Three beacons illuminating the fourth century ... and beyond!

Abstract

The Cappadocian Fathers of the Church - St Basil the Great, St Gregory of Nazianzus and St Gregory of Nyssa - have contributed immensely to the theological heritage offered by Christianity. Their extraordinary opus touches upon a wide variety of aspects of Christian life, thus making their works relevant to this very day. Their writings address not only the doctrinal issues which cropped up in their time, but a whole spectrum of practical daily concerns related to society, just relations, ethical choices, Christian orthopraxis, spirituality, religion and monasticism. The article consists in the postface of the book edited by the Romanian scholar Nicu Dumitrascu. The postface outlines -- as in a pregnant and rich nutshell -- the great achievements of the Cappadocian Fathers. The text provides a bird's eye-view of the great achievements of Basil and the two Gregorys. Anyone desiring a springboard to the Cappadocians is invited to read the postface, and subsequently retrace the volume edited by Dumitrascu and its sixteen scholarly chapters.