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Basil of Caesarea, Letters
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To the Cæsareans . A defence of his withdrawal, and concerning the faith .
Without address. To some friends .
To Arcadius, Imperial Treasurer .
Against Eunomius the heretic .
Without address. On the Perfection of the Life of Solitaries .
To Athanasius, father of Athanasius bishop of Ancyra .
To Athanasius, bishop of Ancyra .
To Cæsarius, brother of Gregory .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To the Church of Neocæsarea. Consolatory .
To the Church of Ancyra. Consolatory .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To his Brother Gregory, concerning the difference between οὐσία and ὑπόστασις.
To Eusebius, Bishop of Samosata .
To Paregorius, the presbyter .
To Meletius, Bishop of Antioch .
To Athanasius, Bishop of Alexandria .
To the Governor of Neocæsarea .
To Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria .
To Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria .
To Meletius, bishop of Antioch .
To Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria .
Without inscription: about Therasius .
Without inscription, on behalf of Elpidius .
To Eustathius bishop of Sebastia .
To Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria .
To Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria .
That the oath ought not to be taken .
Without address on the same subject .
Without address on the subject of the exaction of taxes .
To Meletius, bishop of Antioch .
To the holy brethren the bishops of the West .
To Valerianus, Bishop of Illyricum .
To the Patrician Cæsaria , concerning Communion .
To Elias, Governor of the Province .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Eusebius, Bishop of Samosata .
To the deaconesses, the daughters of Count Terentius .
To the guardian of the heirs of Julitta .
To Jovinus, Bishop of Perrha .
To Eustathius, Bishop of Sebasteia .
To Meletius, bishop of Antioch .
To Theodotus, bishop of Nicopolis .
To Pœmenius , bishop of Satala .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Meletius Bishop of Antioch .
To Theodotus bishop of Nicopolis .
To Abramius, bishop of Batnæ .
To Diodorus, presbyter of Antioch .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Antipater, on his assuming the governorship of Cappadocia .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Amphilochius in the name of Heraclidas .
To Ascholius, bishop of Thessalonica .
Without address . In the case of a trainer
To Eupaterius and his daughter .
To Amphilochius on his consecration as Bishop .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Ascholius, bishop of Thessalonica .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Amphilochius, Bishop of Iconium .
To the Master Sophronius, on behalf of Eunathius .
To Otreius, bishop of Melitene .
To the presbyters of Samosata .
To Eustathius, bishop of Himmeria .
To Theodotus, bishop of Beræa .
To Amphilochius, bishop of Iconium .
To Amphilochius, bishop of Iconium .
To Euphronius, bishop of Colonia Armeniæ .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To Amphilochius, bishop of Iconium .
To Amphilochius, bishop of Iconium .
To Amphilochius, bishop of Iconium .
To the bishops of the sea coast .
To Elpidius the bishop. Consolatory .
To the notables of Neocæsarea .
To Meletius, bishop of Antioch.
To Amphilochius, bishop of Iconium.
Against Eustathius of Sebasteia .
Consolatory, to the clergy of Colonia .
To the magistrates of Colonia.
To the magistrates of Nicopolis.
To Amphilochius, bishop of Iconium.
To Amphilochius, bishop of Iconium.
To Amphilochius, in reply to certain questions.
To the same, in answer to another question.
To the same, in answer to another question.
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata.
To the presbyters of Nicopolis .
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata.
To the Presbyters of Nicopolis.
To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata .
To the bishops of Italy and Gaul concerning the condition and confusion of the Churches.
To Patrophilus, bishop of Ægæ .
To Amphilochius, bishop of Iconium.
Without address. Commendatory.
To Patrophilus, bishop of Ægæ.
To the monks harassed by the Arians.
To the monks Palladius and Innocent.
To Eulogius, Alexander, and Harpocration, bishops of Egypt, in exile.
To Barses, bishop of Edessa, in exile.
To the wife of Arinthæus, the General. Consolatory.
Without address. Concerning Hera.
Without address. Concerning Hera.
To the assessor in the case of monks.
Without address. Excommunicatory.
Without address. Concerning an afflicted woman.
To Timotheus the Chorepiscopus .
Letters CCCXVI., CCCXVII., CCCXVIII., CCCXIX.
Letters CCCXVI., CCCXVII., CCCXVIII., CCCXIX.
Letters CCCXVI., CCCXVII., CCCXVIII., CCCXIX.
Letters CCCXVI., CCCXVII., CCCXVIII., CCCXIX.
Letters CCCXXX., CCCXXXI., CCCXXXII., CCCXXXIII.
Letters CCCXXX., CCCXXXI., CCCXXXII., CCCXXXIII.
Letters CCCXXX., CCCXXXI., CCCXXXII., CCCXXXIII.
Letters CCCXXX., CCCXXXI., CCCXXXII., CCCXXXIII.
Of the Holy Trinity, the Incarnation, the invocation of Saints, and their Images.
Letter CXV.651 Placed in 372.
To the heretic Simplicia.652 The Ben. E. note that in the imperial codex No. lxvii. appears an argument of this letter wanting in the editions of St. Basil. It is as follows: “Letter of the same to Simplicia about her eunuchs. She was a heretic. The blessed Basil being ill and entering a bath to bathe, Simplicia told her eunuchs and maids to throw his towels out. Straightway the just judgment of God slew some of them, and Simplicia sent money to the blessed Basil to make amends for the injury. Basil refused to receive it, and wrote this Letter.” This extraordinary preface seems to have been written by some annotator ignorant of the circumstances, which may be learnt from Greg. Naz. Letter xxxviii. It appears that a certain Cappadocian church, long without a bishop, had elected a slave of Simplicia, a lady wealthy and munificent, but of suspected orthodoxy. Basil and Gregory injudiciously ordained the reluctant slave without waiting for his mistress’s consent. The angry lady wrote in indignation, and threatened him with the vengeance of her slaves and eunuchs. After Basil’s death she returned to the charge, and pressed Gregory to get the ordination annulled. cf. Maran, Vit. Bas. chap. xxv.
We often ill advisedly hate our superiors and love our inferiors. So I, for my part, hold my tongue, and keep silence about the disgrace of the insults offered me. I wait for the Judge above, Who knows how to punish all wickedness in the end, even though a man pour out gold like sand; let him trample on the right, he does but hurt his own soul. God always asks for sacrifice, not, I think, because He needs it, but because He accepts a pious and right mind as a precious sacrifice. But when a man by his transgressions tramples on himself God reckons his prayers impure. Bethink thyself, then, of the last day, and pray do not try to teach me. I know more than you do, and am not so choked with thorns within. I do not mind tenfold wickedness with a few good qualities. You have stirred up against me lizards and toads,653 Presumably the slaves and eunuchs mentioned below. If the letter is genuine it is wholly unworthy of the Archbishop of Cæsarea.beasts, it is true, of Spring time, but nevertheless unclean. But a bird will come from above who will devour them. The account I have to render is not according to your ideas, but as God thinks fit to judge. If witnesses are wanted, there will not stand before the Judge slaves; nor yet a disgraceful and detestable set of eunuchs; neither woman nor man, lustful, envious, ill-bribed, passionate, effeminate, slaves of the belly, mad for gold, ruthless, grumbling about their dinner, inconstant, stingy, greedy, insatiable, savage, jealous. What more need I say? At their very birth they were condemned to the knife. How can their mind be right when their feet are awry? They are chaste because of the knife, and it is no credit to them. They are lecherous to no purpose, of their own natural vileness. These are not the witnesses who shall stand in the judgment, but rather the eyes of the just and the eyesight of the perfect, of all who are then to see with their eyes what they now see with their understanding.
ΠΡΟΣ ΣΙΜΠΛΙΚΙΑΝ ΑΙΡΕΤΙΚΗΝ
[1] Ἀβούλως οἱ ἄνθρωποι καὶ μισοῦσι τοὺς κρείττονας καὶ φιλοῦσι τοὺς χείρονας. Διὸ δὴ καὶ αὐτὸς κατέχω τὴν γλῶτταν, σιωπῇ τῶν ἐμῶν ὕβρεων πνίγων τὸν ὄνειδον. Ἐγὼ δὲ μενῶ τὸν ἄνωθεν Δικαστὴν ὃς οἶδε πᾶσαν κακίαν ἐν τέλει ἀμύνασθαι. Κἂν γὰρ ὑπὲρ ψάμμον τις ἐκχέῃ χρήματα, βλάπτει ψυχὴν πατήσας τὸ δίκαιον. Ἀεὶ γὰρ θυσίαν Θεός, οὐχ ὡς χρῄζων, οἶμαι, ζητεῖ, ἀλλὰ θυσίαν πολυτελῆ τὴν εὐσεβῆ καὶ δικαίαν γνώμην δεχόμενος. Ὅταν δέ τις ἑαυτὸν παραβαίνων πατῇ, κοινὰς λογίζεται τὰς εὐχάς. Σαυτὴν οὖν τῆς ἐσχάτης ἡμέρας ὑπόμνησον, ἡμᾶς δὲ αὐτούς, εἰ βούλει, μὴ δίδασκε. Ἴσμεν σου πλείονα καὶ ταῖς ἔνδοθεν ἀκάνθαις οὐ τοσοῦτον συμπνιγόμεθα, οὔτε ἐν ὀλίγοις καλοῦ δεκαπλασίονα κακίαν ἐπιμίγνυμεν. Ἐπήγειρας ἡμῖν σαύρας καὶ φρύνους, ἐαρινὰ δῆθεν θηρία, πλὴν ὅμως ἀκάθαρτα. Ἀλλ' ἥξει πτερὸν ἄνωθεν τὸ ταῦτα νεμόμενον. Ἐμοὶ γὰρ λόγος, οὐχ ὡς σὺ νομίζεις, ἀλλ' ὡς οἶδε κρίνειν Θεός. Εἰ δὲ καὶ μαρτύρων χρεία, οὐ δοῦλοι στήσονται οὐδὲ εὐνούχων γένος ἄτιμον καὶ πανώλεθρον τοῦτο δὴ τοῦτο ἄθηλυ, ἄνανδρον, γυναικομανὲς καὶ ἐπίζηλον, κακόμισθον, εὐμετάβλητον, ἀμετάδοτον, πάνδοχον, ἀπροσκορές, κλαυσίδειπνον, ὀξύθυμον, χρυσομανές, ἀπηνές, θηλυδριῶδες, γαστρίδουλον, καὶ τί γὰρ ἔτι εἴπω; Σὺν αὐτῇ τῇ γενέσει σιδηροκατάδικον. Πῶς γὰρ ὀρθὴ γνώμη τούτων ὧν καὶ πόδες στρεβλοί; Οὗτοι μὲν σωφρονοῦσι ἄμισθα διὰ σιδήρου, μαίνονται δὲ ἄκαρπα δι' οἰκείαν αἰσχρότητα. Οὐχ οὗτοι στήσονται τῆς κρίσεως μάρτυρες, ἀλλ' ὀφθαλμοὶ δικαίων καὶ ὄψεις ἀνδρῶν τελείων, ὅσοι τότε ὁρῶσι βλέποντες σύνεσιν.