Universal teachers. Gregory the Theologian. Essay on life and work

Contents Chapter one I II III IV V VI VII Chapter two I II III IV V VI VII Chapter three I II On anger On wise poverty 1 2 3 Chapter four I II Sources and aids for writing an essay Konstantin Ivanovich Smirnov Gregory the Theologian - the closest and faithful friend of Basil the Great - one of the three famous Cappadocians 1, is perfectly characterized by Rufinus in the following. words: “Vasily was humble before God, but Gregory was humble before people.” If the great Archbishop of Caesarea was born to be a ruler, and the consciousness of his power always lived in his soul, and was only suppressed by a feeling of Christian humility, then Gregory the Theologian by nature was distinguished by gentleness and compliance: he was sensitive, sensitive to offense, but trusting and amenable to words of friendship, he soon forgave insults. He loved Vasily and in many ways willingly conceded primacy to him, tried to promote him, fussed about him, always praised him and was not embarrassed in spirit for a minute by this. Gregory's heart was filled with humility. He was distinguished by great tolerance and was one of those few people “who are early taken possession of by the grace of God, so that they live a life of chaste purity, and their days from adolescence are connected with each other by natural piety.” Faithful to the precepts of the Good Shepherd, guided by them throughout his entire life, possessing a heart that did not know how to be half attached to anything, to feel lightly, Gregory the Theologian devoted himself entirely to serving the Church of Christ, and gave a clear, integral presentation of the teaching about the Holy Trinity, about the twofold nature of Christ. If they said about Basil the Great: “his smile alone was a praise, and his silence was a reproach,” then Rufinus said no less strongly about Gregory the Theologian: “anyone who dared to disagree with Gregory on any rite of faith thereby incurred the stigma of a heretic.” It is also said no less strongly about him: “in a few pages and in a few hours, he united and ended the (theological) controversy of an entire century.” No wonder bl. Jerome called himself a student of Gregory and considered it a pleasure to listen to him. “Gregory’s life was guided in various directions by divine providence. But whether he was in his parents’ house, or a student in Athens, a hermit in Pontus, a presbyter and suffragan bishop in Nazianza, or a patriarch in Constantinople and chairman of the ecumenical council, he was always faithful to the pious upbringing that he received from early childhood in the house of his parents.” His father’s name was also Gregory, and his mother’s name was Nonna. The father was at first a pagan. Kind, honest, fair and selfless, he enjoyed the love and respect of citizens. Appreciating her husband’s good spiritual qualities, Nonna was still saddened by the fact that he was a pagan. She convinced her husband to accept Christianity and prayed fervently to God, asking for His help. And the prayer was answered. Once in a dream, Gregory saw himself singing a wondrous song: “We rejoiced at those who said to me, “Let us go to the house of the Lord.” He woke up with his heart fluttering with joy. This dream finally influenced Gregory’s decision: he was baptized, and soon became a presbyter, and then the bishop of Nazianza. Nonna was a wonderful Christian. Deeply devoted to the will of God, she meekly faced every trial and in fiery prayer sought consolation and strengthening of the spirit. Doing good to her neighbors was a pleasure for her, her spiritual need. She said that she would be ready to sell herself and her children into slavery just to be able to help those in need. Gregory the Theologian directly expressed the idea that his mother’s prayer preserved him exactly as she wanted him to be. “She,” he says enthusiastically about his mother, “only touches the earth so that with this life she can prepare for the life in heaven.” Gregory the Theologian was born in 329, in Nazianza. Caring for the child from the day of birth, the pious mother paid her main attention to the education of his soul. As soon as he began to understand, he had already heard about God, and stories from the lives of the saints caressed his ears and nourished his childish soul. Nonna told her son the story of the sacrifice of Isaac, trying to position the boy’s heart so that he would awaken a burning thirst to devote himself entirely to God. “Handing him the Holy Scripture, she expressed the desire that the divine will expressed in Scripture would become an immutable law for her son, and that reading the Holy Scripture would become the same need for his soul as daily bread for the body.” Both upbringing in the Christian spirit and family examples had a great effect on Gregory. Already in childhood, he showed seriousness, avoided noisy games, preferring conversations of wise men and reading sacred books to fun. Gregory the Theologian himself says about himself: “From the shrouds, brought up in everything beautiful, because I had models for myself at home, then I still acquired sedateness, and like cloud to cloud, little by little the zeal for improvement accumulated in me. I grew, and at the same time my mind prospered. With joy I read books that spoke about God, and dealt with men who were perfect and pure.” Studying the Holy Scriptures under the guidance of his mother, young Gregory studied secular sciences from his uncle Amphilochius, a famous teacher of rhetoric. Amphilochius managed to awaken a thirst for knowledge in his nephew, and the young man went for further education to Caesarea in Cappadocia, where he met Basil the Great. Gregory went home from Caesarea in Cappadocia to ask his parents for blessings for further education. After spending some time in his parents' house, Gregory went to Caesarea in Palestine, where the famous rhetorician Thespesius was among the teachers. Gregory's younger brother Caesarius, who wanted to study medicine, chose Alexandria, where medicine was taught perfectly. Soon Gregory also arrived in Alexandria, whose curiosity was not satisfied by the lessons of Thespesius. In Alexandria Gregory met with St. Afanasy. The young man was imbued with the spirit of the great fighter for Orthodoxy and felt in himself an even greater determination to fight the enemies of the Church of Christ. From Alexandria Gregory went to Athens. The journey itself cannot be ignored. I had to swim by sea. “It was the most inconvenient time for sailing,” says Grigory himself, “but I was attracted by a passion for science, and I was especially encouraged by the fact that the shipmen were like one of our own. But as soon as we had made a few journeys, a terrible storm arose, which, according to those sailing with me, had never happened in their memory. For twenty days and nights I lay on the stern of the ship, calling on God in prayers; foamy waves, like mountains and cliffs, hit the ship from one side or the other, and often fell into it; from the gusty wind whistling in the ropes, all the sails shook, the clouds descended, the air darkened, illuminated for a moment by the blinding light of lightning; The deafening peals of thunder, shaking the air, set all living things in awe. Everyone fell into fear at the sight of common death; but I feared more than anyone else for my soul, for I was in danger of dying unbaptized and, among the destructive waters, I desired spiritual water. Therefore, he cried out, begged and begged for at least a small reprieve. Those who sailed with me united their cry, despite the common danger. So I suffered; but my parents also suffered with me, sharing my misfortune in a night vision. They gave help from the land, as if speaking to the waves with their prayers, which I learned about when later, upon returning home, I calculated the time. And one of those sailing with me, who showed special affection towards me, saw that, during a time of danger, my mother entered the sea and, taking the ship, without much difficulty brought it to land. And the vision came true, for the sea began to calm down, and we soon landed at Rhodes. During this danger, I offered myself as a gift, making a vow, if I was saved, to devote myself to God, and having dedicated myself, I was saved.” In Athens, Gregory diligently studied science. Soon Vasily arrived here too. Here the closest rapprochement took place between him and Gregory. Throughout their studies, they lived under the same roof, like two brothers, embraced by the same high aspirations 2 . At the same time, Julian, known in history as Julian the Apostate, took a course in science in Athens. Still a Christian in appearance, but already a pagan in his soul, Julian arrived in Athens, as if wanting to improve his knowledge, but his secret goal was completely different. He wanted to see and consult with pagan priests, study what was needed for a better fight against Christianity and find among students and scientists people who could be his accomplices in the restoration of paganism. Extremely impressionable, Julian was brought up under the leadership of the Arians, since the emperor Constantius was an Arian. But what good could the corrupt people who, for profit, switched from paganism to Arianism, and vice versa, put into the soul of a young man? In Constantius, a Christian emperor, Julian saw the murderer of his father, and in the Christian society that surrounded him there were intrigues and all sorts of vices. Confusing Christianity with such vicious representatives, Julian began to hate that lofty teaching, about which he had no correct understanding. And he strove for paganism with all the strength of his soul. Living in Athens, he “accompanied by priests, visited pagan temples, made sacrifices in them, regretted their desolation and expressed hope for their restoration. Having brought Julian to one idol church, the Eleusinian priest showed him a place in the middle of the church itself and began to summon crafty demons. When the demons appeared in their usual form, horror gripped Julian and forced him to involuntarily put the sign of the cross on his forehead. Seeing this sign of Christ's victory, the demons instantly disappeared. The wizard began to reproach Julian after learning about the reason for the disappearance of the demons. Julian admitted his fear and at the same time expressed amazement at how great the power of the cross was, if the demons could not resist it and fled. “Don’t think so,” objected the cunning deceiver, “they left not out of fear, but out of disgust for what you did.” Drawing closer to the pagans and already dreaming in his soul about the destruction of Christianity, Julian, out of fear of responsibility before the emperor, continued to outwardly appear to be a Christian and even studied the Holy Scriptures together with Basil and Gregory. However, what remained a mystery to many was already foreseen by Gregory, who then understood the true purpose of Julian’s stay in Athens and predicted what the Christian Church should expect from him. “I guessed this man well,” admits Gregory the Theologian, “although I am not one of those skilled in this matter. It was the inconstancy of his character and his inept enthusiasm that made me a soothsayer. But nothing good was foreshadowed for me: the neck was not firm, the shoulders were moving and aligned, the eyes were fluent, insolent, fierce, the legs were not standing firmly but were bending, the nose expressing insolence and contempt, the facial features were funny and expressing the same thing, immoderate laughter, bowing and throwing back the head for no reason, speech was slow and intermittent, questions were disorderly and incoherent; the answers are no better. And I said then: what evil is being fostered by the Roman Empire!” 3 Gregory was 29 years old when he completed his education and decided to return to his homeland. His friend Vasily was also leaving. But Athens did not want to let go of those of whom the Athenian higher school was proud. Teachers and comrades began to convince Vasily and Gregory to stay. Vasily showed unshakable firmness and left, but Gregory, due to the softness of his nature, succumbed to requests and agreed to stay. But without his great friend, Athens seemed painfully boring to him. He couldn't stand it and soon left. In Constantinople he met his brother Caesarius, who was also in a hurry home. The simultaneous return of both sons filled Nonna's heart with joy. Letting them go to foreign lands, she prayed to God that they “will return together, just as they left together.” If Gregory had not stayed in Athens for a while, he would not have met his brother in Constantinople. Thus, the concession to the requests of her comrades served as the reason for the fulfillment of Nonna’s desire. She saw in all this the good hand of the Creator, guiding the lives of people and always ready to hear the prayer of the hearts of the pure and faithful to Him. Upon returning home, Gregory (along with his brother Caesar) was baptized. After baptism, he had to choose the path of life. He thought seriously about this. “The contemplative life, away from the world, has long attracted him.” He even gave his word to his friend Vasily - back in Athens - to share with him the feat of hermitage. But many things made him hesitate. He understood all the advantages of solitude, life in the “mountains and in the cliffs,” where, far from all noise, “one can lift up a pure mind to the one God,” and at the same time, “the life of a hermit, due to its exclusive concentration in oneself, due to the closeness of the circle in which their love was enclosed,” seemed to Gregory less than satisfactory. He wanted to serve the Church and his neighbor with his knowledge, he wanted to show himself through active love. At the same time, outside solitude there could not be that inner peace, peace, which is also a good thing... But how can we leave our elderly parents alone? And now love for them put an end to the hesitation. Gregory remained to live with his parents, “trying to follow the middle path between hermits who have renounced all earthly things and those living in society, taking from the former purity of thoughts, and from the latter the effort to be useful to others.” He delighted his parents with his affection, eased their old age with worries by taking charge of household affairs, and at the same time led the life of an ascetic: he wore rough clothes, slept on the ground, ate only bread and water, and devoted all the time free from business activities to prayer and reading the word of God. Meanwhile, Vasily settled in the desert and invited a friend to share his solitude. Gregory had to refuse and wrote to Vasily: “I confess that I changed my promise to live with you, as I gave my word in Athens, during the merger of hearts there. But he did not change voluntarily, but because one law prevailed over another - the law commanding the death of parents, over the law of friendship. However, I won’t change this at all: sometimes I will be with you, and sometimes you visit me yourself, so that we have everything in common and the rights of friendship remain equal.” And, according to this, Gregory visited his friend and lived with him in his solitude, sharing with him his exploits, which he later recalled in his letters. “Who will give me these days again,” Gregory wrote, “the days in which I rejoiced with you in suffering, because the sorrowful, but voluntary, is more important than the pleasant, but involuntary? Who will give me these psalmody and vigils? Who will provide daily and manual labor - carrying firewood, cutting stones, planting, watering? Who will give this golden sycamore, which I planted and God grew to my honor, so that it will be preserved among you as a monument to my hard work?..” But the friends not only worked in the garden and in the field, they were also engaged in reading holy books, interpreting Scripture and drawing up rules for monastic life. “Gregory the father often needed the presence of his son, who was eloquent, had extensive knowledge of both secular sciences and the word of God, was distinguished by the firmness of his faith and knew how to fight heretics, i.e. possessed those qualities that were most needed in those troubled times when almost the entire East was infected with Arianism.” And on the feast of Christmas (in 361) Gregory was ordained a presbyter. The young priest, so capable of fighting paganism and heresies, soon had to denounce Julian, who took the throne after the death of Constantius. Having become emperor, Julian threw off his mask and openly declared himself a pagan and an enemy of Christianity. Wishing the triumph of paganism and the destruction of the “Galilean sect,” Julian, however, did not begin open persecution against the followers of Christ. Julian understood well that any persecution would only help Christianity, for the death of one martyr gave birth to tens and hundreds of new Christians. The emperor planned to weaken Christianity, making it a “religion of the ignorant,” not giving Christians the opportunity to receive an education. “Julian knew that many Christians attend pagan schools and are themselves teachers in their schools. His learned disputes with Christians showed him that in the ranks of Christians there are many enlightened people who can fight the pagan world not only with the power of faith and achievement, but also with the weapons of paganism - the power of learning and eloquence, gleaned from pagan schools. It seemed especially unbearable to him that Christian teachers in schools were undermining paganism.” And so Julian issued a decree aimed at making teaching in schools the privilege of pagans. “Everyone who wants to educate youth,” the decree said, “must, first of all, have impeccable morality and avoid opinions that are contrary to popular (i.e., pagan) beliefs. What do I actually see? Homer, Demosthenes and others recognize the gods as the fathers of all knowledge, and teachers who explain the creations of these great people insult the gods. I offer a choice: either not to study what they do not respect, or to agree and not to expose the error of Homer and others to the young men. Those who think differently can go to the churches of the Galileans and learn the interpretation of their books.” Christian schools were closed. Christian children were not accepted into pagan schools; Christian teachers were prohibited from teaching. Many Christians, who themselves had received extensive education, rebelled against this - and Gregory the Theologian rebelled with special energy, with special fervor. He wrote: “By what right does this man (Julian) claim that Greek education belongs to him and his gods? Is there any reason to prohibit it to us, because its creators were pagans? The Egyptians, Phoenicians and other peoples have their own sages who made various inventions. What would happen if they decided to make a monopoly out of these inventions and prohibit others from using them? Julian continued to follow the path of oppression of Christians... He forbade them to hold public positions, deprived the clergy of all benefits; Christian churches turned into pagan ones, or were even completely destroyed... Wanting to strengthen paganism, Julian tried to persuade Christians, and especially prominent ones, to accept it; but only cowardly and corrupt people, who, fortunately, were few among the Christians of that time, succumbed to the imperial promises and caresses. A decisive rebuff was the response of Christian society to Julian, who tried to persuade Caesarea, who held the position of court physician, into paganism. But Caesarius refused, and soon after that he left the palace completely, returning to his parents. On June 27, 363, during the Persian campaign, Julian was killed by an enemy arrow. Dying, he exclaimed: “You have won, Galilean (i.e. Christ)!” In the death of the apostate emperor, the prophecy was clearly fulfilled: “whoever falls on this stone will be broken, but whoever it falls on will be crushed to dust.” Gregory the Theologian wrote two books against Julian, in which, with extraordinary animation, he fully painted a picture of the emperor’s cunning actions, depicting his character and explaining the cruelty of the system of his struggle against Christianity. Rejoicing that the Church had freed itself from a fierce enemy, Gregory grieved for the soul of the persecutor and, turning to Christians, convinced them not to repay evil for evil to the defeated pagans. He said casually: “I know that my word will be unpleasant for many. For a person who has received the opportunity to take revenge does not like to obey the word of forgiveness, a word that curbs irritability. But we will not allow excess, we will not be hard-hearted towards those who offended us, we will not do what we ourselves condemned. Let us forgive in everything, and through this we will become higher than our offenders. Let us show what demons teach and what Christ teaches. Let us defeat the tormentors with a love of truth and show our love for humanity in forgiveness. Let us make them meek by our own example.” After the death of Julian, Jovian, a meek-hearted and kind Christian, ascended the throne. But his reign did not last long - only a few months. His successor Valens was a champion of the Arian heresy. Hard times have begun again for the Orthodox Church. But, like Julian the pagan, Valens the Arian, the Orthodox put up a united rebuff. Basil the Great, first a priest, then a bishop, appeared in all the splendor of a Christian shepherd, not afraid to lay down his soul for his flock... His fearless answers to the ruler, and then to Valens himself, made a strong impression on the Arians and the emperor himself. Valens left Vasily alone and, imbued with respect for him, even provided assistance to charitable institutions created by the Bishop of Caesarea 4 . Even before visiting Caesarea, Valens was in Nazianza, where he met with the unshakable firmness of both Gregori: the presbyter and the bishop. When Valens of Nazianza went to Caesarea, surrounded by a magnificent retinue, Gregory the Theologian hurried to his friend Basil to help him in the fight against the Arian emperor. Gregory had to witness the majestic firmness of his friend, who was afraid not of the wrath of the king of the earth, but of the condemnation of the King of Heaven. Rejoicing at the triumph of Orthodoxy and the steadfastness of Basil, Gregory the Theologian, after Valens’ departure from Caesarea, returned to Nazianza. By order of Valens, the Cappadocia region was divided into two parts. Civil division entailed ecclesiastical division. The Bishop of Tiana, who became the main city of the new region, planned to separate from Basil the Great and form a special independent metropolis. In the fight against Anthimus, Bishop of Tian, ​​Vasily needed a reliable ally - and the choice fell on Gregory, as the person most suitable for this purpose 5 . Gregory refused to be elected. But Gregory’s father took Vasily’s side, and then this latter, “like an obedient son who never left his father’s will, gave his consent to the initiation.” This happened halfway through 372. Appointed bishop of Sosima, Gregory, however, was not in reality, because Anthimus showed a hostile mood and threatened to meet Gregory with weapons. The new bishop did not and could not have a rebuff against brute force; It was not in Gregory’s character to respond to violence in kind, and he remained in his hometown. “Soon Anfim also arrived here, wanting to find out about Sosim, which were located right on the border of the two regions. Gregory did not agree to recognize Anthimus as his archbishop, defended Vasily, and Anthimus left Nazianz dissatisfied. But soon a reconciliation took place between him and Vasily, who, for the good of the Church, was ready to make possible concessions, and gave Anthima to Sosima. Gregory did not go to Sosima, but remained in Nazianza to help his father, who was already very old and often ill, in the administration. Gregory became, as it were, a suffragan bishop of Nazianza. At the same time, he showed great zeal and fatherly care, comforting the suffering and defending the guilty in order to persuade the authorities to show mercy. “The inhabitants of Nazianz, on the occasion of the high cost of bread and the forced collection of taxes, especially burdensome in difficult times, were indignant and rebelled. The participants in the outrage, of course, were threatened with severe punishment.” Residents turned to Gregory, asking for his petition for the trial of the perpetrators. The vicar did not refuse the request. And in order to have a stronger effect on the official, “Gregory chose the church pulpit as the place of his intercession.” During the liturgy, Gregory addressed a government official. “I know,” said Gregory, “that you will listen to my bold word, because you are a sacred sheep of the sacred flock and, like us, are enlightened by the light of the Holy Blessed Trinity. My word to you will be brief. You rule with Christ, and you govern with Christ. He gave you the sword not to act, but to threaten. Show humanity, add meekness to fear, dissolve the threat with hope. Lend to the God of mercy. None of those who brought anything to God repented. He is generous in reward... It is better for everyone to show mercy here than to give an account there. Do I dare to do more? Sorrow makes me bold. I present to you Christ and Christ’s exhaustion for us, and the cross and nails, with which I was freed from sin, and blood, and burial, and resurrection, and ascension, and this meal, to which we are all approaching... If not for one or the other, then at least for everything, show mercy to us and to yourself. Conquer us with philanthropy. Respect my faith, which I had for you, and with which I assured others, so that they also respect it in greater and more perfect ways. I will say briefly: you yourself have a Lord in heaven, who may be the same judge for you as you will be for those under your control.” Gregory's preaching brought good results: the rebels received complete forgiveness. Meanwhile, Gregory faced sadness in his personal life: he had to endure heavy losses. First of all, he lost his beloved brother Caesarea, who, having left court service, returned home and here led a solitary life. When he died, he bequeathed his property to the poor. “Caesareus was buried near the graves of the martyrs, and Nonna saw off his ashes not in mourning clothes, but in a white festive dress, as she knew that for a Christian death is not a curse, but a crown. Gregory said a word over his brother’s coffin, which is an example of sublime funeral pronunciations.” Soon after Caesarea, Gregory's sister, Gorgonia, was an exemplary mother and wife and a devoted Christian. “Her highest goal was to raise children for God.” Father Gregory was already about a hundred years old. Illnesses overcame him, but he continued to serve to the best of his ability, without weakening in prayer. In the spring of 374, he fell dangerously ill and never recovered. He died kneeling in prayer. The death of his father resonated with terrible sorrow in the heart of Gregory the Theologian, who had recently lost his brother and sister. Understanding his friend's grief and wanting to honor his deceased father, Basil immediately arrived in Nazianz. Vasily tried to console Gregory, although he himself was quite upset by the death of the one whom he loved, respected and revered as his spiritual father, remembering everything that the deceased had done for him. Gregory the Theologian said a word over his father’s coffin, in which he outlined the deceased from all sides, did not forget the public affairs and circumstances of private life, in which his exalted character was manifested, and reflected the purity of the heart of the centenary bishop, who until the last hour served God and cared for his flock... And Gregory had just had time to mourn his father when a new grief struck his soft, loving heart: Nonna died, having survived her husband only by a few months. She went to the church where her husband and son served, and while bowing, she suddenly felt the approach of death. “Lord, Christ, have mercy on me,” she said, and died. Gregory the Theologian was greatly depressed, and this moral suffering affected his health. He became dangerously ill, took ill and was on the verge of the grave. Bishop, who was passing through Nazians at that time. Eusebius of Samosata visited Gregory, who was lying on his sick bed, and said goodbye to him with a feeling of deep sorrow, assuming that he was already giving him his last kiss. But Gregory the Theologian recovered. The time has not yet come for him to calm down; he has not yet accomplished everything assigned to him by the Higher Will. Feeling weak and defeated, Gregory left Nazians and hid in one of the monasteries of remote Seleucia of Isauria. But even here he could not remain inactive, forget about those who needed care, and could not be indifferent to the state of the Church. He encouraged those who went into exile, suffered for their faith, and fought against heresies. In this solitude, his heart was once again struck by painful grief upon receiving the news of the death of Basil the Great. Gregory was still so weak that he could not go to his friend’s funeral. Tired and dejected, he continued to live in peace and quiet in his solitude, dreaming of ending his days... But he was destined to leave solitude and once again enter into an open and firm struggle with the enemies of the Church of Christ, to appear as a defender of Orthodoxy in the high rank of Patriarch of Constantinople. As a result of the triumph of the Arians, Orthodoxy in Constantinople was weakened, and the Orthodox were persecuted. The churches passed into the hands of the Arians, Orthodox bishops were in exile; the number of Orthodox Christians decreased so much that they represented only a small group. “But,” says Gregory the Theologian, although they were a small people, they were numerous before God, who does not count multitudes, but hearts; these were souls perfected by faith, a precious remnant.” With the death of Valens and then the accession to the throne of Theodosius, an adherent of Orthodoxy, the hopes of the faithful came to life. “But in order for the small number of Orthodox Christians who remained in Constantinople, after the 40-year rule of the Arians, to have any success, he needed a leader - strong in words, courageous and undaunted in the fight against enemies, full of selflessness, ready to sacrifice his own peace and all the benefits of life for the good of his flock.” Such was precisely Gregory the Theologian, who lived in Seleucian solitude. The Christians of Constantinople turned to Gregory, asking to defend the doctrine of the “Holy Trinity.” He knew that “needs and sorrows” awaited him in the noisy and corrupt capital, but could he refuse when he was called to such great service? He saw in this the will of divine Providence itself. And he hurried to Constantinople, fearing “so that the council of heretical bishops planned in Constantinople would not have time to take possession of the heart and will of Emperor Theodosius through various court nobles, among whom there were many people who were hostile to Orthodoxy.” Gregory arrived in Constantinople in January 379 and settled in the house of his niece, the daughter of Gorgonia. Residents of the capital, accustomed to luxury, were amazed at the sight of Gregory. Before them stood a man “in simple, poor clothes, with a somewhat hunched figure, with a head almost completely devoid of hair, with an ugly face, worn out by tears, fasting and vigil, with hands roughened from menial labor, with a rough Cappadocian pronunciation.” But from the very first sermons they were convinced that this was “a man possessing rare gifts of the mind, a deep and thorough knowledge of Holy Scripture and the works of the Fathers, an amazing stock of the most varied information.” Since the Orthodox did not have their own church, they began to gather in the house where Gregory the Theologian lived. Soon the number of listeners increased so much that Gregory turned the house into a church and named it Anastasia, i.e. resurrection. First of all, Gregory took all measures to arrange the affairs of the Orthodox, who had been left without a leader for a long time. At that time it was customary to argue about faith. Everyone argued, even those who did not understand anything about this matter. But busy with fruitless debates about faith, Christians did not try at all to live by faith. And Gregory began to inspire that the most important thing is life according to the gospel, fulfilling the commandments of Christ, and not debate about faith. Of course, this applied to those who could not gain anything from disputes, thanks to their ignorance. Gregory did not deny the fight against heresies, but for such a fight one needs preparation, one needs knowledge of the matter. Gregory himself zealously defended Orthodoxy, striking heretical teaching with his fiery word. Heretics of all kinds hated Gregory and persecuted him. They looked at the elder with contempt and laughed at his small church. But that's not all. “The hatred of the enemies of Orthodoxy even extended to the encroachment on Gregory’s life: they either burst into his small church, armed with sticks and stones, then dragged him before the court as a troublemaker of the people’s peace, or threw stones at him as he walked down the street.” Grigori's meekness and firmness were needed so as not to be embarrassed and to forgive everything. He rejoiced over his small flock, which had God and angels on its side, pure teaching and blameless actions regarding the bitter enemies who had caused him so much harm.” The very attack on his life consoled him by the fact that he was exposed to dangers for the truth and endured like Stephen, stoned - this courageous defender of the Church of Christ. Gregory's efforts were not in vain. The affairs of the church were put in order, the morals of the flock improved. He acted both by word and by example, i.e. sermons and his own life. He avoided pomp, rich foods, luxurious clothing and inaccessibility. In his own words, he had no desire to compete in external splendor and luxury with generals and state nobles; he did not want to defile the altar with an excess of bread, or waste on himself sums that rightfully belonged to the poor, or ride through the streets on beautiful horses and surround himself with crowds of flatterers. If - adds St. Gregory - they (the people of Constantinople) need just such a hierarch, then let them choose someone else and leave him his solitude, his God. But not everyone looked at the great ascetic from the wrong point of view. He was joined by Evagrius of Pontius, who became his archdeacon, and Jerome, who himself already enjoyed fame as a scientist and speaker, arrived to “sit at the feet of St. Gregory, listen to him." The Orthodox, who wanted to see Gregory at the see of Constantinople, also understood and appreciated their teacher. But then a regrettable incident occurred, which I will tell in the words of Archimandrite Porfiry. “Among Gregory’s entourage there was one worthless person - one of the most cunning ambitious people. He lived with Gregory under the same roof, ate food with him at the same meal, shared his opinions and assumptions, and although he was expelled from his fatherland for shameful deeds, he assured that he endured everything for the sake of God. The kind-hearted Gregory, deceived by the appearance of strict piety, even honored this clever man with a word of praise and gave him primacy in honors. Meanwhile, this man found followers in the Constantinople clergy, bribed some bishops, and the latter decided to secretly consecrate him as a bishop to the see of Constantinople, without asking anyone for any consent. From the church where the dedication began, the crowd of wicked people was expelled by the Orthodox, and the dedication ceremony was completed in the house of some pipe-player. True Orthodox people mourned this incident, but there were also those who blamed Gregory for his lack of foresight and concluded that he could not distinguish good people from vicious ones. The Arians, taking advantage of this opportunity, began to assert that the division that had taken place was the destruction of the teaching itself. Gregory was shocked by all this and decided to return to his solitude. Gregory's friends noticed a change in his state of mind and began to guess about his assumptions. To prevent their implementation, friends formed an inconspicuous guard around Gregory, which guarded all his movements, exits from the house and returns. They had a reason for all this. In one of the conversations, Gregory said the following: “My beloved children! Keep intact the teaching I taught you about the Holy Trinity, do not forget my works!” Everyone understood the archpastor’s hint, and the church was filled with sobs. And among these sobs, someone shouted: “You will drive out the teaching about the Holy Trinity from Constantinople with you.” Gregory was touched, amazed and changed his mind. But he felt that he needed temporary peace from so many shocks and unrest he had suffered, and he settled in solitude near the sea, outside the city. A solitary life, the surrounding silence and the proximity of the sea greatly contributed to his mental peace. The sea air also strengthened his physical strength. After a short stay in solitude, Gregory returned to Constantinople again and devoted himself to his previous activities with renewed energy. On November 24, 380, Emperor Theodosius, who stood for the Nicene Creed, arrived in Constantinople. Immediately upon arrival, the emperor offered the Arian bishop Demophilus a choice: either renounce the see, or accept the Nicene confession of faith as a dogma. Demophilus did not agree to the recognition of the symbol. All the churches were taken away from the Arians. The emperor received Gregory with honor, expressed his respect to him and gave him the church of the apostles, saying: “God himself is giving this church to you for your labors.” The day on which the Orthodox were to enter the church, previously occupied by the Arians, was a dangerous day, and therefore all measures were taken to prevent a massacre from occurring. “In the solemn procession the emperor himself walked, and next to him Gregory, and they were accompanied through the close masses of spectators by the imperial troops. When the procession passed through the streets, it was greeted by shouts, threats and cries of women and children, as if the whole city was being taken by storm. It was November 26th. The morning was gloomy, and a freezing wind was blowing from the Black Sea. Gregory, sad and sick, with his eyes turned to the sky, walked between the army and the emperor. The Arians rejoiced, seeing a bad omen in nature itself; but as soon as the bishop and emperor entered the sanctuary and raised their hands to God in prayer, a ray of bright sunlight broke through the clouds, flashed on the weapons of the soldiers and the rich attire of the priests, and filled the whole church with glory. The jubilant Orthodox Christians loudly shouted for Gregory to be appointed Patriarch of Constantinople. The emperor agreed with the will of the people, but Gregory, too depressed by excitement, through one of the clergy, asked the people to stop shouting and postpone the question of the patriarchate until a future occasion, and now unite everyone in prayer and thanksgiving.” Gregory did not refuse the patriarchal see, but wanted to be elected by the council of bishops, i.e. on a strictly canonical basis. This act of Gregory was appreciated by all Orthodox Christians, and the emperor himself felt even greater respect for him. Exposing the Arians (from whom all churches were taken away) of errors, Gregory personally treated the Arians with meekness and tried to keep Theodosius from severely persecuting them. But this did not soften the Arians; some of the fanatics even decided to kill Gregory. “So, one day,” says Gregory the Theologian himself, “I stayed at home due to illness. I was lying on the bed; suddenly several commoners come to me and with them a young man - pale, with disheveled hair, in black clothes. I dangled my legs a little from my bed, frightened as if by such a phenomenon. The others, having said thanks as best they knew how, left, and the young man suddenly fell at my feet and remained silent and motionless at their side. I asked: who is he? where? what is his need? But there was no other answer except increased exclamations. He cried, sobbed, wrung his hands. And my tears began to flow. When they dragged him away forcibly, because he did not listen to the words, one of those who were present said to me: This is your murderer; If you still see God’s light, it is because you are under God’s protection. This tormentor of his conscience, an unwise murderer, comes to you voluntarily and brings tears at the price of blood. That's what he said. These words touched me, and I said to the unfortunate man: “May God save you! And for me, having been saved, it is no longer important to show myself merciful to the murderer...” Wishing to restore peace in the Church and establish the truth of Orthodox teaching, Emperor Theodosius convened in 381 an assembly of eastern bishops, which is known as the 2nd Ecumenical Council. At this council, by the way, Meletius, Bishop of Antioch, Gregory of Nyssa, Diodorus of Tarsus and Cyril of Jerusalem were present. Gregory the Theologian, who ruled the see of Constantinople, had not yet been canonically approved. And one of the first resolutions of the council was the confirmation of Gregory in the rank of Archbishop of Constantinople, at the request of the emperor, the people and the majority of the clergy. Gregory agreed to the approval, wanting to use his power for the good of the Church, eliminate disagreements and sow peace. Shortly before his statement, already anticipating it, Gregory uttered a word in which he clarified his attitude towards the election. He did not strive to occupy the see of Constantinople. He came to the capital with one purpose - to support the truth and help strengthen the faith in Christians. He spoke of the duties of the king and all those in power and declared with dignity that he had never cared about having the honor of dining at the table of a mortal king, receiving handshakes from blood-stained hands, or taking part in brilliant and noisy meetings. He strove for one thing - a peaceful life and scientific pursuits, taking advantage of spiritual freedom. The arrival of Egyptian and Macedonian bishops at the council brought discord among the clergy. Enmity began to forge a forge against the righteous man, who always put the interests of faith and the Church in the foreground. Enemies began to claim that Gregory's election was illegal. Not wanting to create unrest and harm the Church with discord, he expressed a desire to leave the department. Appearing at the meeting, he said: “I willingly follow the example of Jonah, and for the salvation of our ship (i.e., the Church) I am ready to sacrifice myself, although I cannot admit that I am the culprit of the storm. Take me and throw me into the sea; some strange-loving whale will receive me from the depths of the sea. I took this throne against my will, and now I willingly leave it. Forgive and do not forget my labors.” Gregory's enemies managed to win over many of the archbishop's former supporters to their side, and the council accepted Gregory's abdication. But the emperor, who understood the significance of Gregory and loved him, listened to the archpastor’s request with deep sorrow and did not immediately express his consent. The Constantinople flock was amazed by Gregory's decision. It was bitter for the true sons of the Church to see the triumph of Gregory's enemies; Many bishops left the cathedral, the people shed tears. To calm the discord and console the flock, Gregory the Theologian made his farewell speech. In this speech, Gregory showed in what upset state he found the Constantinople flock and outlined the flourishing state in which they were now, and then said with his characteristic strength and sincerity: “This is the justification of my stay here. If it deserves praise, thanks be to God and to you who called me. If it does not live up to expectations, then thanksgiving, for I know very well that it is not at all reproachful. Did I give in to anything? Have you increased your property? Has anything upset the Church? I have kept the priesthood pure and undefiled.” Pointing to his works, referring to his ill health, repeating once again the essence of his teaching, at the end of his speech he asked to be released with prayers, and in his place to choose someone who would arouse envy, and not regret, whose hands would be clean, and whose words would be reasonable. Gregory soon left Constantinople, but the newly elected bishop was not a worthy successor to the great saint. A man of noble origin, he was almost completely unfamiliar with the dogmas of the faith, did not have knowledge of Holy Scripture, and was not distinguished by zeal for the Church, which needed precisely a pious, experienced man, capable of destroying the evil intentions of the enemies of Orthodoxy. The Second Ecumenical Council finished its studies without Gregory. At this council, all heresies were again condemned, including Arianism, and the Nicene Creed was confirmed and supplemented. explanations: “We also believe in the Holy Spirit, the life-giving Lord, who proceeds from the Father, who is worshiped and glorified with the Father and the Son, who spoke the prophets. Into one Holy, Catholic, Apostolic Church. I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the next century.” Desiring peace and solitude, Gregory rejoiced at the fact that he could leave the capital and move away from the bustle. “Thanks to the illness and slander of the enemies, which made me free and placed me outside the fire of Sodom. I am no longer a table companion with the earthly king, as before, I will not recline downcast and silent among the feasting, barely catching my breath...” So wrote St. Gregory, but he could not forget the church of Anastasia that he erected, in which he taught the people the truths of Orthodoxy. And he exclaimed, full of sorrow: “If ever my heart forgets you, oh, Anastasia, or my tongue utters anything before your name, then may Christ forget me!” Leaving the capital, he visited Caesarea to honor his friend; here Gregory pronounced his wonderful word of praise over the tomb of Basil the Great, which so vividly characterizes the personality and work of the famous archpastor and reports so many important things from his life. From Caesarea, Gregory headed to his homeland, where the Church remained without a shepherd and was torn apart by unrest. “It was a ship without a helmsman in an angry sea.” Poor health prevented Gregory from taking on his shoulders the heavy burden of governing the diocese, which was engulfed in unrest, and he did not agree to take the see of Nazianza, but used all his influence to ensure that a worthy shepherd was elected to it, which he considered presbyter Eulalia, distinguished by his strict life and knowledge of the Holy Scriptures... When Eulalia was elevated to the see of Nazianza, Gregory calmed down and surrendered to a completely solitary life, watching the struggle, but no longer taking part in it. He refused the invitation to the new council, although he did not cease to give advice from his distant Arianza, where he had a small house and a garden with pleasant shade. “Only love alone prompted him to sometimes enter into communication with people in order to help the suffering, protect the oppressed, console the mourners, and expose those who forget their duty. He led a completely ascetic life. Living among the cliffs, he walked barefoot, having only half-torn clothes, slept either on bare ground or on a bed of tree branches, covering himself with rubbish, without lighting a fire to warm his body; His food consisted of bread and salt and garden vegetables; drink - water, into which sometimes a little vinegar was mixed. “If,” exclaimed Gregory, “this is not enough for you, my body, and you want pleasures and luxurious dishes, then look for someone else who would give you this, but I have no time to warm up a domestic enemy, like a snake in my bowels.” Such a life was not easy, especially when completely alone. There was no one around him from his neighbors, there was no one to take care of him, and he did not know who would close his eyes at the moment of death... Longing touched Gregory’s heart, and grief took possession of him. And then prayer and writing poetry brought him true consolation, pleasure and encouragement. Not only Gregory the Theologian wrote poetry, many St. the fathers of the Church devoted their leisure time to poetry; spiritual poets include Ephraim the Syrian, Ambrose of Milan, Paulinus of Nolan, St. Damascene and others. Gregory the theologian speaks quite definitely about the meaning of poetry. He strongly condemns vain and empty eloquence and values ​​eloquence in which language and thought do not lag behind each other. He notes poets as persons who are vividly and strongly imbued with objects and phenomena, and can generate the same penetrating feeling in others. He wrote in one of his poems, regarding poetry: “I have chosen the path of words, I think it is good; I decided to convey my mental works in poetry not in order to gain vain glory, and not because I preferred versification to sacred works! I wanted, while working for others, to connect my sinfulness in this way, and during the writing itself, to write not much, developing a verse. For those who love verbal art most of all, I wanted to offer a pleasant medicine, to give attractiveness to convictions for the useful, to sweeten the bitterness of the commandments with art. Sometimes the sounds of a string have healing powers, if you want healing. If you like, let there be poetry instead of singing and the lyre; I gave them for fun, if anyone wants to have fun. In poetry I found consolation in illness, like an elderly swan, retelling to myself the messages of sparkling wings - not a lamentable, but an original song. Let it be known that in Holy Scripture much is set out in verse. Saul is also convinced of this, freed from the evil spirit by the sounds of David’s lyre...” With the exception of a few, almost all of Gregory the Theologian's poems belong to lyric poetry. The main requirement that can be presented to a lyric poet is that we want not only the personal, but also the general, i.e. so that the poet, speaking about himself, speaks about what belongs to human nature in general, and not exclusively to his personality. “He should try not to engage only with him personally, but to put the reader on the same point with himself, from which everyone could see everything true and beautiful.” Of course, the poet introduces himself in his poems to how interesting and necessary this is. “This is precisely the content of Gregory’s poems. They contain a perfect example of what thoughts should primarily occupy the Christian mind in real life and how to emerge victoriously from the struggle with spiritual thoughts and temptations. Turning his gaze to himself, the poet-theologian reveals many secrets to his mind, noticing the struggle in his desires, talking about how the high flight of the spirit is constrained by bodily sensuality, how much temptation threatens the salvation of the soul. Based on all this, he recognizes earthly life as difficult, but puts up with it because he remembers and vividly imagines the divine providence about the fate of every person, and also because he is inspired by the expectation of heavenly joys, blissful communion with the Most Holy Trinity, to whose glory his entire life is dedicated.” Some of Gregory's poems are satirical in nature. The poet either gently, lovingly, but vividly exposes the funny side of human actions, such as, for example, addiction to clothes, then with indignation, harshly, sarcastically castigates those who despise the sacred and violate the rights of their neighbors. Here the source of righteous anger is a strong zeal for God, for the Church, that passionate love for her and for Christ, which is offended by all “lies and abominations” and cannot tolerate the desecration of something sacred. Thus, in a poem against the priests of Constantinople and the city, Gregory exclaims: “O you priests who offer bloodless sacrifices and adore the great unity in the Trinity! Oh laws! O emperors, rejoicing in piety! O glorious foundations of the great Constantine! O young Rome, which has become higher than other cities as the starry sky is higher than the earth! What misfortunes envy has caused me! Sad discord did it all! The servants of God did all this - ministers who, O Christ, my King, being in deplorable discord among themselves, became hostile to me because I did not want to place anything higher than Christ. My fault was that I did not take part in the sins of others and did not allow myself to be towed like a small ship. Let oblivion hide these deeds! I will enjoy peace, joyfully avoiding palaces, cities and priests and all that, as I have long striven for.” To get acquainted with Gregory’s poems, we present three of them in prose translation: “On anger”, “On wise poverty” and an excerpt from one poem. I am angry with the demon at home, with anger, and it seems to me that this anger alone is just if people already have to endure something out of the ordinary. Let's delve into this disease a little deeper: what is it? why does it happen? and how to protect yourself from it? Others call the frenzy a boiling of the blood near the heart. And others called anger the desire for revenge, and this desire, if it rushes outward, is anger, and if it remains inside and builds evil, there is rancor. As soon as the smoke of what kindles your thoughts appears, then before the fire ignites and the flame swells, as soon as you feel the movement of the spirit in yourself, immediately turn to God, and thinking that He is your patron and witness of your movements, restrain the swiftness of the illness with shame and fear, while the illness still listens to admonitions. And you will ward off irritability while you still have control of your mind and thoughts. After this, consider what shame the anger of those who are cruelly struck by it brings. The eyes are bloodshot and squinted, the cheeks of one are pale, like those of a dead person, the other is purple, the neck is tense, the veins are strained, the speech is intermittent and at the same time rapid, breathing is like that of a madman, the stamping of feet, the bowing of the head, the hand, tapping its fingers, threatens. And this is just the beginning of the storm. What word will depict what happens after this? Insults, pushing, indecency, false oaths, generous outpourings of language. He asks for thunder, throws lightning, and is dissatisfied with the sky itself because it is motionless. So blind and vain is his ardor. Mental disorders are not so terrible for us, physical illnesses are not so terrible. These illnesses, although cruel and painful while they last, do not make us unhappy by our own will; they are more worthy of pity than of damnation. But tell me: what other evil is worse than that which transgresses the measure of anger? And is there any cure for this? In other diseases, an excellent cure is the thought of God. And anger, as soon as it once exceeded the limit, first of all blocks the door to God. The very remembrance of God increases evil, because an angry person is ready to insult God. With such reasoning, overcome your anger most of all; and if you are prudent, you will not demand more for yourself. And if a long song is needed to soften your heart, then look at the lives of those who, both in ancient and recent times, acquired boldness before God with their good morals. I praise Samuel! It was once difficult for him to bear the insult when Saul tore his robe, however, begging for forgiveness, he immediately forgave the guilt (1 Samuel 15:27-31). What can we say about how David tolerated the parricide - a son who illegally sought power? He mourns his death and calls out to him with tears and cries. I will not remain silent about the wonderful virtue of Stephen, in whom I see the first fruits of martyrs and victims. He was stoned, but even during the stoning his voice was heard, uttering forgiveness to the murderers, and as benefactors offering up prayer for them to God (Acts 7:60). And how many high examples do you have in your Lord! Compare with His sufferings what you endure. At least you have endured everything, and then a little more will be missing if you judge the suffering, taking into account the dignity of the sufferer. You have so many medical remedies for this illness, but the most important of all is the commandment that does not allow you to respond with offense even to the one who hit you. The Old Testament commanded: Thou shalt not kill, but you were commanded not even to be angry, and not only not to hit or dare to kill. Listen to what Christ desires for the meek when he enumerates the beatitudes and determines the measure of future hopes (Matthew 5:5). Did you get hit on the cheek? Why do you allow your other cheek to remain without acquisition? Have you had your tunic taken off? give away other clothes too, if you have them. Are we being slandered? Let us bless the wicked. Who is cursing you? pray for the curser. In this way, you will gain two important benefits: you yourself will be a perfect keeper of the law, and your meekness will turn your offender to meekness, and turn your enemy into a disciple. So, do you see? What you wish most of all is not to be angry at all, because that is the safest thing to do. And if not so, try to stop your frenzy before evening, and do not let the sun go down on your anger (Eph. 4:26). You say: what? Didn't nature itself give us anger? “But she also gave me the strength to control anger.” If you hear in Scripture that God is angry, then do not take this as advice to indulge in passion. God does not tolerate anything like what I tolerate. Why is He portrayed like this? According to the laws of allegory, to frighten the minds of ordinary people. Moreover, you hear that the wicked suffer from the wrath of God, not the good, and they suffer according to the laws of justice. But your anger has no limits and makes everyone equal. Therefore, do not say that your passion was given to you from God and is characteristic of God himself. So you will extinguish this illness in yourself, satisfying it with the reasoning offered to you. But here is the second concern: how to resist so that anger from someone else’s anger does not ignite you, like fire from fire? First, immediately resort to God and ask Him to crush the hail that is striking you, but at the same time spare us, who did not offend others. And at the same time, put on yourself the sign of the cross, of which everything is terrified and trembling, and the protection of which I use in any case and against everyone. Then get ready to fight with the one who gave the reason for this anger, and not with the one who indulged in it, so that, being well armed, it will be more convenient for you to defeat passion. Thirdly, knowing where you came from and what you will turn into, do not think too much about yourself, so as not to be embarrassed by a high and worthily formed opinion of yourself. And you, as if perfect, refuse to tolerate insults! Be careful that you are not punished for your conceit. Fourthly, know, my good one, that our life is nothing, and we are all not sinless judges of good and bad deeds, but for the most part and most often we rush here and there, and constantly wander. Fifthly, let us have more prudence. If there is not the slightest untruth in what one who is inflamed and blinded by anger says, then his words do not concern us in the least. And if he tells the truth, it means that I caused myself some kind of offense. The conclusion of my advice to you will be the following. Which creature is predominantly meek? - God . Who has the most irritable nature? - A murderer, who, in addition to other names expressing his cunning, is also called anger. Which part do you intend to choose? What else can I say? I conjure you, anger is the friend of vices, betraying me into the gates of hell, now submit to God and the word. Submit, anger - this disgrace of the face, this overwhelming thoughts, this verbose evil - submit, because Christ, Whom the universe cannot contain, and Who diligently grants permission to those who call upon Him, both from evil spirits and from passions, Christ wants you to immediately flee from here and, entering the swine, hide in the abyss. You are cheerful even in illness, you live in luxury, if only you are rich; True, you feel evil, but you also have a cure for the disease. And the other is poor, but abstinent. And he is three times blessed, because he has neither evil nor a cure for evil. And I would prefer a rich man, but servile to passions, to a poor and wise man, when I would agree to prefer a man strong in strength, but crazy in his mind, to a man of sound mind, although weak in strength. Let one, having a lot of medicine against suffering, be seriously ill, and the other, not having a single medicine, is very healthy: which of them will you please? Obviously healthy. Likewise, I will prefer a person who needs a little, although he is very poor, to a rich person both in money and passions. I will give an excerpt from the poem in which Gregory the Theologian glorifies the sorrow of his life. “Where are you, winged speeches? Disappeared like waves on the sea. Where is the valor of glorious youth? The years have passed. Where is the strength of the mighty body? Worn out in sorrow and grief. Where are you, wealth? Gone. All that remains is God's mercy. Where are you, dear parents? Where's the sister? Everyone in the grave is silent. I don’t even have a homeland... The waves rage and move across it. And I, barely stepping, wander as if in captivity, rootless, expelled, rejected by everyone... I don’t hear cheerful speeches around me and I don’t hear the sweet babble of children. I sadly end the rest of my sorrowful days...” After this, the poet begins to think about what will happen to his ashes, and suddenly, as if rising from despondency, with hope in the good Shepherd-Father of all, he enthusiastically ends the poem: “You are my Savior, Christ! You are my homeland, my strength, my peace, my protection - I find everything, everything in You alone!” Gregory has many poems of dogmatic content, which were written with the goal of giving an accessible presentation of the truths of the Christian faith. These are: “On Principles”, “On the Son”, “On the Holy Spirit”, “On the World”, “On Providence”, “On the Soul”, “On Human Nature”, etc. Gregory’s poems clearly, vividly and in detail reveal the inner struggle of a person with himself, the struggle of the flesh with the spirit, and outlines the vanity of real life. A prominent place among the poems is occupied by the one in which he describes his life. This poem is truly artistic. The poem, imbued with grief, introduces not only the life of the poet, but also conveys a true and vivid picture of morals, characteristics of many people. This is how an artistic depiction of the Church, the Second Ecumenical Council is given. There is a lot of sadness in the named poem, as in other poems, but this is not murmur or despair, which the poet did not know. In general, Gregory’s poems represent “the confession of an excellent spirit, the sighs of a holy soul, which cannot find satisfaction in anything except in its God.” Having finally retired from business, only observing from afar everything that was happening in the Christian world, Gregory led a life not only solitary, but also downright ascetic, exhausting his body. But despite this, some reproached him for sybarism. “One foolish, arrogant man,” writes Gregory on this occasion, “decided to accuse me of luxury, because I am rich, because I am free from business and have a garden and a small spring. But he is silent about tears, about the bridle placed on the belly, about ulcers on the knees, about the night vigil.” In 382, ​​during Pentecost, Gregory imposed complete silence on himself. He himself explains the purpose of such a feat as follows: “Noticing that the swiftness of a fluent word knows neither weight nor measure, I completely retained the word in my highly intelligent heart, so that my tongue could learn to observe what it could say and what it could not. Silence also tames irritability, which does not express itself, but is absorbed in itself.” This vow of silence seemed strange to many. But Gregory did not break his vow, and although he listened if he was told about good and necessary things, he responded only with gestures or letters. Having completely given himself over to exploits, reflections, and as if brightening up life with poetry and correspondence, Gregory calmly awaited the approach of death, and even often prayed for it, wanting to quickly unite with Christ. Nothing tied him to life anymore, and his last days were preparation for death. He constantly increased his exploits in order to become worthy to appear before the Holy Trinity. Life was becoming difficult for him, and he cried out in prayer: “Grant to your dead man, Christ, the end of life, give the weary one rest, and lead me to the easiest life, bring the traveler closer to the heavenly palace, where is the glory of the one eternal God, shining in three Lights.” And God heeded his prayer. At the beginning of 390, he went to the Lord, Whom he served with all zeal, Whom he loved with all the ardor of his pure heart - to the Lord, whom he taught people to know both in the rank of priest and in the rank of bishop, taught with his word and his deeds. “Radiant angels, surrounding in an immeasurable circle the equal light of the Trisian Divinity, receive the unworthy Gregory the priest.” These were the last words of Gregory the Theologian, who died on January 21, at the age of 62. He was buried in Nazianza, where his parents were also buried. In 950, his relics were transferred to Constantinople and placed in the Church of the Apostles. During the Crusaders, part of the incorruptible relics of St. Gregory was transferred to Rome. At the burial of Gregory, no one said a funeral word. The deceased saint, as if anticipating this, himself wrote two tombstones: one for himself, and the other for the common tomb of his family. This is what the first tombstone says: Firstly, God gave me to a praying bright mother; secondly, he received it from his mother as a gift pleasing to Him; thirdly, he saved me while I was dying with the Most Pure Meal; 4th – The Word gave me a double-edged word; 5th – virginity greeted me in friendly dreams; 6th - I made unanimous sacrifices with Vasily; 7th – the Giver of Life snatched me from the depths of the abyss; 8th - He cleansed my hands with diseases; in the 9th - to the youngest Rome (Constantinople) I returned, O King, the Trinity, and in the 10th - I was struck with stones or friends. In the 5th century Anatoly of Constantinople, and in VIII and IX Kozma Maiumsky, Feofan and others wrote songs of praise to Gregory the Theologian; These songs are still sung by the Orthodox Church, which has called Gregory the Theologian the second and bright writer of the Trinity. In its liturgical hymns, the Orthodox Church appeals to St. Gregory: “With your theological language, you have destroyed the weaves of rhetoric, and you have adorned the Church with the glory of Orthodoxy with clothes from above: Rejoice, Father, most powerful in theology of the mind!” Gregory the Theologian suffered many insults during his life - slander tried to denigrate him, and malice tried to belittle the significance of his personality and his works. But the truth triumphed, and if during Gregory’s life many already highly valued him, then later he was given all his due. Rufinus also spoke enthusiastically about Gregory: “He is an incomparable man in all respects, he brought the most brilliant light of knowledge to the Church, and showed a teaching equal to his life. There is nothing more honest and brighter than his life, purer and truer than his faith. He alone is such that even those who disagree with each other could not argue about his faith. He does not contain the right faith who does not agree in faith with Gregory.” And these words of Rufina were, as it were, confirmed and legitimized by the Orthodox Church, which recognized the teaching of Gregory - its teaching - as the most accurate and correct expression of what it, the Church, professed in its symbol. Having received the title of Theologian from the Church, he was called by Basil the Great “the mouth of Christ.” The significance of Gregory’s personality for his contemporaries is already clear from the fact that even at the time when, depressed by old age and illness, he arrived in his native village, poor, lonely, the whole world of that time spoke about him, he was respected by kings, listened to by bishops, blessed by the people and feared by the most bitter enemies. He was one of the great church luminaries of the glorious 4th century and was distinguished by those high spiritual, mental and moral qualities that even the people who hated him did not dare to deny. All slander was removed with shame from the pure life of Gregory. “Of course,” says Farrar, he was not devoid of shortcomings, for he too was a man. He suffered from bouts of irritable sensitivity, and he lacked the authority of people like Vasily. He also lacked that perseverance that enables people not only to disdain the baseness of their opponents, but also to oppose it, suppressing it. He gave in and left, fearing to sow discord. He did not have the practicality of an administrator - and was very trusting. But in his human shortcomings there was not even a shadow of unworthiness. Full of deep love for God and fiery zeal for the truth, he was distinguished by his high love of humanity and rare tolerance. He was quick to be offended, but he always quickly forgave insults. His friendship was full of nobility and survived all sorrows. He devoted his entire life to higher goals, and everything he had - knowledge, property, himself - he brought to the foot of Christ. He was one of those few people who are early taken possession of by God’s grace.” His activities are prolific even before the patriarchate. But it was even more significant in Constantinople. A small Orthodox community, deprived of churches and pastors, surrounded by enemies and their malice, in a short time became numerous. Even in solitude, he did not abandon his concerns about the Church. Zealous for the faith, he served the Church always and as soon as he could, to the extent of his strength and health. Comforting the despairing, instructing the foolish, enlightening the ignorant, he preached sermons, wrote letters, poems, and his moral significance as a Christian shepherd has always been great: before and now. His numerous creations still represent a precious treasure, the ignorance of which is not only shameful, but also insane for every true Christian who longs to know the truth. And this reading, in addition to benefit, will also bring great pleasure, for his eloquence is exquisite, his language is classical, his writing is artistic. It is not for nothing that not only the Orthodox, but also heretics and pagans listened to his sermons. Get acquainted with the works of St. Gregory means not only to comprehend many truths, but also to get acquainted with the personality of an ascetic preacher, a saintly poet, a highly charming personality. All his creations are permeated with a feeling of love for the Church and everything holy, as with this same feeling, “as if with a red, unbreakable thread, his entire pure righteous life is intertwined.” Among the works of Gregory the Theologian, the first place is occupied, of course, by sermons. They were written on various occasions, of which there were many in the church, public and private life of the ascetic. St. Gregory denounced Julian the Apostate, who wanted to destroy Christianity and constantly humiliated it; fought against Arianism, which in its daring delusion dreamed of swallowing up Orthodoxy. In Constantinople, Arianism ruled over everyone. And now Gregory the Theologian speaks with a passionate word: “On the decree of bishops and the dogma of the Holy Trinity.” Along with the flourishing of heretical teachings, St. Gregory also noticed another phenomenon harmful to the Church. Orthodox Christians of every rank and status, at every time, in every convenient and inconvenient place, discussed Christian dogmas as ordinary everyday issues. As a result, respect for the very dogmas was lost and the authority of Orthodoxy was undermined, when simple, uneducated people opposed scientists and those skilled in argument. To put an end to harmful disputes and give the true teaching about the dogma of the Trinity, St. Gregory delivered his famous five teachings on theology. The sermons are similar in content to these teachings: “On maintaining good order during interviews and the fact that not everyone and not at all times can talk about God” and “Against the Arians and about oneself.” His word of a dogmatic nature is also remarkable: “In memory of the martyrs and against the Arians.” St. Gregory uttered words in defense of the oppressed, in defense of cities from the wrath of the rulers, words of consolation and encouragement. He wrote five beautiful moral sermons in which he touched on love for the poor, the need for peace, marriage and other issues. Then there are teachings on various holidays, tombstones and about facts from the personal life of the preacher. All his speeches, messages and teachings are distinguished by “solemnity, sacred grandeur”; they are imprinted, in the words of Metropolitan Philaret, “with sublimity and strength of thought and ardor of feeling,” while the poems are distinguished by creative inspiration. His dogmatic works are wonderful lessons of faith; moralizing - lessons of high Christian morality. If we add that all this is expressed strongly, depicted vividly, sometimes artistically, and imbued with feeling, then once again it should be noted that reading the works of St. Gregory the Theologian is edifying reading for every Christian. Some of Gregory's creations were included in worship and became church songs. So, for example: “Resurrection day, let us enlighten ourselves people! Easter of the Lord, Easter!”, “Let us purify our senses and see”, “On the Divine guard, God-speaking Habakkuk...”, “Yesterday I was buried with you, Christ, today I rise with you, I will rise again with you...”, “This appointed and holy day is one of Saturdays, King and Lord, holiday of holidays!..”, etc. In the Christmas canon, Gregory owns the entire irmos: "Christ is born, praise..." The holy ascetic died many centuries ago. But to this day he remains an intercessor and prayer book for the militant Church of Christ, a great teacher, whose word is a source that quenches spiritual thirst for those who thirst for truth. And the life of St. Gregory, pure and impeccable, is at the same time the best example for all of us, rushing, embittered and wandering on the road. Let us think about the life of the saint, let us be imbued with his faith, love, and unforgettable malice, and let us learn from him, loving the Holy Trinity, to always serve Her in word and deed to the best of our ability. Sergiev Posad, Cave Abode. Sources and aids for writing an essay 1) Creations of St. Gregory the Theologian. 3) History of the Orthodox Church before the beginning of the division of churches. 4) Lives of saints revered by the Orthodox Church. Compiled by Rev. Filaret (Gumilevsky). 5) Life and works of St. fathers and teachers of the Church. Essays on church history in biographies. F. Farrar. Per. A. P. Lopukhina. 6) Emperor Julian and his attitude towards Christianity. Ya. Alfionova. 7) St. Gregory the Theologian, Archbishop of Constantinople. Comp. I. R. (Under the editorship of His Eminence Nikanor, Bishop of Arkhangelsk and Kholmogory). 8) Life of St. Gregory the Theologian, Archbishop of Constantinople, and his pastoral activities. Archimandrite Agapit. 9) Lives of Saints Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian and John Chrysostom Fr. Prot. Debolsky. 10) Historical teaching about the Fathers of the Church. Filaret (Gumilevsky), architect. Chernigovsky. 11) About the poems of St. Gregory the Theologian. A. Porphyria. (Proceedings of the Kiev Theological Academy, 1863). 12) The last representatives of polytheism of the ancient world. Jurassic. Basil the Great, his brother Gregory, bishop. Nyssa, and Gregory the Theologian. The Athenian life of both friends is described in detail by me in an essay on the life of Basil the Great. See about Julian in my essay: “Basily the Great.” For details, see my essay: “Basily the Great.” See my essay: “Basily the Great.”