Liturgy of Saint Basil

The Liturgy of Saint Basil or, more formally, the Divine Liturgy of Saint Basil the Great, is a term for several Eastern Christian celebrations of the Divine Liturgy (Eucharist), or at least several anaphoras, which are named after St. Basil the Great. Two of these liturgies are in common use today: the one used in the Byzantine Rite ten times a year, and the one ordinarily used by the Coptic Church.

Texts

Fresco of Basil the Great in the cathedral of Ohrid. The saint is shown consecrating the Gifts during the Divine Liturgy which bears his name.

The various extant anaphoras attributed to St. Basil in the various Eastern Christian rites may may be classified into two groups: one which includes the Egyptian texts, and one which includes all other texts.^[1]

The older Egyptian version was found in 1960 in a Sahidic Coptic,^[2] in a 7th century incomplete manuscript. From this version derived the Boharic Coptic version used today in the Coptic Church, as well as the Egyptian Greek and Ethiopic versions.^[3]:227-8 The Greek Egyptian version contains several prayers (identical with those in the Byzantine liturgy) expressly ascribed to St. Basil, and from these it may derive its title,^[1] and it may be used by the Greek Orthodox Church of Alexandria before this Church entirely renounced at its own liturgical tradition in favour of the uses of Constantinople.^[4] The present Arabic text of this liturgy is a translation from the Boharic Coptic version.

The other gruop of the Liturgies of Saint Basil includes the Greek version used in the Byzantine Rite, the older Armenian version known as Liturgy of Saint Gregory the Illuminator and an ancient Syriac version. H.Engberding in 1931 suggested that these three versions derives from a lost common source (Ω-BAS) and his conclusions were widely accepted by scholars.^[3]:230

The older manuscript of the Byzantine version is 8th century Codex Barberini Gr. 336, and this text was the ordinary liturgy celebrated in Constantinople before it was superseded in the common use by the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom. From this texts derives all the versions used in the Byzantine Rite, such as the Russian and other Slavonic versions, the Georgian version, and the versions used by the Melkite Church in Syriac and Arabic. Always from the Byzantine text derives the Armenian version known simply as Liturgy of Saint Basil.

History

The Anaphora of Saint Basil, in his core structure, arose in the 4th century. Over time, crucial parts of the anaphora were expanded by inserting credal statements. In particular in the prayer after the Sanctus, but also in the expansion of the Anamnesis, which was influenced by the Christological debates of that period. These changes appear to have been influenced by the dogmatic definitions of the Synods of Antioch in 341 and 345.^[5] The parts of this liturgy placed before and after the anaphora are generally deemed to be later.

With regards to the supposed lost common source (Ω-BAS) of Byzantine gruop of versions, Engberding (1931) as well as following scholars as Gabriele Winkler (2005) suggest that the ancient Armenian version (the Liturgy of Saint Gregory the Illuminator) is the one which has better preserved the readings of Ω-BAS. Gabriele Winkler underlined also direct Syrian influences on this text.^[5]

On regards the relation between the Byzantine and the Egyptions gruops of versions, there is no a clear consensus among scholars: while Winkler supports a certain preminence of the ancient Armenian version, other scholars such as Engberding and Fenwick suggest that the older Sahidic Egyptian version is roughly correspondent to a hypothetical text from which also Ω-BAS derived.^[3]:231,5 While there is no historical evidence that Basil of Caesarea was the author of the older Egyptian version, he visited as laymen Egypt in 356-7,^[3]:220 and it is therefore possible that there he entered in contact with Egyptian texts which he later modified, tuning the liturgical structure and enforcing a more developed theological structure,^[6]:129-30 so givining origin to the other Basilian versions.

Literary Testimonies

A certain reference to a liturgical text which went under the name of Saint Basil is given in a letter of Peter the Deacon, one of the Scythian monks sent to Rome to settle certain dogmatic questions. Writing about the year 520 to the African bishops in exile in Sardinia, Peter, an Oriental, mentions a Liturgy of Saint Basil, which was known and used throughout the entire East, and even quotes a passage from it.^[7][1]

Leontius of Byzantium, writing about the middle of the sixth century, censures Theodore of Mopsuestia because he was not content with the liturgies handed down by the Fathers to the churches, but composed a Liturgy of his own, showing thereby no reverence either for that of the Apostles, or for that composed in the same spirit by Saint Basil.^[8] The Quinisext Council, or "Council In Trullo" (692), in its thirty-second canon draws an argument from the written Liturgy of the archbishop of the church of the Cæsareans, St. Basil, whose glory has spread through the whole world.^[9][1]

In tracing the history of this Liturgy scholars have been for a long time misdirected by a 16th century forgery under the name of St. Proclus, Archbishop of Constantinople (434-446). This forgery, as has been demostrated in 1962 by F.J. Leroy, has to be ascribed to Costantin Palaeocapa and it falsely stated that Saint Basil shortened the length of the liturgy for the slothfulness and degeneracy of men.^[3]:228-9

Byzantine Liturgy

The Byzantine Liturgy is used in the countries which were evangelized from Constantinople, or which came under its influence for any considerable period. Since the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom has become the normal liturgy of the Byzantine Church, that of St. Basil is now used only ten times a year:

• The five Sundays of Great Lent (Palm Sunday is not considered by the Orthodox to be part of Lent)
• On Holy Thursday and Holy Saturday
• On the Eves of Nativity (Christmas) and Theophany (Epiphany). However, if the Great Feasts of Nativity or Theophany fall on a Sunday or Monday, the Liturgy of St. Basil is celebrated on the day of the feast, and the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom is celebrated on the Eve.
• On the feast day of St. Basil, which in the Byzantine calendar occurs on the first of January (for those churches which follow the traditional Julian Calendar, January 1 falls on January 14 of the Gregorian Calendar).

Bishop celebrating Divine Liturgy in Greek-Catholic church in Prešov, eastern Slovakia.

The Liturgy, as it is currently celebrated in the Rite of Constantinople differs very little from the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom (see article on Divine Liturgy for outline); the primary difference being in the silent prayers said by the priest and the hymn All of Creation which replaces the usual Axion Estin. In general, the prayers of St. Basil are more penitential, and therefore lend themselves to the Church's liturgical preparation for important holy days; hence, their use during Great Lent and on the eves of Nativity and Theophany (both of which are strict fast days, known as Paramony). The service may be divided into the Liturgy of the Catechumens and the Liturgy of the Faithful (the following paragraphs describe only those parts which are specific to the Liturgy of St. Basil):

Liturgy of Preparation (Prothesis)

• Mention of St. Basil instead of St. John Chrysostom at the removal of particles and at the dismissal

Liturgy of the Catechumens

• Prayer of the Catechumens

Liturgy of the Faithful

• First Prayer of the Faithful
• Second Prayer of the Faithful
• Prayer of Fervent Supplication
• Anaphora (see details, below), ending with All of Creation and its prayer
• Prayer for the Church, ending with the priest's ekphony, "And grant that with one mouth and one heart we may glorify and praise..."
• Prayer at the Ektenia of Supplication
• Prayer at the Bowing of Heads
• Prayer of Thanksgiving after communion
• Dismissal (mentioning St. Basil instead of St. John Chrysostom)

• During the Prayers After Communion, the troparion and kontakion chanted are those to St. Basil.

The Anaphora proper begins after the kiss of peace and the Symbol of Faith (Nicene Creed). It starts with the Eucharistic Preface followed by the Sanctus, the silent prayers for which are quite a bit longer in St. Basil's Liturgy.

While the actual Words of Institution themselves are the same for both Chrysostom and Basil, Saint Basil precedes each exclamation with the ekphonesis: "He gave it to His holy disciples and apostles, saying".

The Epiclesis (invocation of the Holy Spirit to perfect the Consecration of the Gifts) differs in that Chrysostom says "Make this bread the precious Body of Thy Christ" and "Make that which is in this chalice the precious Blood of Thy Christ", while Basil says "This bread is in very truth the precious Body of our Lord, and God and Saviour, Jesus Christ" and "This chalice is in very truth the precious Blood of our Lord, and God and Saviour, Jesus Christ … which was poured out for the life of the world." So for Saint John Chrysostom, the transformation is taking place in the present, whereas for Saint Basil it is already an accomplished fact.

The Great Intercession for the living and the dead is much longer in St. Basil.

Because of the longer prayers that make up the Anaphora of Saint Basil, the musical settings for the hymns chanted by the choir during the prayers are longer and often more ornate than those used during the Liturgy of St. John Chrysostom.

Coptic Liturgy

The main liturgy used by the Coptic Church is known as Liturgy of Saint Basil.^[10] This liturgy belongs to the same family of anaphoras of the Byzantine, Syrian and Armenian Liturgies of Saint Basil, even if it presents its own peculiarities. The term Liturgies of Saint Basil into a Coptic context means not only the sole anaphora with or without the relater prayers, but also the general order of the Divine Liturgy into the Alexandrine Rite.^[4]

Armenian Liturgy

The Armenian Liturgy included two different anaphoras of the family of the Liturgies of Saint Basil: the one usually known as Liturgy of Saint Gregory the Illuminator, and the one known simply as Liturgy of Saint Basil. The former is more ancient with own peculiarities while the latter is mainly a translation in Armenian of the byzantine text.^[11] These two anaphoras are not currently used by the Armenian Church which since about the 10th century uses only the Anaphora of Saint Athananius.

Notes

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed. (1913). Catholic Encyclopedia. Robert Appleton Company.  [1]

External links

• The Divine Liturgy of our Father Among the Saints, Basil the Great full text of the current Byzantine Liturgy of Saint Basil
• The Divine Liturgy of our Father Among the Saints, Basil the Great full text Byzantine Liturgy of Saint Basil (Carpathian usage)
• Anaphora for the Liturgy of St. Basil Byzantine setting
• Online text of the Cotic Liturgy of Saint Basil as used at present by the Coptic Church