"Many Christians in history embraced treasured ideas that we today easily miss. Gregory of Nyssa thought these 'big thoughts,' and Michael Glerup helps us embrace them, too."

"A paraphrase is tricky business. Too much freedom leads to the loss of the original text's meaning. Too little freedom fails to build a bridge into the world of a modern reader. Michael Glerup's paraphrase avoids these dangers and warmly welcomes modern North Americans into the active mind and lively heart of one of the great church fathers."

"This book was a delight to read! I felt like Gregory of Nyssa was right here in my own sanctuary, preaching to me. Dr. Glerup's wonderful paraphrase has St. Gregory speaking of hedge-fund managers, supermodels, Ponzi schemes, and more as he opens the Beatitudes for us. The introduction and the sidebars provided valuable background and suggestions for application. The discussion questions helped me to review, consider, and live what I had read. But more than simply the form of this book, I delighted in its message, an attractive invitation to enjoy the blessed riches that are available to those who follow the way of Christ."

"I am a great fan of the church of the first four centuries--the church known by the outside culture for how it loved well. Michael Glerup is a trusted scholar who knows how to mine the wisdom and practices of the patriarchs and matriarchs of the early church to make these treasures accessible for twenty-first-century Christians."

"Michael Glerup has devoted himself to making accessible the riches of the early Christian writers, and this thin volume continues this life work. The informative introduction sets us up to thoughtfully appreciate this attractive and readable translation of a remarkable church leader, theologian and spiritual writer."