44 Facts About Saint Basil

Basil of Caesarea, called Saint Basil the Great, was a bishop of Caesarea Mazaca in Cappadocia, Asia Minor.

Saint Basil was an influential theologian who supported the Nicene Creed and opposed the heresies of the early Christian church, fighting against both Arianism and the followers of Apollinaris of Laodicea.

Saint Basil established guidelines for monastic life which focus on community life, liturgical prayer, and manual labor.

Saint Basil is considered a saint by the traditions of both Eastern and Western Christianity.

Saint Basil is recognized as a Doctor of the Church in the Roman Catholic Church.

Related searches

Saint Basil is sometimes referred to by the epithet Ouranophantor, "revealer of heavenly mysteries".

Saint Basil was born into the wealthy Cappadocian Greek family of Saint Basil the Elder, and Emmelia of Caesarea, in Cappadocia, around 330.

Saint Basil was one of ten children, and his parents were known for their piety.

Saint Basil's maternal grandfather was a Christian martyr, executed in the years prior to Constantine I's conversion.

Gregory went to Alexandria, while Saint Basil went to Constantinople for further studies, including the lectures of Libanius.

Saint Basil left Athens in 356, and after travels in Egypt and Syria, he returned to Caesarea.

Saint Basil's life changed radically after he encountered Eustathius of Sebaste, a charismatic bishop and ascetic.

Saint Basil distributed his fortunes among the poor, and went briefly into solitude near Neocaesarea of Pontus on the Iris.

Saint Basil eventually realized that while he respected the ascetics' piety and prayerfulness, the solitary life did not call him.

Saint Basil instead felt drawn toward communal religious life, and by 358 he was gathering around him a group of like-minded disciples, including his brother Peter.

Saint Basil's writings became pivotal in developing monastic traditions of the Eastern Church.

In 358, Saint Basil invited his friend Gregory of Nazianzus to join him in Annesi.

Saint Basil eventually abandoned the Homoiousians, and emerged instead as a strong supporter of the Nicene Creed.

Saint Basil next took on functional administration of the city of Caesarea.

Eusebius is reported as becoming jealous of the reputation and influence which Saint Basil quickly developed, and allowed Saint Basil to return to his earlier solitude.

Saint Basil did so, and became the administrator for the Diocese of Caesarea.

Saint Basil personally organized a soup kitchen and distributed food to the poor during a famine following a drought.

Saint Basil's letters show that he actively worked to reform thieves and prostitutes.

Saint Basil had the courage to criticize public officials who failed in their duty of administering justice.

Saint Basil did however issue orders banishing Basil repeatedly, none of which succeeded.

Related searches

Saint Basil entered into connections with the West, and with the help of Athanasius, he tried to overcome its distrustful attitude toward the Homoiousians.

Saint Basil corresponded with Pope Damasus in the hope of having his aid and encouragement against triumphant Arianism; the pope cherished some degree of suspicion against the Cappadocian Doctor.

Saint Basil suffered from liver disease; excessive ascetic practices contributed to his early demise.

Principal theological writings of Saint Basil are his On the Holy Spirit, an 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, which was written about in 364 and comprised three books against Eunomius of Cyzicus, the chief exponent of Anomoian Arianism.

Saint Basil was a famous preacher, and many of his homilies, including a series of Lenten lectures on the Hexaemeron, 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 Saint Basil was influenced by his own education, which taught him to appreciate the propaedeutic importance of the classics.

Similarly, in Letter to Amphilochius 188, Saint Basil again uses e? ?s??? in reference to the equality of women and men.

Saint Basil faced the slavery issue in De Spiritu Sancto 20 in the context of a Trinitarian debate.

Saint Basil recognizes that no human is "a slave by nature".

Saint Basil is honoured as the chief architect of monastic life in the Greek Church.

Several of Saint Basil's works have appeared in the late twentieth century in the Sources Chretiennes collection.

That St Saint Basil composed a liturgy, or rather reformed an existing liturgy, is beyond doubt, since besides the constant tradition of the Byzantine Church there are many testimonies in ancient writings to establish the fact.

Eastern Churches preserve numerous other prayers attributed to Saint Basil, including three prayers of exorcism, several morning and evening prayers, and the "Prayer of the Hours" which is read at each service of the Daily Office.

Saint Basil is credited with coordinating the duties of work and prayer to ensure a proper balance between the two.

Saint Basil is remembered as one of the most influential figures in the development of Christian monasticism.

Not only is Saint Basil recognized as the father of Eastern monasticism; historians recognize that his legacy extends to the Western church, largely due to his influence on Benedict.

Saint Basil was given the title Doctor of the Church in the Western Church for his contributions to the debate initiated by the Arian controversy regarding the nature of the Trinity, and especially the question of the divinity of the Holy Spirit.

Saint Basil was responsible for defining the terms "ousia" and "hypostasis", and for defining the classic formulation of three Persons in one Nature.

Saint Basil, being born into a wealthy family, gave away all his possessions to the poor, the underprivileged, those in need, and children.