidden by a cloud, and escapes your dim sight.”

11. Gregory of Nyssa: - Biographical writer and poet made Bishop of Nyssa in 372; exiled by Arians in 375 and returned in 378 - Flourished after Basil’s death; delivered funeral oration for the Emperor’s wife in 383 -Studied the Song of Solomon and advocated displacing physical love with spiritual - First to draw distinction between divine nature and energies - The Eucharist transforms those who receive it - Believed that ultimate restoration would include all beings - Could be considered the ‘theologian of divine darkness’ - Virtuous life is like racing in the stadium, towards God

12. Gregory of Nyssa: “One’s deification, or constant participation in the nature of God, is a process of growth closer to God that never ends.” “It is impossible to understand the essence of God through human reason. We cannot comprehend the greatness of divine nature.”

13. “The refusal to trust human reason as a means to understand God is one of the major differences between Eastern and Western Christianity. Throughout history the West has placed more and more emphasis on human reason. As a result Roman Catholic and Protestant theologians have grown further away from Eastern Orthodoxy which, faithful to its patristic heritage is highly suspect of theology based on fallible human logic.” - historian Archpriest John Morris, The Historic Church, p. 64