Milkha Therez T. Villena 3A Bs ArchitectureChurch Fathers

St. Gregory of NyssaI. Brief Biology

St. Gregory of Nyssa was a bishop of Nyssa from 372 to 376 and from 378 until his death. He is venerated as a saint in Roman Catholicism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, Lutheranism and Anglicanism. He belongs to a group known as the “Cappadocian Fathers”. His mother, Emmelia, was a martyr’s daughter. Two of his brothers became bishops like himself. His eldest sister, Macrina, became a model of piety and is honored as a saint. His family was aristocratic and Christian. Among his nine siblings were St. Macrina the Younger, St. Naucratius, St. Peter of Sebaste and St. Basil of Caesarea. His parents suffered persecution for their faith. His grandmather, Macrina the Elder, is also revered as a saint while his grandfather is a martyr. St. Gregory was quiet and meek compared to his brother Basil who was outspoken. He was first educated at home then later on studied at Athens.

II. Contributions to the Church Most of his writings treat of the Sacred Scriptures. He was

an ardent follower of Origen, and applied constantly the latter's principles of hermeneutics. Gregory is ever in quest of allegorical interpretations and mystical meanings hidden away beneath the literal sense of texts. As a rule, however, the "great Cappadocians" tried to eliminate this tendency. His "Treatise on the Work of the Six Days" follows St. Basil's Hexæmeron. Another work, "On the Creation of Man", deals with the work of the Sixth Day, and contains some curious anatomical details; it was translated into Latin by Dionysius Exiguus. His interpretation of Moses as legislator offers much fine-spunallegorizing, and the same is true of his "Explanation of the Titles of the Psalms". In a brief tractate on the witch of Endor he says that the woman did not see Samuel, but only a demon, who put on the figure of the prophet. Besides a homily on the sixth Psalm, he wrote eight homilies on Ecclesiastes, in which he taught that the soul should rise above the senses, and that true peace is only to be found in contempt of worldly greatness. He is also the author of fifteen homilies on the Canticle of Canticles (the union of

the soul with its Creator), five very eloquent homilies on the Lord's Prayer, and eight highly rhetorical homilies on the Beatitudes.

He wrote also on Christian life and conduct, e.g. "On the meaning of the Christian name or profession", addressed to Harmonius, and "On Perfection and what manner of man the Christian should be", dedicated to the monk Olympius. For the monks, he wrote a work on the Divine purpose in creation. His admirable book "On Virginity", written about 370, was composed to strengthen in all who read it the desire for a life of perfect virtue.

III. Personal Reflection For me, St. Gregory of Nyssa made big contributions as a

Church Father. Not only him but also his family. He had a very religious family that almost all of them were part of defending the Christian faith. He also made many sermons and homilies that were significant about our faith. Also, St. Gregory attended the First Council of Constantinople and made one of his famous sermons there, In suam ordinationem.

IV. References https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gregory_of_Nyssahttp://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07016a.htm

St. Hilary of PoitiersI. Brief Biography

Hilary of Poitiers was Bishop of Poitiers and is a Doctor of the Church. He was sometimes referred to as “Hammer of the Arians” and the “Athanasius of the West”. His name comes from the Latin word for happy or cheerful. He belonged to noble and very probably pagan family, he was instructed in all the branches of profane learning, but, having also taken up the study of the Holy Scripture. He renounced idolatry and was baptized. His wide learning and his zeal for the Faith attracted such attention that he was chosen about 350 to govern the body of the faithful. He played an important role in opposing heresies. But persecution could not subdue the valiant champion. Instead of remaining inactive during his exile, he gave himself up to study completed certain of his works which he had begun, and wrote his treatise on the synods. In this work he analyzed the professions

of faith uttered by the Oriental bishops in the Councils of Ancyra, Antioch, and Sirmium, and while condemning them, since they were in substance Arian, he sought to show that sometimes the difference between the doctrines of certain heretics and orthodox beliefs was rather in the words than in the ideas, which led to his counselling the bishops of the West to be reserved in their condemnation.

II. Contributions to the Church He then returned to his city of Poitiers, from which he was

not again to absent himself and where he was to die. This learned and energetic bishop had fought against error with the pen as well as in words. The best edition of his numerous and remarkable writings is that published by Dom Constant under the title: "Sancti Hilarii, Pictavorum episcopi opera, ad manuscriptos codices gallicanos, romanos, belgicos, necnon ad veteres editiones castigata" (Paris, 1693). The Latin Church celebrates his feast on 14 January, and Pius IX raised him to the rank of Doctor of the Universal Church. The Church of Puy glories in the supposed possession of his relics, but according to one tradition his body was borne to the church of St-Denys near Paris, while according to another it was taken from the church of St-Hilaire at Poitiers and burned by the Protestants in 1572. Among Hilary's earliest writings, completed sometime before his exile in 356, is his Commentarius in Evangelium Matthaei, an allegorical exegesis of the first Gospel. This is the first Latin commentary on Matthew to have survived in its entirety. Hilary's commentary was strongly influenced by Tertullian and Cyprian, and made use of several classical writers, including Cicero, Quintilian, Pliny and the Roman historians.

III. Personal Reflection St. Hilary of Poitiers lived a life defending the true meaning

of the scriptures and preaching it to those who are influenced with the wrong meaning. He was a great defender against heresies and other false teaching in the church. His works were very significant in the scriptures today for he fought against the false belief of indulgences. He was a very brave Church Father.

IV. References https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hilary_of_Poitiershttp://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07349b.htm