How much difference can an individual make? Three individuals?

This post comes from an email in the "Walk Through the Church Year" series which goes out to folks who sign up to receive two emails per month about major feasts and selected commemorations in the liturgical calendar. To receive these emails in your inbox, sign up here.

The original email was sent out in January of 2025.

by Brendan

O Lord, You have received the Holy and God-proclaiming heralds, the crown of Your Teachers, for the enjoyment of Your good things and for repose; for You have accepted their sufferings and labors above every sacrifice, for You alone glorify Your Saints. – Kontakion, Tone 2

While each of these three saints has one or more days where his faithfulness is remembered, January 30 is reserved for a combined commemoration of all three of these Fathers together.

In the 4th century AD, the Church arguably experienced the greatest flowering of theology and practice since the time of the Apostles. During this transition between the legalization of Christianity (313) and being made the official religion of the Roman Empire (380), the Church experienced new challenges and opportunities. Persecution–except under apostate emperors–became primarily a thing of the past. But the challenges of speaking the truth and distinguishing between truth and error in belief and practice remained perennial.

It would take much more space than this reflection allows to give detail about any of these renowned Fathers, much less all three of them. In lieu of that, here are some things to consider as we remember their continuing faithfulness with the church “one, holy, catholic, and apostolic.”

• They were all contemporaries of each other, two of them being close friends. St. Basil (330-379), St. Gregory the Theologian (329-389), and St. John Chrysostom “the golden-mouthed” (345-407) all were born within a world that was increasingly ripe for the Church to speak and live out God’s truth.
• They spoke with one voice, living out the truth of the Nicene Creed (323) without excuse or margin for error, particularly in the tradition handed down from the Apostles regarding the person of Jesus Christ. While there might have been other saints and martyrs whose writings or life burned more brightly in their own time, these three Fathers’ combination of life and work have stood the test of time and have largely formed the parameters of what is considered ‘Orthodoxy.’ Basil, Gregory, and John express the Byzantine tradition at its most accessible; they follow to an eminent degree what might be called ‘the general line…’ (1)
• All three suffered for the Faith. While the threat of the Roman sword diminished, new challenges from heresies within and without the Church continued unabated. Men like Sts. Basil and Gregory acted to protect the flock from wolves who sought to tear sheep away from the Good Shepherd. Although the archbishop of Constantinople, St. John himself was condemned and exiled three times by heretical bishops and emperors, losing his position within the Church but not within the Kingdom of God.
• All three deeply connected belief with practice. While a prolific writer and faithful cleric, including the author of the liturgy that bears his name, St. Basil the Great is even more renowned for his charity work. In his latter years during monastic retreat, his friend St. Gregory the Theologian spent his time recording some of the most beautiful poetry and adoration of the Holy Trinity that the Church has received.
• All three pointed to the essential nature of the Liturgy as the primary ground and pillar of the Church. Two of these hierarchs (Sts. Basil and John) are renowned for their respective liturgies. In a typical Orthodox parish, both of them are celebrated, St. Basil’s liturgy on January 1st and Lenten Sundays, and St. John Chrysostom’s every other Sunday of the year. Each of them spoke, wrote, and lived out a life that pointed the faithful of their day to commune with God and be changed through weekly, if not daily, engagement with each parishioner’s entire self–body, mind, and heart.

Let all who love their words come together and honor with hymns the three luminaries of the light-creating Trinity: Basil the Great, Gregory the Theologian, and renowned John of golden speech, who have enlightened the world with the rays of their divine doctrines, and are mellifluous rivers of wisdom who have watered all creation with streams of divine knowledge; they ever intercede with the Trinity for us. – Troparion, Tone 1

Since the 1100s, it has been common to commemorate all three Fathers together on this day. As we leave January, it is a lasting reminder of what matters most in any era, any day, any moment. As Fr. Lev Gillet noted, “The monastic endeavors of Basil, the high theology of Gregory, and the practical evangelism of Chrysostom: these combined are the messages which this feast of the three hierarchs brings us as a vehicle for the three great aspects of Orthodoxy.” (2)

While none of us reading is likely to have the kind of global impact that these three individually or together had for the Church, each of us certainly has a part to play in the Body of Christ. What does that mean for you and me?

For a brief few moments, we’ve had the opportunity to consider these men of great faith and action. Maybe some action points include reading up more on any of them, for knowledge’s sake as well as ways to engage more faithfully with our current world. How can knowing the words and lives of these three saints inform my own practice and belief?

Reading certainly has a place in any Christian’s life, but prayer is an even greater calling. The hymns, prayers, reflections, and actions of these three men can motivate any of us to devote more time to be with our God. They even share with us their own words to God, in case we are struggling to find our own! How can knowing these saints help me to be in communion more with the Triune God?

Finally, these three were men of action. Their sanctity is revealed through both words and practice. Whether it was caring for the overlooked, addressing heresy, or resisting the call to compromise, each of them individually and collectively demonstrate what it means to follow after Christ in the 4th and 21st centuries. Lord, how can I live out your love for people by following the examples of these men?

Sainthood does not mean sinless. Each of these men no doubt had struggles and a sin nature like any of us. What sets them apart is a desire to start being remade completely in God’s likeness in this life, trusting that God will continue that process in the next. It is the same opportunity open to any one of us reading this. By God’s grace, we, too, can become saints. These three men—Sts. Basil, Gregory, and John—show us the path.

Let us remember that the Fathers of the Church are still, today, our Fathers, and that they are loving Fathers who are concerned for the salvation of their children. So let us join with the Church at matins in saying to the three hierarchs: ‘O blessed Fathers, keep watch, even after your death, over us who praise you!’ (3)

(1) The Year of Grace of the Lord, By a Monk of the Eastern Church (Crestwood, NY: St. Vladimir’s Press, 1971) 88.

(2) Ibid, 89.

(3) Ibid, 89.