تنتمي عائلة غريغوريوس إلى العائـلات الملاّكة الكبيرة والغنية وكانت تسـكن في بلدة تسـمّى “ARIANDOS – Ariandos” بالقرب من البلدة الصغيرة نزينـز .
His mother (Nona) (1)) She was a Christian, while his father, Gregory (2)، حاكم المدينة الأول، فكان ينتمي في بدء حياته إلى فـرقة تسمى”YPSISTARION – Uyistarion” (3) This sect mixed Jewish and pagan elements, but the wife attracted the husband to Christianity, so he was baptized. He may also have taken the name Gregory at baptism and was later bishop of Nazianzus. To Gregory, the virtuous couple gave birth to a girl and a boy, and both of them were saints: Gorgonia (who is celebrated on February 23) and Caesar (who is celebrated on February 23rd). him on February 25).
There is a difference in determining the year of birth of Gregory Jr., but scholars believe that he was born at the time when his father was a bishop, and therefore his birth may have been in the year 328 AD.
Since his youth, Gregory loved science and received his first education at the hands of his educated relatives. Then he moved to Caesarea in Cappadocia, where he was raised by Carterius the Hermit, who later headed the monasteries of Antioch, and then to Caesarea in Palestine. He always studied with his brother Caesar, who became a doctor.
Then he went to Alexandria and met Saint Athanasius and Anthony. Perhaps he heard the lectures of the blind Didmus. In Alexandria, he left his brother Caesar and set off for Athens. At sea, a violent storm arose and threatened the lives of the passengers. He decided in himself to fulfill the promise to enter the priesthood, offering himself as a gift to the Maker of the earth and the sea.
When he arrived in Athens, he met again with his friend Basil, and although they did not receive baptism at that time, they turned to the spiritual life and the scientific life, and they knew only two paths, one leading to the church and one to the university, and there they formed the first Christian student association in the world. Gregory describes his relationship with Basil and says in poetry:
“فكل الأشياء مشتركة والنفس واحدة تنقصها (لا يفصلها إلا) بُعد الأجساد للإثنين”
“ta panta men di koina kai yhch mia duoin deousa swmatwn diasta_sin”
In Athens, he continued studying rhetoric and philology, and because of his skill in these two subjects, he was chosen to be a professor later in Athens, which did not allow him to leave with Basil as they agreed while they were studying. Before he finished two years of education, he felt homesick, so he left to return to his homeland. This is considered the first escape in a series of escapes that he practiced.
Upon his arrival in Nazianzus, he also began his work there as a professor of rhetoric. But the hustle and bustle of life in this city did not suit his personality, which loved calm and tranquility. He preferred to live away from the world, and this was his second escape.
Many matters conflicted within him, but the greatest tendency was to unite rather than serve in society and in the world church.
حاول كلٌ من غريغوريوس وباسيليوس أن يجذب الآخر إلى مملكته وأرضه، فوافق في بادئ الأمر باسيليوس على البقاء مع غريغوريوس لكن في النهاية جذب باسيليوس صديقه إلى ممتلكه الخاصة قرب نهر ايريس في البنط، وهناك درسا اللاهوت معاً على أساس مؤلفات أوريجنس فوضعا الفيلوكاليا والقوانين الرهبانية، لكنهما اختلفا في نقاط معينة، فباسيليوس كان مؤيداً للعمل “Praxis” وغريغوريوس للنظر “Qewria” .فترك غريغوريوس البنط عائداً إلى وطنه.
Upon his return, he found that his father, due to his old age and his late conversion to Christianity, had signed a semi-Arian constitution out of ignorance, so the son decided to help his father, so he convinced him to sign another Orthodox constitution.
After this event, the father did not accept that his son be merely an assistant. Rather, he wanted him to be a priest of the Most High God, so he ordained him at the end of the year 361 AD. (4). لكنه أيضاً هرب ولجأ إلى رفيق الدرب وهناك دوَّن كتابه الشهير “في الهرب”. وبقي عنده بضعة أشهر (لعيد الفصح)، بعدها أقنعه باسيليوس بالعودة، فعاد لتقع مسؤولية العمل في نزينـز عليه.
He remained there for ten years and was able to bring back the parishioners who had left the church due to his father’s signing of the Arian Constitution. When Emperor Julian removed Christians from Christian education and imposed pagan education in schools, Gregory wrote several books and wrote poetry to spread upright education.
بعد موت افسافيوس انتخب باسيليوس اسقفاً على قيصرية بمساعدة والد غريغوريوس، فبدأت مرحلة جديدة في حياة غريغوريوس اللاهوتي عندما رسمه باسيليوس اسقفاً عن طريق الضغط سنة 372م. وهذه المرحلة كانت صعبة في حياته لأن باسيليوس كان يعمل على أساس مخطط لمقاومة تقسيم كبادوكية لذلك اختار غريغوريوس اسقفاً على ساسيما “Sasima” وهذه المنطقة كانت تقع تحت دائرة السلطة (5).
Gregory opposed the election because:
- First: He does not want to be a tool in the conflict that broke out between Basilius and the Emperor to divide the region.
- Secondly: Because he does not like to live in a noisy area
- Thirdly, because administrative responsibility is alien to his characteristics.
Despite all his opposition, he was ordained a bishop and announced in the sermon his acceptance of assuming responsibility, despite expressing his sadness and regret over this election. He visited Sasima without staying there, and all attempts to persuade him to return to it failed. When his hundred-year-old father and his mother died a few months later, he managed his father’s diocese, and when he realized that he would install a bishop over it, he left the place for the monastery of Saint Thecla, where he remained for years.
In 378 AD, the Arian Emperor Valens was killed in the Battle of Adrianopolis, so Gregory was invited to Constantinople to resist Arianism. (6) Rampant in the court and the army.
In Constantinople, upright believers gathered in a small church, due to the spread of Arianism and its control over most churches. There, Gregory began to deliver his sermons, and the number of believers increased little by little. (7).
وهناك ألقى غريغوريوس كلماته اللاهوتية الخمسة “في الثالوث” والتي لاقت استحساناً من الشعب لدرجة أنهم كانوا يصفقون له في الكنيسة عندما كان يلقيها والتي بسببها سُمِّيَ بـ”اللاهوتي” (8)، وبما أن هذه الكنيسة أقامت الكلمة الإلهية دُعيت بـ “كنيسة القيامة – Anastasia”.
All of this does not negate the fact that many difficulties faced our Cappadocian saint in Constantinople, including that his friend, the philosopher Maximus the Cynic, came to Constantinople and was baptized, and Gregory ordained him a priest, but Maximus was working in secret in order to install himself as patriarch, and Timothy, the Patriarch of Alexandria, helped him in that.
في عشية عيد الفصح، عام 379م، هجم جماعة من الآريوسيين على كنيسة “القيامة” ورجموها بالحجارة.
In the year 380 AD, Emperor Theodosius entered the East, deposed the Arian bishop Demophilus, declared the Orthodox faith in the empire, and handed over to Gregory the main church in Constantinople. The Emperor wanted to make Gregory Patriarch of the city, but the latter refused, considering himself unworthy of this position. But on November 27 of the same year, Gregory was admitted to the Church of the Holy Apostles as Patriarch of Constantinople.
One year later (May 381 AD), the Second Ecumenical Council was held (9) Gregory was declared Patriarch of Constantinople and was given the presidency of the Holy Council, which included 150 Eastern fathers (the West was not represented, but agreed to the ecumenism of the Council later).
لاحظ غريغوريوس ردّة فعل أساقفة مكدونية والإسكندرية تجاه تنصيبه بطريركاً على القسطنطينية “الذي حدث دون الأخذ برأيهم” لأن موافقة آباء المجمع على تنصيبه حدثت قبل وصولهم، لذلك وقبل انسحابه من المجمع ألقى خطاباً مهماً يعتبر من أمهات الأدب الخطابي، دافع فيه عن وجوده في القسطنطينية كأسقف عليها، ومن ثم ترك رئاسة المجمع لخلفه في الأسقفية نيكتاريوس.
After leaving the council, he moved to Caesarea and from there to Nazianzus to manage the affairs of the church, which had no shepherd, until his cousin Euphilius was elected as its bishop in the year 383 AD.
After that, he returned to seek peace and tranquility, so he lived in a place near the monastery that he established in the Arens region, and after that he withdrew to a mountain cave inhabiting the beasts and predators. There he composed a thousand sections of his poetry and writings to confront heresies until his death in the year 390 AD. After bequeathing everything he owned to the poor of Nazianzus Church (10).
Our church celebrates him on the 25th and 30th (with the three moons) of January. The Coptic Church celebrates it on October 4, and attributes the Gregorian Mass used in it to him, while the Western Church celebrates it on January 2.
أمضى غريغوريوس حياته يتحدث ويكتب وكانت مصنفاته عميقة وقلبية، وكتاباته تميّزت بالسمو والقوة والحرارة والخيال الخصب، ومعرفته بالخطابة والبلاغة جعلته خطيباً من الدرجة الأولى من حيث الصور والأمثال والاستعارة، حتى أنه كذّب المثل الشائع في عصره والقائل : “إنه يستحيل على المرء أن يجد خطيب وغراباً أبيضاً في كبادوكية”.
After the death of Saint Basil the Great on 1/2/379 AD, Gregory became the official spokesman. (11)، البارز، في آسيا الصغرى من أنصار مجمع نيقية ودُعي آنذاك بـ “معلّم المسكونة”.
His works can be divided into eight categories:
- تجاربه المثيرة (الدفاع عن إعتزاله في البنط، حيث يصوّر ببراعة مثال الإكليركي. “من هنا نهل الذهبي الفم ليكتب عن الكهنوت”).
- Church administration.
- Resisting the Arians: He describes the Arians and says:
“طُعم محلّى للبسطاء يخفي شصّ التجديف
An attractive face that turns right and left to attract passers-by!
A decent shoe for every foot!, Seeds sown in every wind!,
Writings that gained their strength from their baseness and deception against the truth.
كانوا حكماء في صنع الشرّ، ولكن في الصالح لم يكن لهم معرفة ونصيب” (12) - Words delivered on holidays: (Easter, Divine Appearance, Pentecost, Thomas Sunday).
- Social and moral words.
- Praises.
- Eulogy: (His brother Caesar, his sister Gregoria, his father Gregory, Basil the Great).
- Theological words.
In the five theological words, he opposes the beliefs of those who say there is no similarity between the Father and the Son. In the first, he talks about the limits of speaking theology in a correct way, stressing faith, purity, and the impotence of argument (dialctique). In the second, he emphasizes that in the world we only witness the greatness of God. In the third and fourth, he fights the creation of the son according to Arius. In the last word, he affirms that the Holy Spirit is eternal, like the Son and the Father.
His messages:
Gregory wrote many letters, of which we have reached 245 letters, most of which are personal. He exchanged letters primarily to express his thoughts and positions and also to respond to church and social needs. These letters are an honest picture of an honorable person who does not hesitate to tell the truth. His letters are concise, coherent and beautiful.
hair:
More than 400 poems are attributed to him. He wrote poetry to express his feeling and experience, to present it to young people and those who love knowledge and reading, and to show that Christians are not inferior to pagans, and to resist Julian’s decision and confront Apollinarius’ poetry and teachings.
His poems express a delicate soul seeking comfort in God's arms. His poems are classical in their language, meaning that he uses a very ancient Greek language (the language of Homer). (13)And his poetry is an important source about his life.
Gregory the Theologian wrote most of his verses in Ariens in his last years, of which he memorized 18,000 verses with a doctrinal, moral, and historical content.
His play:
ترك لنا القديس مسرحية بعنوان “صبر المسيح” وهي اقدم مسرحية مسيحية وصلتنا. أشخاص المسرحية البارزون هم يسوع والعذراء مريم ويوسف ومريم المجدلية ونيقوديموس وبيلاطس البنطي.
“في الهرب”:
Gregory begins his book on Escape by saying that the best example of a shepherd is the life of Jesus of Nazareth, who gave himself for the sake of others, and this requires striving in prayer and nourishment from the divine word. The priest devotes himself to the Holy Books, and a spring of life flows from him, so he heals, comforts, and saves.
يقول: “أنا لم أتوار في برية البنط، سوى لأنني غير مؤهَّل لسيرة قداسة مثل هذه وخوفاً من أن أُعثر الرعية إن قبلت كرسي الرعاية وأنا بعد لم أسلّم نفسي كلياً للمسيح، تواريت لأُسلِّم ذاتي للذي أَحَبَني، ليقدسني هو بنعمته، يعلمني كيف أصمت في الكنيسة وأكلّم نفسي والله (1كو 28:14) إلى أن أُمنح موهبة النبوة. أُصمت فيَّ كل اهتمام دنيوي، أُغلق أبواب حواسي وشهواتي لأنمو في النعمة فأستحق أن أكون مرآة صافية تعكس وجه السيد للآخرين.
Then I feared that if I accepted the responsibility before I allowed the Lord himself to prepare me for it, I feared that I would follow in the footsteps of some who come to the service of the altar undeservingly, as if this service is a means of earning a living, as if it were authority instead of being an example of virtue that attracts others with love (1 Peter 2:5)... If someone accepts the priesthood, he must first be refined by fire like a precious metal (1 Corinthians 3:12). A virtuous life is a difficult matter, but whoever serves the holy things without sanctifying himself brings not only judgment to himself but also judgment to others.
How do we heal others without healing ourselves first? Then what do we offer to others if we are not given from the Father to advance with virtue? It is not enough to stay away from evil, we must also, as the book recommends, strive to do good.
Pastoral work is similar to the work of a doctor, but souls resist being healed because spiritual illness is hidden, unlike physical illness, and because the priest aims not only to preserve and restore health, but seeks to deify everyone who comes to the Divine Host. Then the physician-priest treats different types of people, and from here he must change his style according to the time and circumstances. Some people are treated by extending the doctrine to them, others need a living example to follow, some need compassion and others need strictness, some are slow to understand and others devour education, some build with praise and others with reprimand, some need embrace and others do not need it, for some we set limits for them and for others We let go of the fullness of freedom. Each according to his personality, circumstances and society.
The shepherd is in front of a musical instrument that has several strings. He must adjust the strings so that they harmonize together in a melodious melody.
The priest is not made in one day. When a potter molds a pottery vessel, the priest acquires skill in care through practice and experience.
لا يجوز للكاهن أن يكون جاهلاً ولكنه أيضاً لا يتعلّم بحشو المعلومات وبنظريات لاهوتية فقط، فالرجاء بالجاهل أكثر من المحشو علماً (مع كبرياء)، الكاهن معلّم وشارح للكلمة وعليه أن يكتسب مهارة التعليم أي أن يحرر الناس من أفكارهم المسبقة، عليه أن يهدم ما في النفوس ومن ثم يبني النفس ليقودها إلى صورة المسيح . فشفتاه تذرّان بالمعرفة الإلهية لأن الرب يضيء سراجه وبه يقتحم جيوشاً وأعضاؤه تصبح أداة بيد الله…” (14).
His education 
– الإيمان والعرفان:
يوصف الآباء الكبادوكيون بأنهم أفلطونيو المذهب لكن إذا درسنا فكر غريغوريوس فإننا نكتشف في النهاية أنه ليس أفلاطونياً ولا أرسطياً ولا رواقياً، أخذ من الأفلاطونية “العقاب” كوسيلة تربوية، وأخذ مبدأ التطهير ووجود عالمين مادي وروحي واعتبار الإنسان بأنه “عالم صغير – Mikrokosmos” واستعمل ألفاظاً رواقية مثل الفضيلة والرذيلة والألم والإمساك وأخذ من أرسطو بأن الله هو المسبب الأخير للكون.
Gregory does not confront knowledge as if it existed on its own, but rather confronts it as an optional confrontation, because knowledge cannot be free of contradiction and errors. There are positive elements in gratitude, but they are not complete except through revelation, that is, through divine revelation. The problem is not the problem of gratitude itself, but rather the problem of choosing it appropriately and using it correctly.
Accordingly, Gregory does not consider philosophy to be absolutely necessary, as sometimes a simple person is more happy in his life than a philosopher.
المسيحي البسيط هو فيلسوف، لأن العرفان الذي بحسب العالم يقاوم صليب المسيح، ولذلك فالفلسفة الحقيقية هي الفلسفة بحسب المسيح. بالتعليم المسيحي لا يكتمل العرفان المسيحي فقط إنما تكتمل أيضا حكمة العهد القديم التي كانت تستند إلى الخوف، بالإعلان المسيحي تتجاوز الحكمة الخوف وترفعه إلى المحبّة، تجعلنا أصدقاء الله وابناءه بدل أن نكون عبيداً: “الحكمة التي بالمسيح يسوع أعظم من حكمة أهل هذا الدهر، حكمة المسيح نتشربها من خلال العيش في التقليد الشريف الذي يكشف لنا الحقيقة الأزلية المعلنة في الكتاب المقدس”.
المقياس الأخير ليس الإستدلال المنطقي إنما الوجود بحد ذاته، فالإنسان الذي يقوده المنطق فقط هو إنسان ارضي لأن العقل لا يحرر الإنسان ولا يقدّم له الحقيقة كاملة. الإيمان وحده يكمّل الإنسان ويجعله قادراً على رؤية الواقع الساقط. عندما يستنير العقل بقوة الإيمان يعي ما هو فوق العقل ويدرك جهله لذلك قال: “ليقِدْنا الإيمان أكثر من العقل”.
– معرفة الله:
“معرفة الله ممكنة لكنها محصورة بأنقياء القلوب”
Knowledge of God is characterized by two forms: natural knowledge and supernatural knowledge. The sources of natural detection are nature, history and human consciousness. The knowledge that comes from natural revelation is an incomplete knowledge because the simple and infinite God remains unperceived. The human mind tries to perceive God through the beauty and organization that it sees in creation. Therefore, natural knowledge of God relates to the characteristics of God’s work, while supernatural knowledge is higher because faith supports it.
Theology is not a rational approach and cannot be limited within the mental body. Therefore, man must reformulate his thoughts and feelings through his relationship with God. However, he does not speak theology in matters related to the essence of God, but rather in what revolves around God, that is, God’s works and powers.
God is not perceived by the mind, and what is perceived in Him is His infiniteness. A person can say about God that He is not comprehended, has no beginning, and is not begotten, meaning that He reveals what He is not God. (15).
عمل اللاهوتي محدود بطبيعة بحثه وبقناعته بأن معرفته لا تكتمل، حتى بولس الرسول أكّد على عدم الإدراك الكامل لله، يقول غريغوريوس: “إيليا كما نعرف من التاريخ لم يرَ طبيعة الله بل ظلالها، وبولس الرسول إذا كان يستطيع أن يعبّر عما رأى وسمع في السماء الثالثة، وبالصعود حتى ذلك المكان يمكننا أن نعرف شيئا أكثر عن الله، فلماذا لم يخبرنا عما هنالك إذا كان يعرف شيئاً من غاية الاختطاف؟
ذلك لأن بولس نفسه لم يدرك شيئاً. بل ترك لنا أن نكرّم بصمت ما عاينه وذكره، أي انه سمع كلمات سرية لا ينطق بها … إننا كمن يحاول أن يغرف ماء البحر بالوعاء … بكلامي حاولتُ أن أُبرهن أن العقل لا يستطيع أن يدرك طبيعة الملائكة فكم بالأحرى طبيعة الله التي تفوق كل شيء؟ له المجد والإكرام إلى أبد الدهور آمين” (16).
تكلّم غريغوريوس كثيراً عن الثالوث وقال أن الله واحد في ثلاثة أقانيم وإن هذه الأقانيم تتميز عن بعضها، فالآب مساوٍ للإبن دون أن يعني ذلك أن الابن هو الآب. الآب هو علّة الوجود، علة وجود الإبن وهو علّة انبثاق الروح القدس، وإن ما للآب هو للإبن والروح القدس : “لنا ربٌ واحدٌ الآب، الذي منه كل شيء، وربّ واحدٌ يسوع المسيح الذي به كل شيء، وروح قدوس واحد فيه كل شيء” (17).
ويشهد غريغوريوس كما باسيليوس وأثناسيوس (والدمشقي فيما بعد)، أن النشيد المثلث التقديس لا يقال في الإبن فقط بل في الثالوث الأقدس، فإن السارافيم القديسين في تقديسهم يظهرون لنا الأقانيم الثلاثة للاهوت الفائق الجوهر وعليه يقول غريغوريوس: “… وهكذا إذاً، فإن أقداس الأقداس التي هي محجوبة عن السارافيم أيضاً وتتلقى التمجيد بتقديسات مثلّثة تجتمع في سيادة واحدة ولاهوت واحد” (18).
القدرة الإدراكية للعقل محدودة والكائنات التي تقع تحت تأثير الحسّ لا تستطيع أن تدخل إلى أعماق العقليات، يقول غريغوريوس: “قل لي ما هي عدم الولادة وأنا سأعلّمك عن ولادة الإبن وانبثاق الروح القدس، الإنسان تتكاثر أسئلته مع كثرة معرفته، وهو يشبه من استنار لحظة واحدة ولكنه بقي في الظلام”. إلى جانب محدودية العقل وعدم قدرته على الدخول إلى سرّ الله، هناك الجسد الإنساني الذي يعيق القوّة النسبية الموجودة في العقل. فالجسد بعد السقوط صار أكثر كثافة والعقل نفسه صار كثيفاً ومادياً لكن هذه المحدودية في الجسد ليست عقاباً لإنسان بل تربية له.
– الخليقة والخالق:
يقسم غريغوريوس الخليقة إلى ثلاثة أقسام، فيقول أولاً، أقرب إلى الله الطبائع العقلية وأبعد منه الطبائع الحسّية، وابعد شيء هو الوجود الذي لا نفس له ولا حسّ، وأما أول الخلائق بالنسبة له فكانت الملائكة الذين وُجدوا قبل الخليقة كلها “لأن الله فكّر بالقوات الملائكية والسماوية فكان تفكيره عملاً” (19).
Man is created in the image of God, and Origen's opinion does not say that souls are created before bodies. Rather, he believes that the soul comes to man upon conception, and that this soul does not die at the moment of death, but rather rises and returns to its Creator. Because of the fall, man began to die. Sin introduced death, and death began to make sin sweet and sweet.
Everything in the universe changes from one hour to the next, and everything occurs and perishes. Life and death, which are considered two contradictory ideas, exist and exchange roles. Life begins with corruption, and a person moves from corruption to corruption until his earthly life ends. Corruption is the victory of time because life passes through birth in a specific direction that cannot be returned.
But death in itself carries positive elements because true death is not the separation of the soul from the body, but rather the destruction of the soul, and the basic problem for a person is the problem of distinguishing between reality and what appears, meaning that he is afraid of what is not scary.
Believers, in their journey towards the Righteous Master, can be freed from the control of circular time because they are heading towards a stable reality free of all confusion, that is, towards transcending the present world. This does not mean that Gregory underestimates the importance and value of the world. The present world is not an obstacle that prevents us from acquiring what is established and stable. What happens and changes can be a means of acquiring new life.
The real tragedy is that a person becomes trapped within the circle of birth and death, that is, he becomes a dream that does not exist in reality. Therefore, Gregory says that a person should abandon dreams and shadows and enjoy life to the fullest.
The difference between humans and angels is that incorporeal beings are not subject to time, which limits humans. Time does not exist for spiritual beings, because in time the present turns into a dead past.
– أسباب التربية:
The basic premise of transcendent theology is a response to the heretical effort to change Christian revelation into philosophical teaching. Most of the heretics, such as Arius, Eunomius, and Sabellius, tried to study the divine revelation and prove it with purely rational statements, but this rational development of matters brings the revelation down to the human level. The existence of divine darkness is necessary and does not have a negative characteristic. The darkness that exists between God and man is like the clouds into which Moses entered. Darkness protects him from the fire of divinity just as the shadow protects man from the fire of the sun.
Man is called to enter into this divine cloud, but this requires special preparation.
– في المعمودية:
إن خدمة تقديس المياه وصلوات طرد الشياطين (الإستقسامات)، لاغنى عنها في حياة الكنيسة فهي إلى جانب فعاليتها كصلاة تحوي أيضاً تعاليم أساسية تساعد المقبل إلى المعمودية (الموعوظ) على فهم بعض الحقائق اللاهوتية الضرورية وتعكس رغبة وصبر هذا الأخير يقول غريغوريوس ” لا تحتقروا دواء طرد الشياطين ولا تتعبوا من طول الصلوات لأن كل هذه هي إمتحان لصدق النفوس وإخلاصها وطلبها المعمودية باشتياق” (20).
لكن هذه الخدم والأسرار الكنسية لا تكشف إلا في حينها ولمن هو أهل لسماعها، يقول واعظاً للشعب: “لقد سمعت كثيراً عن السر حسبما هو مسموح لنا أن نتحدّث علناً وأمام الكل أما باقي الحديث فسوف تسمعونه في السرّ لكي يبقى هذا الكلام خاصاً بكم” (21). In his day, even though he and his lifelong friend Basil the Great were late in receiving the sacrament of baptism, as was common in their time, Gregory refused to let it be postponed, whatever the reasons, in which he said:
“المسيح هو الله لذلك لم يكن محتاجاً للمعمودية ولكنه إعتمد لأجلنا نحن البشر، وحتى إذا أجّل معموديته لم يكن هذا خطراً عليه. كان للمسيح أسباب جعلته يعتمد في سنّ الثلاثين وليس أي من هذه الأسباب تخص البشر. وقد فعل الرب أموراً كثيرة لا يمكن لأيّ منا أن يقلّده ويتخذها مقياساً فليس كلما فعله الرب يمكن تقليده (22).. Some say that they will wait for the Feast of the Epiphany, that is, the day on which Christ was baptized and appeared to the world. Others say that they care about Easter more than other holidays, and the third says that they will wait for Pentecost. (23). No one should delay baptism as long as he is prepared for it, lest death surprise them on a day for which they were not prepared and at an hour they do not know. Baptism is called a gift because it was given to us without us paying a price for it, and it is called a seal because it is a seal that confirms our ownership and the authority that possesses us and because it is a pledge of eternal life. (24). And because we are of two natures, I mean the body and the soul, the first is visible and the second is invisible, so the purification, which extends to all, is also a compound of water and the spirit. The visible purification of the water from the body and the second that accompanies it is invisible and does not pertain to the body. The first is apparent and the second is real and purifies the depths. (25)“.
Quoted from Orthodox Heritage Magazine
Troparia with the first tune
The pastoral flute of your speech in theology has subdued and defeated the preachers’ trumpets. Since you have sought the depths of the soul, good speech has been added to you, Father Gregory, so intercede with Christ God to save our souls.
Qandaq with the third tune
O Glorious One, with your tongue that speaks of the divine, you have dissolved the conflicts of error, and you have adorned the church with the robe of uprightness of opinion woven from above. Now that you have clothed it, it cries out with us towards your children, saying: Peace be upon you, O father with a sublime mind who speaks of divinity.
(1) She moved, kneeling, receiving the holy mysteries. The church celebrates her on August 5. See Orthodox Synaxarium. Part Two, pp. 613-627.
(2) The church celebrates him on January 1. Previous reference.
(3) لم يصلنا عنهم سوى ما ذكره غريغوريوس في عظاته ورسائله وما كتبه أيضاّ غريغوريوس النيصصيّ: أعضاء الجماعة يعبدون إلهاً واحداً ولكنهم يرفضون عقيدة الثالوث، يدعون الله “العلي”، “القوي”، “النار”، “النور”. رفضوا الذبائح اليهودية وكل طقس آخر إذ أن العبادة عندهم أمر داخلي روحي، لكنه رغم ذلك يحفظون السبت ويتمسكون بعدد من العادات اليهودية في ما يتعلّق بالأكل . كانوا قلّة ولعلهم حُصروا في كبادوكية. …راجع: الرسالة سنة 1985 عدد 2و3 ص39.
(4) أمسكه الشعب وحمله إلى الكنيسة حملاً وألزموه أن يصير كاهناً، لم يكن بإمكانه لا أن يهرب ولا أن يرفض فسلّم أمره لله ورضخ للأمر الواقع الذي أسماه، فيما بعد، “عمل إستبداد روحي”. راجع السنكسار الأرثوذكسي، الجزء الثاني، ص 618.
(5) أمسكه الشعب وحمله إلى الكنيسة حملاً وألزموه أن يصير كاهناً، لم يكن بإمكانه لا أن يهرب ولا أن يرفض فسلّم أمره لله ورضخ للأمر الواقع الذي أسماه، فيما بعد، “عمل إستبداد روحي”. راجع السنكسار الأرثوذكسي، الجزء الثاني، ص 618.
(6) Patriarch Meletius of Antioch was the one who called, through a council held in 379 AD, to send Gregory there.
(7) The number of his followers increased significantly until they became more than those praying in the official (Arian) churches. See The Story of Civilization, Part 12, p. 128.
(8) كلمة لاهوت تقابله في اليونانية “Qewlwgia” وتعني حديث في الله لكن آباؤنا لم يأخذوها بهذا المعنى، لكنهم اخذوها بمعنى العيش للسيد، للإله. وأطلقوا لفظة لاهوتي على:
1.يوحنا الإنجيلي – 2.غريغوريوس اللاهوتي – 3.سمعان اللاهوتي الحديث…راجع: العقيدة والاباء، المطران جورج خضر، البلمند.
(9) The council was held to refute Apollinarianism (Christ took the place of the rational soul) and the enemies of the Holy Spirit (the Holy Spirit is among the higher spirits serving the Son). It was initially headed by Meletius of Antioch, but due to his death, Gregory the Theologian took over after him. See: Summary of the History of the Church, Father George Attia, Publications Balamand p. 66.
(10) See History of the Christian Church, Evgraf Smirnov, 1964, Diocese of Homs, p. 302.
(11) See: Encyclopaedia Britanica 1998 (CD).
(12) Saint Athanasius the Apostolic, Father Matthew Al-Meskeen, Monastery of Saint Anba Makar, p. 256.
(13) Because of its difficulty, it did not occupy a great place among the people.
(14) The Message, 1985, Nos. 1 and 2, pp. 46-49.
(15) This is what is called the negative trend in talking about God (apophatic), and there is the positive trend (cataphatic). The second allows talking about God, and the first corrects and removes from a person the images and fantasies that settle in his mind about God... See the introduction to Orthodox theology, Dr. George Bebawi, pp. 149-153.
(16) Selections from Saint Gregory the Theologian, Fathers of the Church Series (8), Al-Nour Publications, pp. 108-110.
(17) Saint John of Damascus: One Hundred Essays on the Orthodox Faith, Paulineism, p. 168.
(18) Previous reference, p. 169.
(19) Saint John of Damascus, One Hundred Essays on the Orthodox Faith, p. 92.
(20) Sermon on Baptism: 15...See: Baptism, Part One, D. George Bebawi, p. 54.
(21) Previous reference, p. 82.
(22) Previous reference, p. 92.
(23) Article 40 about baptism... previous reference, p. 88.
(24) Article 40... Ibid., p. 97.
(25) Article 41... previous reference, p. 124.