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Chapter 2: "Even Though Roman Laws Judge Differently": Christianity and Local Traditions
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Chapter 2 "Even Though Roman Laws JudgeDifferently": Christianity and Local Traditions By the mid-370sAmphilochius, bishop of Iconium, had become Basil's closest confidant and a primary inspiration for his thinking about theological and ecclesiastical matters. Basil composed his treatise on the Holy Spirit as a response to a request for clarification from Amphilochius, and he also sent him three lengthy letters about discipline and penance. Amphilochius had asked Basil for advice on a number of issues. Although a few of his questions concerned the interpretation of particular biblical passages, most focused on the penalties for various sins and misdeeds. In the preface to his first letter Basil claimed that he was either trying to recall what he had once heard from older mentors or deducing his own conclusions based on what he had been taught; and, in fact, in many of his replies he referred to "custom" or an "old canon." His responseshence have a strongly antiquarian tinge, as if he was serving merely as a learned consultant for questions about the penalties for hypothetical sins.' Yet some of the questions concerned specific cases and specific people. It is therefore possible to assume that Amphilochius, rather than merely posing imaginary situations, was raising issues of immediate concern for the pastoral duties of a bishop, that Basil accepted them as real-life contemporary problems, and that his responses were a clear indication of the impact Christianity was expected to have on traditional Cappadocian society. Amphilochius' concern over and Basil's discussion of what they both perceived to be genuine misdeeds implied the presence of such activitieswithin or near their own communities. Three topics were especially important: the behavior of clerics, regulations about marriage, and the use of ~iolence.~ Lifetime Tenure for Clerics Basil's responses were divided into eighty-four chapters or canons, in modern editions numbered consecutively through the three letters. Several of Chapter 2 "Even Though Roman Laws Judge Differently": Christianity and Local Traditions By the mid-370S Amphilochius, bishop of !conium, had become Basil's closest confidant and a primary inspiration for his thinking about theological and ecclesiastical matters. Basil composed his treatise on the Holy Spirit as a response to a request for clarification from Amphilochius, and he also sent him three lengthy letters about discipline and penance. Amphilochius had asked Basil for advice on a number of issues. Although a few of his questions concerned the interpretation of particular biblical passages, most focused on the penalties for various sins and misdeeds. In the preface to his first letter Basil claimed that he was either trying to recall what he had once heard from older mentors or deducing his own conclusions based on what he had been taught; and, in fact, in many of his replies he referred to "custom" or an "old canon." His responses hence have a strongly antiquarian tinge, as if he was serving merely as a learned consultant for questions about the penalties for hypothetical sins.I Yet some of the questions concerned specific cases and specific people. It is therefore possible to assume that Amphilochius, rather than merely posing imaginary situations, was raising issues of immediate concern for the pastoral duties of a bishop, that Basil accepted them as real-life contemporary problems, and that his responses were a clear indication of the impact Christianity was expected to have on traditional Cappadocian society. Amphilochius' concern over and Basil's discussion of what they both perceived to be genuine misdeeds implied the presence ofsuch activities within or near their own communities. Three topics were especially important: the behavior of clerics, regulations about marriage, and the use of violence.2 Lifetime Tenure for Clerics Basil's responses were divided into eighty-four chapters or canons, in modern editions numbered consecutively through the three letters. Several of 54 Conversion these canons discussed penalties for clerics who had committed sins, such as sexual misbehavior. The common penalty for such wayward clerics was the loss of their offices: "the canons order a single penalty to be applied to fallen [clerics],dismissal from their office." Basil likewise suggestedthat clerics who took up arms against bandits should be deposed from their offices. For priests who had unwittingly become involved in an "illegal marriage," however, Basil recommended that they keep their office but be prevented from performing their liturgical duties, such as conferring the benediction or distributing the eucharistic elements. He likewise advocated that priests and deacons who had expressed merely an intention of sinning should be excluded only...