Saint Basil the Great – teacher of the young

In the introduction of this work it is necessary to mention some biographical data,

they helping us to understand how he became one of the most significant saints of the Eastern
Church and a true enlightenment of young souls.

Beyond the deeply religious aspect of his writings, one can distinguish some
pedagogical principles that were born out of boundless appreciation of the child’s soul, in the
same time Saint Basil emphasizes the fact that the improvement of the spirit and mind can
only be achieved through education, and the ultimate goal of education is the acquisition of
virtue and human preparation for eternity, therefore we emphasize in the first part St. Basil’s
attitudes on education.

In the second part we will analyze the Homily towards the young in which the author
guides the young towards the ultimate goal of every Christian, salvation. At a time when the
Church was in turmoil doctrine it was necessary that someone would guide young people
towards the true Christian education, taking even from the great pagan authors only what is
useful to them for salvation.

Thus, St. Basil the Great without any doubt is one of the leading teachers of the
Orthodox Church both through his religious-doctrinal works and through his moral
educational homilies.