Latest in an occasional series of prayers by Christians of ages past. Previous entry here; complete list of entries here.

O God and Lord of the Powers, and Maker of all creation, Who, because of Thy clemency and incomparable mercy, didst send Thine Only-Begotten Son and our Lord Jesus Christ for the salvation of mankind, and with His venerable Cross didst tear asunder the record of our sins, and thereby didst conquer the rulers and powers of darkness; receive from us sinful people, O merciful Master, these prayers of gratitude and supplication, and deliver us from every destructive and gloomy transgression, and from all visible and invisible enemies who seek to injure us. Nail down our flesh with fear of Thee, and let not our hearts be inclined to words or thoughts of evil, but pierce our souls with Thy love, that ever contemplating Thee, being enlightened by Thee, and discerning Thee, the unapproachable and everlasting Light, we may unceasingly render confession and gratitude to Thee: The eternal Father, with Thine Only-Begotten Son, and with Thine All-Holy, Gracious, and Life-Giving Spirit, now and ever, and unto ages of ages. Amen.

St Basil the Great (c. 329-379),
Bishop of Caesarea, Cappadocian Father, Doctor of the Church.

St Basil the Great was the eldest son of Christian parents and brother of St Gregory of Nyssa and St Macrina the Younger. Born into a distinguished and wealthy family, he received the best education available, first at home, then at Caesarea, Constantinople, and Athens. In Athens he began a life-long friendship with the future saint Gregory of Nazianzus. After teaching rhetoric for a year at Caesarea, he became a monk in 358. It was at this time that he first became known through his writings as a strong advocate of orthodox faith. He was persuaded to leave his solitude in 364 to defend the church against persecution from the Roman emperor Valens, who favoured Arianism. He succeeded Eusebius as Bishop of Caesarea in 370 and continued in that office until his death at age 50.

Basil made lasting contributions to the church in three fields: as a leader of Eastern monasticism, as a bishop who applied the gospel to the needs of his people, and as a theologian and teacher. In his correspondence, he advised his nephews to make full use, as he himself had done, of classical literature to prepare their minds for a deeper understanding of the Christian revelation. Unlike many Christians of his day (and since), Basil was firmly on the side of an inclusive Christian outlook, which integrated all that was best in the secular culture of the day. Without leaders like him, Christian theology would have made little progress. St Basil is also remembered as one of the Cappadocian Fathers, three theologians from the province of Cappadocia who had a profound influence on the character of Christian theology. Besides Basil, they were the two Gregorys mentioned earlier: Basil's brother St Gregory of Nyssa and his friend St Gregory of Nazianzus. Their arguments for the full deity of the Holy Spirit, the full humanity of Jesus, and their insistence on the formula "three persons but one essence" gave final shape to the orthodox doctrine of the Trinity, and through their efforts Arianism was finally defeated.

His last words when he died in 379 were: "Into Thy hands, O Lord I commit my spirit; Thou hast redeemed me, O Lord, God of truth."

Christian History Institute has more on St Basil’s amazing family.