Τhe Ideal of the Ascetic Community in the Monastic Writings of St Basil the Great

Abstract

The present study examines the ideal of the ascetic community (adelphotēs) in the monastic writings of St Basil the Great, collectively known as the As- cetica. At its centre lies the question of how Basil conceives the human person within community, the internal organisation of such a community, and its relation both to the Church and to the world. The first part addresses the complex textual history of the Ascetica, arguing that the anthology sent to the Pontic communities represents Basil’s final authorial recension. The second part elucidates Basil’s anthropology, according to which the “image” is given while the “likeness” is the goal to be attained through ascetical effort within community. The key notions of mnēmē (“memory”) and diathesis (“dispo- sition”) are presented as interrelated dynamisms through which the human person becomes conformed to God. This leads to the conclusion that salva- tion is not an individual undertaking but the fruit of communal life lived in love and in eutaxia (“good order”). The third part analyses the internal structure of the ascetic community, including the ordered yet cooperative coexistence of men and women, the role of the superior, and the mechanisms by which authority is supervised and corrected. It is shown that authority within the community is conceived theocentrically, is never absolute, and is continually subject to discernment according to the divine commandments. The study demonstrates that, for St Basil, the ascetic community is not merely a monastic institution but an image of the renewed apostolic community—a model for the entire Church and a path toward recovering the original unity of Christian life.