The Rule of St Basil in Latin and English: A Revised Critical Edition

Abstract

The idea of the present volume came partly from RB 1980. In that volume the editors and commentators availed themselves of the critical Latin text already established by Jean Neufville for the Sources Chretiennes series, volumes 181-186 (1971-72), endeavouring to distil and convey academic scholarship to a less specialized audience. The subject of this book is itself one of the major sources of the Rule of Benedict (RB), namely, the 'Rule of our Holy Father Basil' recommended to zealous monks in RB 73.4. The Regula Basilii (RBas) is St Basil the Great's Small Asketikon as translated into Latin by Rufinus of Aquileia in AD 397. ... The present volume will ... present an updated version of Zelzer's Latin text, emended in the light of Lundström's advice and as generally confirmed by the Syriac text, together with an annotated English translation. It is in effect a new Latin edition, but assuming and entirely referring back to the work accomplished by Zelzer. Philological specialists will certainly need to continue to use Zelzer. The notes to the Latin text here largely concern justifications of changes to Zelzer's Latin text, and two cases in which Lundström's emendments have not been admitted. The primary interest of this volume is in the Regula Basilii as a text in its own right, and not merely as a tool of access to a lost Greek original, however important a goal that may be. The aim of the author has been to mediate somewhat between the rigours of academic research on the one hand and the interests of an intelligent non-specialist readership on the other hand. Ultimately the hope is that when the Syriac edition and translation is published even readers without all the languages may be able to make their own comparisons, up to a point.