From The Great Collection of the Lives of the Saints, Volume 5: January compiled by St. Demetrius of Rostov
Saint Gregory the Theologian was born near Nazianzus, a town in Greater Cappadocia. His parents, Gregory and Nonna, were of noble ancestry and respected by all; however, the elder Gregory, being the child of a pagan father and a Jewish mother, was not a Christian in his younger years. He belonged to the sect of the Hypsistarii, which combined heathen and Judaic error. The blessed Nonna was the daughter of Christians and was herself an Orthodox Christian from childhood. She was reared in piety and perfectly instructed in the fear of God, which is the beginning of all wisdom. Providence allowed her to be wed to an infidel, so that the unbelieving husband might be sanctified by the believing wife, as the Apostle says. Nonna constantly exhorted her husband to accept the true faith, and what is more, fervently prayed for him. Eventually her entreaties secured God’s intervention. Although he did not know or wish to learn how to pray, her husband saw himself in a dream chanting the psalms of David, which he had never read before, but had only heard his wife recite. The words he intoned were the following: I was glad because of them that said unto me: let us go into the house of the Lord. As he chanted, sweet compunction filled his heart. He awoke rejoicing and told Nonna everything. She understood that God was calling her husband to His Holy Church, and began with even greater fervor to teach him about the Christian faith and urge him to the path of salvation. It so happened that Leontius, Bishop of Caesarea in Cappadocia, was passing through Nazianzus on his way to Nicaea, where the First Ecumenical Council was about to begin. The blessed Nonna took her husband to Leontius, who christened him. After his Baptism, Gregory led a God-pleasing life, as befits a true Christian. He so excelled in piety and good works that he later became Bishop of Nazianzus.
Living with such a man in honorable wedlock, Nonna naturally desired to bear him a son. She prayed to the Giver of all blessings, and even before conceiving promised, as once did Hannah, mother of Samuel, to dedicate her child to God. The Lord, Who does the will of them that fear Him and hears their supplication, fulfilled the request of that devout woman, revealing to her in a dream the birth of a son, the child’s physical appearance, and his name: Gregory, after his father. Nonna thanked God from the depths of her heart and entrusted the child to providence, offering the fruit of prayer as a gift to the Lord; however, she did not have the babe christened. In those days many Christians were not baptized as infants; instead, their initiation was deferred until they were thirty years old, the age at which Christ our Lord was baptized by John in the Jordan. Saint Gregory’s Baptism was delayed until he reached that age, in accordance with the custom. Subsequently Gregory himself, Basil the Great, Gregory of Nyssa, and other Fathers condemned this practice.
Gregory was raised in accordance with Christian principles, learned to read and write while still very young, and grew in stature and wisdom. Attentive and diligent in his studies (as befitted one bearing the name Gregory, which means “vigilant"), he surpassed in his intellectual achievements all his schoolmates. Youth did not hinder him from understanding subjects usually investigated only by those whose mental powers had reached their zenith. Childish games and pastimes held no attraction for him, and he utterly disdained spectacles of every kind, preferring to spend time wisely, pursuing his studies and striving for virtue.
Gregory approached manhood, his mother redoubled her exhortations to piety. She informed him that he was the fruit of her prayer and that even before his conception she had dedicated him to the Lord’s service. The noble youth laid up her words in his heart and was spiritually illumined by faith, hope, and love for Christ our true God. He cherished purity of soul and body and vowed to preserve his virginity until death. In this he was guided partly by his mother’s affectionate instructions and partly by a dream he had at a young age. In later life he related the dream as follows: Once, while he was sleeping, he saw two beautiful maidens in white robes, standing beside him. They were of the same age and height and were not adorned with gold, silver, pearls, precious stones, or costly necklaces; neither were they clad in soft silken garments; nor did they wear golden cinctures. They took no pride in lovely faces, luxuriant eyebrows, flowing hair, or any of the charms by which worldly maidens please and ensnare young men. Their robes were plain, clean, and white, and they were simply girt; their faces were covered by sheer veils, their eyes were lowered, their cheeks blushed with virginal modesty, and their chaste lips were red as roses. By silence they divulged their prudence and rectitude. Gregory’s heart rejoiced as he gazed at them, and he was certain they were not earthly beings, but had their origin in heaven. Sensing his joy, they lovingly embraced him as their own child. When he asked who they were and whence they had come, the first told him that her name was Chastity, and the second, Abstinence. They explained that they stood before the throne of Christ, the King of glory, delighting in the beauty of the other maidens in heaven. “Be of one mind with us, child,” they said, “and acquire a demeanor like ours, that you may shine magnificently. We will take you to the celestial realm and set you near the eternal light of the Trinity.” So saying, they ascended to heaven, as though borne on wings. Gregory’s eyes followed them upwards until they disappeared. He awakened with a heart full of ineffable joy and thenceforth remained ever aflame with zeal for the careful preservation of his virginity, which he safeguarded by unremitting restraint, eschewing savory foods, wine, and satiety.
After the holy Gregory’s birth, the blessed Nonna bore another son, Caesarius, and a daughter, Gorgonia. She reared them in piety and taught them to read and write. Meanwhile Gregory, wishing to acquaint himself more perfectly with rhetoric, philosophy, and the other branches of secular, Hellenic learning, sailed first to Caesarea of Palestine (famous at that time as a center of scholarship, and the home of the eminent rhetorician Thespesius), then to Alexandria, where he gathered treasures of wisdom from many teachers and enriched his mind. Afterwards, wishing to go to Athens, he boarded a ship full of pagans bound for Aegina. While the vessel was passing Samos, a mighty tempest arose, and passengers and crew wept bitterly in anticipation of death. Gregory, however, feared not the demise of his body, but of his soul, since he was still a catechumen. He remembered the miracles God had worked in the past, enabling Israel to walk dryshod through the Red Sea and delivering Jonah from the belly of the sea monster. With tears in his eyes, he begged the Lord to save him from drowning. While Gregory was praying, both his parents saw in a dream the ship foundering. They rose at once and fervently besought the Lord to deliver their son’s life. God, Who intended to make of Gregory a pillar of the Church and wished to preserve him for the benefit of all mankind, rebuked the winds and stilled the storm. Complete calm descended upon the deep, so that all on board, saved beyond hope from destruction and snatched from the gates of death, glorified Christ God, realizing that the sea had been calmed by Gregory’s invocation of the omnipotent name. While the tempest raged, one young man, a friend the saint had made during the voyage, beheld Gregory’s mother, the blessed Nonna, dash over the abyss, lay hold of the ship, and guide it to shore. After the uproar subsided, he related what he had seen. Everyone confessed the God of Gregory to be a mighty helper, gave thanks to Him, and believed in Him. Soon thereafter Gregory’s father had another dream. He saw a demon named Erinnus, whose abode was in the deep, attempt to drown Gregory, but the saint seized the fiend and overcame him. From this the elder Gregory understood that his son had escaped death, and he and his wife thanked God. The rest of the voyage was uneventful, and the blessed one safely arrived at his destination.
In Athens, Gregory devoted himself to his studies and was the object of astonishment, because of his keen intellect and chaste way of life. Before long Saint Basil also arrived in the city, intending to perfect his knowledge of secular philosophy. Gregory and Basil became close friends and resided together, sharing not only house and table, but the same moral character and a common spirit, like true brothers; furthermore, they attained an equal measure of wisdom. Both gained wide respect and quickly surpassed their preceptors: although students, they taught their instructors. At that time Julian, the future Emperor and apostate, was also in Athens, studying philosophy. Forseeing that he would succeed on the throne Constantius, son of Constantine the Great, and bring many evils upon the realm, Gregory frequently sighed, “Oh, what a plague the Empire of the Romans and Greeks is breeding!”
Gregory and Basil lived in Athens for many years and completed their education there. Then Basil went to Egypt, where he sat at the feet of grace-filled ascetics (as is related in his Life), but Gregory, at the insistence of the Athenians, remained in the city as a schoolmaster. Soon, however, Gregory learned that his father had been appointed Bishop of Nazianzus, and he hurried back to Cappadocia. The blessed one was then thirty years old. Upon arrival in Nazianzus, he was baptized by his father. His wish was to renounce the world at once and retire to the wilderness, but his father dissuaded him. Gregory did, however, set for himself a rule which he kept until the end of his life: never to swear or invoke the name of the Lord in vain. He gave himself over to continuous reading of holy books and reflection on God, and on several occasions beheld Christ in visions. His father compelled him to become a priest and would have made him a bishop, but Gregory was determined to avoid such high rank and the adulation that frequently accompanies it. Still aspiring to monastic stillness, he slipped away to his friend Basil, who had also been ordained to the priesthood and had written from the monastery he had founded in Pontus, inviting Gregory to join his large brotherhood. Living together as before in Athens, each saint had the other as a model of virtue. Gregory emulated Basil, and Basil, Gregory. Together they wrote a rule for those struggling in asceticism.
Saint Gregory remained with the holy Basil for some time; then his brother Caesarius died. Gregory’s father, overwhelmed by grief, wrote his surviving son and pleaded that he return and assist him in his declining years. Partly because he did not wish to disobey his father, and partly because the Church was in great turmoil on account of Arianism (to which even Gregory’s father, lacking any theological education, was somewhat inclined), the saint left Pontus. Arriving in Nazianzus, he aided his father in administering the church and their household, explained to him the dangers of the Arian heresy, and confirmed him in Orthodoxy.
After the death of Constantius, Julian became emperor. Gregory’s prophecy about him was fulfilled: the evildoer openly renounced Christ and persecuted the Church. Saint Gregory responded with many writings full of divine wisdom, in which he denounced the tyrant’s pernicious enthusiasm for heathen rites and myths. Fortunately, the transgressor did not reign for long, but perished miserably. After him Jovian, a pious Christian, mounted the throne, and the true faith briefly flourished. Jovian was succeeded by Valens, an Arian. Valens did everything in his power to foster heresy and oppress the Orthodox. At that time many of the citizens of Caesarea of Cappadocia were infected by false beliefs, and the Church of Christ was in an uproar. Eusebius, bishop of the city, being insufficiently knowledgeable in the divine Scriptures, began to waver and doubt the truths of Orthodoxy. This did not escape Gregory’s notice, and the saint wrote Eusebius, advising him to invite Abba Basil to return to Caesarea and contend against the misbelievers. He also wrote to Basil, urging that he forget Eusebius’ former jealously of him and hurry to assist the defenseless in his native city and to make steadfast the Church, shaken by the Arians. Gregory succeeded in reconciling Archbishop Eusebius and Saint Basil, who went back to Cappadocia. With Basil’s return, the Arians were quickly put to shame: some fled and the rest were silenced. Eusebius was overjoyed with Basil and lived with him peacefully until his death, after which the Orthodox chose Basil as archbishop. This infuriated the heretics and prompted them to secure the detachment of Tyana from the archdiocese of Caesarea. At that time the Bishop of Tyana was Anthimus, a heretic who feigned devotion to Orthodoxy. With the support of bishops who were of one mind with him, he assumed the title “Metropolitan of Tyana,” broke communion with Basil, and laid claim to authority over much of Cappadocia. Lengthy disputes ensued about jurisdiction in the province.
Seeing villages and cities being wrested from his archdiocese, Saint Basil decided to take action. Between Caesarea and Tyana there was an insignificant, little-known town called Sasima. Basil determined to make it the center of a diocese and give it a bishop of exceptional holiness, thereby countering the machinations of the Arians and preserving souls in piety. Since there was no one else so capable of bolstering Orthodoxy in the region as his friend Gregory, he wrote our saint, insisting that he accept appointment as Bishop of Sasima. The holy Gregory, however, absolutely refused to acquiesce. Many letters passed back and forth, and finally Basil went to Nazianzus to discuss the matter with Gregory’s father. Both men approached Saint Gregory, begged him to reconsider, and eventually convinced him to submit. When word of the consecration reached Metropolitan Anthimus of Tyana (who reckoned Sasima to be within his own diocese), he dispatched a company of soldiers to the town, with the aim of stopping Gregory from entering it. The saint was already on the way when he learned that troops had occupied Sasima. Unable to reach his see, he retired to a monastery and devoted himself to tending the ill. Afterwards he retreated to the wilderness, seeking tranquility.
Some time passed and Gregory went home, at the request of his parents. They were very old and in need of his help, especially because the blessed one was their only living child. Caesarius, their other son, had already died, as was mentioned earlier, and their daughter Gorgonia had also passed into eternity. Saint Gregory delivered eulogies at the burial of both his brother and sister. As his parents’ sole remaining consolation, the man of God could not refuse to assist them, and it was he who served their funerals.
Since Gregory’s father was already quite feeble when his son returned home, he wanted to retire from his archpastoral responsibilities and install the saint as Bishop of Nazianzus. To this end he harried Gregory with pleas and exhortations, and enjoined him with fearful oaths. The saint did not wish to leave the Church untended or disobey his father, but was adamant not to accept the see. “It is impossible for me, father,” he said, “to mount your throne while you are still alive.”
Finally the elder Gregory desisted, and asked only that his son assume the care of the Church, saying, “Be the support of my old age, and after I die, do as you wish.”
The saint’s father lived to the age of one hundred and was a bishop for forty-five years. Saint Basil the Great took part in his magnificent funeral. Nonna was still alive at the time, although she fell asleep in the Lord not long thereafter, also at the age of one hundred.
Having buried his devout parents, Saint Gregory was free of the necessity of caring for them and desired also to be free of responsibility for his father’s diocese, especially since the faithful were pressing him to accept it as his own. Consequently, he slipped away to Seleucia, where he took up his dwelling at the church of the holy protomartyr Thecla. While he was there, Basil the Great persuaded him to take charge of the almshouses and hospitals in his archdiocese. The poor, the sick, widows, orphans, and the homeless found refuge in Basil’s enormous establishments and were fed under Gregory’s supervision. Thus our saint became the nourisher of the destitute, an attendant to the ill, and the refuge of strangers.
In those days the hydra of Arianism, which had battled the Church for many years, sprouted a new head. This was the pernicious heresy of Macedonius, the blasphemer of the Holy Spirit. The Arians maintained that the Father is God uncreated and pre-eternal, but that the Son is created and neither consubstantial nor coeternal with the Father; the Macedonians acknowledged the Son’s equality with the Father, but blasphemed the Holy Spirit, some holding that He is a creature, not God, and others that He is neither a creature nor God. Saint Gregory called the Macedonians semi-Arians, because they honored the Son while derogating the Holy Spirit. Constantinople was the center of the new heresy. Basil the Great and many other Orthodox bishops took counsel and requested Saint Gregory, as a man famous for wisdom and eloquence, to go to the capital to refute the speculations of the misbelievers and defend the dogmas of the true faith. Before Gregory could leave Cappadocia, however, the universal beacon was extinguished: the holy Basil reposed. Saint Gregory bitterly lamented his friend’s death, pronounced a funeral oration over him, and only then departed for the Imperial City.
Reaching Constantinople, Gregory was greeted jubilantly by the pious, who were, however, very few. The Church of Christ was much reduced, and most of the population had been perverted by heresy. All the large, beautiful churches had been seized by the heretics, and the Orthodox possessed only a small chapel dedicated to Saint Anastasia which the ungodly had overlooked. Straightway Gregory took up the weapon of the Lord’s word against the heretics, like David who had once armed himself with a sling against the Philistines. He vanquished them in debate, sweeping away their proofs as though they were spider’s webs. Daily he converted many to Orthodoxy by his divinely inspired discourses, and soon his flock had increased manyfold. The dissenters dwindled in number, and there came to pass something like what is recorded in the Holy Scriptures about the houses of David and Saul: The house of David waxed stronger and stronger, and the house of Saul waxed weaker and weaker. Nevertheless, it would be some time before the Arian and Macedonian heresies were completely uprooted.
Meanwhile, a new heresiarch, Apollinaris, appeared in Syria. He erred concerning the Incarnation of the Lord, teaching that the divinity took the place of a soul in Christ. Being eloquent and well-educated in the Greek classics, he led astray many. His disciples travelled the Roman Empire seeking out those unlearned in theology and drawing them, as with a hook, into perdition. Never one to shrink from great feats, Gregory, the dauntless champion of Orthodoxy, challenged the adversaries to combat. He denounced, threatened, and silenced the apostates, some of whom he succeeded in raising from their fall. Likewise, he prevented many of the faithful from going astray. Knowing that drops of water, falling one by one, will eventually wear a hole in a rock, the sectarians endlessly repeated that the holy Gregory divided Christ into two persons and by this falsehood eventually succeeded in arousing the rabble against the saint. Those seduced by the cunning arguments of the miscreants or unable to understand the profound mysteries of the Incarnation of Christ took the deceivers for shepherds and Orthodox teachers, and the true shepherd and teacher of piety for a wolf and heretic. The mob rioted and stoned the saint, as the Jews once did the holy protomartyr Stephen; however, God preserved the life of His favorite. Still raging, Gregory’s enemies then dragged him to the Prefect and charged him with fomenting strife and public disorder. The saint, being meek and lowly in heart, and innocent of any crime, patiently endured the violence and prayed to Christ God, ”Though I should walk in the midst of the shadow of death, I will take shelter in Thy name, O Christ, and fear no evil, for Thou art with me.” Knowing that Gregory was blameless and the victim of malice, the Eparch released him. The holy Bishop had long desired to suffer for the Lord, to be pummeled and flogged, and this ill-treatment won him the crown of martyrdom.
On account of his exertions for the truth and his struggles against the heretics, Saint Gregory shone like a beacon. His wisdom was glorified everywhere, and throughout the holy Orthodox Church he came to be called “the Theologian,” like the great theologian of old, Saint John, the virgin and beloved disciple of Christ. Although the title “theologian” is proper to all the great teachers and holy hierarchs (for they all theologized, devoutly glorifying the Holy Trinity), it belongs to Gregory in a special way and became, as it were, his second name, testifying to his conquest of many notorious blasphemers. All of the Orthodox of the capital, fervently loving the saint, referred to him by this appellation and wished to have him as their archbishop. Moreover, Patriarch Peter of Alexandria, successor of the great Athanasius, wrote to Gregory, urging him to mount the cathedra of the Imperial City, as one who, by his labors on behalf of Christ’s Church, had proved himself worthy of the highest rank. Soon, however, malicious people found a way to hinder this.
In Constantinople there lived a pagan philosopher born in Egypt and belonging to the school of the Cynics, Maximus by name. He was extremely cunning and dishonest, and hypocritically presented himself as a candidate for Baptism to the most holy pastor and theologian Gregory. After renouncing the ungodliness of the Hellenes, he was united to the Holy Church, but continued to live wickedly, wrapping himself in the sheepskin of piety while remaining a wolf, as events soon disclosed. Gregory, the hierarch of God, did not suspect deceit, but considered Maximus’ conversion from paganism to Christianity as a great accomplishment. He allowed the dissembler to live in his house and share his table, regarded him as a friend, and made him a cleric; whereupon, that second Judas began plotting against his father and teacher. The traitor found an ally in a presbyter who had no fear of God and was experienced in perfidious ventures. Together they schemed Maximus’ elevation to the patriarchal throne of Constantinople. Because the success of their plan depended on large sums of money, they busied themselves with the accumulation of much gold, with which they planned to buy allies. Having Satan as helper, they attained their goal, in the following manner. A certain presbyter came to Constantinople from the island of Thassos, bringing a considerable quantity of gold to purchase slabs of marble quarried on Proconessus. The conspirators seduced him with empty promises, took his money (which sufficed for their wicked purpose), and sent rich gifts to Patriarch Peter of Alexandria, and his bishops and clergy. With these Maximus dispatched an urgent request that the Patriarch send hierarchs to the Imperial City to consecrate him Archbishop of Constantinople. Swayed by the presents, Peter forgot the letters he had earlier written to Saint Gregory. At his command, Egyptian bishops straightway embarked for the capital. Upon arrival, they notified neither Gregory (who was ill at the time), nor the clergy, nor any government official, but appeared with Maximus in church at Matins and prepared to elevate him to the rank of archbishop. Word of this spread quickly, and numerous presbyters, clergy, and layfolk, both Orthodox and heretics, rushed to the church, outraged by the Egyptians’ lawless intention. They shouted at the interloping bishops and interrupted the uncanonical consecration, but the trespassers withdrew to the house of a flutist and completed the act. Those lay and clerical supporters of Maximus who acclaimed the travesty were people who had either been bribed, won by promises of gifts, or excommunicated for their sins. The majority of the citizens, however, and especially the respectable element, were utterly scandalized and denounced Maximus in the harshest terms possible. Furthermore, they did not hesitate to criticize Gregory for befriending such a person and allowing him to live in his house. To this the saint responded, “Do not be angry with me for having shown him kindness: I could not foresee his evildoing. We cannot be blamed for failing to predict another’s transgressions. Only God knows the secrets of our hearts. Moreover, we are commanded by the law of the Lord to open the bowels of mercy like a father to all who appeal for help. The Saviour said, Him that cometh to Me, I will in no wise cast out. I was glad that Maximus renounced idolatry and was baptized; that he ceased to give service to Hercules and committed himself to worshipping the Holy Trinity. He seemed to be virtuous, although now his crimes have shown that he was a hypocrite from the beginning. We cannot know the thoughts of a man or anticipate his actions, unless God reveals them to us, and it is not ours to surmise what someone might do. We look upon the face, but God judges the heart.” So saying, Gregory calmed the people, and thereafter they regarded him with even greater affection.
Meanwhile, the Egyptian bishops hurried with Maximus to Thessalonica, where the pious Emperor Theodosius the Great was with the field army. Unable to establish his authority on the basis of the canons and intending to tyrannize rather than to shepherd the flock, the outcast hoped to be confirmed by the ruler as Patriarch of Constantinople, but only succeeded in enraging the devout Theodosius. The Emperor expelled Maximus and the bishops, and they took ship to Alexandria. Maximus filled with gold the hands of that city’s clergy and continued to intrigue there. He shamelessly threatened Patriarch Peter, “Either secure for me the see of Constantinople, or I will have yours!” He treacherously dug a pit for the Patriarch and would have buried him in it, had not the Eparch of Alexandria learned about his plotting. Fearing an uprising of the populace, the Prefect drove Maximus out of the city in disgrace.
About that time Gregory became so ill he had to relinquish the administration of the Church of Constantinople and was preparing to return home to Nazianzus. He determined to deliver a final homily to the flock and exhort the people to keep the faith undefiled and exercise themselves in good works, but when they learned that he was about to leave, they exclaimed as if with one voice, “If you go, father, we will be abandoned by the Holy Trinity! Without you, the Trinity will no longer be confessed rightly in this city. Orthodoxy and piety are departing with you!” The cries and lamentation convinced Gregory to remain until bishops could assemble, hold a council, and elect a patriarch. He would leave, he said, when a worthy, Orthodox pastor occupied the throne.
Meanwhile, the devout Emperor Theodosius was warring against the barbarians. After crushing them, he returned to Constantinople in triumph. Finding the Arians and their patriarch Demophilus still in control of the cathedral, and the Orthodox confined to the old chapel of Saint Anastasia, the ruler summoned Demophilus and urged him either to confess the true faith or to step down as patriarch. The hardhearted Demophilus chose to renounce his see rather than to forsake his errors. Upon this the Emperor turned over to Saint Gregory and the Orthodox the cathedral (which the Arians had held for forty years), as well as the other churches of the city. When God’s hierarch and his flock approached the great church, they were met by a mob of Arians armed for battle. The heretics refused the faithful entrance, threatened to kill the saint, and even hired a strong, audacious youth to stab Gregory with a sword. The Arians shouted wildly and threatened to riot, and surely would have resorted to violence had not the Emperor himself appeared and led the holy Bishop into the church. Raising a glad cry, the Orthodox glorified the Lord; shedding tears of joy, they lifted their hands and thanked God for returning the church to them after so many years. With one voice they begged the ruler to elevate Gregory to the patriarchal throne. Because he was much weakened by chronic illness, the saint could not make himself heard over the clamor, so he had one of the clergymen proclaim on his behalf, “Children, let us thank and glorify the one God in Trinity, Who has permitted us to take possession of this church, and let us extol His great mercy. We shall concern ourselves about the patriarchal throne later.” Hearing the hierarch’s admonition, the people restrained their enthusiasm, and after the Divine Liturgy was celebrated, they dispersed, praising God. The Arians meanwhile slunk away humiliated.
The right-believing Emperor deeply revered Gregory the Theologian as a father, but the saint did not visit him often, because he was mindful of Solomon’s words: Withdraw thy foot from thy neighbour’s house; lest he be weary of thee, and so hate thee. Instead, the blessed one spent his days teaching the people, visiting and curing the sick, helping the oppressed, defending the weak, and excising heresy from his flock. Because he loved solitude, he frequently retired to the countryside, hoping by rest to improve his frail health, so that he would be fit to undertake additional labors. Despite the fact that he controlled vast ecclesiastical properties, he never took a drachma for himself, nor did he question the stewards of the Church regarding how much they collected or spent, regarding this to be the duty not of a bishop, but of a lay administrator. He considered it his foremost responsibility to remind the members of his flock to preserve their consciences pure before God.
Once, worn out by toil and advancing age, the saint fell ill and took to bed. People came to see him, and he, sitting up, asked: “What do you want, children? Why have you come?"
The visitors did obeisance to him and expressed gratitude for his labors in cleansing the city of heresy, for securing the return to the Orthodox of churches long held by the Arians, and for benefiting everyone by his teaching and pastoral care. “And now, father,” they said, “if you are about to depart to God, pray for your flock, for the right-believing Emperor, and for the whole Church.”
The saint announced that he would soon recover, and after instructing the faithful, dismissed them. The crowd dispersed, but a young man remained behind, and laying hold of the saint’s feet, tearfully begged Gregory to remit his offense. When the holy Bishop asked what was his transgression, the youth responded by weeping more bitterly and begging forgiveness more insistently. Then one of the saint’s attendants exclaimed, “Father, this is the assassin hired by your enemies! He now repents and beseeches your pardon.”
“Beloved, may the Lord Jesus Christ be merciful to you and absolve your sins. I ask only that you renounce heresy, unite yourself to the Church, turn to Christ, and serve Him faithfully,” said Gregory. The saint did not turn him over to the civil authorities, but allowed him to leave. Word of this spread, and the entire city, amazed at the blessed hierarch’s open-heartedness, was inflamed with love for him.
Soon afterwards, bishops began arriving in Constantinople for the Second Ecumenical Council, which would elect a patriarch for the Imperial City and anathematize the heresies of Macedonius and Apollinaris. One hundred and fifty Orthodox bishops assembled and chose Saint Meletius of Antioch as president of the synod. At the request of the Emperor and all the people, they elected Gregory patriarch. The saint wept and protested that he was unfit for such high office, on account of his sins and poor health, but finally acceded to the council’s decision. Several days later, the Most Holy Patriarch Meletius fell ill and departed to the Lord. Then bishops from Egypt and Macedonia arrived, expressing dissatisfaction with Gregory’s appointment as patriarch, especially since it had taken place in their absence. They maintained that it was uncanonical, because the proceedings had been directed by the Patriarch of Antioch, not of Alexandria, and insisted that since the throne of Alexandria was second in rank after Rome, its occupant had the right to choose the Patriarch of Constantinople. Sharp disagreements and considerable disorder broke out among the hierarchs, some upholding what had been done, others objecting. Seeing that he had become the center of controversy, the holy Theologian addressed the bishops thus: “Sacred and esteemed pastors! I did not seek to rule over the Church of Constantinople, although I hope that, having furthered its growth and established it through my sweat and labors, I have pleased God and won a reward from Him. Only the love of the flock and the decision of the holy hierarchs persuaded me to mount the throne. Now I see that many have risen up against me, so I want you to know that I desire neither riches, nor high rank, nor honors, nor the title of Patriarch of the Imperial City. Without regrets I am stepping down from the episcopacy. Take counsel and do as you see fit; the wilderness has long beckoned me. They who deprive me of my throne cannot deprive me of God.”
With this Gregory transferred his residence from the patriarchate to a small house next to a church, where he lived quietly, avoiding disputes with visitors. Soon, however, crowds began thronging him and beseeching him to show compassion for his flock and not to abandon it after toiling so devotedly for its benefit. “Have mercy on your beloved children, O father!” they shouted. “You have exerted yourself for a long time on our behalf and should dedicate to us the rest of your days. We have been enlightened by your teaching and wish to have possession of your relics.” The saint’s loving, paternal heart melted like wax, and uncertain what course to take, he prayed God to order his life in accordance with the divine will.
Bishops continued arriving at the synod, disagreements multiplied, and the blessed Gregory returned to the council and delivered this exhortation: “Fellow-shepherds of the holy flock of Christ! It is shameful for you, who teach others to live in peace, to be at enmity. How can you guide the people to harmony and oneness of mind, when you do nothing but quarrel? I beg you, in the name of the all-holy, consubstantial Trinity: let concord and love rule in your midst, and tend to the affairs of the Church in a spirit of unity. I am certainly no better than the prophet Jonah, so if I have been the cause of discord, cast me overboard and calm the tempest of turmoil. Although innocent, I am ready to suffer, if my punishment will bring about reconciliation among you. Remove me from the throne, expel me from the city, but love ye truth and peace, I say with Zechariah. I wish you health, holy pastors! Do not forget my labors.”
Gregory’s opponents were put to shame and moved to compunction by his words. The saint left the council, and having decided to return to his homeland, went to the Emperor to ask permission to depart. He said to the ruler, “Your Majesty, may Christ reward you on Judgment Day for all the good you have done His Church. Now, mighty master, I come with a request. I ask not for estates, preferment for my relatives, or costly coverings for altars, but for rest from toil. I wish to see controversy end and the bishops reconciled by your mediation. O ever-victorious Emperor! As you have humbled the insolent barbarians, restore peace to the episcopacy. This you can do if you allow me to return home; therefore, I beseech you to show mercy and agree to this last favor.”
Theodosius was moved to tears, as were his nobles. The entire court ardently loved the saint and was loathe to see him go, but Gregory, citing old age and chronic illness, insisted that the Emperor release him, that he might spend his last days quietly, resting from labor. In the end the ruler agreed, and the holy Theologian, after bidding the flock farewell and bestowing the blessing upon it, departed the city. Weeping bitterly, the entire population of the capital escorted Gregory as he left. At the same time, a number of bishops who loved the saint, lamenting his withdrawal, quit the council and returned to their sees. These included Gregory of Nyssa, brother of Basil the Great; Amphilocius of Iconium; Eulogius of Edessa; Helladius of Caesarea; and Otreius of Melitene, as well as many others. The hierarchs remaining at the synod elected Nectarius as patriarch.
Upon arrival in Cappadocia, Saint Gregory settled in Arianzus, the village where he was born. There he rested, being very weak; but he did not cease altogether to labor for God, for he found Nazianzus infected with the Apollinarian heresy. By his exhortations and letters he purged it of the pestilence. When urged by the townsfolk to mount his father’s throne, the holy Theologian refused, and instead consecrated as bishop for them a devout, zealous presbyter named Eulalius. Gregory remained in Arianzus, leading a quiet life until his repose in old age. The renowned hierarch and author of numerous edifying writings died on the twenty-fifth of January. The Christians buried him reverently in Nazianzus, and many years later, during the reign of the pious Emperor Constantine Porphyrogenitus, his remains were taken to the Imperial City. The relics were enshrined in the Church of the Holy Apostles and served to protect the capital from enemies. Unto Christ God, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, be glory forever. Amen.
On this same day we commemorate our venerable father Publius of Zeugma. Prior to becoming a monk, he was a senator. After distributing his wealth among the poor, he pleased the Lord greatly by ascetic labors. We also commemorate our venerable father Mares, who was a chanter. Upon renouncing the world, he secluded himself in a hut. He lived there for thirty-seven years in a God-pleasing manner, then departed to the Lord.
On this day we commemorate the holy martyrs Felicitas and her seven sons. Saint Gregory the Dialogist, Pope of Rome, wrote a homily in praise of these saints.
Archbishop Gregory P.O. Box 3177 Buena Vista, CO 81211-3177 USA Email: ArchbishopGregory@starband.net
Copyright 2005.
