St. Gregory of Nyssa: Anti-Apollinarian Writings

297 Pages·1862·1.17 MB·English

by  Gregory of Nyssa

THE FATHERS
OF THE CHURCH
A NEW TRANSLATION
VOLUME 131
THE FATHERS
OF THE CHURCH
A NEW TRANSLATION
EDITORIAL BOARD
David G. Hunter
University of Kentucky
Editorial Director
Andrew Cain Joseph T. Lienhard, S.J.
University of Colorado Fordham University
Brian Daley, S.J. Rebecca Lyman
University of Notre Dame Church Divinity School of the Pacific
Susan Ashbrook Harvey Wendy Mayer
Brown University Australian Catholic University
William E. Klingshirn Robert D. Sider
The Catholic University of America Dickinson College
Trevor Lipscombe
Director
The Catholic University of America Press
FORMER EDITORIAL DIRECTORS
Ludwig Schopp, Roy J. Deferrari, Bernard M. Peebles,
Hermigild Dressler, O.F.M., Thomas P. Halton
Carole Monica C. Burnett
Staff Editor
ST. GREGORY
OF NYSSA
ANTI-APOLLINARIAN
WRITINGS
Translated, with an introduction, commentary, and notes by
ROBIN ORTON
THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA PRESS
Washington, D.C.
Copyright © 2015
THE CATHOLIC UNIVERSITY OF AMERICA PRESS
All rights reserved
Printed in the United States of America
The paper used in this publication meets the minimum requirements of the
American National Standards for Information Science—Permanence
of Paper for Printed Library Materials, ANSI z39.48-1984.
∞
English biblical quotations that are not otherwise marked or do not
constitute an intrinsic part of a patristic text have been drawn from the
New Revised Standard Version Bible, copyright 1989, Division of Christian
Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the
United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Gregory, of Nyssa, Saint, approximately 335–approximately 394.
[Works. Selections. English]
Anti-Apollinarian writings / St. Gregory of Nyssa ; translated, with an
introduction, commentary and notes, by Robin Orton.
pages cm. — (The fathers of the church, a new translation ; volume 131)
Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
ISBN 978-0-8132-2807-5 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. Jesus Christ—
History of doctrines—Early church, ca. 30–600. 2. Gregory, of Nyssa, Saint,
approximately 335–approximately 394—Correspondence.
3. Apollinaris, Bishop of Laodicea, –approximately 390—Correspondence.
4. Theophilus, patriarch, Archbishop of Alexandria,
–412—Correspondence. I. Orton, Robin, 1942– translator,
writer of supplementary textual content. II. Title.
BT1340.G74 2015
230'.14—dc23
2015009765
To my wife, Morwenna

CONTENTS
Abbreviations xi
Notes to the Reader xiii
Select Bibliography xv
Preface xvii
Introduction
Introduction 3
1. Apolinarius of Laodicea and his Christological
teachings: A Historical Sketch 3
Some problems in the historiography of Apollinarianism 3
The life of Apolinarius of Laodicea 5
The early history of Apollinarianism 7
Apollinarianism at Antioch 12
Apolinarius seeks allies 17
Apolinarius condemned in Rome 17
The tide begins to turn in the East, 378–381 19
The Council of Constantinople, 381 21
Gregory Nazianzen’s struggle with Apollinarianism, 382–387 23
Further moves against Apollinarianism in the East after 381 25
The composition of the Apodeixis 27
2. Gregory of Nyssa and Apollinarianism 28
3. The Date and Circumstances of the Composition
of antirrh and Theo 35
4. The Method of Composition and Structure
of antirrh 38
5. The Adequacy of Gregory’s Reporting of the Text
and Argumentation of the Apodeixis 41
6. Reconstructing the Structure and Argument of
the Apodeixis 43
Introduction: Defending an orthodox Christology against
Judaizers and Hellenizers 44
viii CONTENTS
Christ both divine and human 44
A defense of the unity of Christ’s person against those who
teach “two Christs” 45
Who were those who taught “two Christs”? 47
Why Christ’s manhood cannot have been complete, that is,
have included a human mind 49
Apolinarius’s trichotomous anthropology 50
Its Christological application: Christ as “enfleshed mind” 51
Christ’s will 54
Christ’s flesh 55
Christ’s glorified body 58
7. Gregory’s Argumentative Techniques in antirrh 58
8. Gregory’s Use of Scripture in antirrh 62
9. Gregory’s Critique of Apolinarius in antirrh 67
Critique of Apolinarius’s trichotomous anthropology 68
Critique of Apolinarius’s “enfleshed mind” Christology:
Introduction 68
Critique of Apolinarius’s “enfleshed mind” Christology:
Christ’s divinity 69
Critique of Apolinarius’s “enfleshed mind” Christology:
The anthropological structure of Christ’s person 70
The origin of Christ’s human flesh 72
10. Gregory’s own Christology as set out in antirrh 73
Christ is not a “God-filled man” 73
Christ is God 74
Christ is fully man 74
The unity of Christ’s person: His virginal conception 75
Christ’s will 78
The unity of Christ’s person: His glorification 79
Christ’s glorified body 81
11. Gregory’s Soteriology as set out in antirrh 82
12. An Overall Assessment of antirrh 86
13. The Christological Arguments in Theo 86
ANTI-APOLLINARIAN WRITINGS
Refutation of the Views of Apolinarius:
Translation and Commentary 91
1. Introduction 91
2. The title of Apolinarius’s work 93
CONTENTS ix
3. Apolinarius’s critique of the notion of Christ
as a “God-filled man”: Introduction 97
4. First excursus: Gregory attacks Apolinarius’s alleged
theory that the divine Logos died on the cross 100
5. Apolinarius’s critique of the notion of Christ
as a “God-filled man”: Its origin and its
condemnation by orthodox synods 102
6. Apolinarius’s critique of the notion of Christ
as a “God-filled man”: The “man from earth”
and the “man from heaven” 103
7. Apolinarius’s trichotomous anthropology
and the implication for Christology 107
8. Apolinarius’s critique of the notion of Christ
as a “God-filled man”: Implications of the
Nicene definitions 112
9. The first Adam and the second Adam 115
10. Apolinarius’s teaching on the pre-existent
Christ and the identity of Jesus with him 120
11. S econd excursus: Gregory’s teaching on how
we are saved through Christ’s humanity 126
12. Apolinarius’s teaching on the pre-existent
Christ and the identity of Jesus with him
(continued): Zechariah 13.7 and Hebrews 1.1–3 130
13. Third excursus: Gregory’s reflections on
Philippians 2.5–11 136
14. Apolinarius’s teaching on the pre-existent
Christ and the identity of Jesus with him
(continued): Philippians 2.5–11 140
15. T he divinity of Jesus: The divine mind,
eternally enfleshed 147
16. The divinity of Jesus: “Enfleshed mind” and
“God-filled man” 151
17. The divinity of Jesus: The divine mind,
eternally enfleshed (continued) 156
18. The divinity of Jesus: Arguments from Scripture 161
19. T he relationship between Christ’s divinity
and his humanity: Arguments from Scripture 169
20. The enfleshment as the assumption of a man
by God 175