The brief reign of Julian would affect Basil, in
common with the whole Church, in two ways: in the relief he would
feel at the comparative toleration shewn to Catholics, and the
consequent return of orthodox bishops to their sees; The most important
instance being that of Athanasius, who, on his return to Alexandria
after his third exile, held a synod which condemned Macedonians as well
as Arians. cf. Newman’s Arians, v.
1. in
the distress with which he would witness his old friend’s
attempts to ridicule and undermine the Faith. Sorrow more
personal and immediate must have been caused by the harsh treatment of
Cæsarea Soz. v. 4. and the cruel imposts
laid on Cappadocia. What conduct on the part of the
Cæsareans may have led Gregory of Nazianzus Or. iv. §
92.
to speak of Julian as justly offended, we can only
conjecture. It may have been the somewhat disorderly
proceedings in connexion with the appointment of Eusebius to succeed
Dianius. But there can be no doubt about the sufferings of
Cæsarea nor of the martyrdom of Eupsychius and Damas for their
part in the destruction of the Temple of Fortune. Epp. c.,
cclii. Soz. v. 11. cf. also Epp. xxxix., xl.,
and xli., with the notes on pp. 141, 142, for the argument for and
against the genuineness of the correspondence. Two Eupsychii of
Cæsarea are named in the Acta Sanctorum and by the
Petits Bollandistes,—one celebrated on April 9, said to
have been martyred in the reign of Hadrian, the other the victim of
Julian in 362, commemorated on Sept. 7. Tillemont identifies
them. Baronius thinks them distinct. J. S. Stilting
(Act. Sanct. ed. 1868) is inclined to distinguish them mainly on
the ground that between 362 and the time of Basil’s describing
the festival as an established yearly commemoration there is not
sufficient interval for the cultus to have arisen. This alone
seems hardly convincing. The local interest in the victim of
Julian’s severity would naturally be great. Becket was
murdered in 1170 and canonized in 1173, Dec. 29 being fixed for his
feast; Lewis VII. of France was among the pilgrims in 1179.
Bernadette Soubirous announced her vision at Lourdes in 1858; the
church was begun there in 1862.