Theological Term: Gregory of Nazianzus

Gregory of Nasianzus
One of the Cappadocian fathers, best friend of Basil of Caesarea, presbyter in his home church of Nanzianzus, bishop of Constantanople, and one of the Eastern Church’s “most eloquent preacher[s] in the age of the early Church fathers.”1 He lived from 330-390. Also known as Gregory the Theologian.

• From 2000 Years of Christ’s Power by N. H. Needham:

Active church live, however, was not really to Gregory’s liking; he was a sensitive, inward-looking person, who preferred writing poetry in solitude to the vicious cut-and-thrust of fighting Arians in the public arena of Church politics and theological debate. Despite, this, in 379-81 Gregory was briefly bishop of the little Catholic congregation in the Eastern capital, Constantinople, where Arianism reigned supreme. Here Gregory’s Five Theological Orations brilliantly summed up the Nicene doctrine of the Trinity, refuted Arianism, and attracted large numbers to Gregory’s church, winning them over to the Nicene faith.

Learn more:

1. Got Questions: Who was Gregory of Nanziansus? and Who were the Cappadocian Fathers?
2. Theopedia: Gregory of Nanzianzus
3. Credo Magazine: Gregory of Nanzianzus

Related terms:

• Ambrose of Milan
• Athanasius
• Basil of Caesarea
• Irenaeus of Lyons
• Justin Martyr
• Origen
• Sabellius
• Tertullian

Filed under Christian History

1From 2000 Years of Christ’s Power by N. R. Needham.

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Sunday's Hymn: Jesus, I Am Resting, Resting

Jesus, I am resting, resting
In the joy of what thou art;
I am finding out the greatness
Of thy loving heart.
Thou hast bid me gaze upon thee,
As thy beauty fills my soul,
For by thy transforming power,
Thou hast made me whole.

Jesus, I am resting, resting
In the joy of what thou art;
I am finding out the greatness
Of thy loving heart.

O how great thy lovingkindness,
Vaster, broader than the sea!
O how marvelous thy goodness
Lavished all on me!
Yes, I rest in thee, Beloved,
Know what wealth of grace is thine,
Know thy certainty of promise
And have made it mine.

Simply trusting thee, Lord Jesus,
I behold thee as thou art,
And thy love, so pure, so changeless,
Satisfies my heart;
Satisfies its deepest longings,
Meets, supplies its every need,
Compasseth me round with blessings:
Thine is love indeed.

Ever lift thy face upon me
As I work and wait for thee;
Resting ‘neath thy smile, Lord Jesus,
Earth’s dark shadows flee.
Brightness of my Father’s glory,
Sunshine of my Father’s face,
Keep me ever trusting, resting,
Fill me with thy grace.

—Jean S. Pi­gott

Other hymns of worship songs for this Sunday:

• O Happy Day, When Saints Shall Meet at The Happy Wonderer 

Selected Reading, April 24, 2021

 

Three—no four—recommendations.

Christian History

When Martyn Lloyd-Jones Confronted a Pastor Who Loved Controversy and Denunciation
I’d never heard of T. T. Shields until a few years ago when an older friend mentioned that her father had been involved in some dispute with him.

This piece from Justin Taylor contains a long quote from Iain Murray’s biography of Martyn Lloyd-Jones. Murray tells the story of of a time when Lloyd-Jones confronted Sheilds over his “wrong spirit” and “wrong methods,” which he believed spoiled Shields’ otherwise orthodox ministry.

Why Do We Say “Gospel-Centered”?
A short history of the term gospel-centered.

Basil of Caesarea
The latest important person from Christian history to get a theological terms entry. Other recent entries in this category includw Ambrose of Milan, Sabellius, and Origen.

Gospel

3 Things the Gospel Isn’t
From Ephesians 5:13-25, here are three things the gospel isn’t (Jared Wilson).