Gregory of Nyssa’s oration 40
Creators: name: Tsiami, Zoe
Publisher: name: Database of Religious History (DRH)
Year: 2023

description: This oration was written and preached for the catechumens who used to postpone their baptismal practice, at risk of losing their salvation, heaven, and a life free from sin, according to Gregory of Nyssa. This oration is part of a larger body of catechetical works, that try to proselytize new Christians and preach the word of Jesus Christ. It is common in the fourth century to meet orations like Gregory’s; the early church did not have the political and social power it wished for and, therefore, it managed to find ways to make its presence bolder and stronger. Thus, orations like this one, would contribute to a better understanding of Christianity as well as to proselytize new members of the Christian community effortlessly. The holy baptism of the catechumens is indicated picturesquely in Gregory of Nyssa's orations. Gregory of Nyssa indicates baptism as a medicine: a medicine that cures all the sins of the body and the soul. Water is a healing material and a process of the body’s cure and rebirth. Water was always necessary for the baptismal practice, as it is been holy since Jesus’ baptism. It is an integral part of baptism to pray. Praying was an act of salvation and dialogue with God. The baptism prayer is placed with the baptism, for the baptismist, the baptized, and the people around. The word “Baptist” brings our attention to this point. Were there still Baptists in the fourth century? Or Gregory implicates the work of the priest as a Baptist? That remains unknown in this oration. There is a phenomenon in late antiquity of the laic baptizing catechumens, mostly in emergencies (e.g., in the case of a lethal disease). However, Gregory of Nyssa does not elaborate on these roles exactly in his oration on baptism. What we do see in Gregory's work is an appeal for baptism in case of sudden death, which leads us to examine life expectancy in late antiquity, as we will see later. Gregory's oration addresses those who delay baptism. We can conclude the fact that the catechumens were not convinced easily to be baptized, especially when they were healthy. Gregory refers to them as “slaves of the sin”. Using the example of a catechumen who baptized himself with all the waters of nature right before his violent death, he illustrates the importance of baptism with all the waters of nature. This example confirms the fact that the emotion that led the catechumens into baptism is fear, just as when the plague hit in Justinian's time when people sought help and the blessing of baptism. In addition, Gregory mentions that baptism was the first option the catechumens used during natural disasters and invasions. Therefore, we conclude that baptism was not a popular option for the newly catechumens. Gregory of Nyssa implies that many people remained in the catechetical phase for quite a long. “How long will you be a student learning the alphabet”, he wonders. He emphatically mentions in his oration the possibility of young people dying from a disease, an accident or choking, or a heart attack. Through this way, he persuades the catechumens to seek the baptism in order to protect their bodies and soul and let the Lord prevail over them. For an older catechumen, it is easier to be baptized as they are approaching the end of their life. It wasn't just Gregory of Nyssa who tried to get catechumens baptized. During the fourth and fifth centuries, we see other church fathers, like John Chrysostom, trying to convince the catechumens (and not just them) to insert baptism into their lives. Similarly to Gregory of Nyssa, John Chrysostom dedicated whole orations on holy baptism in order to get baptism to prevail over the catechumens’ lives. Gregory of Nyssa’s oration has multiple levels: the catechetical level, baptismal practices, baptismal roles, emotional history, the aging process, and death cases. Gregory knitted the baptismal scarf step by step, in order to persuade the catechumens to get baptized immediately. Through different emotions and examples, he managed to preach a persuasive speech to the catechumens step by step. Baptism was a simple practice, which could be performed at any time in the fourth century. Of course, since 200 C.E. it used to be performed during the paschal celebration. That is why Gregory was trying to get the catechumens baptized as soon as possible. Baptism involved water, prayer, and the baptist. There were primarily young people among the catechumens, and they stayed catechumens for an extended period of time. The church wasn't satisfied with that, so catechesis limits should be imposed, in order to move on to the baptismal practice sooner and get baptized.