We are fools for Christ, but you are so wise in Christ! We are weak, but you are strong! You are honored, we are dishonored! 1 Corinthians 4:10
“Basil was born to a poor family of serfs in the village of Yelokhovo, which is now the suburb of Moscow. His parents were childless and of advanced age when he was born, and they had prayed for some time for a child, whom they vowed to dedicate to God. Tradition has it that Basil’s mother gave birth to him on the portico of the church in Yelokhovo…
Basil left home for Moscow proper when he was sixteen and began the difficult path of being a fool for Christ… This he did in all purity of heart, having conquered the passions long before, and also because he had become truly dead to the world and possessed nothing of this sphere that would tie him to earth…
Basil’s reputation among the populace grew, and people began seeing him as a holy fool and a man of God. People started coming to him for prayers and sometimes for advice… He became so well known as a saint that he came to the attention of the tsar himself (Tsar Ivan IV, “the Terrible”) who held him in great esteem.
The tsar himself went so far as to decree that no one was ever to harm Basil, and he both admired and feared him as an emissary of God… Basil was among the very few who could courageously chastise the tsar for his actions, encouraging him, as he did everyone of any station, to repentance and godliness…
To those who were in need of repentance yet had weaknesses difficult for them to control, Basil was most patient and compassionate. He frequented taverns, searching for a spark of goodness in the souls of those who languished there, encouraging all to find salvation…
Because he was beloved by rich and poor alike, people would often give Basil gifts. He would never keep anything for himself, but immediately would give everything to the poor. Once though, this did not appear to have happened. When Tsar Ivan gave him a gift of gold, instead of distributing it to the poor and homeless, he gave it to a well-dressed merchant.
Many people were appalled at this and did not understand why he did it. But Basil explained that the merchant had lost everything and had not eaten in three days, and because of his fine clothing (all that he had left), he was not able to beg… So revered was Basil that the Tsar Ivan IV himself served as one of his pallbearers…
The Protection Church later was renamed in honor of Basil and is now one of the most recognized structures on Red Square in Moscow.”
Basil of Moscow (1468-1552) in Holy Fools: The Lives of Twenty Fools for Christ by Oswin Craton (Chesterton: Ancient Faith Publishing, 2024) 19-24.
Some have inquired of the origin of the “Fools for Christ” term. Notice the apostle Paul as the source in his letter to the church in Corinth. Consider the context. Corinth represented a worldly church. They were guilty of many of the sins of the world. Paul fearlessly called them out. He said to live differently and biblically. That’s what a fool for Christ does.
That was Basil of Moscow. His generosity came forth through his patience and compassion. Like our Lord does not desire any to perish but all to come to repentance, that was Basil. And I would argue, his boldness to confront even the tsar himself should mark a lesson for us. His courage won him great respect.
What about you? Do you need to frequent the taverns to find the languishing? Do you need to share gold with someone who has lost everything? Might God lead you to do something else that the world would say is “foolish” but God would see and smile? The trip is going well in Colombia. We got much needed rest on the weekend.
The church I preached at yesterday was called Transformation Church. It basically had 50 or so people who had come to Christ from the gutters. Someone asked me why I serve God in so many places and why I would spend my Sunday with them instead of at a large church. I could not help but answer. I am a fool for Christ.
I pray people see you as a fool too. If people don’t think you are crazy for Christ, that’s when you might have something to worry about.