Gregory of Nyssa’s Use of the Expression ἀπαύγασμα

This study examines the use of the term ἀπαύγασμα in the writings of Gregory of Nyssa, with particular attention to its semantic flexibility and theological function across different doctrinal contexts. Focusing on Gregory’s exegetical, ascetical, Trinitarian, and Christological texts, the article aims to show how the imagery of radiance and reflection serves to articulate the relation between divine transcendence and manifestation while safeguarding the incomprehensibility of the divine essence. Special emphasis is placed on Gregory’s polemical use of ἀπαύγασμα in his anti-Eunomian and anti-Apollinarian writings, where the term becomes a precise conceptual tool for defending the co-eternity and consubstantiality of the Son with the Father, as well as the integrity of Christ’s two natures. The study argues that Gregory’s disciplined interpretation of this biblical metaphor exemplifies the pro-Nicene integration of scriptural exegesis and systematic theological reasoning.