ABSTRACT
The great S. Basil belonged to an aristocratic family which had for several generations been Christian and owned considerable estates among the mountains of Cappadocia. S. Basil's father had embraced the profession of law. As in all systems of Christian monasticism, prayer is the central duty of the monk, but this is not to be an excuse for idleness or for shirking work. The best sort of work is agriculture, but weaving, shoemaking, building, carpentering, and metal-working are also suitable for monks. In reading the ascetic writings of Basil it is impossible to avoid the conclusion that considerable concession had to be made to human nature. S. Basil was quite right in feeling that in monasticism was by far the most hopeful influence for carrying out much needed Church reform. Unfortunately the history of asceticism, like that of every other human institution, has frequently revealed wide differences between practice and theory.
