The Cappadocian Fathers

First Sunday after the Epiphany of Our Lord
The Baptism of our Lord
Commemoration of Basil the Great of Caesarea, Gregory of Nazianzus, and Gregory of Nyssa, Pastors and Confessors
January 10, 2010

The Lord be with you

The Gospel lesson for the First Sunday after the Epiphany is always one of the accounts about the baptism of Jesus (just like the Gospel lesson for the Second Sunday after the Epiphany is always the wedding feast at Cana). This year the First Sunday after the Epiphany just happened to fall on January 10, which also happens to be the Commemoration of the Cappadocian Fathers (which these three men are also called). They were leaders of Christian orthodoxy in Asia Minor (modern Turkey) in the later fourth century. Basil and Gregory of Nyssa were brothers; Gregory of Nazianzus was their friend. All three were influential in shaping the theology ratified by the Council of Constantinople in 381 AD, which is expressed in the Nicene Creed. Their defense of the doctrines of the Holy Spirit and Holy Trinity, together with their contributions to the liturgy of the Eastern Church, makes them among the most influential Christian teachers and theologians of their time.

Blessings in Christ,
Pastor John Rickert