Gregory of Nyssa's Letters 29 and 30 and the Contra Eunomium

Abstract

This essay studies the correspondence between Gregory and his brother Peter, Letters 29–30, which appear in the oldest manuscripts as a preface to the Contra Eunomium. It begins with a survey of Pasquali’s findings on the textual transmission, from which he inferred that a very early collection of Gregory’s letters, including both 1–3, and 4–28, may have dated back as far as Gregory himself. These letters were subsequently refracted into separate transmissions. Letters 29–30 however were not part of this ancient collection, but were ‘purloined’ from CE by a 13th century ms, ‘F’. This correspondence appeared as a preface to the CE very early, perhaps even by its end redactor. The essay then considers the historical circumstances following Basil’s death (September 378), which emboldened Eunomius to publish a long delayed riposte to Basil’s CE, and Gregory to write his CE I and II in reply, plausibly finished in the winter of 380/381. Misgiving the signs of ‘passion’ in what he had written, Gregory submitted his efforts to Peter for his discernment and advice. The essay ends with a study of the content of the two letters.