Gregory of Nyssa, Ancient and (Post)modern

In recent years, the writings of Gregory of Nyssa have been an increasingly popular source for theologians, philosophers, historians, and literary theorists alike. But what arises from these readings is a bewildering range of interpretations: Gregory emerges variously as a bastion of orthodoxy, a suspect neoplatonist, a mystic, a philosopher, an apologist for monasticism, an urbane married man, a misogynist, and an advocate of complete human equality.

Morwenna Ludlow is Lecturer in Patristics, University of Exeter.