The purpose of this thesis is the analysis of the way by which St. Gregory the Theologian used Greek philosophy and religious ideas of Classical Hellenism in order to formulate the Christian Trinitarian Dogma, which, according to St. Gregory, is the only and unique criterion for approaching "δρνοδόξωσ" the Christian Cosmology and Anthropology. The very confusion between Greek philosophy and the dogmatic doctrine of Greek Fathers stems from the fact that a common terminology exists on both side. This was not a matter of confusion for St. Gregory since he understood the Holy Dispensation as the very mystery of God's manifestation through the history of Creation. Exposing the theological presuppositions he defines the Framework according to which the Orthodox theologian must theologize without running the risk of becoming a heretic. Purification, inactivity, and finally theoria constitutes the life of the theologian par excellence. The O.T. and the N.T. as well as the Ecclesiastical tradition are the sources of the Orthodox Dogma, the declaration of which is characterized by measure and symmetry (Via Media), in contrast to the heretical views which always move to extremes. Furthermore for St. Gregory the Christian theologian is the true philosopher who after painful preparation reaches such a level of objectivity that he becomes a voice of the Holy Spirit. In the same framework of theological objectivity St. Gregory examines the divine Names. He classifies Them into, a) Names proper to Essence, and b) Common Names of the divine Authority and of Dispensation. This latter introduces the Triplicity of the Persons within the Godhead, whereas the Former ones state Its Unit. On the other hand St. Gregory is particularly aware of Greek Monotheism, either that of the philosophers or of theurgical religion but he calls the latter polytheia because of its abstract notion of Oneness for a multiplicity of gods. In addition, instead of an abstract essence of the philosophers and their theory of ontological subordination of the Hypostaseis, a theory which leads towards coeternity of the ultimate Principle with Creation, St. Gregory introduces the paradoxical schema "Μονὰσ ἐγ Τριάδι", and vice versa, and in so doing he excludes a non-hypostatized essence or three non-substantial Hypostaseis. St. Gregory follows St. Athanasius concerning the Trinitarian Dogma and shares with the so called Cappadocian Fathers the main characteristics of the Cappadocian Trinitarian doctrine about Unity and Triplicity of God. Furthermore he uses the term homoousion to safeguard and confess the Unity of the three Hypostaseis and to declare unambiguously the divinity of the Holy Spirit, Whom he clearly calls "θεόσ". This statement is St. Gregory's personal contribution to formulation of the Trinitarian Dogma, a point that later became the rule of Orthodoxy, particularly concerning the Eastern Church. The last chapter is devoted to the question of the Trinitarian Images., which the heretics used in order to explain away the "παράδοζογ" character of the theologia by means of logical devices. Although St. Gregory is reluctant to apply images borrowed from the created nature to the Persons of the Holy Trinity, he does do so in a moderate and qualified way in order to expose and refute only the heretical positions.

Although scholars have often acknowledged the spirituality in the writings of Clement of Alexandria (cir. 150-215 AD), a thorough study of the Platonic category θεωρία as it appears in this second century Father has never been undertaken. Most studies on Christian spirituality either ignore Clement's role altogether, or rush past him with little comment in favor of the great Origen (cir. 185-255 AD). Stromateis, Clement's most enigmatic work, contains over 75 occurrences of θεωρία. A close examination of these texts reveals that his use of the term is somewhat different from two of his greatest philosophical and spiritual mentors, Plato and Philo. Clement uses this term (usually translated "contemplation") to refer to a spiritual experience which occurs in space and time, as well as an ethereal one and one which occurs in the mind. A possible explanation for this difference lies with Clement's claim in the opening chapter of the work: he is the recipient of an oral tradition which has never been recorded, but which he plans to include in the Stromateis. This thesis demonstrates: 1) that Clement is the first Christian writer to adapt this philosophical category into Christian spirituality; 2) the primary purpose of Stromateis is to present the third stage in a spiritual pathway - to reveal θεωρία as the spiritual "meat" for the advanced believer; and 3) to present God and His contact with the Christian as immediate. In a radical move, going against the philosophical setting of the day, Clement presents this Platonic category as a means for the Christian to experience an immanent God.

This thesis examines John Cassian's attempts to influence the course of Gallic asceticism through the medium of his first ascetic work, De institutis coenobiorum et de octo principalium vitiorum remediis, I-IV. Rather than viewing Cassian as a cloistered, proto-Benedictine monk or an inept monastic legislator, it attempts to locate him in his broader, Late Antique context. The thesis first argues that the traditional view which holds that Cassian was a monk/abbot of Marseilles is flawed; in fact Cassian wrote his ascetic works while living in the province of Narbonensis Secunda and only moved to Marseilles sometime after AD 430. The thesis then turns to a consideration of the strategies Cassian employed to win a hearing for his ascetic works. It examines how he played on his own experience as the quality that gave him the right to overrule both native Gallic ascetic experiments and the works of other western ascetic writers. It also examines how Cassian created a semi-mythical set of monastic laws (the instituta Aegyptiorum) and used this construct as an additional source of authority for his recommendations. Having established Cassian's method for winning a hearing for his work, the thesis then examines what Cassian offered that was in some way different from the practices offered by his contemporaries. The most important difference was Cassian's emphasis on a literal renunciation of all ties with the world before someone could enter the ascetic life. Finally, this thesis argues that a proposal made by Owen Chadwick in 1968, that certain chapters in Book III of De institutis were later forgeries, is indeed correct. This is demonstrated by examining these chapters in the broader context of Cassian's thought and work. This traditional, textual analysis is then followed by a computerized stylometric study of the disputed passages, which confirms the likelihood that these chapters were written by someone other than John Cassian.

The subject of this thesis is the relationship between hagiography and cult in the early medieval west taken through the example of the Passiones of St. Kilian of Würzburg († 689) in the period from circa 700 to circa 1000 AD. Through examining a cult which developed east of the Rhine, this thesis will assess these developments taking place in a region without a strong Christian-Roman history. Thuringia produced new saints and cults in this period, yet they all operated within the overarching framework of the well-established religious phenomenon of saints' cults. In its approach, this thesis builds upon the insights of Ian Wood, James Palmer and others, in which saints' Lives are viewed as ‘textual arguments' which could operate beyond cultic contexts. This is combined with the cultural context approaches advocated in geographically specific studies by the likes of Julia Smith, Thomas Head and Raymond Van Dam. By paying particular attention to the impact of updating saints' Lives this thesis provides an in depth comparison of the relatively overlooked two earliest passiones of St. Kilian and their place in the history of the Würzburg community. It therefore addresses the nature and function of hagiography and its relationship with the institutional memory and identity of that community. The spread of cult through texts and relics is compared with the distribution of the hagiography in order to form a picture of the relationship between these different facets of cult. The question of the way in which these passiones engaged with their wider political and religious contexts is also addressed in order to demonstrate the functions of hagiography outwith an immediate cultic context.

The seventh century was a formative period in the history of western monasticism. It was during this period that a monastic culture became more entrenched on the Continent with the foundation of new monasteries that were more closely tied to royal and aristocratic power. The catalyst behind this development was the Irish abbot and monastic founder, Columbanus (c. 550-615), and his Frankish disciples, the Columbanians. Columbanus’s ascetical exile to the Continent in 590 and his founding of monasteries in the Vosges forests of Burgundy and at Bobbio in Lombard Italy had a deep impact on Frankish and Lombard societies. Luxeuil in Burgundy became the nexus of the Hiberno-Frankish monastic movement in Merovingian Gaul in the years following Columbanus’s death, while Bobbio became an important centre of Catholic orthodoxy and influence in Lombard Italy. This thesis considers our principal source for Columbanus and the Columbanian familia, Jonas of Bobbio’s Vita Columbani abbatis et discipulorumque eius, written between 639 and 642. This is arguably the most important hagiographical work produced in the seventh century and one of the most significant of the early Middle Ages. I propose that the work was principally a Bobbio production meant to re-vindicate Columbanus’s saintly reputation amongst the Frankish communities and to criticize the dissent and disunity that had led to a change in Columbanian practices a decade after the saint’s death. I also consider whether it was addressed to a wider royal and aristocratic audience in Merovingian Gaul and propose new insights into the structure of the work. In addition to a close textual study of the Vita Columbani and Jonas’s other, lesser-known saints’ Lives, the Vita Vedastis and the Vita Iohannis, I explore the career of Jonas himself, seeing him as an individual whose life reflected many of the changing political, cultural, and religious circumstances of his age.

Clementine scholarship acknowledges Clement's doctrine of the Incarnation and generally maintains that for Clement the divine Logos assumed human flesh. However, because of Clement's complex logology and three passages suggesting a docetic interpretation of Christ's flesh, scholars tend to move away from addressing the Incarnation and treat either the metaphysics of the multiple logoi theory or the question of Clement's Docetism, or both. Because of this diversion in research, there remains a gap in the literature around Clement's teachings about the Incarnation. This thesis begins to fill the gap by explaining Clement's view of the Incarnation, which he connects to the emergent ‘exchange' doctrine, envisaged as a divine mission. It situates Clement as an heir of the apostolic tradition while he engages with Greek philosophy and Gnostic belief. The research delineates Clement's gnostic tradition, which he considered faithful to the Old Testament and to the teachings of the apostles. The investigation collates Clement's usage of John 1:14 and the term ginomai linked with Logos, anthropos, and sarx. It examines Clement's discussion in Stromateis VII.2, where he claims the Logos assumed flesh susceptible to suffering, emotions, and physical sensibilities. In Clement's teachings, the Logos became both anthropos and sarx so that anthropos might become theos. This thesis outlines Clement's usage of the terms parousia and epiphaneia (appearing), showing they are consequential to the Incarnation. Clement presents the Logos as Saviour, who conquers malevolent powers and death to release humankind from corruption through his sufferings from birth to the cross. Clement also presents the Logos as a Teacher, who during his parousia, interprets precisely the Old Testament, and in his appearing, discloses true gnosis, which guides anthropos to godliness. The evidence demonstrates that Clement bases his path for assimilation to God upon the Incarnation of the Logos.