The Nicene Age · AD 313–400
Gorgonia of Nazianzus
c. 329 – c. 372 · Matron · Sister of Gregory the Theologian · Nazianzus → Iconium
The Nicene Age
Who Gorgonia of Nazianzus was
Elder sister of Gregory the Theologian, a married laywoman of Iconium whom her brother held up, in the funeral oration he preached for her, as proof that sanctity belonged to the ordinary Christian household as fully as to the desert or the see — a wife and mother of exemplary charity, modesty, and prayer. He tells of her recovery from a carriage accident and her serene death. Her oration is one of the earliest Christian eulogies of a laywoman, an argument that holiness is not the monopoly of monks and bishops.
Her brother alone (Oration 8 and the family epitaphs — one voice).
Also listed in women.
Common questions
When did Gorgonia live?
Gorgonia of Nazianzus is dated c. 329 – c. 372 in the archive, which places Gorgonia in the Nicene Age (AD 313–400). The dating is traditional and approximate; the archive marks it as uncertain rather than fixing a year the sources do not give.
Which early sources mention Gorgonia?
Gorgonia of Nazianzus is named in 1 primary-source passage catalogued here, drawn from Gregory of Nazianzus. Every passage is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Where was Gorgonia from?
The archive associates Gorgonia of Nazianzus with Nazianzus, Iconium. The sources record more than one location, so the places are listed in the order the record moves through them.
Who were Gorgonia’s contemporaries?
The archive links Gorgonia of Nazianzus to 4 other figures, including Gregory of Nazianzus, Nonna of Nazianzus, Gregory the Elder of Nazianzus and Caesarius of Nazianzus. Each connection is drawn from a source that places them together, not from inference.
Primary-source mentions (1)
Every passage below is quoted from a named public-domain translation, earliest first.
Oration 8 (funeral for Gorgonia)
c. AD 380She surpassed… all in prudence and piety, and knew but one nobility, that of piety, and the knowing whence we are sprung and whither we tend.Gregory of Nazianzus · 8 · source text
Connected in the archive
People
Events in this lifetime
- AD 303 · The Great Persecution begins, AD 303
- AD 303 · The search of the church at Cirta, AD 303
- AD 306 · The Council of Elvira, AD 306
- AD 311 · Galerius’ edict of Serdica, AD 311
- AD 313 · The Edict of Milan, AD 313
- AD 314 · The Council of Arles, AD 314
- AD 320 · Silvanus tried before Zenophilus, AD 320
- AD 325 · The Council of Nicaea, AD 325
- AD 339 · The persecution of Shapur II, AD 339
- AD 343 · The Council of Serdica, AD 343
- AD 361 · Julian’s pagan restoration, AD 361
- AD 366 · Damasus and the catacomb epigrams, AD 366
- AD 367 · Athanasius lists the 27 NT books, AD 367
- AD 372 · The martyrdom of Sabbas the Goth, AD 372
Place
Places served
The 2 places the sources put Gorgonia, in the order the record moves through them. This is what the sources attest, not a reconstructed route.