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St Basil the Great Resources Online and in Print
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130 Pages
Page 7
If the Libanian correspondence be accepted as genuine, we may add Celsus, a pupil of Libanius, to the group. [47] But if we except Basil's affection for Gregory of Nazianzus, of none of these intimacies is the interest so great as of that which is recorded to have been formed between Basil and the young prince Julian. [48] One incident of the Athenian sojourn, which led to bitter consequences in after days, was the brief communication with Apollinarius, and the letter written "from layman to layman," [49] which his opponents made a handle for much malevolence, and perhaps for forgery. Julian arrived at Athens after the middle of the year 355. [50] Basil's departure thence and return to Caesarea may therefore be approximately fixed early in 356. [51] Basil starts for his life's work with the equipment of the most liberal education which the age could supply. He has studied Greek literature, rhetoric, and philosophy under the most famous teachers. He has been brought into contact with every class of mind. His training has been no narrow hothouse forcing of theological opinion and ecclesiastical sentiment. The world which he is to renounce, to confront, to influence is not a world unknown to him. [52] He has seen heathenism in all the autumn grace of its decline, and comes away victorious from seductions which were fatal to some young men of early Christian associations. Athens no doubt contributed its share of influence to the apostasy of Julian. Basil, happily, was found to be rooted more firmly in the faith. [53]
[47] Ep. cccvi.
[48] Greg. Naz., Or. iv., Epp. xxxix., xl., xli., on the first of which see note.
[49] Ep. ccxxiv. 2.
[50] Amm. Mar. xv. 2, 8. "Permissus" is no doubt an euphemism for "coactus."
[51] "Non enim citius contigit anno 355 exeunte aut ineunte 356, si quidem ibi vidit Basilius Julianum, qui in hanc urbem venit jam media parte anni 355elapsa: neque etiam serius, quia spatia inter studia litterarum et sacerdotium nimis contrahi non patitur rerum Basilii gestarum multitudo." Maran.
[52] On the education of Basil, Eug. Fialon remarks (Etude Historique et Litteraire, p. 15): "Saint Gregoire, sur le trone patriarcal de Constantinople, declarait ne pas savoir la langue de Rome. Il en fut de meme de Saint Basile. Du moins, c'est vainement qu'on chercherait dans ses ouvrages quelque trace des poetes ou des prosateurs Latins. Si des passages de l'Hexameron semblent tires de Ciceron ou de Pline, il ne faut pas s'y meprendre. C'etaint de sortes de lieux cammuns qui se retrouvent dans Plutarque et dans Elien-ceux-ci les avaient empruntes a quelque vieil auteur, Aristotle, par exemple, et c'est a cette source premiere qu'avaient puise Grecs et Latins. Les Grecs poussaient meme si loin l'ignorance du ayant a dire comment le mot ciel s'exprime en Latin, l'ecrit a peu pres comme il devait l'entendre prononcer aux Romains, Keloum, sans se preoccuper de la quantite ni de l'etymologie...La litterature Grecque etait donc le fonds unique des etudes en Orient, et certes elle pouvait, a elle seule, satisfaire de nobles intelligences...C'est dans Homere que les jeunes Grecs apprenaient a lire. Pendant tout le cours de leurs etudes, ils expliquaient ses poemes...Ses vers remplissent la correspondances des peres de l'Eglise, et plus d'une comparaison profane passe de ses poemes dans leurs homelies. Apres Homere, venaient Hesiode et les tragiques Herodote et Thucydide, Demosthene, Isocrate, et Lysias. Ainsi poetes, historiens, orateurs, formaient l'esprit, dirigeaient le coeur, elevaient l'ame des enfants. Mais ces auteurs etaient les coryphees du paganisme, et plus d'une passage de leur livres blessait la morale severe du christianisme. Nul doute qu'un maitre religieux, un saint, comme le pere de Basile, a propos des dieux d'Homere,...dut plus d'une fois deplorer l'aveuglement d'un si beau genie....Jusqu'ici, les etudes de Basile repondent a peu pres a notre instruction secondaire. Alors, comme aujourd'hui ces premiere etudes n'etaient qu'un acheminement a des travaux plus serieux. Muni de ce premier bagage litteraire, un jeune homme rich, et que voulait briller dans le monde, allait dans les grands centres, a Antioche, a Alexandrie, a Constantinople, et surtout a Athenes, etudier l'eloquence et la philosophie."
[53] cf. C. Ullman, Life of Gregory of Naz. chap. ii., and Greg. Naz., Or. xliii. 21. blaberai men tois allois Athenai at eis psuchen.
Reference address : https://www.elpenor.org/basil/life-works.asp?pg=7
