GREGORY. 



populous, but immcifcd in fuprrdition and idolatry, and 

 contained but very few Chrillians. By his great zeal, 

 united to niucli pn'denco, he made numerous converts to 

 Chrillianity, and cllablilhed a church which is faid to have 

 been truly apoftolic, both with refpeft to doftrinc and difci- 

 pliiic, and to have retained its purity, long after furround- 

 ing churches had admitted novelties and irmovations which 

 were a difgrace to their religion, and inlenfibly led the way 

 to the groHeft corruptions and abufes. Tliia church went 

 on flourifhing and increaling under his Care till the Decian 

 perfecution, in the year 250, when he thought it prudent to 

 withdraw into retirement till the ilorm was blown over. 

 He afterwards returned to his flock, among whom, during 

 the remainder of his life, he difcharged the duties of a faitii- 

 ful and vigilant pallor, and was inllruraentai in bringing 

 not only the whole city, but the dependent diftrift into the 

 profeflion of Cluillianity. He was prcfent at the iirll 

 council at Antioch, in 264, when the cafe of Paul of Samo- 

 fata was the fubjcCl of enquiry, and Gregory, with others, 

 exerted themfelves in preventing any harlh meaiurcj from 

 being adopted againll him. He is thought not to have long 

 furvived the meeting of this council, and to have died fome 

 time in the year 265. Upon the whole he was a great 

 and good man, eminent for purity and fimplicity of 

 manners, zealous for the intereits of the Clu-iiUan faith 

 and profelhon, and anxious to preferve them unadulterated 

 with fuperftitious praClices. The only works of his that 

 are extant, which are unqueitionably genuine, are his 

 " Oration in Praife of Origeu," and " A Paraphrafe on the 

 Book of Ecclefialles." " A Canonical Epitlle," conUfting 

 of eleven canons, is afcribed to him by fonie authors, but 

 it is rejefted by other very able and learned critics, and is 

 c(>)ilidered to have been added by fome modern Greek. 

 His pieces have been frequently printed ; they were col- 

 ledled into one volume at Paris, in 1626 ; and Gerard Vof- 

 lius publilhed an edition of them at Mentz, in 1604, in 4to. 

 Dr. Lardner fays there are two things to be lamented, ill. 

 That no more of this excellent man's writings have come 

 down to us. It is plain that fome of liis writings are 

 loll ; for .lerom fpeaks of his epillles, whereas there is only 

 one remaining. And liafil' mentions an " Expofition of 

 Faith," or a " Dialogue with a Gentile," which is not now 

 in exiilence. zdly. That we have no hillory of his life, 

 written by fome contemporary. It may be well fupjiofed 

 that this apollolical man was chiefly employed in increaling 

 his church, or in building it up in knowledge and vn-tue, by 

 oral inllruftions and works of goodnefs. His church con- 

 tinued lledfall in the faith after his death, and near the end 

 of the fourth century the Neo-Cxfarians were all ChrilHans, 

 having been all along to that period bleffed witli pallors 

 who were men of true worth. As Gregory, therefore, was 

 an honour and ornament to the churches in his time, fo his 

 church contin.'.ed to be an ornament to him. Lardner's 

 Credibility, vol. iv. Moreri. Dupin. 



Gkegouy Naziax/en', was boi-n near Nazianzimi, in 

 Cappadocia, about the year 324. His father was not 

 brought up a Chrillian, but, by marriage, became a convert 

 to the true faith. His learning, piety, and many virtues, 

 pointed him out as a proper perfon for fullainiug the epif- 

 copal charafter, and he was according-ly ordained, and ap' 

 pointed to the fee of Nazianzum, wliere he officiated as pallor 

 for the fpace of forty-live years. Gregory afforded early 

 proofs of excellent natural abilities, and a ferious turn of 

 mind, and having made great profuiency at home, he was 

 fi-nt, for farther improvement, to different public leminaries 

 -of learning. He was Iirll placed at Casfarea, in Cappa- 

 docia, whence he removed to Ccefarca, in Palelliiic ; thcnte 



to Alexandria, and proceeded from tliat city to Athcn'sv 

 where he intended to tinifli his academical ftudies. At the 

 lad named city he became acquainted with Bafi), celebrated 

 in the church, and likev.ife with Julian, who was afterwards 

 emperor. With the former he entered into the ftricleft 

 habits of friendlhip. They lived together in tlie fame houfe, 

 united in the fame ftudies, and embraced the fame tenets in 

 religion. Having been a confiderable time at Athens, he 

 felt a llrong delire to vifit his friends at home, and fet cut 

 for Conllantinople, on his journey homewards. At that 

 city, he met his brother, Ca-larius, whohadjuft arrived from 

 Alexandria, and here he v.as llrongly urged to fettle, but 

 by the influence of Ciregory lie declined all the flattering 

 oflers made him, and returned with him to Nazianzum, 

 Gregory, on his return, was baptized, being about thirty 

 years of age, and from this period he feems to have chiefly 

 devoted hinifelf to a iludious and afcetic life, practifing the 

 aufterities of monkery, and n;ixing no farther in the bufinefs 

 of the world than was neccffaiy for the m.anagement of liis 

 lather's concerns. In the year 359, he vilited Bafil, in liis 

 retirement among the mountains of Pontus, and fubjected 

 himlelf to the fame fevere difcipline which he profcfl'ed. 

 He iiad not long enjoyed the company of Baiil, when he 

 was fent for in haile to allay a ferment that had occurred in 

 the church of Nazianzum. He fucceeded in reconciling 

 the differences that had occaiioned the difcontents ; entered 

 into orders ; and was ordained preil^yter. Jidian, the 

 avowed and malignant enemy of the Chriffians, had now 

 alcended the throne : lie publilhed a law intended to prevent 

 tlie adherents to the gofpel fyllem from being inftru&ed in 

 the arts and fciences, hoping to render the followers of 

 Chrift barbarians ; but this effort was partly defeated by 

 tlie two ApoUorarii ; and Gregory,- who wrote a number 

 of poems in all kinds of verfe, on divers ferious fubjeils, 

 by which the lofs of the Greek and Roman claflics was in 

 fome degree compenfated to Chriftian lludents, on account 

 of their excellencies and beauties as compolitions. Gre- 

 gory officiated for fome years as alTiftant to his father in 

 the paftoral office. In this lituation he was inllrumental in 

 promoting the election of his friend B.-ifil to the fee of Cx- 

 farea, in the year 370, a circumllance, though well meant 

 by Gregory, whicli had nearly occafioned a rupture betux-cn 

 the two friends ; and which determined Gregory, to with- 

 draw into retirement, where he hoped he might be allowed 

 to fpend his life in lludy and rehgious contemplation ; but 

 by his father's earnelt entreaties he was induced to become 

 his coadjutor in the epilcopal office at Nazianz.um, on the 

 exprefs coijdition, that after his father's death he (hould be 

 perfc&ly free from all obligation to that charge. Accord- 

 ingly when this event took place, in the year 374, he quit- 

 ted Nazianzum, and retired to Seleucia, where he continued 

 for a long time in a monallerv before he returned to liis na- 

 tive country. About the year 378 Gregory, among others, 

 was deputed, on account of his great learning, to go to Conllar.- 

 tinople to affiil in defending the Cathohc caufeagainil the Ari- 

 ans, who were making head againll them. When he arrived 

 at the city he found tlie Catholic caufe reduced to the lowcft 

 ebb, fo that the Catholics themfelves durll fcarcely venture 

 to avow their opinions. At firft he only preached in a pri- 

 vate manner at liis lodgings, but in a ihort time the fame of 

 his eloquence brought multitude* to hear him, and he con- 

 verted the houfe in wiiich he was into a church ; to this he 

 gave the name of Ana'.laiia, or the Refurreftion, becaufe 

 the Catholic faith feemed to have its refurre^tiou in this par- 

 ticular fpot. His fuccefs excited the jcaloufv of the Ariaii 

 party, who inlligated the populace to attack him and his 

 hearers with clubs and iioues, both iu.ihc llxecii.aid alfcia 



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