St Basil the Great
Ἅγιος Βασίλειος ὁ Μέγας
Cappadocian father whose letters on flight from heretical communion and on receiving those who return are marshalled throughout the study.
- Feast day
- 1 January
- Century
- 4th c.
- Region
- Caesarea in Cappadocia
- Rank
- Archbishop of Caesarea
Biography
Archbishop of Caesarea and defender of the Nicene faith against Arianism and against those who denied the divinity of the Holy Spirit, Basil organised monastic and charitable life and left an immense body of letters and canonical rulings.
The controversy
- Arianism and the Pneumatomachian denial of the Spirit's divinity; and the Meletian schism at Antioch, where questions of communion and reception were acute.
Position taken
- Firmness in the faith and caution in communion; his canonical epistles set terms for receiving those returning from heresy or schism.
Quotations
Each quotation carries its source and a verification status. A profile's historical status does not certify every quotation; use the label beside the individual text.
Δυσθήρατός ἐστιν ὁ τῆς ἀληθείας λόγος, ῥᾳδίως δυνάμενος ἐκφεύγειν τοὺς μὴ προσέχοντας.The word of truth is hard to catch: it can easily slip away from those who do not attend to it.
by schisms men who had separated for some ecclesiastical reasons and questions capable of mutual solution
An excerpt from Basil’s distinction between heresy, schism and unlawful assemblies. The same letter discusses differing reception practices; read the full section before applying the distinction.
Read the cited text · Wording checked 2026-09-10
Related figures
Bibliography
- Migne, Patrologia Graeca 29 to 32.
- Y. Courtonne (ed.), Saint Basile, Lettres, 3 vols.
- The Canonical Epistles (188, 199, 217).