ST BASIL THE GREAT OF CAESAREA
Basil The Great of Caesarea, Our Patron Saint The three great lights who are so often referred to as the Three Cappadocians are Basil the Great of Caesarea, his friend Gregory of Nazianzus, and his own brother, Gregory of Nyssa. Basil the Great is the senior venerable member among them. He was the first ascetic leader of the Eastern (Greek) Church tradition. Also called Second Athanasius, he proved his personality not only in the ascetic movement but also in the realms of Church administration and theology. Basil was one among the ten children of a rich family of Caesarea in Cappadocia around AD 330. His father, Baselius, was known, as a scholar and eminent writer throughout Cappadocea. His mother Emmelia was the daughter of a martyr. Of the ten children in the family, three became bishops: Basil himself, made bishop of Caesarea in 370, Gregory, bishop of Nyssa, and Peter, bishop of Sebasty. The eldest sister Macarena became a nun and started a nunnery. As a student in Athens, Basi