Basil of Caesarea, Letters

Letter LI.439 Placed at the beginning of Basil’s episcopate, c. 370.

To Bishop Bosporius.440 Bosporius, an intimate friend of Basil and of Gregory of Nazianzus, was bishop of Colonia, in Cappadocia Secunda. Basil left Cæsarea in 360 in distress at hearing that Dianius had subscribed the creed of Ariminum, but was hurt at the charge that he had anathematized his friend and bishop. Dianius died in Basil’s arms in 362.

How do you think my heart was pained at hearing of the slanders heaped on me by some of those that feel no fear of the Judge, who “shall destroy them that speak leasing”?441 Ps. v. 6. I spent nearly the whole night sleepless, thinking of your words of love; so did grief lay hold upon my heart of hearts. For verily, in the words of Solomon, slander humbleth a man.442 συκοφαντία ἄνδρα ταπεινοῖ, for Eccles. vii. 7, LXX. συκοφαντία περιδέρει σοφόν: oppression maketh a wise man mad, A.V.; extortion maketh a wise man foolish, R.V. And no man is so void of feeling as not to be touched at heart, and bowed down to the ground, if he falls in with lips prone to lying. But we must needs put up with all things and endure all things, after committing our vindication to the Lord. He will not despise us; for “he that oppresseth the poor reproacheth his Maker.”443 Prov. xiv. 31. They, however, who have patched up this new tragedy of blasphemy seem to have lost all belief in the Lord, Who has declared that we must give account at the day of judgment even for an idle word.444 Matt. xii. 36. And I, tell me, I anathematized the right blessed Dianius? For this is what they have said against me. Where? When? In whose presence? On what pretext? In mere spoken words, or in writing? Following others, or myself the author and originator of the deed? Alas for the impudence of men who make no difficulty at saying anything! Alas for their contempt of the judgment of God! Unless, indeed, they add this further to their fiction, that they make me out to have been once upon a time so far out of my mind as not to know what I was saying. For so long as I have been in my senses I know that I never did anything of the kind, or had the least wish to do so. What I am, indeed, conscious of is this; that from my earliest childhood I was brought up in love for him, thought as I gazed at him how venerable he looked, how dignified, how truly reverend. Then when I grew older I began to know him by the good qualities of his soul, and took delight in his society, gradually learning to perceive the simplicity, nobility, and liberality of his character, and all his most distinctive qualities, his gentleness of soul, his mingled magnanimity and meekness, the seemliness of his conduct, his control of temper, the beaming cheerfulness and affability which he combined with majesty of demeanour. From all this I counted him among men most illustrious for high character.

However, towards the close of his life (I will not conceal the truth) I, together with many of them that in our country445 Here Cæsarea appears to be called πατρίς. cf. Ep. viii. Vide Proleg. feared the Lord, sorrowed over him with sorrow unendurable, because he signed the creed brought from Constantinople by George.446 i.e.the Homœan creed of Ariminum, as revised at Nike and accepted at the Acacian Synod of Constantinople in 360. George is presumably the George bp. of Laodicea, who at Seleucia opposed the Acacians, but appears afterwards to have become reconciled to that party, and to have joined them in persecuting the Catholics at Constantinople. cf. Basil, Ep. ccli. Afterwards, full of kindness and gentleness as he was, and willing out of the fulness of his fatherly heart to give satisfaction to everyone, when he had already fallen sick of the disease of which he died, he sent for me, and, calling the Lord to witness, said that in the simplicity of his heart he had agreed to the document sent from Constantinople, but had had no idea of rejecting the creed put forth by the holy Fathers at Nicæa, nor had had any other disposition of heart than from the beginning he had always had. He prayed, moreover, that he might not be cut off from the lot of those blessed three hundred and eighteen bishops who had announced the pious decree447 κήρυγμα. cf. p. 41. to the world. In consequence of this satisfactory statement I dismissed all anxiety and doubt, and, as you are aware, communicated with him, and gave over grieving. Such have been my relations with Dianius. If anyone avers that he is privy to any vile slander on my part against Dianius, do not let him buzz it slave-wise in a corner; let him come boldly out and convict me in the light of day.

ΒΟΣΠΟΡΙῼ ΕΠΙΣΚΟΠῼ

[1] Πῶς μου οἴει τὴν ψυχὴν ὠδύνησεν ἡ ἀκοὴ τῆς συκοφαντίας ἐκείνης, ἣν κατέχεάν μού τινες τῶν μὴ φοβουμένων τὸν Κριτήν, ὃς ἀπολεῖ πάντας τοὺς λαλοῦντας τὸ ψεῦδος; Ὥστε πᾶσαν τὴν νύκτα ἐπὶ τοῖς ῥήμασι τῆς ἀγάπης σου ὀλίγου δεῖν ἄϋπνον διαμεῖναι, οὕτω μέσης ἥψατό μου τῆς καρδίας ἡ λύπη. Ὄντως γάρ, κατὰ τὸν Σολομῶντα, »Συκοφαντία ἄνδρα ταπεινοῖ«, καὶ οὐδεὶς οὕτως ἀνάλγητος ὡς μὴ παθεῖν τὴν ψυχὴν καὶ κατακαμφθῆναι εἰς γῆν, στόμασιν εἰς ψευδολογίαν εὐκόλοις παραπεσών. Ἀλλὰ γὰρ ἀνάγκη πάντα στέγειν, πάντα ὑπομένειν, τὴν ὑπὲρ ἑαυτῶν ἐκδίκησιν ἐπιρρίψαντας τῷ Κυρίῳ, ὃς οὐ περιόψεται ἡμᾶς, διότι »Ὁ συκοφαντῶν πένητα παροξύνει τὸν ποιήσαντα αὐτόν«. Οἱ μέντοι τὸ καινὸν τοῦτο δρᾶμα τῆς καθ' ἡμῶν βλασφημίας συνθέντες ἐοίκασι παντελῶς ἀπιστεῖν τῷ Κυρίῳ, ὃς καὶ περὶ ἀργοῦ ῥήματος δώσειν ἡμᾶς λόγον ἐν τῇ ἡμέρᾳ τῆς κρίσεως ἀπεφήνατο. Ἐγὼ δέ, εἰπέ μοι, τὸν μακαριώτατον Διάνιον ἀνεθεμάτισα; Τοῦτο γὰρ ἡμῶν κατήγγειλαν. Ποῦ ἢ πότε; Τίνων παρόντων; Ἐπὶ ποίᾳ προφάσει; Ψιλοῖς ῥήμασιν ἢ ἐγγράφοις; Ἑτέροις ἀκολουθῶν ἢ αὐτὸς κατάρχων καὶ αὐθεντῶν τοῦ τολμήματος; Ὢ τῆς ἀναιδείας τῶν πάντα φθεγγομένων ῥᾳδίως. Ὢ τῆς καταφρονήσεως τῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ κριμάτων. Πλὴν εἰ μὴ ἄρα τῷ πλάσματι αὐτῶν καὶ τοῦτο προστραγῳδήσωσιν, ὅτι ἐγενόμην καὶ ἔκφρων ποτέ, ὥστε ἀγνοεῖν αὐτὸς τὰ ἑαυτοῦ ῥήματα. Ἐπὶ γὰρ τῶν λογισμῶν ὑπάρχων τῶν ἐμαυτοῦ, οὐδὲν οἶδα ποιήσας τοιοῦτον, οὐδὲ προελόμενος τὴν ἀρχήν. Ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνο μᾶλλον ἐμαυτῷ συνεπίσταμαι, ὅτι ἐκ πρώτης ἡλικίας συνετράφην τῷ περὶ αὐτὸν φίλτρῳ, καὶ ἀπέβλεπον πρὸς τὸν ἄνδρα, ὡς μὲν γεραρὸς ἰδεῖν, ὡς δὲ μεγαλοπρεπής, ὅσον δὲ ἔχων τὸ ἱεροπρεπὲς ἐν τῷ εἴδει. Ἐπεὶ δέ μοι λοιπὸν καὶ ὁ λόγος παρῆν, τότε δὴ καὶ ἀπὸ τῶν τῆς ψυχῆς ἀγαθῶν αὐτὸν ἐπεγίνωσκον, καὶ ἔχαιρον αὐτοῦ τῇ συνουσίᾳ, τὸ ἁπλοῦν καὶ γενναῖον καὶ ἐλευθέριον τῶν τρόπων καταμανθάνων καὶ ὅσα ἄλλα ἦν τοῦ ἀνδρὸς ἴδια, ἡ τῆς ψυχῆς ἡμερότης, τὸ μεγαλοφυές τε ὁμοῦ καὶ πρᾶον, τὸ εὐπρεπές, τὸ ἀόργητον, τὸ φαιδρὸν καὶ εὐπρόσιτον τῇ σεμνότητι κεκραμένον. Ὥστε αὐτὸν ἐναρίθμιον εἶχον τοῖς περιφανεστάτοις κατ' ἀρετήν.

[2] Περὶ μέντοι τὰ τελευταῖα τοῦ βίου (οὐ γὰρ ἀποκρύψομαι τἀληθές) ἐλυπήθημεν ἐπ' αὐτῷ λύπην οὐκ ἀνεκτήν, μετὰ πολλῶν τῶν ἐν τῇ πατρίδι φοβουμένων τὸν Κύριον, ἐπὶ τῇ ὑπογραφῇ τῆς πίστεως, τῆς ὑπὸ τῶν περὶ Γεώργιον ἀπὸ Κωνσταντινουπόλεως κομισθείσης. Εἶτα, οἷος ἐκεῖνος πραότητι τρόπου καὶ ἐπιεικείᾳ πάντας πληροφορεῖν ἐν σπλάγχνοις πατρικοῖς ἀνεχόμενος, ἤδη καταπεσὼν εἰς τὴν ἀρρωστίαν ὑφ' ἧς καὶ μετῆλθεν ἀπὸ τοῦ βίου, προσκαλεσάμενος ἡμᾶς ἔφη ὑπὸ μάρτυρι τῷ Κυρίῳ συντεθεῖσθαι μὲν τῷ ἀπὸ Κωνσταντινουπόλεως γραμματείῳ, μηδὲν δὲ ἐπ' ἀθετήσει τῆς κατὰ Νικαίαν ὑπὸ τῶν ἁγίων Πατέρων ἐκτεθείσης πίστεως προελέσθαι: μηδὲ ἄλλως ἔχειν ἐν τῇ καρδίᾳ ἢ ὡς παρέλαβεν ἐξ ἀρχῆς, ἀλλὰ καὶ εὔχεσθαι μὴ χωρισθῆναι τῆς μερίδος τῶν μακαρίων ἐκείνων ἐπισκόπων, τῶν τριακοσίων δέκα καὶ ὀκτώ, τῶν τὸ εὐσεβὲς κήρυγμα διαγγειλάντων τῇ οἰκουμένῃ: ὥστε ἡμᾶς, λύσαντας πᾶσαν τῶν καρδιῶν τὴν διάκρισιν, προσελθεῖν τῇ κοινωνίᾳ καὶ λυπουμένους παύσασθαι. Τὰ μὲν οὖν ἡμέτερα πρὸς τὸν ἄνδρα τοιαῦτα. Εἰ δέ τις λέγοι τινὰ βλασφημίαν εἰς αὐτὸν ἡμῖν συνεγνωκέναι, μὴ κατὰ γωνίαν θρυλείτω δουλοπρεπῶς, ἀλλ' εἰς τὸ φανερὸν ἀντικαταστὰς διελεγχέτω μετὰ παρρησίας.