Gregory of Neocaesarea: Evangelist

Gregory of Neocaesarea: Evangelist in the Province of Pontus. Sydney: Pennant Academic, 2012. ISBN 978-1-876666-00-2.

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Overview

Gregory of Neocaesarea was the bishop of the city of Neocaesarea in the Roman province of Pontus, located in Anatolia (modern Turkey). We are well-served with information on Gregory's life, with autobiographical, historical, and legendary material from which to draw. From these sources we can deduce that Gregory was born into a well-placed family in eastern Pontus. Although his father died when he was only 14 years old, his mother ensured he obtained a good Greek education. Not only that, circumstances meant that Gregory studied both Roman laws in Phoenicia and Greek philosophy in Palestine, where he was the student of Origen, the famous Christian philosopher. On returning home to Neocaesarea, Gregory showed himself to be a man of great qualities, and eventually found himself appointed as the leader of the church in that city. Under his leadership, the churches in that region grew from strength to strength. He confronted and overcame the prevailing traditional religion and strongly asserted the claims of the Christian religion. His life and work demonstrate the strength of the Christian Church in the second half of the third century A.D.

Gregory is primarily known as a "wonder-worker," and to have converted the people of his region through the impact of the wonders he performed. For modern readers this can be a problem, but does not have to be this way. While our sources for understanding the traditional society in which Gregory lived are limited, by scanning the whole period we can at least gain some understanding of the circumstances that led the people of the province of Pontus to convert to Christianity, and to abandon their traditional religion. They did this in large numbers, particularly during Gregory's lifetime. In this regard, it is important to realise that Gregory offered the ordinary people of his province a way to escape the limitations of the old ways, and to take on a new "more philosophical" way of life by embracing the teachings of Christ.

Gregory faced significant difficulties. His activities were conducted in the full light of the Roman authorities. In this regard, it is useful to track the changes that took place in that empire, and the inevitable nature of the clash between the Church and the Roman Empire. Today there is little recognition of the extent to which Christianity was on the move during the third century A.D., particularly in Anatolia. As a result, we should not view the Church's conflict with the Roman State as an aberration, but rather consider that it reflected the state's response to the challenge Christianity presented to the worldview of the Roman leadership. They believed that the ancient gods of all the peoples of the empire had made Rome great, but the Christians refused to worship these ancient gods, or even to respect them. Gregory fell into the thick of this, facing up to the period of persecution under Emperor Decius (249-251), and then another period of persecution late in the reign of Emperor Valerian (253-259). While Decius' attack appears to have been superficially successful in cowing the Christians, it would also appear that the Church emerged stronger in the following decade than it was before. This particularly applies to Gregory's own region, the province of Pontus.

Chapter Synopsis

Chapter 1 puts into context Gregory in his region of main activity, the Roman province of Pontus, and the time of his activity, being the middle of the third century A.D. This chapter also provides an overview of the three main sources for Gregory's life. Firstly, there is an autobiographical account of his life up to the time he completed his studies with the great Christian philosopher, Origen. Secondly, there is an anonymous letter, written in the first half of the 4th century A.D., which describes Gregory's deeds as they were remembered by the ordinary people of Neocaesarea. Finally, there is Gregory of Nyssa's famous speech (panegyric) honouring Gregory's memory, delivered in A.D. 379, in Neocaesarea.

Chapter 2 provides the necessary background information to understand the conversion of the people of Pontus from their traditional religion to Christianity. It is not easy for us to comprehend to viewpoint of the native Pontians, since the introduction of Christianity has changed the way in which Westerners, in particular, view the world. In order to understand the impact Gregory had upon his society it is first necessary to try to understand the society in which he worked. The traditional society was very old, with the traditions being maintained over time, despite the political changes that had taken place in Anatolia over the previous two millenia. We begin with the Hittite period, in the 2nd millenium B.C., when Syrian religion found its way into Pontus. This profoundly shaped the nature of that society and left a legacy that endured until the 3rd century A.D. In the meantime, the region was invaded by Persians, and then a successor Persian/Greek dynasty, and finally by the Romans. The impact of each of these changes is considered, with it being demonstrated that the changes during the Greco-Roman period weakene the hold upon the people of the traditional religion, making their conversion to Christianity a logical cultural development ("when the time was right").

Chapter 3 deals with the introduction of Christianity into Pontus, under the Romans, and the sporadic attacks of the Romans on the Christians, most likely associated with their own warlike intentions in relation to the Parthian and then Sassanid regimes in Persia.

Chapter 4 explores the rather more abundant (and first hand) information about Gregory education, at first in his homeland of Pontus, and then in Palestinian Caesarea with Origen, and finally in the "school" for Roman laws, in Phoenician Berytus.

Chapters 5 and 6 look more closely at all the sources for historical information about Gregory's later life, and provides a roadmap for the correct understanding of the (encapsulated) oral traditions, which form a large part of our material on Gregory.

Chapters 7 and 8 look at Gregory's reported activities (in a Christian context) as both layman, and then as the appointed Church leader. This is the heart of the account of Gregory's life, but one which can only be properly understood in the light of the actual context of his life and work.

Chapter 9 examines the Canonical Letter. This letter is a precious treasure, preserved from those times, and of unimpeachable authority. It shows the troubled nature of the times in which Gregory was working. It is generally attributed to Gregory, but this is quite unlikely. Instead it is argued that it was written to Gregory, by the bishop of the coastal city of Trapezus, seeking to remedy the disorders that had followed the invasion of Gregory's region by the Goths and Northmen.

Chapter 10 goes on to canvass the work of the Anatolian Church councils which were held in the period forty years or so after Gregory's death. They provide us with a "rear-view mirror" of the times, and help us to reflect on the influence that Gregory's life and work had on the development and advance of Christianity in the province of Pontus, and also beyond.