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Gregory closes his fourth oration by analyzing the actual titles of the Son. While the being of God \u201ccannot be expressed in words,\u201d Gregory does believe it is possible to \u201csketch Him by His attributes, and so obtain a certain faint and feeble and partial idea concerning Him. Gregory\u2019s catalogue of 15 divine names and attributes includes the following:<\/p>\n
1 He Who Is, and God. Both are \u201cthe special names of His essence.
\n2 Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Within the Godhead itself, \u201cthe proper name of the unoriginate is \u2018Father,\u201d and that of the unoriginately begotten is \u2018Son\u2019, and that of the unbegottenly proceeding or going forth is \u2018the Holy Spirit.\u2019 More particularly, the Son is called \u201cSon because He is identical with the Father in essence; and not only for this reason, but also because He is of Him.
\n3 Only Begotten. When the son is called Only Begotten, both His uniqueness as \u201cthe only Son\u201d and \u201cthe manner of His Sonship\u201d are in view. This is an incorporeal, eternal and timeless generation, one \u201cnot shared by bodies\u201d
\n4 Word. The Son is called Word in relationship \u201cto the Father as word to mind; not only on account of his passionless generation, but also because of the union, and of his declaratory function.\u201d In a manner of speaking, the Son is the definition or \u201cdemonstration of the Father\u2019s nature, as everything that is begotten is a silent word of Him that begot it.\u201d
\n5 Wisdom. The Son is \u201cthe knowledge of things divine and human. For how is it possible that He who made all things should be ignorant of the reasons of what He has made?<\/p>\n
I would only present the first five of Gregory\u2019s 15 in this issue of the Bulletin since I would invite you to take time and \u201cthink about\u201d each of these five. Each, I know, presents a challenge since they represent the mystery that is our God. All Three Sacred Persons have existed for all eternity. They exist separately but only comprise one Godhead. There is truly a dynamic relationship between the three of them. They each have a specific \u201crole\u201d or \u201cfunction\u201d to perform and each compliments and completes the other. When did Gregory live? In the fourth century – born in 329 CE. Think about this!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Gregory closes his fourth oration by analyzing the actual titles of the Son. While the being of God \u201ccannot be expressed in words,\u201d Gregory does believe it is possible to \u201csketch Him by His attributes, and so obtain a certain … Continue reading