A Life Pleasing To God: The Spirituality of the Rules of Saint Basil

308 Pages·2001·49.444 MB·English

by  by Augustine Holmes OSB (Author)

A Life Pleasing to God
The Spirituality of the Rules of
St Basil
AUGUSTINE HOLMES osb

CISTERCIAN STUDIES SERIES: NUMBER ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY-NINE
A Life Pleasing to God

CISTERCIAN STUDIES SERIES: NUMBER ONE HUNDRED EIGHTY-
A Life Pleasing to God
THE SPIRITUALITY OF THE RULES
OF ST BASIL
Augustine Holmes
osb
CISTERCIAN PUBLICATIONS
Kalamazoo, Michigan — Spencer, Massachusetts
Thomas J. Bata Library
TRENT UNIVERSITY
PETERBOROUGH, ONTARIO
5X 3?G.2 ,25 WUM 0.00 0
The work of Cistercian Publications is made possible in part by support from
Western Michigan University to The Institute of Cistercian Studies.
First published in 2000 by
Darton, Longman and Todd Ltd
1 Spencer Court
140-142 Wandsworth High Street
London swi8 41J
and by
Cistercian Publications
WMU Station
Kalamazoo, Michigan 49008
© 2000 Augustine Holmes osb
isbn o 87907 689 5
Cum permissu superiorum.
Designed by Sandie Boccacci
Phototypeset in ioV2/i3V2pt Minion by Intype London Ltd
Printed and bound in Great Britain by
Redwood Books, Trowbridge, Wiltshire
Contents
St Basil: Select Chronology vii
Acknowledgements ix
Abbreviations xi
Map of the Eastern Mediterranean in the Time of St Basil xiii
Introduction xv
PART ONE: The Background to the Rules
1 The Family and Formation of a Christian Leader 3
2 Two Friends 12
3 Eustathius and the Wider Ascetic Scene 24
4 Basil Develops his own Teaching 34
5 The Asceticon: Text and Life 45
PART TWO: The Life of the Commandments
A COMMENTARY ON THE FIRST SEVEN LONGER RULES ILLUSTRATING
THE KEY IDEAS OF BASIL’S SPIRITUAL TEACHING
Introduction to Part Two 59
6 The Commandment of Love 61
Longer Rule 1
7 Our Natural Desire for God 68
Longer Rule 2
8 Love of Neighbour and the Fear of God 89
Longer Rules 3, 4
9 The Heart of Basilian Spirituality: Diathesis and the
Undistracted Memory of God 107
Longer Rule 5
10 ‘Come out from among them and be separate’ 127
Longer Rule 6
vi Contents
11 ‘Whose feet will you wash?’: Solitude or Community? 139
Longer Rule 7
PART THREE: ‘Let All be Done Decently and in Order’
A COMMENTARY ON ELEVEN RULES DEALING WITH CHRISTIAN
COMMUNITY
Introduction to Part Three 167
12 The Anatomy of Community 169
Shorter Rule 114, Longer Rule 24
13 ‘Obedience unto death’: The Case of the Disobedient
Brother 182
Longer Rule 28
14 ‘Those who profess great things’: Admission to the
Community and the Clothing of the Christian 193
Longer Rules 10, 22
15 ‘Are we not their equals in everything?’: Gender and
Asceticism 209
Longer Rule 33
16 Daily Life: Work and Prayer 223
Longer Rules 37, 38
17 Self-Control: Food and Laughter 241
Longer Rules 19, 17, 13
Epilogue 259
Appendix: The Canons of the Council of Gangra 261
Bibliography 263
Index of Scriptural Quotations 271
Index of Greek Terms 274
General Index 276
St Basil: Select Chronology
C.300 Birth of Eustathius
>325 Eustathius enters the clergy
325 Council of Nicaea
C.330 Birth of Basil at Caesarea
c.340 (or >36os) Council of Gangra
346-348 Basil a student at Caesarea, meets Gregory
349-355 Basil a student at Athens
c.350 Basil’s mother and sister take up the ascetic life
at Annisa in Pontus
356 Basil follows Eustathius in visiting ascetic centres
of the western Mediterranean
>357 Eustathius elected bishop of Sebaste
357 or 358 Basil baptised, begins ascetic life at Annisa
358 Gregory of Nazianzus joins him
359-360 Basil at Synod of Constantinople
362 Basil ordained presbyter, returns to Caesarea
363 Basil returns to Annisa
365 Basil recalled to Caesarea and takes up public
ecclesiastical career
370 Basil elected bishop of Caesarea
372 or 373 Meeting between Basil and the Emperor Valens
Gregory ordained bishop of Sasima
372
End of friendship between Basil and Eustathius
373-375
c-377 Death of Eustathius
Death of Basil
379
381 Council of Constantinople
(Dates taken from the work of Gribomont, Fedwick and Rousseau.
Many of them are the subject of controversy amongst scholars.)
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