Basil of Caesarea

"In this new portrait of Basil of Caesarea, which will certainly win acceptance as the standard work in English, erudition does not blunt perceptiveness: we are brought close to the heart of a man who struggled to reconcile the high calling of his faith with the appalling demands that a fast-changing world imposed on its leaders. This book takes another long stride towards what all Rousseau's earlier work has aimed at—an undogmatic and sympathetic understanding of the fourth-century Church, and the presentation of its great spiritual leaders to new, often unsuspecting audiences."—Garth Fowden, National Hellenic Research Foundation

About the author

Philip Rousseau is Associate Professor of History at the University of Auckland. He is the author of Pachomius: The Making of a Community in Fourth-Century Egypt (California, 1985).

Summary

Basil of Caesarea is often thought of as an opponent of heresy and a pioneer of monastic life. In this biographical study, however, controversy is no longer seen as the central preoccupation of his life, nor are his ascetic initiatives viewed as seperable from his pastoral concern.

Additional text

"...offers the serious reader an incisive and refreshing commentary on why and how Basil of Caesarea (330-379) became bishop, and whether or not he may be considered a typical prelate of the fourth-century church."

Product details

• Authors: Philip Rousseau, ROUSSEAU PHILIP
• Publisher: University Of California Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Paperback / Softback
• Released: 11.02.1998
• EAN: 9780520213814
• ISBN: 978-0-520-21381-4
• No. of pages: 432
• Dimensions: 153 mm x 229 mm x 25 mm
• Series: Transformation of the Classical Heritage; Transformation of the Classica; Transformation of the Classical Heritage; Transformation of the Classica
• Subjects: Non-fiction book > Philosophy, religion > Biographies, autobiographies; Biography: general, BIOGRAPHY & AUTOBIOGRAPHY / General, RELIGION / Christianity / History, RELIGION / Christianity / General, Christianity, History of Religion, The Early Church