Basil of Caesarea, Letters

To Eusebius, bishop of Samosata.731 On his being hindered from traveling by ill health, and on his difficulties with the bishops in communion with him.

1. I have now received two letters from your divine and most excellent wisdom, whereof the one told me clearly how I had been expected by the laity under the jurisdiction of your holiness, and what disappointment I had caused by failing to attend the sacred synod. The other, which from the writing I conjecture to be of the earlier date, though it was delivered later, gave me advice, at once honourable to yourself and necessary to me, not to neglect the interests of God’s Churches, nor little by little to allow the guidance of affairs to pass to our opponents, whereby their interests must win, and ours lose. I think that I answered both. But, as I am uncertain whether my replies were preserved by those who were entrusted with the duty of conveying them, I will make my defence over again. As to my absence, I can put in an unimpeachable plea, as to which I think intelligence must have reached your holiness, that I have been detained by illness which has brought me to the very gates of death. Even now as I write about it, the remains of sickness are still upon me. And they are such as to another man might be unendurable.

2. As to the fact of its not being owing to my neglect that the interests of the Churches have been betrayed to our opponents, I wish your reverence to know that the bishops in communion with me, from lack of earnestness, or because they suspect me and are not open with me, or because the devil is always at hand to oppose good works, are unwilling to cooperate with me. Formerly, indeed, the majority of us were united with one another, including the excellent Bosporius.732 cf. Letter li. In reality they give me no aid in what is most essential. The consequence of all this is, that to a great extent my recovery is hindered by my distress, and the sorrow I feel brings back my worst symptoms. What, however, can I do alone and unaided, when the canons, as you yourself know, do not allow points of this kind to be settled by one man?733 The Ben. note is: “Canones illos qui apostolis afficti fuere, nonnunquam citat Basilius in Epistolis canonicis. Videtur hoc loco respicere ad vigesimum (?xxxvii.) septimum, ubi præscribitur, ut in unaquaque provincia episcopi nihil majoris rei incipiant sine sententia illius, qui inter eos primus, ac unus quisque iis contentus sit, quæ ad parœciam suam pertinent: sed nec ille absque omnium voluntate quidquam faciat. Erat Basilius hujus canonis observandi studiosus, et quamvis nominis fama et sedis dignitate plurimum posset, nunquam ab eo communionis restitutionem impetrare potuerunt Marcelli discipuli, antequam Petri Alexandrini auctoritates accessisset: et cum ab Episcopis in Palæstina Exsulantibus non ex spectato aliorum Episcoporum consensu restituti fuissent, factum moleste tulit et libere reprehendit.” Epist. cclxv. And yet what remedy have I not tried? Of what decision have I failed to remind them, some by letter and some in person? They even came to the city, when they heard a report of my death; when, by God’s will, they found me yet alive I made them such a speech as was proper to the occasion. In my presence they respect me, and promise all that is fit, but no sooner have they got back again than they return to their own opinion. In all this I am a sufferer, like the rest, for the Lord has clearly abandoned us, whose love has grown cold because iniquity abounds. For all this may your great and powerful intercession with God be sufficient for me. Perhaps we shall either become of some use, or, even if we fail in our object, we may escape condemnation.

ΕΥΣΕΒΙῼ ΕΠΙΣΚΟΠῼ ΣΑΜΟΣΑΤΩΝ

[1] Ἐδεξάμην ἤδη δύο ἐπιστολὰς παρὰ τῆς ἐνθέου καὶ τελειοτάτης φρονήσεώς σου: ὧν ἡ μὲν ὑπέγραφεν ἡμῖν ἐναργῶς ὅπως μὲν προσεδοκήθημεν ὑπὸ τοῦ λαοῦ τοῦ ὑπὸ τὴν χεῖρα τῆς ὁσιότητός σου, ὅσον δὲ ἐλυπήσαμεν ἀπολειφθέντες τῆς ἁγιωτάτης συνόδου. Ἡ δὲ ἑτέρα ἡ παλαιοτέρα μέν, ὡς εἰκάζω τῷ γράμματι, ὕστερον δὲ ἡμῖν ἀποδοθεῖσα, διδασκαλίαν περιεῖχε πρέπουσάν σοι καὶ ἡμῖν ἀναγκαίαν, μὴ καταρρᾳθυμεῖν τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν τοῦ Θεοῦ μηδὲ κατὰ μικρὸν προΐεσθαι τοῖς ὑπεναντίοις τὰ πράγματα, ἀφ' ὧν τὰ μὲν ἐκείνων αὐξήσει, τὰ δὲ ἡμέτερα μειωθήσεται. Καὶ οἶμαι πρὸς ἑκατέραν ἀποκεκρίσθαι, πλὴν ἀλλὰ καὶ νῦν, ἐπειδὴ ἄδηλον εἰ οἱ πιστευθέντες τὴν διακονίαν διέσωσαν ἡμῶν τὰς ἀποκρίσεις, περὶ τῶν αὐτῶν ἀπολογοῦμαι: πρὸς μὲν τὴν ἀπόλειψιν ἀληθεστάτην πρόφασιν γράφων, ἧς οἶμαι τὴν ἀκοὴν καὶ μέχρι τῆς σῆς ὁσιότητος διαβεβηκέναι, ὅτι ὑπὸ ἀρρωστίας κατεσχέθην τῆς μέχρις αὐτῶν με τῶν πυλῶν τοῦ θανάτου καταγαγούσης. Καὶ ἔτι καὶ νῦν ἡνίκα ἐπέστελλον περὶ τούτων, λείψανα φέρων τῆς ἀρρωστίας ἔγραφον. Ταῦτα δέ ἐστι τοιαῦτα ὥστε ἐξαρκεῖν ἑτέρῳ νοσήματα εἶναι δύσφορα.

[2] Πρὸς δὲ τὸ ὅτι οὐ ῥᾳθυμίᾳ ἡμετέρᾳ τὰ τῶν Ἐκκλησιῶν τοῖς ἐναντίοις προδέδοται, εἰδέναι βούλομαι τὴν θεοσέβειάν σου ὅτι οἱ κοινωνικοὶ δῆθεν ἡμῖν τῶν ἐπισκόπων ἢ ὄκνῳ ἢ τῷ πρὸς ἡμᾶς ὑπόπτως ἔχειν ἔτι καὶ μὴ καθαρῶς ἢ τῇ παρὰ τοῦ διαβόλου ἐγγινομένῃ πρὸς τὰς ἀγαθὰς πράξεις ἐναντιώσει συνάρασθαι ἡμῖν οὐκ ἀνέχονται. Ἀλλὰ σχήματι μὲν δῆθεν οἱ πλείους ἐσμὲν μετ' ἀλλήλων προστεθέντος ἡμῖν καὶ τοῦ χρηστοῦ Βοσπορίου, ἀληθείᾳ δὲ πρὸς οὐδὲν ἡμῖν τῶν ἀναγκαιοτάτων συναίρονται, ὥστε με καὶ ὑπὸ τῆς ἀθυμίας ταύτης τὸ πλεῖστον μέρος πρὸς τὴν ἀνάληψιν ἐμποδίζεσθαι, συνεχῶς μοι τῶν ἀρρωστημάτων ἐκ τῆς σφοδρᾶς λύπης ὑποστρεφόντων. Τί δ' ἂν ποιήσαιμι μόνος, τῶν κανόνων, ὡς καὶ αὐτὸς οἶδας, ἑνὶ τὰς τοιαύτας οἰκονομίας μὴ συγχωρούντων; Καίτοι τίνα θεραπείαν οὐκ ἐθεράπευσα; Ποίου κρίματος αὐτοὺς οὐκ ἀνέμνησα, τὰ μὲν διὰ γραμμάτων, τὰ δὲ καὶ διὰ τῆς συντυχίας; Ἦλθον γὰρ καὶ μέχρι τῆς πόλεως κατὰ ἀκοὴν τοῦ ἐμοῦ θανάτου. Ἐπεὶ δὲ ἔδοξε τῷ Θεῷ ζῶντας ἡμᾶς παρ' αὐτῶν καταληφθῆναι, διελέχθημεν αὐτοῖς τὰ εἰκότα. Καὶ παρόντα μὲν αἰδοῦνται καὶ ὑπισχνοῦνται τὰ εἰκότα πάντα, ἀπολειφθέντες δὲ πάλιν πρὸς τὴν ἑαυτῶν ἀνατρέχουσι γνώμην. Ταῦτα καὶ ἡμεῖς τῆς κοινῆς καταστάσεως τῶν πραγμάτων ἀπολαύομεν, προδήλως τοῦ Κυρίου ἐγκαταλιπόντος ἡμᾶς τοὺς διὰ τὸ πληθυνθῆναι τὴν ἀνομίαν ψύξαντας τὴν ἀγάπην. Ἀλλὰ πρὸς πάντα ἡμῖν ἀρκεσάτω ἡ μεγάλη σου καὶ δυνατωτάτη πρὸς Θεὸν ἱκεσία. Τάχα γὰρ ἂν ἢ γενοίμεθά τι τοῖς πράγμασι χρήσιμοι ἢ διαμαρτόντες τῶν σπουδαζομένων φύγοιμεν τὴν κατάκρισιν.