Saint Gregory of Nazianzus: Life, Works, Quotes, Prayers
“We must remember God more often than we breathe.”
Gregory of Nazianzus was born in Cappadocia (present-day Turkey). His father was a wealthy landowner who became a bishop shortly after the Council of Nicaea in 325. Gregory began his studies in the region but soon moved to Athens, where he studied all the disciplines of the time. He wanted to become a monk, but his father fiercely opposed this, hoping to make him his successor. Although appointed bishop in 372, he did not take up his post. At the age of 45, just as he was preparing to retire to a life of hermitage, he was nominated as bishop of Constantinople, where he would showcase his talents as an orator and poet in defense of anti-Arianism. In the midst of the Council of Constantinople in 381, he resigned and retired to Nazianzus for the rest of his life, which he spent writing and publishing.
Listed among the Church Fathers, he was the originator of the doctrine of the procession of the Holy Spirit in the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed and wrote extensively on the doctrine of the Trinity, earning him the title of Doctor of the Church.
Biography of Gregory of Nazianzus
Gregory of Nazianzus was born in January 330 in Nazianzus, a town in Cappadocia. His mother came from a Christian family, but his father converted late in life and, due to his noble origins, became a bishop. At the age of 12, Gregory was sent to Caesarea in Cappadocia to begin his literary studies. It was there that he met Basil of Caesarea, who would become his close friend. He traveled to Antioch and Jerusalem before arriving in Alexandria, where he continued his studies for several years. He then set sail for Athens and was caught in a storm that threatened his life. Fearing he might die unbaptized, he promised God that he would devote himself to Him if he survived. He completed his studies in Athens, focusing on rhetoric, philosophy, and mythology. His spiritual friendship with Basil deepened when he reunited with him in Athens, where they were among the few Christian students living among the pagans. While Basil returned to Cappadocia, Gregory remained in Athens to teach rhetoric.
However, his father saw him as his worthy successor, given his thorough training in rhetoric at a time when doctrinal disputes were raging. Gregory, who had hoped to lead the life of a monk and theologian, yielded out of a sense of duty to his father and became his advisor and preacher for more than 15 years. It was there that he became a priest, somewhat against his will and on the advice of his friend Basil and his brother Gregory of Nyssa.
When Basil inherited the bishopric of Caesarea, he quickly appointed his friend Gregory to lead the diocese of Sasimes, to ensure staunch support for the tenets of the Nicene Creed, at a time when Arians held many bishoprics in the region. But the Arians rebelled and refused to accept this new appointment. Gregory then returned to Nazianzus to be with his father; he officially held the title of bishop but was unable to lead his church. He is thus considered the first auxiliary bishop in history.
After his father’s death in 374, he finally felt free to try his hand at monastic life and went into exile in a monastery, where he hoped to live out his days in peace. However, four years later, when Emperor Valens—a notorious Arian—died, an opportunity arose to reestablish the Nicene faith in Constantinople, which had been supplanted by the Arians in the capital for forty years. It was a cousin of Gregory’s who convinced him to take up the episcopal see of Constantinople. After consulting with his friend Basil, Gregory set out to defend orthodoxy in Constantinople and led a small, marginalized Christian community, even as the bishopric was headed by an Arian. He tirelessly preached his teachings on the Trinity and began to gain followers, despite the accusations of heresy and the stonings he endured. It was during this period that he wrote many of his works. When Emperor Theodosius was baptized, he chose the creed of the First Council of Nicaea, which radically shifted the balance of power between the Arians and the Nicene supporters. In 380, Gregory received the episcopal insignia for Constantinople. In 381, Emperor Theodosius convened a council. Gregory faced significant opposition from those who contested his appointment and his theological advances. Due to illness, he decided to resign from his post and returned to Nazianzus. He spent the rest of his life writing and publishing.
Works by Gregory of Nazianzus
45 discourses, including:
- Theological discourses
- A panegyric on Athanasius of Alexandria
- Funeral orations, including one for his friend Basil
- A speech against Emperor Julian
Poems, including:
- An autobiography in verse
- A tragedy on the Passion of Christ
- 242 letters, many of which were addressed to Basil of Caesarea
Quotations from Gregory of Nazianzus
"Whatever is not embraced is not saved"
"He received what comes from below in order to give what comes from above: He made Himself poor so that we might become rich in His poverty; He took the form of a slave so that we might receive freedom; He descended so that we might be exalted; He experienced temptation so that we might be glorified through it; He died so that we might be saved; He ascended to draw us after Him, we who were lying on the ground because of the fall into sin."
“We were not born for ourselves alone, but for one another—we who all share the same nature, the same origin, and the same destinies.”
“He who enriches others empties himself, for he takes on the poverty of my flesh so that I may be enriched by his divinity. He who is fullness empties himself, stripping himself of his own glory for a little while, so that I might share in his fullness.
What a treasure of goodness! What a great mystery on my behalf! I received the image and did not keep it. The Word became part of my flesh in order to save the image and make the flesh immortal! He unites himself to us through a second union, far more astonishing than the first.”
Prayers by and to Gregory of Nazianzus
Prayers by Saint Gregory of Nazianzus
“Continue...
Lord Jesus,
Continue to give me
so that I may share them,
Continue to forgive me
so that I may be forgiving,
Continue to challenge me
so that I do not withdraw into myself,
Keep asking me
so that I do not take advantage,
Keep challenging me
so that I don’t settle into a rut,
And be patient with me
so that I don’t grow weary of serving."
“O You who are beyond all things, can You be described in any other way? What words can sing of You, You whom no word can name? How could the mind perceive You, O You who cannot be perceived by any intelligent mind? You alone are unnameable, You who have created all that speech can grasp. You alone are unknowable, You who have created all that knowledge can grasp. All things, whether speaking or silent, proclaim Your glory; the desires of all, the dreams of all, revolve around You, and the prayers of all are directed toward You. The entire universe, which possesses an understanding of Your Being, sings to You a hymn of silence. Be gracious to us, O You whom we cannot name otherwise and who are beyond all things! Amen.”
Hymn of Praise to the Triune God by Saint Gregory of Nazianzus:
“Glory to God the Father and to His Son, the universal King! Glory to Him who is worthy of all praise, the Most Holy Spirit! The Trinity is one God who created and filled all things; He filled the heavens with heavenly beings, and the earth with earthly beings; He filled the sea, the rivers, and the streams with multitudes of beings that abound therein; He gives life to all, through the power of His Spirit, so that all creation may pay homage to the wisdom of its Creator, the sole cause of its life and continued existence. May man above all, a rational creature, sing Your praises in all circumstances as the Great King, as the good Father! As for me, grant that through my spirit, my soul, my tongue, and my thoughts, I may offer You pure praise, O Father! Amen.”
Prayer to Saint Gregory of Nazianzus
“We greet you, O Saint Gregory of Nazianzus, immortal Doctor, to whom both the East and the West have jointly bestowed the title of Theologian par excellence! Enlightened by the rays of the glorious Trinity, you have revealed its splendors to us, as much as our mortal eyes can glimpse them through the cloud of this life. In you was fulfilled this saying: ‘Blessed are the pure in heart, for they shall see God!’ The purity of your soul had prepared it to receive the divine light, and your inspired pen was able to convey a portion of what your soul had tasted. Obtain for us, O great Doctor, the gift of faith, which brings the creature into communion with God, and the gift of understanding, which enables the creature to comprehend what it believes. All your labors were aimed at protecting the faithful from the seductions of heresy, by making the divine dogmas shine before their eyes in all their magnificence; make us vigilant, so that we may avoid the snares of Terror, and open our eyes to the ineffable light of the mysteries—that light which, as Saint Peter says, is to us like a lamp burning in a dark place, until the day begins to dawn and the morning star rises in our hearts. Through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen. “
Expand your knowledge of the Bible with Hozana
Following in the footsteps of Gregory of Nazianzus, who worked for peace among the Churches and against the divisions that prevailed within them, let us pray this novena for .
Let us also pray to find their way back to Christ.
Hozana offers many resources to help you become more contemplative, such as:
, such as or , as well as and .
