Cappadocian Fathers – the stalwarts of Orthodoxy

Fr Jacob Thomas

Introduction
The stalwarts of the Orthodox faith who defended the Church by building a strong wall of
faith when the Church was hit with the storm of heresies from within the Church itself. Along
with St Gregory of Nazianzus and St Gregory of Nyssa, St Basil the Great are the
Cappadocian fathers of the fourth century who lived in the regions of Cappadocia (now, in
the central parts of Turkey), who are well known for their collective theological endeavors in
developing and perfecting the Trinitarian theology proposed by St Athanasius the Great (c.
295-373) during the time of the Ecumenical Synods. These church fathers are commemorated
on our liturgical calendar on January 1st every year.

St Basil the Great

Basil earned the title of “The Great”, as he was a theologian and intellectual of the first order,
also ecclesiastical statesman, organizer and liturgist. He was not only into defending the
Orthodox faith, he founded monasteries, hospices, hospitals and so on. His knowledge,
teachings, along with his actions and life rose him to the title of The Great.
Basil was born in 330 at Caesarea in Cappadocia. He came from a wealthy and pious family
which gave a number of saints to the church, including his mother St Emily, grandmother St
Macrina the Elder, sister St Macrina the Younger and brothers saints Gregory of Nyssa and
Peter of Sebaste.
Basil spent the first years of his life on an estate belonging to his parents at the River Iris,
where he was raised under the supervision of his mother Emilia and grandmother Macrina.
Received his initial education under the supervision of his father, and then he studied under
the finest teachers in Caesarea, and it was here that he made the acquaintance of St Gregory
the Theologian. Later, Basil was transferred to a school at Constantinople, where he listened
to eminent orators and philosophers. To complete his education Basil went to Athens, the
centre of classical enlightenment.
After a four or five year stay at Athens, Basil had mastered all the available disciplines,
possessing profound knowledge in astronomy, mathematics and medicine, he was a ship fully
laden with learning, to the extent permitted by human nature.
It was at Athens that he seriously began to think of religion, and resolved to seek out the most
famous hermit saints in Syria and Arabia, in order to learn from them how to attain
enthusiastic piety and how to keep his body under submission by asceticism. On returning to
Cappadocia, he decided to do as they did. He distributed his wealth to the needy, then settled
on the opposite side of the river not far from his mother Emilia and sister Macrina, gathering
around him monks living a coenobitic life. He was ordained priest of the Church at Caesarea
in 365. In 370, Eusebius, bishop of Caesarea, died, and Basil was chosen to succeed him. It
was then that his great powers were called into action. With all his might he resisted the
emperor Valens, who strove to introduce Arianism into his diocese, kept his flock in strong
faith without letting them fall into the clutches of the evil forces.
To keep the faith steadfast, he preached daily, and often twice, in the morning and in the
evening. During this time St Basil composed his Liturgy. He wrote a work “On the Six Days
of Creation” (Hexaemeron) and another on the Prophet Isaiah in sixteen chapters, yet another
on the Psalms, and also a second compilation of monastic rules. St Basil wrote also three
books “Against Eunomius,” an Arian teacher who, with the help of Aristotelian concepts, had
presented the Arian dogma in philosophic form, converting Christian teaching into a logical
scheme of rational concepts.
Basil celebrated the church services almost every day. He was particularly concerned about
the strict fulfilling of the Canons of the Church, and took care that only worthy individuals
should enter into the clergy. He incessantly made the rounds of his own church, lest
anywhere there be an infraction of Church discipline, and setting aright any unseemliness. At
Caesarea, Basil built two monasteries, with a church in honor of the Forty Martyrs whose
relics were buried there. He used all his personal wealth and the income from his church for
the benefit of the destitute; in every centre of his diocese he built a poor-house; and at
Caesarea, a home for wanderers and the homeless.
Sickly since youth, the toil of teaching, his life of abstinence, and the concerns and sorrows
of pastoral service took their toll on him. St Basil died on January 1, 379 at age 49.

St Gregory of Nazianzus
St Gregory of Nazianzus, also known as Gregory the Theologian was the Archbishop of
Constantinople, a great Father and teacher of the Church, was born into a Christian family of
eminent lineage in the year 329, at Arianzos, not far from the city of Cappadocian Nazianzus.
His father, also named Gregory, was Bishop of Nazianzus. His pious mother, St Nonna,
prayed to God for a son, vowing to dedicate him to the Lord. Her prayer was answered, and
she named her child Gregory.
Gregory had his basic education from his uncle St Amphilochius, an experienced teacher of
rhetoric, he then studied in the schools of Nazianzus, Caesarea in Cappadocia, and
Alexandria. Then the saint decided to go to Athens to complete his education.
In 358, returned to his parents at Nazianzus. At thirty-three years of age, he received baptism
from his father, who had been appointed Bishop of Nazianzus. Against his will, Gregory was
ordained to the holy priesthood by his father. However, when the elder Gregory wished to
make him a bishop, he fled to join his friend Basil in Pontus. St Basil had organized a
monastery in Pontus and had written to Gregory inviting him to come.
St Basil the Great made Gregory bishop of the city of Sasima, a small town between Caesarea
and Tyana. However, St Gregory remained at Nazianzus in order to assist his dying father,
and he guided the flock of this city for a while after the death of his father in 374.
Upon the death of Patriarch Valentus of Constantinople in the year 378, a council of bishops
invited St Gregory to help the Church of Constantinople, which at this time was ravaged by
heretics. Obtaining the consent of St Basil the Great, St Gregory came to Constantinople to
combat heresy. In the year 379 he began to serve and preach in a small church called
“Anastasis” (“Resurrection”).
St Gregory’s literary works (orations, letters, poems) show him as a worthy preacher of the
truth of Christ. The first of St Gregory’s Five Theological Orations is devoted to arguments
against the Eunomians for their blasphemy of the Holy Spirit. The Orations of St Gregory are
not limited only to this topic. He also wrote Panegyrics on saints, Festal Orations, two
invectives against Julian the Apostate, and various orations on other topics. In all, forty-five
of St Gregory’s orations have been preserved.
At the Second Ecumenical Council in 381, St Gregory was chosen as Patriarch of
Constantinople. After the death of Patriarch Meletius of Antioch, St Gregory presided at the
Council. Hoping to reconcile the West with the East, he offered to recognize Paulinus as
Patriarch of Antioch. St Gregory decided to resign his office for the sake of peace in the
Church.
The saint, zealous for the truth of Christ, continued to affirm Orthodoxy through his letters
and poems, while remaining in the wilderness. He died on January 25, 389, and is honored
with the title “Theologian,” also given to the holy Apostle and Evangelist John. St Gregory
was buried at Nazianzus. In the year 950, his holy relics were transferred to Constantinople
into the church of the Holy Apostles. Later on, a portion of his relics was transferred to
Rome.

St Gregory of Nyssa
St Gregory, Bishop of Nyssa, was a younger brother of St Basil the Great. Having received
an excellent education, he was at one time a teacher of rhetoric. In the year 372, he was
consecrated by St Basil the Great as bishop of the city of Nyssa in Cappadocia.
St Gregory was an ardent advocate for Orthodoxy, and he fought against the Arian heresy
with his brother St Basil. Gregory was persecuted by the Arians, by whom he was falsely
accused of improper use of church property, and thereby deprived of his See and sent to
Ancyra.
After the death of the emperor Valens (378), St Gregory was restored to his cathedra and was
joyously received by his flock. When his brother, St Basil the Great passed away in 379, he
delivered a funeral oration for him, and completed St Basil’s study of the six days of
Creation, the Hexaemeron. That same year St Gregory participated in the Council of Antioch
against heretics who refused to recognize the perpetual virginity of the Mother of God.
Others at the opposite extreme, who worshipped the Mother of God as being God Herself,
were also denounced by the Council. He visited the churches of Arabia and Palestine, which
were infected with the Arian heresy, to assert the Orthodox teaching about the Most Holy
Theotokos. On his return journey St Gregory visited Jerusalem and the Holy Places.
In the year 381 St Gregory was one of the chief figures of the Second Ecumenical Council,
convened at Constantinople against the heresy of Macedonius, who incorrectly taught about
the Holy Spirit. At this Council, on the initiative of St Gregory, the Nicean Creed was
completed.
St Gregory of Nyssa was a fiery defender of Orthodox dogmas and a zealous teacher of his
flock, a kind and compassionate father to his spiritual children, and their intercessor before
the courts. He was distinguished by his magnanimity, patience and love of peace.
Having reached old age, St Gregory of Nyssa died soon after the Council of Constantinople.
Together with his great contemporaries, saints Basil the Great and Gregory the Theologian,
St Gregory of Nyssa had a significant influence on the Church life of his time. His sister, St
Macrina, wrote to him: “You are renowned both in the cities, and gatherings of people, and
throughout entire districts. Churches ask you for help.” St Gregory is known in history as one
of the most profound Christian thinkers of the fourth century. Endowed with philosophical
talent, he saw philosophy as a means for a deeper penetration into the authentic meaning of
divine revelation. He has been called “the Father of Fathers.”
These fathers are not just defenders of faith, they even dedicated their lives for the mission
works proposed and given by Christ. They used all their knowledge and resources for the
upliftment of the Church, at a time when the Church needed such vibrant leadership and
strength. If they hadn’t fought for the True Faith, the real Orthodoxy would have been a myth
in our understandings, which they broke down for us to understand it better and easier. May
the memory of the Fathers be for our blessings and guidance!