Orations of Gregory of Nazianzus



Orations of Gregory of Nazianzus (Slova Hryhoriia Bohoslova Naziianzyna). A collection of 13 sermons by an early Byzantine church father and bishop of Constantinople (379–81) which were translated into Church Slavonic, possibly in the Glagolitic alphabet, probably in Kyiv. An 11th-century copy of the Orations (376 folios) offers valuable insights into the evolution of the Church Slavonic language and into contemporary Slavic religious practices. Scholars believe that local clergymen, particularly Cyril of Turiv, may have modeled their sermons on the Orations. The manuscript is preserved in the Saint Petersburg Public Library. The language of the text was studied by Anton Budilovich (1871), who also published the text (1875).

[This article was updated in 2008.]