The image of the priest in Gregory of Nazianzus’ «Apology for His Flight» (or. 2) in the context of late antique idεas about leadership

The article continues the study of the principles of constructing the image of a priest in late Antiquity using the example of the «Apology» by St. Gregory the Theologian. It is demonstrated that the literary image of a priest is constructed by using images of other bearers of authority and is thought of as one of them: Gregory uses the topoi and vocabulary of political literature. The key image is that of the Platonic philosopher-ruler, as well as vocabulary from the monarchical rather than democratic tradition. The origin and tradition of using the formula «the art of arts and the science of sciences» (τέχνη τεχνῶν καὶ ἐπιστήμη ἐπιστημῶν), by which the author defines the priesthood, is studied. It is shown that in this way Gregory puts the priest in the place of the philosopher of the Platonic tradition. This is confirmed by an analysis of allusions to Plato’s Gorgias, which contains images of two universal power roles: the rhetorician and the philosopher. The comparison of caring for the soul with medicine, which originates in this dialogue, is further developed by Gregory, who incorporates into it provisions of the Christian gospel and describes principles of spiritual counseling that have no precedent in earlier writings. In addition, the author combines the functions of a rhetorician and a priest in the described image, thus making him a comprehensive leader of the church space, conceptualized by analogy with the polis. In conclusion, a comparison is made with the image of Pythagoras as described by Iamblichus, who, like the priest, combines a political dimension (rule of a community) with a soteriological perspective through varied types of influence on the soul: through public speech, individual communication, example, and a cult. The comparison allows us to see that the priest and the local Church are thought of by Gregory not as a separate new political space with its own power structure, but as its metaphorical projection, universal in defining identity, but not denying the existing political institutions.

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