The Rational Animal: A Rereading of Gregory of Nyssa's De hominis opificio
This article, through a close reading of Gregory of Nyssa's De hominis opificio, challenges the usual synthetic presentation of Gregory of Nyssa's anthropology, particularly his understanding of human sexuality, characteristically built up by combining various elements from different works...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
1999
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| In: |
Journal of early Christian studies
Year: 1999, Volume: 7, Issue: 2, Pages: 219-247 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | This article, through a close reading of Gregory of Nyssa's De hominis opificio, challenges the usual synthetic presentation of Gregory of Nyssa's anthropology, particularly his understanding of human sexuality, characteristically built up by combining various elements from different works. Instead of an anthropology articulated in terms of a dual creation, in which sexuality is added as an economic measure "in view of the Fall," we see how Gregory explores the existence of human beings as rational animals, embracing the extremes of creation in their own being, the asexual rational, that which is in the image of God, and the irrational sexual, that which humans share with the animals. These two aspects of human existence enables Gregory to see a potential in creation for ascent, gracing that which is irrational with a rational employment, or descent, assimilating the rational to the irrational. |
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| ISSN: | 1086-3184 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Journal of early Christian studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1353/earl.1999.0021 |