Platonic and Pauline Elements in the Ascent of the Soul in Gregory of Nyssa's Dialogue On the Soul and Resurrection

Abstract

Nyssa attempts to present the doctrine of the resurrection of the body in terms of the Platonic philosophical tradition but also in accord with the biblical revelation. There are those who believe that he failed to integrate his philosophy with his Christianity. Harold Cherniss in particular claims that Gregory was a Platonist in his heart, and that it was an intellectually dishonest concession to his overbearing older sister Macrina which made him insert Christian doctrine into his writings.2 Charalambos Apostolopoulos considers Gregory to be a Greek philosopher of notable originality who, because he feared the ecclesiastical authorities, disguised the boldness of his thought with pious formulas and biblical citations.3 Jean Danielou, on the other hand, believes that Gregory's thought is wholly Christian, though expressed in Platonic terminology.4 I hope by studying the literary form of this dialogue to come to some conclusions about its unity or disunity. In this paper I shall deal with a short passage which appears especially indebted to Plato, and show how Gregory has woven words and themes from St. Paul into a Platonic warp. I shall consider what message is conveyed by the interaction of Gregory's two languages, the biblical and the philosophical.5 First of all, something should be said about the overall form of the treatise. The choice of a dialogue form in itself shows that Gregory wanted to be recognized as a follower of Plato. It has often been pointed out that his dialogue shows many parallels with Plato's Phaedo.6 In both dialogues the death of a beloved teacher gives occasion to a discussion of the nature of the soul and its possible continuance after the death of the body. Phaedo reports the conversation which Socrates purportedly had with his friends on his last day, and the dialogue concludes by describing the death of Socrates. Gregory's