Gregory of Nyssa and the Grasp of Faith Union, Knowledge, and Divine Presence

by Laird, Martin

• ISBN13: 9780199229154
• ISBN10: 0199229155
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2007-09-27
• Publisher: Oxford University Press

Summary

The first in-depth study of Gregory of Nyssa, this book shows how for Gregory the darkness of faith is what unites the believer with God. Through this union by faith alone, God yet speaks through the deeds and discourse of the believer. While the believer is immersed in the darkness ofunknowing, they are also transformed in light. Laird alters the way in which we understand Gregory's mystical theology.

Author Biography

Martin Laird is Assistant Professor of Theology and Religious Studies at Villanova University.

Table of Contents

Abbreviations	p. xi
Introduction	p. 1
Faith, the Christian Foundation	p. 1
Faith in late Neoplatonism: Porphyry, Iamblichus, and Proclus	p. 4
The Exaltation of Faith: The State of Current Research	p. 15
Faith in Gregory of Nyssa: the Critical Heritage	p. 15
New Directions	p. 25
The Flow of the Mind	p. 34
Introduction	p. 34
The Mind and Passions	p. 35
The Mind and the Intelligible World	p. 40
The Mind's Ascent	p. 43
The Mind and Grace	p. 44
The Presence of God	p. 49
Conclusion	p. 56
The Grasp of Faith	p. 63
Introduction	p. 63
In Inscriptiones Psalmorum	p. 64
Contra Eunomium I	p. 65
Contra Eunomium II	p. 68
De vita Moysis	p. 78
Commentarius in Canticum canticorum	p. 85
Conclusion	p. 99
The Grasp of Faith and Supranoetic Union	p. 108
Introduction	p. 108
Celsus	p. 111
The Chaldaean Oracles	p. 112
Plotinus	p. 117
Parallels between Plotinus and Gregory of Nyssa	p. 124
Conclusion	p. 129
Fountain of Presence, Breasts of Wine: The Flow of Knowledge in the In Canticum canticorum	p. 131
Introduction	p. 131
The Gold of Knowledge	p. 132
The Flow of Water	p. 135
A Schema of the Flow of Knowledge	p. 148
Conclusion	p. 152
Christ Speaking Himself: The Logophatic Discourse of Paul and the Bride	p. 154
Introduction	p. 154
Paul and Logophasis	p. 155
The Bride and the Daughters of Jerusalem	p. 164
Conclusion	p. 169
The Luminous Dark Revisited	p. 174
Introduction	p. 174
Preliminary Considerations	p. 175
From Light to Increasing Darkness	p. 177
Light unto Light	p. 181
Light Communing in Light	p. 186
Conclusion	p. 197
Conclusion	p. 205
Bibliography	p. 213
Index	p. 229
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