Saint Basil the Great (379)

Saint Basil is one of the thirty-two Doctors of the Catholic Church. He came from a family of saints. Saint Macrina the Elder was his grandmother. Saint Basil the Elder and Saint Emmelia were his father and his mother. Saint Gregory of Nyssa, Saint Peter of Sebaste, and Saint Macrina the Younger were his two brothers and his sister. He is called the father of eastern monasticism. He declared that he would not allow his soul to be turned aside from God by his love of any single earthly thing. Saint Basil is one of the four great Eastern Doctors of the Church. The other three are Saint Athanasius, Saint Gregory Nazianzen, and Saint John Chrysostom. Saint Basil was only forty-nine years old when he died. Five saints of the Catholic Church are commonly given the title “the Great” when they are referred to. These are: Saint Gregory the Great, Saint Leo the Great, Saint Basil the Great, Saint Albert the Great, and Saint Gertrude the Great.

Saint Basil the Great

Saint Basil the Great