Saint Gregory Thaumaturgus, Bishop & Confessor
S. Gregorii Thaumaturgi Episcopi et Confessoris
Saint Gregory, called the Wonder-worker, was a third-century bishop of Neocaesarea in Pontus, a disciple of Origen who converted his city and is remembered for his zeal and his miracles.
Saint Gregory was born of a distinguished pagan family at Neocaesarea in Pontus, in Asia Minor, early in the third century. As a young man he set out to study law and rhetoric, but in the course of his travels he came under the teaching of the great Christian master Origen at Caesarea in Palestine, and there he embraced the Christian faith with his whole heart.
Apostle of Pontus
Returning to his native city, Gregory was made its bishop, and he undertook the conversion of a region in which the Christians were said to be but a handful. By his preaching, his charity, and the wonders God worked through him, he won the people of Pontus to Christ in great numbers; the surname Thaumaturgus, the “Wonder-worker,” bears witness to the marvels associated with his ministry. The Church has long held that so many were converted under his care that, at the end of his life, only a handful in the city remained outside the faith — as few as the Christians had been when he began.
Saint Gregory governed his flock with wisdom through times of trial, including a persecution and the disorders of war and plague, and he is honoured for a creed of the Holy Trinity handed down in his name. He took part in the doctrinal labours of the Church of his day, defending the true faith concerning the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. He died at Neocaesarea about the year 270.
His witness today
The feast of Saint Gregory the Wonder-worker on the seventeenth of November honours a shepherd whose tireless zeal brought a whole people to Christ. In him the Church venerates the power of God’s grace working through a faithful pastor, and the truth that the conversion of souls is the work of the Lord, who confirms the preaching of his servants. The collect of his Mass asks that, by his intercession, we may be freed from the perils of this life and so attain the glory of the saints.
The Collect
Grant, we beseech thee, O almighty God: that the venerable solemnity of blessed Gregory thy Confessor and Bishop may both increase our devotion and further our salvation.
Da, quæsumus, omnípotens Deus: ut beáti Gregórii Confessóris tui atque Pontíficis veneránda sollémnitas, et devotiónem nobis áugeat et salútem.
Patronage
He is venerated among the Fathers of the early Church and is invoked in desperate situations and against floods and earthquakes.
In the Modern Calendar
In the modern calendar his feast is no longer kept on the universal calendar.
Common Questions
When is the feast of Saint Gregory Thaumaturgus?
His feast is kept on 17 November in the calendar of the 1962 Roman Missal, as a Third Class feast.
Who was Saint Gregory Thaumaturgus?
He was a third-century bishop of Neocaesarea in Pontus (in modern Turkey), a convert and disciple of the Christian teacher Origen. He converted much of his city to the faith and is remembered for the many wonders worked through him, which earned him the title ‘Thaumaturgus,’ the Wonder-worker.
What does ‘Thaumaturgus’ mean?
It is a Greek word meaning ‘wonder-worker’ or ‘worker of miracles.’ It was given to Saint Gregory because of the many miracles associated with his preaching and ministry.
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