ABSTRACT
St. Gregory Palamas is a Byzantine paradox. Writing as a monk who spent much of his life withdrawn in solitude and rustic contemplation, his theological works are redolent with gracious light and divine illumination. Yet he was also one of the figures of the early fourteenth century around whom an endless stream of controversy flowed, like a river in torrent. His life focused on hesychasm (quiet retirement for prayer), but his career in court and palace involved him in all manner of intrigue, and even in civil war. Rival claimants to the throne used him as a theological symbol for and against their claims. Patriarchs of Constantinople heaped honors upon him but also condemned his teachings and had him thrown into prison. His life of ups and downs reads like a historical romance. He remains a figure of the Eastern Christian tradition who exquisitely bridges theology and spirituality, refusing to allow them to go their separate ways to the detriment of each. He is regarded by the Eastern Orthodox today as someone who combines fidelity to the tradition with the resilience necessary to apply that ancient tradition in vigorous new directions (as a “sign of contradiction” to the spirit of the age if necessary), but always with an open and generous spirit of engagement with his contemporary society.
