The Greek Church Father Gregory Nazianzen (ca.330-390) is famous for being an exponent of the fusion of Hellenism and Christianity. In the Byznatine tradition, he was called the Christian Demosthenes, but he was also provided with the epithet of the Theologian. This book examines the reception of both pagan and biblical traditions in Gregory's oeuvre, more specifically in the exempla (Gr. paradeigmata) that present mythological, historical and biblical characters and events. This reception is placed within the broader framework of the overall interaction between poetics, rhetoric and theology in the developing Christianity of Late Antiquity.
"Au total, un livre indispensable." (Vincent Déroche, Belgisch Tijdschrift voor Filologie en Geschiedenis, t.77, n°4, 1999, p. 1191-1192)