THE CAPPADOCIAN FATHERS AND THE CONCEPT OF PERSONA

A CONTRIBUTION FOR THE NICENE-CONSTANTINOPOLITAN CREED

Abstract

The main objective of this study is to present the connection of the Cappadocian Fathers – Basil of Caesarea, Gregory of Nyssa and Gregory of Nazianzus – with the concept of “persona” which, in turn, contributed to the formulation of the Nicene-Constantinopolitan Creed and passed to be used by Pope Damasus I in the West. The text shows that to arrive at the use of “persona” to refer to the Holy Trinity, several theological disputes permeated the entire fourth century, especially those against the Aryan heresy. It took the Cappadocian Fathers’ nearness to pagan wisdom and, consequently, all the linguistic effort they took advantage of, to arrive at the formula “mía ousía – trêis hypostáseis”, and thus, make use of the term “persona” for the Three of the Trinity.