Aleksey Muravjyov

The article is dedicated to the episode of the encounter between St Basil of Caesarea and Ephrem the Syrian which took place in Caesarea about late 370s. As a result of that encounter according to the legend Ephrem became deacon and learned Greek. The episode is preserved in four texts and became popular in the form of Ps.-Ephrem’s Encomium in Basilium. The surviving Syriac version of the episode testifies to a quite an early existence of the story in Syriac. Later it became a part of the Helladius’ of Caesarea collection of the Miracles of Basil which has been included into the Ps.-Amphilochius’s Vita Basilii. The comparison between Syriac and Greek texts of the episode as well as the early Christian Arabic witness preserved in two mss. (Sinai and Strassburg) shows that an early Syriac version close to one of the forms of the Life of Mar Aphrem circulated between Syria and Cappadocia before it was translated into Greek. The later form known from Ps.- Amphilochius gave life to different stories reflecting the encounter: Sozomen, Syriac Life of Ephrem, Ps.-Ephrem’s and Ps.-Gregory’s of Nyssa encomia in Basil.