Basil: letters, hexaemeron - II. WORKS

1 Placed in 376.

2 cf. Letter xcii. p. 177. Vitus of Charrae (Haran) was bishop of Constantinople in 381. (Labbe, 2,955)). cf. Sozomen, H.E. 6,33.

1 Placed in 376.

2 Maran (Vit. Bas. 36,5) remarks that the Acacius heading this list is probably the Acacius who in 375 had invited Basil in the name of the Church of Beroea, and was afterwards famous alike for his episcopate at Beroea and his hostility to St. Chrysostom). cf. Letter ccxx. p. 260.

3 (Is 58,4 Is 58,

4 (2Co 5,1 2Co 5,

5 (Mt 5,12).

6 (1Co x 13.

1 Placed in 376. n

2 Maran conjectures an allusion to Fronto.

1 Placed in 377.

2 The learned and saintly bishop of Salamis in Cyprus. About this time he published his great work against heresy, the Panavrion, and also travelled to Antioch to reconcile the Apollinarian Vitalis to Paulinus. On the failure of his efforts, and the complicated state of parties at Antioch at this time, cf. Epiphan., 77,20–23; Jerome). Epp. 57, 58, and Soz., H. E. 6,25.

3 cf. Mt 24,12).

4 This Palladius may possibly be identified with the Palladius of Caesarea of Athanasius, Ep. ad Pall . Minge, Pat. 26,1167, and in the Ath. of this series, p. 580.

5 The Ben. note remarks "Cum nonnulli formulae Nicenae aliquid de Incarnatione adderent ad comprimendos Apollinaristas, id Basilius nec examinaverat," etc. I rather understand the present prosufaivnomena to refer to the proposals of Innocent to Palladius.

6 Yet Basil will admit an addition which he holds warranted, in the case of the glorification of the Spirit, and would doubtless have acquisced in the necessity of the additions finally victorious in 451.

7 cf. note on Theodoret in this series, p. 320.

8 In 377 Meletius was in exile, and Paulinus the bishop of the "old Catholics," or Eustathians (Soc., H. E. 4,2, 5,5) opposing Vitalius, who was consecrated to the episcopate by Apollinaris. on the confusing resulting from these three nominally orthodox claimants, vide Jerome’s Letter xvi. in this series, p. 20.

9 (Jn 7,51 Jn 7,

10 From Magusa in Arabia, cf. Plin., Nat. Hist. 6,32).

11 With the statements of Basil may be compared those of Bardesanes in Eusebius). Praep. Evan. 6,275 and of Epiphanius in his Exp. Cathol. Fid.

1 Placed in 377.

1 Placed in 377.

2 Bishop of Antioch in Pisidia. Soc. 7,36; Theod. 5,8.

3 (Gn 4,15, LXX.

4 f. 1Tm 4,13).

5 (Mt 18,21, 22.

6 (Dt 5,12 Dt 5,

7 (Lv 25,10 Lv 25,

8 (Gn 4,8 Gn 4,

9 (Gn 4,9 Gn 4,

10 (Gn 4,11, 12, 14, 15, LXX).

11 (Da 12,2 Da 12,

12 (Gn 4,23, 24.

13 LXX). mwvlwh, i.e. weal.

14 (Jn 1,29 Jn 1,

15 (Pr 9,9 Pr 9,

16 (Lc 2,34, 35.

17 (Si 20,18).

18 eAEpidavneia.

19 (2Co 12,10 2Co 12,

20 (Nb 21,8 Nb 21,

21 shvmeion, LXX.

22 cf. He 4,12.

23 (Mt 26,3 Mt 26,

24 The Ben. note strongly objects to this slur upon the constancy of the faith of the Blessed Virgin, and is sure that St. Basil’s error will not be thus corrected without his own concurrence. It supposes this interpretation of the passage in question to be derived from Origen, Hom. 28,In Lucam, and refers to a list of commentators who have followed him in Petavius, De Incar. 14,1.

1 This letter is placed in 377. Fessler styles it "celebrima." The Benedictine heading is "Cum scripsissent Basilio Sozopolitani nonnullos carnem coelestem Christo offingere et affectus humanos in ipsam divinitatem conferre; brevitar hunc errorem refellit; ac demonstrat hihil nobis prodesse passiones Christi si non eadem ac nos carnem habuit. Quod spectat ad affectus humanos, probat naturales a Christo assumptos fuisse, vitiosos vero nequaquam."

2 Sozopolis, or Suzupolis, in Pisidia (cf. Evagrius, Hist. Ecc. 3,33), has been supposed to be the ancient name of Souzon, S. of Aglasoun, where ruins still exist. On its connexion with Apollonia). cf. Hist. Geog. A.M. p. 400.

3 oiAEkonomivan).

4 Here the Ben. Ed. call attention to the fact that S. Basil may by this word indicate the appearance of the Son to the patriarch’s before the Birth from the Virgin, and compares a similar statement in his Book Cont. Eunom. II.. as well as the words of Clemens Alex. in the work Quis Dives Salvandus, n. 8, in which the Son is described as aAEpo; genevsew" mevcri tou shmeivou th;n aAEnqrwpovthta diatrevcwn.

5 cf. Ga 3,19.

6 krataia` with the ed. Par. seems to make better sense than krufaiva, which has better authority.

7 (Ga 4,4, 5.

8 Autrwthv"). cf. Ac 7,35, where R.V. gives redeemer as marginal rendering). Autrwthv" = prayer of the luvtpou, which is the means of release (luvw). The word is used of Moses in the Ac in a looser sense than here of the Saviour.

9 On the use of "dogma" for heretical opinion, cf). De Sp. S. note on § 66.

10 dovkhsi".

11 (Ph 2,7 Ph 2,

12 On the Docetism of Valentinus vide Dr. Salmon in D. C. Biog. 1,869. "According to V. (Irenaes 1,7) our Lord’s nature was fourfold: (1) He had a yuchv or animal soul; (2) He had a pneu`ma or spiritual principle derived from Achamoth; (3) He had a body, but not a material body, but a heavenly one. . . . (4) The pre-existent Saviour descended on Him in the form of a dove at His Baptism. When our Lord was brought before Pilate, this Saviour as being incapable of suffering withdrew His power;" (cf. the Gospel of Peter, "The Lord cried, saving, ’My Power, my Power, Thou hast left me.’") "and the spiritual part which was also impassible was likewise dismissed; the animal soul and the wonderfully contrived body alone remaining to suffer, and to exhibit on the cross on earth a representation of what had previously taken place on the heavenly Stauros. It thus appears that Valentinus was only partially docetic." But cf. Iren. 5,1, 2, and 3,22.

13 cf). De Sp. S.§ 12. p. 7.

14 (1P 2,22,

15 (Rm 8,3, R. V. marg.

1 Placed in 377.

2 cf. Letters cxxiii. and ccclxvi.

3 fuvrama.

4 fuvsi".

5 (Ml 3,6 Ml 3,

6 The sentence in all the mss. (except the Codex Coislin. II., which has o J trapei;") begins ouAE trapeiv". The Ben. Ed. propose simply to substitute eiv for ouAE and render "(Si enium conversus est. proprium constituit corpus. quod videlicet densata in ipsa decitate, substitit." I have endeavoured to force a possible meaning on the Greek as it stands, though pacunqeivoh" more naturally refers to the unorthodox change than to the orthodox conjunction. The original is ou gap trapei;" oiAEkei`on u Jpesthvsato sw`ma, o(per, pacunqeivsh" auAEtw` th`" qei[kh` fuvsew", u Jpevsth.

1 Placed in 377.

2 (Col 3,12).

3 In 358, when the homoiousion was accepted, and twelve anathemas formulated against all who rejected it.

4 Before 359. Mansi 3,201.

5 Ecc. 12,12, LXX). cf). Ep. ccxliv. p. 286).

1 Placed in 377.

2 See Soz., H. E. 6,34, who says that Barses, with Eulogius, was not consecrated to any definite see). cf. also Theodoret H. E. 4,16, where it is stated that his bed was preserved at Aradus.

3 Domnius was a not uncommon name, and there are several mentioned about the same time, e.g. Nilus, lEpp. 3,43 and 144.

4 (Jr 25,12 Jr 25,

1 Placed in 377).

2 (Ps lv. 12.

3 (Jn 1,29 Jn 1,

4 (Ep 5,27 Ep 5,

5 cf. Nb 5,15.

6 This passage shews in what sense St. Basil understands dovguata in Eph. ii. 15 and Col 2,14). cf. note on p. 41.

7 cf. Ps 64,7.

8 (Pr 10,19).

9 Here the Ben. note is Mirum id videtur ac prima specie vix credibile, Marcellum ob impios errores ex ecclesia exiisee. Nam. S. Athanasius suspectum illum quidem, sed tamen purgatum habuit, teste Epiphanio, Haeres. lxxii).  lxxii. p. 837). Hinc illius discipuli communicatorias beatissimi papae Athanasii litteras ostenderunt confessoribus Aegyptiis, ibid. p. 843). Testatur idem Epiphanius varia esse Catholicorum de Marcello judicia, aliis eum accusantibus, aliis defendentibus, p. 834). Paulinus ejus discipulos sine discrimine recipiebat, ut in superiore epistola vidimus. ipse Basilius in epist).  69 queritur quod eum Ecclesia Romana in communionem ab initio suscepisset. Quomodo ergo exiise dicitur ex Ecclesia qui tot habuit communicatores? Sed tamen S. Basilii testimonium cum sua sponte magni est momenti (non enim ut in dijudicandis Marcelli scriptis, ita in ejusmodi facto proclive fuit errare), tum etiam hoc argumento confirmatur quod Athanasius extremis vitae suae annis Marcellum a communione sua removerit. Neque enim, si semper cum eo communicasset Athanasius, opus habuissent illius discipuli confessione fidei ad impetrandam confessorum Aegyptiorum communionem: nec Petrus Athanasii successor canones violatos, concessa illis communione, quereretur, ut videmus in epistola sequenti, si Aegyptum inter ac Marcellum ejusque clerum et plebem non fuisset rupta communio. Videtur ergo Marcellus sub finem vitae aliquid peccasse, quod Athanasium ab ejus communione discedere cogeret: et cum jamdudum a tota fere oriente damnatus esset, amissa Athanassi communione, quae unicum fere illius refugium erat, desertus ab omnibus videri debuit, nec ei nova ignominia notato prodesse poterat concessa olim a Romana Ecclesia communio.

10 (Ps 112,5 Ps 112,

1 Placed in 377.

2 cf. Letter cxxxiii. p. 200).

3 The Ben. note points out that the accusation against Eusebius (of Samosata) and Meletius was monstrous, and remarks on the delicacy with which Basil approaches it, without directly charging Petrus, from whom it must have come, with the slander involved.

4 Ome Ms. contains a note to the effect that this letter was never sent. Maran (Vit. Bas. xxxvii). thinks the internal evidence is in favour of its having been delivered.

1 Placed in 377, or in the beginning of 378).

2 (Gn 27,27 Gn 27,

1 Placed in 378.

2 To be distinguished from Libanius the bishop, p. 177, and Libanius the professor, mentioned later.

3 Dhserovrwn, or Desertovrwn, the accepted reading, is a curious Latinism for the Greek aAEuAEtovuoloi. Eusebius was in exile in Thrace, and the now the Goths were closing round Valens.

1 Placed in 378.

2 (Gn 3,19 Gn 3,

3

1 Placed after 374.

2 On this subject see before Letters cxcix. and ccxvii. pp. 238 and 256. See Preb. Meyrick in D. C. A. 2,1102: "It means not exactly the same as our word ravishment, but the violent removal of a woman to a place where her actions are no longer free, for the sake of inducing her or compelling her to marry. . . . By some raptus is distinguished into the two classes of raptus seductionis and raptus violentiae." cf). Cod. Theod. 9,tit. 24,legg. 1, 2, and Cod. Justin. ix.-xiii). lleg. 1 Corp. Juris. 2,832.

3 khvrugua. The Ben. note is no doubt right in understanding the word not to refer to any decree on this particular case, but to Basil’s general rule in Canon 30,cf. p. 239. On the use of khvougma by Basil, see note on p. 41.

1 Placed at the end of Basil’s life.

2 Apparently a schoolfellow of Basil, not to be identified with any of the others of the name.

1 Written in the last years of Basil’s life.

2 cf. p. 134, n.

3 Plut., Alex).

1 Written in the last years of Basil’s life.

1 Of the same time as the preceding.

1 Placed at the same time as the preceding.

1 Placed in the last years of Basil’s life).

1 Placed at the end of Basil’s life.

2 (Mt 11,29 Mt 11,

1 Placed in the episcopate.

2 A district in Armenia Minor. Ramsay, Hist. Geog. A.M. 314.

3 cf). Ep. ccli. p. 291. Euassai or Evesus is about fifty miles north of Caesarea.

1 Placed in the episcopate).

1 Placed in the episcopate.

1 Placed in the episcopate.

1 Placed in the episcopate.

1 Placed in the episcopate.

1 Placed in the episcopate).

1 Placed in the episcopate.

1 Placed in the episcopate.

2 A registrar of prisons, or prison superintendent). Cod. Just>. 9,4. 4). Dis. 48,20. 6.

1 Placed in the episcopate.

1 Placed in the episcopate).

2 (Mt 18,15-17 Mt 18,

1 Placed in the episcopate.

2 (Rm 13,4).

1 Placed in the episcopate.

2 On the word summopiva" the Ben. note is: "Hac voce non designatur tota diocesis, sed certos quidam pagorum numerus chorepiscopo commissus, ut patet ex epsit. /foreign> cxlii.," lq.v., "erat autem chorepiscoporum sedes insigni alieui affixa pago, cui alli pagi attribuebantur. Unde Basilius in epsit. clxxxviii. § 10). lAuctor est Amphilochio ut agrum Mestiae subjectum Vasodis subjiciat.

1 Placed in the episcopate.

2 cf. note on p. 156).

3 glau`kj Jaqhvnaze. Arist., Av. 301.

1 (Ga 3,27).

1 i.e. assessor of taxes.

2 See geographical note in Prolegomena.

1 foravdwn tevlesua. "Recte Scultetum castigat Combefisius quod raptim vectigal reddiderit. At idem immerito putat ob equarum possessionem tributum aliquod ejusmodi hominibus impositum fuisse. Perspicuum est equas ipsas iis, quibus patrocintur Basilius, imperatas fuisse, idque in multae magis quam in tributi loco; si quidem eos comes rei privatae falsis crimintionibus deceptus damnaverat. Sic etiam Greg. Naz., Ep. clxxxiv). Nemesium flectere conatur qui Valentiniano equarum multam ob aliquod delictum inflexerat. Nec mirum est in Cappadocia, quae optimos equos alebat, ejusmodi multas impossitas fuisse ." Ben. note.

1 JHgemovni SebasteiAEa". The Ben. Ed. think that here and in Letter 63,h Jgeuwvn means not governor but Head of the Senate). cf). Cod. Theod. xii., 1,127, 189 So in Letter 86,The "praepositus pagorum" is styled hAEgemwvn).

1 Ramsay, Hist. Geog. A. M. p. 55.

1 Vide Greg. Naz., Ep. lvil).

1 Of the use of this word to indicate the lines in mss., cf. Aristoph., Thesm. 782, and Anth., Pal. 6,82.

2 i.e. in the Labyrinth of Crete.

Ope virginea, nullis iterata priorum,

Janua difficilis filo est inventa relecto.

Ov., Metam. 8,172.

1 "Basilii et Libanii epistolae mutuae, quas magni facit Tillemontius, probatque ut genuinas, maxime dubiae videntur Garuier, in Vit. Bas. cap. 39, p. 172 seqq., is tamen illas spartim edidit. . . . Schroeckh Garn. dubitationi deomnium illarum epist. mutuarum nuqeiva quaedam opponit." Fabricius. Harles., Tom. ix.

Maran (Vit. Bas. 39,2) thinks that the Libanian correspondence, assuming it to be genuine, is to be assigned partly to the period of the retreat, partly to that of the presbyterate, while two only, the one a complaint on the part of Libanius that bishops are avaricious, and Basil’s retort, may perhaps have been written during the episcopate. He would see no reason for rejecting them on the ground merely of the unlikelihood of Basil’s corresponding with a heathen philosopher, but he is of opinion that the style of most of them is unworthy both of the sophist and of the archbishop. Yet there seems no reason why they should have been invented. It is intelligible enough that they should have been preserved, considering the reputation of the writers; but they suggest no motive for forgery. The life of Libanius extended from 314 to nearly the end of the fourth century. J.R. Mozlev, in D. C. B. (iv. 712) refers to G. R. Siever (Das Leben des Libanius, Berlin, 1868) as the fullest biographer).

1 pantacou` dietevlese kratw`n. "Ubique constantem perdurasse." Ben. Ed. "Ubique firma memoria fuerit." Combetis Firmus may possibly be the father of the young student.

1 A famous athlete of Scotussa. Paus. 6,5.

2 The athlete of Crotona, who was crowned again and again at the Pythian and Olympian games.

3 o; qlibein kai; katevcein dunavmeno", palaistikov" : o J de; w\sai th` plhgh`, pustikov" : o J de; aAEmfotevroi" touvtoi", pagkratiastikov". Arist., Rhet. 1,5,14.

4 The story that Xerxes had made a canal through the isthmus of Athos was supposed to be an instance of gross exaggeration). cf. Juv. 10,174: Creditur olim Velificatus Athos et quidquid Graecia mendax Audlet in historia," and Claudian 3,336: "Remige Medo solicitatus Athos." But traces of the canal are said to be still visible.

5 This might lead to the idea that Basil knew some Hebrew, but the close of the sentence indicates that he means the Greek of the LXX., in which he always quotes Scripture.

6 sofw` te kai; sofisth`).

1 cf. Ep 4,27, and the passage quoted by Alford form Plut., De Am. Frat. 488 B., to the effect that the Pythagoreans, whenever anger had caused unkindly words, shook hands before sundown, and were reconciled.

1 ms. vary between eAEnplhvktoi", eAEnplevktoi", aAEplhvktoi", aAEpravktoi".

1 Rhadamanthus and Minos were both said to be sons of Zeus and Eurpoa). cf. Verg., lAen. 6,566 and Pind., Ol. 2,75).

1 poa`gma dusgrivpiston. gripivzw = I catch fish, from gri`fo", a creel.

2 strwthvr.

1 With a play on cavrax, the word used for stakes.

2 .e. three hundred.

3 Hom. 3,346.

4 Non illepide auctor epistolae fluvium obstring it resituendi promisso, ut gratuito a se, dari ostendat." Ben. note.

1 grithv, an unknown word. Perhaps akin to krioth). cf. Duncange s.v.

1 grithv, an unknown word. Perhaps akin to krioth). cf. Duncange s.v.

1 Incomplete in original).

1 Corrupt in original.

1 This letter is almost undoubtedly spurious, but it has a certain interest, from the fact of its having been quoted at the so-called 7th Council (2d of Nicaea) in 787. Maran (Vit. Bas. xxxix). is of opinion that it is proved by internal evidence to be the work of some Greek writer at the time of the Iconoclastic controversy. The vocabulary and style are unlike that of Basil.

2 Neuter sc. provswpa, not u Jpostavsei", as we should expect in Basil.

3 e[nsarkon oiAEkonomivan an expression I do not recall in Basil’s genuine writings.

4 Qeotovkon. the watchword of the Nestorian controversy, which was after Basil’s time.

5 Ep. ccxiv. § 2.

1 Introduced by the Ben. with the following preface: "En magni Basilii epistolam, ex prisco codice 61,f. 324, a me exscriptam quae olim clarissimis quoque viris Marcianae bibliothecae descriptoribus Zannetro atque Morellio inedita visa est; atque utrum sit alicubi postremis his annis edita, mihi non consat, sed certe in plenissima Garnerii editione desideratur. Ea scribitur ad Urbicum monachum, ad quem aliae duae Basilii epistolae exstant, nempe 123 and 262, in Garneriana editione. Argumentum titulusque est De Continentia, neque ver scriptum hoc Basilianum diutius ego celandum arbitror praesertim quia Suidas ac Photius nihil praestantius aut epistolari characteri accommodatius Basilii epistolis esse judicarunt. Mai, biblioth. nov. patr).  iii. 450).

2 qeovthta ouAE qnhtovthta.

3 The Ben. note is: "Hac super re reverentissime theologiceque scribit Athanasius Corinthi episcopus in fragmento quod nos edidimus A.A. class 50,10,p. 499–500, quod incipit: Zhtou`men, eiAE h J plhvrwsi" tw`n brwmavtwn eAEpi; Cristou` eAEkevkthto kai; kevnwsin). Erat enim haec quoque una ex objectionibus haereticorum. Definit autem, corpus Christi hac in re fuisse caeteris superius, sicuti etiam in insolita nativitate. Ulitur quoque Athanasius exemplo trinitatis illius apud Abrahamum convivantis, neque tamen naturali necessitati obtem perantis; quod item de Christo post resurrectionem edente intelligendum dicit.

[i]Roberts, Alexander and Donaldson, James, Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series: Volume VIII, (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc). 1997.




Basil: letters, hexaemeron - II. WORKS