De Theologia (Orat. 28)

Gregory, of Nazianzus

Gregorius Nazianzenus, The Five Theological Orations, Mason, Cambridge, 1899

τίς περιήγαγεν οὐρανόν, ἔταξεν ἀστέρας; μᾶλλον δὲ τί πρὸ τούτων οὐρανὸς καὶ ἀστέρες ἔχοις ἂν εἰπεῖν [*](5 διεξάγῃ ce ’Reg. a Or. ’ ΙΙ 8 λαμπόμενος def || ἄπο] ἔπι ’Or. 1’ || 9 μανωτατων cdf || 17 τὸ] τὼ ef) [*](1. Ἡλίου τ.] 1 Kings xviii 45.) [*](2. κλείση] Job xii 14. Gr. adds τὸν οὐρ.) [*](3. ἀνοίξῃ τοὺς κ.] Gen. vii ΙΙ; cp. Mai. iii 10. Συνέσιε, Gen. viii 2.) [*](4. οἴσει] ‘shall bear’; τὴν τὴν ἐπ’ ἁ. ἀμετρίαν means of course excess in giving too much or too little.) [*](5. μέτροις κ. στάθμ’.] Job xxviii 25.) [*](8. τίνας ἀτμούς] directed against Arist. Meteor, i 4.) [*](9. μανοτάτων] μανός (the quan- tity of the α is variable) = ’rare,’ as opp. to ’dense.’ The interjection of τῶν μ. is, of course, Gr.'s form counter argument. The clouds are too ’rare’ to produce such effects.) [*](17. λόγον ἔγμως κτλ.] ’know that it is reason to know the things above reason? Something like St Austin’s Credo ut intellegam.) [*](18. ἔπη. ἢ περίγ.] ’on the earth or concerned with the earth, ignorant even of your ignorance? Cp. Plat. Leg. ix 863 c.) [*](29. The heavens, the sun.) [*](20. περιήγαγεν] ’ made it revolve’; cp. § 30.)

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ὁ μετέωρος, ὁ τὰ ἐν ποσὶν ἀγνοῶν, καὶ οὐδὲ σεαυτὸν μετρῆσαι δυνάμενος, τὰ δὲ ὑπὲρ τὴν σὴν φύσιν πολυπραγμονῶν, καὶ κεχηνὼς εἰς τὰ ἄμετρα; ἔστω γάρ σε κύκλους καὶ περιόδους καὶ παησιασμοὺς καἰ ἀποχωρήσεις καταλαμβάνειν, λαμβάνειν, ἐπιτολὰς καὶ ἀνατολάς, καὶ μοίρας τινὰς καἰ λεπτότητας, καὶ ὅσοις σὺ τὴν θαυμασίαν σου ταύτην ἐπιστήμην ἀποσεμνύνεις· οὔπω τοῦτο κατάληψις τῶν ὄντων ἐστίν, ἀλλὰ κινήσεως τινος ἐπιτήρησις, ἣ πλείονι γυμνασία βεβαιωθεῖσα, καὶ εἰς ἓν ἀγαγοῦσα τὰ τηρηθέντα πλείοσιν, εἶτα λόγον ἐπινοήσασα, ἐπιστήμη προσηγορεύθη· ὥσπερ τὰ περὶ σελήνην παθήματα γνώριμα γέγονε τοῖς πολλοῖς, τὴν ὄψιν ἀρχὴν λαβόντα τῆς γνώσεως. σὺ δέ, εἰ λίαν ἐπιστήμων εἶ τούτων, καὶ δικαίως ζητεῖς θαυμάζεσθαι, εἰπὲ τίς ἡ τῆς τἀξ ἕως αἰτία καὶ τῆς κινήσεως; πόθεν ἥλιος φρυκτωρεῖ πάσῃ τῆ οἰκουμένῃ καὶ πάσαις ὄψεσιν, ὥσπερ χοροῦ τινὸς κορυφαῖος, πλέον τοὺς ἄλλους ἀστέρας ἀποκρύπτων φαιδρότητι ἤ τινες ἐκείνων ἑτέρους; ἀπόδειξις δέ, οἱ μὲν ἀντιλάμπουσιν, ὁ δὲ ὑπερλάμπει, καὶ οὐδὲ ὅτι συνανίσχουσιν ἐᾷ γνωρίζεσθαι, καλὸς ὡς νυμφίος, ταχὺς ὡς γίγας καὶ μέγας· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἀνέχομαι ἄλλοθεν ἢ τοῖς [*](29. 16 κορυφαίου e) [*](3. κύκλους κτλ.] ’revolutions, and orbits, and conjunctions (lit. and separations (departures), and risings (there seems to be no difference between ἔπιτ’. and ἀνατ), νιν degrees (in the astronomical sense) as they call them τινάς), and ’ Perh. the last word has ref. to the speculations about the ’aether.’ But as λεπτὸν appears to be used in the astronomical sense of a ’minute,’ it is possible that Gr. may intend λ. here in that sense.) [*](8. ἐπιτήρησις] There could hardly be abetter description of inductive science.) [*](11. ὤσπερ τὰπεμ σ. ΙΙ.] ἃς, for instance, what happens to the moon has become α piece ὁ general knowapproaches), ledge, a knowledge arising in the first instance from ocular observatioin.’ Παθήμ., cp. § 30 πάθη.) [*](15. Φρυκτωρεῖ] ‘gives the fiery signal.’) [*](18. οἱ μὲν ἀντιλάμπ.] ‘they shine against him, but he outshines them, and does not suffer even their ising with him to be perceived’; when light might be thought not to have gained its full strength.) [*](19. ὡς νυμφίος . . . γίγας] Ps. xviii 6 (xix 5).) [*](20. ἄλλοθεν ἢ τοῖς ἐμοῖς] i.e. from pagan sources; cp. ἀλλότριος §§ 16) [*](30. Ἀποσεμν. ‘ to glorify.)
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ἐμοῖς τοῦτον ἀποσεμνύνειν· τοσοῦτος τὴν δύναμιν, ὥστε ἀπ’ ἄλλων ἄκρων ἄλλα τῆ θερμότητι καταλαμβάνειν, καὶ μηδὲν διαφεύγειν αὐτοῦ τὴν αἴσθησιν, ἀλλὰ πᾶσαν πλη- ροῦσθαι καὶ ὄψιν φωτὸς καὶ σωματικὴν φύσιν θερμότητος· θέροντος, ἀλλ’ οὐ φλέγοντος, εὐκρασίας ἡμερότητι καὶ τάξει κινήσεως, ὡς πᾶσι παρόντος, καὶ πάντα ἐπίσης περιλαμβάνοντος.