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Extracts from St Gregory of Nyssa's Works
The following documents contain quotations primarily
from Gregory of Nyssa's texts "The Life of Moses" and his "Commentaries on the Song of Songs", grouped around some of his characteristic themes:
All of the above quotations are included in this document 
Gregory of Nyssa - All Quotes
Books About St Gregory of Nyssa
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A. Meredith, Gregory of Nyssa (London: Routledge, 1999) ISBN: 0415118409 |  |
| There would seem to be a lack of a one volume introduction to Gregory’s life and work in English suitable for the newcomer to Early Church studies. This book goes some way to addressing this, but does not fill the gap completely (there is only a smallish introduction to Gregory). However, it does contain some translations of representative sections of Gregory's work. | ||
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A. Meredith, The Cappadocians (New York: St Vladimir's Seminary Press, 1998) ISBN: 0881411124 | |
| This book provide a good sketch of all three of the Cappadocian Fathers - Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nazianzus and Gregory of Nyssa. There’s an introduction to each of them which helps you to start seeing them as real people (rather than just "two Gregories and a Basil!") as well as an overview of some of the key texts which each of them has left behind. There’s also a valuable summary in the last chapter of "The Cappadocian achievement". | ||
St Gregory of Nyssa's Works in Translation
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P. Schaff and H. Wace (editors), The Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers of the Christian Church: Second Series, Volume 5: Gregory of Nyssa: Dogmatic Treatises, etc |  |
| This one volume contains a large selection of Gregory's writings, making it a very good "one stop shop". The major drawback is that these translations are not always light reading, due to the Victorian language employed. But still well worth obtaining. This book is commonly available second hand. Expect to pay around £10 (+ p&p) for a 2nd hand copy in good condition. Alternatively, view, download and print the texts for FREE! See the CCEL website. | ||
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A. J. Malherbe and E. Ferguson (translators), Gregory of Nyssa: The Life of Moses (New York: Paulist Press, 1979) ISBN: 0809121123 | |
| Written towards the end of Gregory’s life, this work has been described as "perhaps his profoundest and most representative work" and provides an excellent introduction to some of his classic themes. A great choice for those new to Gregory, wanting a taste of his approach. The Biblical story of Moses is used as a vehicle to demonstrate the perfect way of life, with Gregory seeing a deeper meaning to every aspect of the story of Moses (the plagues on Egypt, the Exodus, crossing the Red Sea, and especially the ascent of Mt Sinai into the darkness where God dwells…). Gregory’s interpretation covers morality, mysticism and theological insight, all intertwined in one single text. This particular edition is a modern translation, with a very scholarly introduction and notes (if you’re not that way inclined, skip these bits and get straight into the text). Highly recommended. |
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E.R Hardy (editor), Christology of the Later Fathers (Louisville: Westminster John Knox Press, 1995) ISBN: 0664241522 | |
| Don’t be put off by the title! This book collects English translations of a number of classic works from the 4th century into one place. Included are Gregory of Nyssa’s Catechetical Oration and On Not Three Gods as well as other greats such as On the Incarnation by St Athanasius and Gregory of Nazianzus’ five Theological Orations. | ||
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H. Musurillo (editor), From Glory to Glory: Texts from Gregory of Nyssa's Mystical Writings (New York: St. Vladimir's Seminary Press, 2001) ISBN: 0913836540 | |
| This book is a compilation of inspirational excerpts from what are commonly referred to as Gregory’s "mystical" works – mostly The Life of Moses and the Commentary on the Song of Songs. There is also a valuable introduction by the renowned French scholar Jean Daniélou which nicely summarises some of Gregory’s characteristic themes. A real gem of a book, especially since there are many excerpts from Gregory’s Commentary on the Song of Songs, which is otherwise difficult to get hold of. | ||
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H.C. Graef (translator), St Gregory of Nyssa: The Lord's Prayer, the Beatitudes (New York: Paulist Press, 1953) ISBN: 0809102552 | |
| This book contains translations of Gregory’s two series of sermons on these two topics. Perhaps less mystical and more "practical" (whatever that means!), these works show Gregory’s familiarity with the culture and science of his day and again illustrate his ability to find graphic metaphors to convey his ideas. | ||
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R. Heine (translator), Gregory of Nyssa’s Treatise on the Inscriptions of the Psalms (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1995) ISBN: 0198267630 | |
| In this text, Gregory's purported aim is to pass comment not directly on the content of the Psalms, but rather on just the one or two line inscriptions found at the start of many of them! However, his attention to what we might be tempted to consider as an unimportant detail of the Old Testament does actually provide him with a way in to the "vision" of the book of Psalms as well. | ||
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C. McCambley (translator), Saint Gregory of Nyssa: Commentary on the Song of Songs (Brookline, MA: Hellenic College Press, 1987) ISBN: 0917653181 |  |
| Saving the best until last. Following a similar approach to Origen, Gregory unpacks the spiritual and mystical meaning hidden in the Old Testament book of the "Song of Songs" with some jaw-dropping results. Frustratingly out of print, and rare on the second hand market. If you can find a copy snap it up immediately! Alternatively, you may find your local library can get hold of it. Some of the best bits are present in From Glory to Glory (see above).
Note: The full text of this book is also included on the CD-ROM by Richard McCambly (see below). |
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Resources on the Internet
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http://www.sage.edu/faculty/salomd/nyssa/ | |
| A superb resource provided by David Salomon and containing otherwise unavailable translations of Gregory's texts by Richard (Casimir) McCambly, a Cistercian monk of St. Joseph's Abbey in Spencer, Massachusetts. Also contains a number of McCambly’s own (scholarly) essays. A highly recommended CD-ROM is available which includes additional translations and some bonus features such as a rendition of the hymn used by the Orthodox Church on the Feast of St Gregory. | ||
Want more?
For more suggested reading, you may also wish to visit the Reading Room page on (All three of) The Cappadocian Fathers.
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