Basil’s exegesis of the creation narrative by and large defined the early church’s understanding of nature and its principles. An integral part of Basil’s hermeneutics of the scriptural account of creation was the theory of time. Questions of the nature of time, and its relation to motion and, in particular, the motion of the celestial bodies, defined Basil’s theoretical agenda framed within the Arian controversy over the notion of the origins of the Word of God.
Basil’s theory appeared faithful to Aristotle in that it did not tie time to the motion of celestial bodies. It also betrayed certain Stoic influences, at least as far as the definition of time was concerned. We can also see the influence of Platonism on Basil’s theory. Plato’s Timaeus, Philo’s De opficio mundi, and possibly also various Neoplatonist treatises on the subject, influenced Basil’s discourse on the topic in a range of ways. However, despite the fact that Basil operated with classical and late antique categorical taxonomies, his account of time appears unique in that it clearly exhibits a very Christian understanding of the natural world and its origins.
This article aims to analyze Basil’s account of time so as to track its philosophical underpinnings. It is also intended to demonstrate that Basil’s theory of time was premised on a uniquely Christian eschatological and liturgical vision.
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