Memorial of Saints Basil the Great and Gregory Nazianzen, Bishops and Doctors of the Church
Let what you heard from the beginning remain in you.
In the Collect for Mass today, we ask the Lord “that in humility we may learn your truth.”
Note the response of St. John the Baptist to those who asked him, “Who are you?” How many more words could he have said: I am the son of the priest Zechariah, a Levite, a Nazarite, the forerunner, the last and greatest of the prophets, the model of holiness and detachment from the world and the flesh…
Rather, he says clearly and plainly, “I am not the Christ.” Whatever else he may say, he wants his interrogators to know one thing, above all else: I am not.
How quickly most of us rush to our own defense! When pressed, how easily we seek some footing to prove our worth!
St. John the Evangelist wrote the greatest words in the history of the world. And yet you will not find in his Gospel, his letters, or his Apocalypse, any praise about himself. He remains hidden. He does not want followers. He is not propagating a theology of his own.
Instead, he says, boldly: “You do not need anyone to teach you.”
For John, there is only one teacher, whose Spirit has been pouted into our hearts.
Why does he write? He says, in the original conclusion to his Gospel:
“Jesus did many other signs in the presence of the disciples, which are not written in this book; but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in his name.”
In his First Epistle he says: “We are writing this so that our joy may be complete.”
That is all that matters, to abide in him, in unity and love with the members of the Church. Do not believe those who would present themselves as an alternative-Christ: “Their teaching belongs to the world, and the world listens to them.”
But you, Christian: “Let what you heard from the beginning remain in you. If what you heard from the beginning remains in you, then you will remain in the Son and in the Father.”
Today we celebrate the Memorial of St. Basil the Great and St. Gregory Nazianzen, two of the Cappadocian Fathers (the third is St. Gregory of Nyssa, younger brother of Basil, whose feast day is January 10th). The Cappadocian Fathers were fourth-century bishop-theologians who together offered an outstanding contribution to the development of theology in their time. Among many other topics, they luminously expounded upon the dogma of the Holy Trinity, leading the Church to great clarity and profundity, and were stalwart defenders of the Nicean confession of faith in Jesus Christ, true God and true man.
Two were brothers; all three were close friends. They were united in their single-minded pursuit of wisdom, which they believed had been made incarnate in Jesus Christ. St. Basil today says of his friendship with Gregory Nazianzen (and no doubt would include his younger brother):
“Our single object and ambition was virtue, and a life of hope in the blessings that are to come…. With this end in view we ordered our lives and all our actions.”
How extraordinary to have three bishops living at the same time, so exemplary in their lives, united by such close friendship!
Pope Benedict offered a series of Wednesday catecheses on the Cappadocians, worth reflecting on. I quote some of what he said here:
The life and works of [St. Basil] are full of ideas for reflection and teachings that are also relevant for us today.
First of all is the reference to God’s mystery, which is still the most meaningful and vital reference for human beings. The Father is “the principal of all things and the cause of being of all that exists, the root of the living” (Hom. 15, 2 de fide: PG 31, 465c); above all, he is “the Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ” (Anaphora Sancti Basilii). Ascending to God through his creatures, we “become aware of his goodness and wisdom” (Basil, Adversus Eunomium 1, 14: PG 29, 544b).
The Son is the “image of the Father’s goodness and seal in the same form” (cf. Anaphora Sancti Basilii). With his obedience and his Passion, the Incarnate Word carried out his mission as Redeemer of man (cf. Basil, In Psalmum 48, 8; PG 29, 452ab; cf. also De Baptismo 1, 2: SC 357, 158).
Lastly, he spoke fully of the Holy Spirit, to whom he dedicated a whole book. He reveals to us that the Spirit enlivens the Church, fills her with his gifts and sanctifies her.
The resplendent light of the divine mystery is reflected in man, the image of God, and exalts his dignity. Looking at Christ, one fully understands human dignity.
Basil exclaims: “[Man], be mindful of your greatness, remembering the price paid for you: look at the price of your redemption and comprehend your dignity!” (In Psalmum 48, 8: PG 29, 452b).
Christians in particular, conforming their lives to the Gospel, recognize that all people are brothers and sisters; that life is a stewardship of the goods received from God, which is why each one is responsible for the other, and whoever is rich must be as it were an “executor of the orders of God the Benefactor” (Hom 6 de avaritia: PG 32, 1181-1196). We must all help one another and cooperate as members of one body (Ep 203, 3).
Of St. Gregory Nazianzen, he said:
Nazianzus was a mild man and always sought in his life to bring peace to the Church of his time, torn apart by discord and heresy. He strove with Gospel daring to overcome his own timidity in order to proclaim the truth of the faith.
He felt deeply the yearning to draw close to God, to be united with him. He expressed it in one of his poems in which he writes: “Among the great billows of the sea of life, here and there whipped up by wild winds… one thing alone is dear to me, my only treasure, comfort and oblivion in my struggle, the light of the Blessed Trinity” (Carmina [historica] 2, 1, 15: PG 37, 1250ff.). Thus, Gregory made the light of the Trinity shine forth, defending the faith proclaimed at the Council of Nicea: one God in three persons, equal and distinct – Father, Son and Holy Spirit -, “a triple light gathered into one splendour” (Hymn for Vespers, Carmina [historica] 2, 1, 32: PG 37, 512).
Therefore, Gregory says further, in line with St Paul (I Cor 8: 6): “For us there is one God, the Father, from whom is all; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom is all; and one Holy Spirit, in whom is all (Orationes 39, 12: SC 358, 172).
Gregory gave great prominence to Christ’s full humanity: to redeem man in the totality of his body, soul and spirit, Christ assumed all the elements of human nature, otherwise man would not have been saved.
Disputing the heresy of Apollinaris, who held that Jesus Christ had not assumed a rational mind, Gregory tackled the problem in the light of the mystery of salvation: “What has not been assumed has not been healed” (Ep. 101, 32: SC 208, 50), and if Christ had not been “endowed with a rational mind, how could he have been a man?” (Ep. 101, 34: SC 208, 50). It was precisely our mind and our reason that needed and needs the relationship, the encounter with God in Christ.
And of St. Gregory of Nyssa:
Gregory was anxious to explain: "In fact, this likeness to the Divine is not our work at all; it is not the achievement of any faculty of man; it is the great gift of God bestowed upon our nature at the very moment of our birth" (De Virginitate 12, 2: SC 119, 408-410). For the soul, therefore, "it is not a question of knowing something about God but of having God within" (De Beatitudinibus 6: PG 44, 1269c). Moreover, as Gregory perceptively observes, "Divinity is purity, it is liberation from the passions and the removal of every evil: if all these things are in you, God is truly in you" (De Beatitudinibus 6: PG 44, 1272c).
When we have God in us, when man loves God, through that reciprocity which belongs to the law of love he wants what God himself wants (cf. Homilia in Canticum 9: PG 44, 956ac); hence, he cooperates with God in fashioning the divine image in himself, so that "our spiritual birth is the result of a free choice, and we are in a certain way our own parents, creating ourselves as we ourselves wish to be, and through our will forming ourselves in accordance with the model that we choose" (Vita Moysis 2, 3: SC 1ff., 108). To ascend to God, man must be purified: "The way that leads human nature to Heaven is none other than detachment from the evils of this world.... Becoming like God means becoming righteous, holy and good.... If, therefore, according to Ecclesiastes (5: 1), "God is in Heaven', and if, as the Prophet says, "You have made God your refuge' (Ps 73[72]: 28), it necessarily follows that you must be where God is found, since you are united with him. "Since he commanded you to call God "Father' when you pray, he tells you definitely to be likened to your Heavenly Father and to lead a life worthy of God, as the Lord orders us more clearly elsewhere, saying, "Be perfect as your Heavenly Father is perfect' (Mt 5: 48)" (De Oratione Dominica 2: PG 44, 1145ac).
In this journey of spiritual ascesis Christ is the Model and Teacher, he shows us the beautiful image of God (cf. De Perfectione Christiana: PG 46, 272a). Each of us, looking at him, finds ourselves "the painter of our own life", who has the will to compose the work and the virtues as his colours (ibid.: PG 46, 272b). So, if man is deemed worthy of Christ's Name how should he behave? This is Gregory's answer: "[He must] always examine his own thoughts, his own words and his own actions in his innermost depths to see whether they are oriented to Christ or are drifting away from him" (ibid.: PG 46, 284c). And this point is important because of the value it gives to the word "Christian". A Christian is someone who bears Christ's Name, who must therefore also liken his life to Christ. We Christians assume a great responsibility with Baptism.
LITURGY OF THE HOURS
First Reading for Matins: Col 2:16-3:4: If then you were raised with Christ, seek what is above, where Christ is seated at the right hand of God. Think of what is above, not of what is on earth. For you have died, and your life is hidden with Christ in God. When Christ your life appears, then you too will appear with him in glory.
Second Reading for Matins: From a sermon by Saint Gregory Nazianzen, bishop: Our single object and ambition was virtue, and a life of hope in the blessings that are to come; we wanted to withdraw from this world before we departed from it. With this end in view we ordered our lives and all our actions. We followed the guidance of God’s law and spurred each other on to virtue. If it is not too boastful to say, we found in each other a standard and rule for discerning right from wrong.
Benedictus Antiphon for Lauds: Those who are learned will be as radiant as the sky in all its beauty; those who instruct the people in goodness will shine like the stars for all eternity.
Magnificat Antiphon for Vespers: The man who not only teaches but does what is right will be counted great in the kingdom of God.
PRAYERS AND READINGS FOR MASS
Entrance Antiphon: Let the peoples recount the wisdom of the Saints, and let the Church proclaim their praise. Their names will live on and on.
Collect: O God, who were pleased to give light to your Church by the example and teaching of the Bishops Saints Basil and Gregory, grant, we pray, that in humility we may learn your truth and practice it faithfully in charity.
First Reading: 1 Jn 2:22-28: Let what you heard from the beginning remain in you. If what you heard from the beginning remains in you, then you will remain in the Son and in the Father.
Responsorial Psalm: Ps 98: The LORD has made his salvation known: in the sight of the nations he has revealed his justice. He has remembered his kindness and his faithfulness toward the house of Israel.
Gospel Antiphon: (Heb 1:1-2) In times, past, God spoke to our ancestors through the prophets: in these last days, he has spoken to us through his Son.
Gospel: Jn 1:19-28: This is the testimony of John. When the Jews from Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to him to ask him, “Who are you?” he admitted and did not deny it, but admitted, “I am not the Christ.”
Communion Antiphon: We proclaim Christ crucified; Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God.