Saint Gregory of Nyssa – Antiqued Lithograph – Mount Athos

Description

Antiqued Lithograph with Saint Gregory of Nyssa

Saint Gregory was born in Neo-Caesarea in Pontus in 332 AD and was the brother of Saint Basil the Great. He received the same education as his great brother, and he too was distinguished for his intelligence and diligence.

Gregory married Theosebia, a truly holy woman, but soon became a widower.

Being a strong character, he did not despair, and at the age of forty, he became the bishop of Nyssa in Cappadocia. However, the Arians, realizing that he would be a formidable opponent to their heresy, conspired to have him eliminated. They accused him before the emperor Valens, claiming that he had been improperly elected as bishop and had embezzled church funds. Thus, in 376 AD, Gregory was deposed by a synod of Arian bishops from Pontus and Galatia, and, being persecuted, he was forced to wander and hide. His ordeal ended in August 378 AD when Emperor Valens died, and Gregory returned to Nyssa, where he was met with a triumphant reception.

In the fall of 379 AD, he took part in the Synod of Antioch, which convened mainly to address the heresy of Apollinarianism, and in 381 AD, he participated in the Second Ecumenical Council in Constantinople, where he decisively defeated the Pneumatomachians of Macedonius. In those discussions, Gregory of Nyssa distinguished himself so greatly that he was called “Father of Fathers and the Light of Nyssa.” Emperor Theodosius the Great called him the “pillar of Orthodoxy.”

He died peacefully, having left many significant works: interpretative, doctrinal, catechetical, moral discourses, festival speeches, eulogies, funeral orations, and a memorial sermon for his brother, Saint Basil the Great. The Church honors his memory on January 10th.

Antiqued Lithograph: Characteristics

This particular image has been created using the technique of lithography, which is taught in the iconography workshops of Mount Athos and is also used by several monks to create exceptional works of art. In this case, the monk used a lithographed copy of Byzantine art and crafted this work following the traditional method of artificial aging. The technique of lithography in iconography essentially constitutes a printing technique.

Origin: Mount Athos