Basil (ca. 330 - January 1, 379), also called Basil the Great, was bishop of Caesarea, a leading churchman in the 4th century. The Eastern Orthodox Church considers him a saint and one of the Three Holy Hierarchs, together with Gregory Nazianzus and John Chrysostom. Basil, Gregory Nazianzus, and Basil's brother Gregory of Nyssa are called the Cappadocian Fathers. The Roman Catholic Church considers him a saint and a Doctor of the Church. Events May 11 - Constantine I refounds Byzantium, renames it New Rome, and moves the capital of the Roman Empire there from Rome. ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... Events January 19 - Theodosius I is elevated as Roman Emperor at Sirmium. ... A bishop is an ordained member of the Christian clergy who, in certain Christian churches, holds a position of authority. ... Caesarea Mazaca (modern Kayseri), is an ancient town of Anatolia which served as the residence of the kings of Cappadocia. ... As a means of recording the passage of time, the 4th century was that century which lasted from 301 to 400. ... The Vladimir Icon, one of the most venerated of Orthodox Christian icons of Mary. ... In general, the term Saint refers to someone who is exceptionally virtuous and holy. ... An icon of Saint Gregory Nazianzen the theologian holding a Gospel Book Saint Gregory Nazianzen (AD 329 - January 25, 389), also known as Saint Gregory the Theologian, was a 4th century Christian bishop of Constantinople. ... Saint John Chrysostom John Chrysostom (347 - 407) was a notable Christian bishop and preacher from the 4th and 5th centuries in Syria and Constantinople. ... Gregory of Nyssa ( 335 – after 394) was a Christian bishop and saint. ... The Cappadocian Fathers are the 4th century church fathers Basil the Great, Gregory Nazianzen, and Basils brother Gregory of Nyssa, who made major contributions to the definition of the Trinity finalized at the First Council of Constantinople in 381 and the Nicene Creed. ... The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the Christian Church led by the Pope, currently Benedict XVI, and whose adherants constitute almost half of all Christians worldwide. ... In Catholicism, a Doctor of the Church is a theologian from whose teachings the whole Christian church is held to have derived great advantage and to whom eminent learning and great sanctity have been attributed by a proclamation of the Pope or of an ecumenical council. ...

The Basilian Fathers, also known as The Congregation of St. Basil, is an international order of Roman Catholic priests and students studying for the priesthood. The Congregation of St. ...

In Greek tradition, his name was given to Father Christmas and is supposed to visit children and give presents every January 1 (when Basil's memory is celebrated), unlike other traditions where this person is Saint Nicolas and comes every Christmas. Father Christmas is a name used in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and several other Commonwealth Countries, as well as Ireland, for the gift bringing figure of Saint Nicholas. ... January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... There are communes that have the name Saint-Nicolas (French for Saint Nicholas) in France: In France Saint-Nicolas, in the Pas-de-Calais d partement Related Saint-Nicolas-aux-Bois, in the Aisne d partement Saint-Nicolas-dAliermont, in the Seine-Maritime d partement Saint-Nicolas-dAttez... Christmas (originally the Mass of Christ) is a holiday in the Christian calendar, observed on December 25, which celebrates the birth of Jesus. ...

He should not be confused with Saint Basil the Confessor, who lived about 400 years later. Basil the Confessor is an Eastern Orthodox saint that lived in the 8th century and was tortured by the Byzantine Emperor Leo III. With his pupil Prokopy, St. ...

He also should not be confused with Basil Fool for Christ, a Russian Orthodox saint, after whom St. Basil's Cathedral on Red Square in Moscow is named. St Basils Cathedral Saint Basil or Vasily (known also as Vasily Blazhenny, Basil Fool for Christ or Basil the Blessed) is a Russian Orthodox saint born to serfs in 1469 in Yelokhov, near Moscow. ... In general, the term Saint refers to someone who is exceptionally virtuous and holy. ...

He also should not be confused with Saint Basil of Ostrog, who is a Serbian Orthodox saint, who built the Ostrog Monastery which is caved in and stands on a very high hill between Danilovgrad and Niksic. Sveti Vasilije or Saint Vasilije of Ostrog Saint Basil of Ostrog (Saint Vasilije Ostroski) was Bishop of Zahumlje in Herzegovina. ... In general, the term Saint refers to someone who is exceptionally virtuous and holy. ... Monastery of Ostrog The Monastery of Ostrog is a monastery of the Serb Orthodox Church placed against an almost vertical background, high up in the large rock of Ostroska Greda, in the state union of Serbia and Montenegro. ... The title given to this article is incorrect due to technical limitations. ...

Life

Basil was born about 330 at Caesarea in Cappadocia. He came from a wealthy and pious family which gave a number of saints, including his father, also named Basil, his mother Emmelia, grandmother Macrina the Elder, sister Macrina the Younger and brothers Gregory of Nyssa and Peter, who became Bishop of Sebaste. Some church historian presumed Theosebia was his youngest sister, who is also a saint among the Eastern Orthodox. Events May 11 - Constantine I refounds Byzantium, renames it New Rome, and moves the capital of the Roman Empire there from Rome. ... Cappadocia in 188 BC In ancient geography, Cappadocia (spelled Kapadokya in Turkish) (Greek: Καππαδοκία; see also List of traditional Greek place names) was an extensive inland district of Asia Minor (modern Turkey). ... Saint Macrina the Elder (before 270 - c. ... Saint Macrina the Younger (330 - 379) was born at Caesarea, Cappadocia. ... Gregory of Nyssa ( 335 – after 394) was a Christian bishop and saint. ... Theosebia, also known as Theosebia the Deaconess is a 4th century female christian, a saint in the Eastern Orthodox. ...

While still a child, the family moved to Pontus; but he soon returned to Cappadocia to live with his mother's relations, and seems to have been brought up by his grandmother Macrina. Eager to learn, he went to Constantinople and spent four or five years there and at Athens, where he had Gregory Nazianzus for a fellow student and became friends with the future emperor Julian. Both men were deeply influenced by Origen. The ponti people are also known as the dunce peoples of greece For Pontus the Greek god, see Pontus (mythology) After the colonisation of the Anatolian shores by the Ionian Greeks, Pontus soon became a name which was applied, in ancient times, to extensive tracts of country in the northeast... The Acropolis in central Athens, one of the most important landmarks in world history. ... Julian solidus, ca. ... Origen ( 182– 251) was a Christian scholar and theologian and one of the most distinguished of the Fathers of the early Christian Church. ...

It was at Athens that he seriously began to think of religion, and resolved to seek out the most famous hermit saints in Syria and Arabia, in order to learn from them how to attain enthusiastic piety and how to keep his body under submission by asceticism. A hermit (from the Greek erēmos, signifying desert, uninhabited, hence desert-dweller) is a person who lives to some greater or lesser degree in seclusion and/or isolation from society. ...

After this we find him at the head of a convent near Arnesi in Pontus, in which his mother Emilia (Emmelia), now a widow, his sister Macrina and several other ladies, gave themselves to a pious life of prayer and charitable works. Eustathius of Sebaste had already labored in Pontus in behalf of the anchoretic life, and Basil revered him on that account, although they differed over dogmatic points, which gradually separated these two men. Siding from the beginning and at the Council of Constantinople in 360 with the Homoiousians, Basil went especially with those who overcame the aversion to the homoousios in common opposition to Arianism, thus drawing nearer to Athanasius of Alexandria. Like Athanasius, he was also opposed to the Macedonian heresy. Arianism was a Christological view held by followers of Arius, a Christian priest who lived and taught in Alexandria, Egypt, in the early 4th century. ... Athanasius of Alexandria (also spelled Athanasios) (298–May 2, 373) was a Christian bishop, the Patriarch of Alexandria, in the fourth century. ... The Macedonians were a Christian sect of the 4th century AD, named after Patriarch Macedonius I of Constantinople. ...

He also became a stranger to his bishop, Dianius of Caesarea, who had subscribed only to the Nicene form of agreement, and became reconciled to him only when the latter was about to die. He was ordained presbyter of the Church at Caesarea in 365, and his ordination was probably the result of the entreaties of his ecclesiastical superiors, who wished to use his talents against the Arians, who were numerous in that part of the country and were favoured by the Arian emperor, Valens, who then reigned in Constantinople. Events Emperor Fei succeeds Emperor Ai as emperor of China. ... Solidus minted by Valens in ca. ... Map of Constantinople. ...

In 370 Eusebius, bishop of Caesarea, died, and Basil was chosen to succeed him. It was then that his great powers were called into action. Caesarea was an important diocese, and its bishop was, ex officio, exarch of the great diocese of Pontus. Hot-blooded and somewhat imperious, Basil was also generous and sympathetic. His zeal for orthodoxy did not blind him to what was good in an opponent; and for the sake of peace and charity he was content to waive the use of orthodox terminology when it could be surrendered without a sacrifice of truth. With all his might he resisted the emperor Valens, who strove to introduce Arianism into his diocese, and impressed the emperor so strongly that, although inclined to banish the intractable bishop, he left him unmolested. Events Basil of Caesarea becomes bishop of Caesarea. ... Eusebius is the name of several significant historical people: Pope Eusebius - Pope in AD 309 - 310. ... The ponti people are also known as the dunce peoples of greece For Pontus the Greek god, see Pontus (mythology) After the colonisation of the Anatolian shores by the Ionian Greeks, Pontus soon became a name which was applied, in ancient times, to extensive tracts of country in the northeast...

To save the Church from Arianism, Basil entered into connections with the West, and with the help of Athanasius, he tried to overcome its distrustful attitude toward the Homoiousians. The difficulties had been enhanced by bringing in the question as to the essence of the Holy Spirit. Although Basil advocated objectively the consubstantiality of the Holy Spirit with the Father and the Son, he belonged to those, who, faithful to Eastern tradition, would not allow the predicate homoousios to the former; for this he was reproached as early as 371 by the Orthodox zealots among the monks, and Athanasius defended him. His relations also with Eustathius were maintained in spite of dogmatic differences and caused suspicion. On the other hand, Basil was grievously offended by the extreme adherents of Homoousianism, who seemed to him to be reviving the Sabellian heresy. Events Martin of Tours becomes Bishop of Tours _ year approximate Baekje forces storm the Goguryeo capital in Pyongyang Births Valentinian II - titular Roman emperor - year approximate Deaths August 1 - St Eusebius of Vercelli St Hilarion - year approximate Lucifer of Cagliari - bishop King Gogugwon of Goguryeo Categories: 371 ... In Christianity, Sabellianism (also known as modalism) is the second-century belief that the three persons of the Trinity are merely different modes or aspects of God, rather than three distinct persons. ...

He did not live to see the end of the unhappy factional disturbances and the complete success of his continued exertions in behalf of Rome and the East. He suffered from liver illness and his excessive asceticism seems to have hastened him to an early death. A lasting monument of his episcopal care for the poor was the great institute before the gates of Caesarea, which was used as poorhouse, hospital, and hospice. The word ascetic derives from the ancient Greek term askesis (practice, training or exercise). ...

Writings

The principal theological writings of Basil are his De Spiritu Sancto, a lucid and edifying appeal to Scripture and early Christian tradition (to prove the divinity of the Holy Spirit), and his Refutation of the Apology of the Impious Eunomius, written in 363 or 364, three books against Eunomius of Cyzicus, the chief exponent of Anomoian Arianism. The first three books of the Refutation are his work; the fourth and fifth books that are usually included to do not belong to Basil, or to Apollinaris of Laodicea, but probably to Didymus of Alexandria. Eunomius (died c. ... Apollinarism or Apollinarianism was a view proposed by Apollinaris of Laodicea that Jesus had a human body but a divine mind. ... Didymus (?309-?394), surnamed the Blind, was an ecclesiastical writer of Alexandria, was born about the year 309. ...

He was a famous preacher, and many of his homilies, including a series of Lenten lectures on the Hexaëmeron, and an exposition of the psalter, have been preserved. Some like that against usury and that on the famine in 368, are valuable for the history of morals; others illustrate the honor paid to martyrs and relics; the address to young men on the study of classical literature shows that Basil was lastingly influenced by his own education, which taught him to appreciate the propaedeutic importance of the classics. Events Earthquake in Nicaea Births Deaths Categories: 368 ...

His ascetic tendencies are exhibited in the Moralia and Regulae, ethical manuals for use in the world and the cloister respectively. Of the monastic rules traced to Basil, the shorter is the one most probably his work. The word ascetic derives from the ancient Greek term askesis (practice, training or exercise). ...

It is in the ethical manuals and moral sermons that the practical aspects of his theoretical theology are illustrated. So, for example, it is in his Sermon to the Lazicans that we find St. Basil explaining how it is our common nature that obliges us to treat our neighbor's natural needs (e.g., hunger, thirst) as our own, even though he is a separate individual. Later theologians explicitly explain this as an example of how the saints become an image of the one common nature of the persons of the Trinity.

His three hundred letters reveal a rich and observant nature, which, despite the troubles of ill-health and ecclesiastical unrest, remained optimistic, tender and even playful. His principal efforts as a reformer were directed towards the improvement of the liturgy, and the reformation of the monastic orders of the East.

Most of the liturgies bearing the name of Basil, in their present form, are not his work, but they nevertheless preserve the a recollection of Basil's activity in this field in formularizing liturgical prayers and promoting church-song. One liturgy that can be attributed to him is The Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil the Great, a liturgy that is somewhat longer than the more commonly used Divine Liturgy of John Chrysostom; it is still used on certain feast days in the Eastern Orthodox Church, such as every Sunday of Great Lent. From the Greek word λειτουργια, which can be transliterated as leitourgia, meaning the work of the people, a liturgy comprises a prescribed religious ceremony, according to the traditions of a particular religion; it may refer to, or include, an elaborate formal ritual (such as the Catholic Mass), a daily activity such... The Vladimir Icon, one of the most venerated of Orthodox Christian icons of Mary. ...

All his works, and a few spuriously attributed to him, are available in the Patrologia Graeca, which includes Latin translations of varying quality. No critical edition is yet available. The Patrologia Graeca is an edited collection of writings by the Christian Church Fathers in the Greek language in 161 volumes, produced in 1857–1866 by J.P. Migne It includes both the Eastern Fathers and those Western authors who wrote before Latin became predominant the West in the 3rd...

See also

• Basilian monk

This article needs to be cleaned up to conform to a higher standard of quality. ...

Reference

This article includes content derived from the public domain Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge, 1914. The public domain comprises the body of all creative works and other knowledge—writing, artwork, music, science, inventions, and others—in which no person or organization has any proprietary interest. ... The Schaff-Herzog Encyclopedia of Religious Knowledge is a 1914 religious encyclopedia, published in thirteen volumes. ...

External links

• Christian Classics Ethereal Library, Early Church Fathers, Series II, Vol. VIII contains the treatise on the Holy Spirit, the Hexaemeron, some of the homilies and the letters.
• The Orthodox Wikipedia has a slightly longer article on St. Basil.
• The Heritage of the Holy Fathers has a more complete collection of his homilies (and some other works, but only a few of his letters) is available in Russian.
• Excerpts from Basil the Great.