{"id":153,"date":"2025-09-15T00:10:49","date_gmt":"2025-09-15T00:10:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153"},"modified":"2025-09-15T00:10:52","modified_gmt":"2025-09-15T00:10:52","slug":"a-different-vision-gregory-of-nyssa","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153","title":{"rendered":"A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

What if what Jesus taught wasn\u2019t what you\u2019ve been taught? What if your crusade for the \u201cgospel\u201d and the \u201cBible\u201d isn\u2019t God\u2019s cause at all? What if you really don\u2019t have any special status as a member of \u201cGod\u2019s chosen people,\u201d but rather have simply enjoyed the individual care and concern that God extends to every human being? What if the world is not, fundamentally, a battleground between the \u201crighteous\u201d and the \u201cwicked,\u201d but rather a place where we are all equally struggling, failing, and learning under the universal compassion and generosity of God? What if there are no \u201crejects,\u201d and no one who gets tossed in the cosmic garbage can at the end of history? What if life isn\u2019t about spiritual achievement at all, but simply about learning to receive the gift of pure happiness that God intends for everyone, whether they are able to receive it now, or only through the healing God reserves for them in the next life? What if God is able to completely eradicate evil from his creation without resorting to cruel or tyrannical behavior? What if his justice gives everyone, not what they \u201cdeserve,\u201d but what they need <\/em>to get from misery to joy? <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Back in 380 A.D., while Augustine of Hippo was still a Manichaean dualist, the Greek Cappadocian bishop Gregory of Nyssa had already laid the groundwork for this refreshingly commonsense interpretation of Christianity, based on the idea that God seeks, not vengeance, but restoration. History wouldn\u2019t follow Gregory\u2019s lead\u2013the idea of universal restoration would eventually be condemned by the Church 160 years later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

But history took a long time to follow his lead in other areas, too. Gregory may have been the first person in recorded human history to speak out clearly against slavery in all its forms. His family was astoundingly progressive. He honored his sister Macrina as the real spiritual teacher in the family\u2013their brother, Basil of Caesarea, was one of the first people in the Western tradition to assert the complete equality of women with men.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Church never dared to condemn Gregory as a heretic, even in later centuries. His thoroughly Trinitarian universalism wouldn\u2019t flower again in the West until the mid-nineteenth century, in the works of visionaries such as the Scottish poet, preacher, and novelist George MacDonald. But today, it\u2019s an idea whose time has come. Reading Gregory\u2019s interpretations of Jesus\u2019 parables makes me realize that there were other options than the ones that the Western Church went with\u2013ones that make significantly more sense. Could history have been different if we had followed Gregory\u2019s lead, instead of Augustine\u2019s?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That question is impossible to answer. But I am convinced that Christianity has no viable future as a positive cultural influence unless it can move from the dualistic \u201cculture war\u201d mentality of \u201cChristian vs. pagan\u201d with its toxic eschatology of vengeance, to a consistently universalist upholding of God\u2019s steadfast care for the dignity of every person. Maybe this can only happen when the Church has been cured of its Bibliolatry\u2013its misplaced idea of what constitutes inspired communication. But, as Gregory shows, due reverence for the Scriptural texts is by no means incompatible with the conviction that God intends eternal happiness for everyone. <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

What if what Jesus taught wasn\u2019t what you\u2019ve been taught? What if your crusade for the \u201cgospel\u201d and the \u201cBible\u201d isn\u2019t God\u2019s cause at all? What if you really don\u2019t have any special status as a member of \u201cGod\u2019s chosen people,\u201d but rather have simply enjoyed the individual care and concern that God extends to… Continue reading A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-153","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general-theology","entry"],"yoast_head":"\nA Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa – The Catonian<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa – The Catonian\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"What if what Jesus taught wasn\u2019t what you\u2019ve been taught? What if your crusade for the \u201cgospel\u201d and the \u201cBible\u201d isn\u2019t God\u2019s cause at all? What if you really don\u2019t have any special status as a member of \u201cGod\u2019s chosen people,\u201d but rather have simply enjoyed the individual care and concern that God extends to… Continue reading A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Catonian\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-09-15T00:10:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2025-09-15T00:10:52+00:00\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"admin\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"admin\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5762623399629f1ed6533c0f633f042e\"},\"headline\":\"A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-15T00:10:49+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-09-15T00:10:52+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153\"},\"wordCount\":561,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5762623399629f1ed6533c0f633f042e\"},\"articleSection\":[\"General Theology\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153\",\"name\":\"A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa – The Catonian\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2025-09-15T00:10:49+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2025-09-15T00:10:52+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/\",\"name\":\"The Catonian\",\"description\":\"Seeking a More Human Christianity\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5762623399629f1ed6533c0f633f042e\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":[\"Person\",\"Organization\"],\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5762623399629f1ed6533c0f633f042e\",\"name\":\"admin\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e0f6a9d709f6f647632864be473d648aa74d43e6937617a1d50ba042bab8afa5?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e0f6a9d709f6f647632864be473d648aa74d43e6937617a1d50ba042bab8afa5?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"admin\"},\"logo\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa – The Catonian","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa – The Catonian","og_description":"What if what Jesus taught wasn\u2019t what you\u2019ve been taught? What if your crusade for the \u201cgospel\u201d and the \u201cBible\u201d isn\u2019t God\u2019s cause at all? What if you really don\u2019t have any special status as a member of \u201cGod\u2019s chosen people,\u201d but rather have simply enjoyed the individual care and concern that God extends to… Continue reading A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa","og_url":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153","og_site_name":"The Catonian","article_published_time":"2025-09-15T00:10:49+00:00","article_modified_time":"2025-09-15T00:10:52+00:00","author":"admin","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"admin","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153"},"author":{"name":"admin","@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5762623399629f1ed6533c0f633f042e"},"headline":"A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa","datePublished":"2025-09-15T00:10:49+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-15T00:10:52+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153"},"wordCount":561,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5762623399629f1ed6533c0f633f042e"},"articleSection":["General Theology"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153","url":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153","name":"A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa – The Catonian","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#website"},"datePublished":"2025-09-15T00:10:49+00:00","dateModified":"2025-09-15T00:10:52+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?p=153#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"A Different Vision: Gregory of Nyssa"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/","name":"The Catonian","description":"Seeking a More Human Christianity","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5762623399629f1ed6533c0f633f042e"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":["Person","Organization"],"@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/5762623399629f1ed6533c0f633f042e","name":"admin","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e0f6a9d709f6f647632864be473d648aa74d43e6937617a1d50ba042bab8afa5?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/e0f6a9d709f6f647632864be473d648aa74d43e6937617a1d50ba042bab8afa5?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"admin"},"logo":{"@id":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/thecatonian.com"]}]}},"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=153"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":154,"href":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153\/revisions\/154"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=153"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=153"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/thecatonian.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=153"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}