Christian Saints

St. Basil the Great (c.330-379) bishop of  Caesarea, Doctor of the Church. He was born in Caesarea in Cappadocia into a noble Christian family. He received a solid Christian education studying at home, Constantinople, and Athens. In Athens he became friends with St. Gregory of Nazianzus, with whom he later (c.358) settled as a hermit in Palestine. In 370, Basil became Bishop of Caesarea. Basil was the author of the Rule of Eastern Monasteries, he left  important doctrinal and theological writings; his treatise on the Holy Spirit is among his most famous. A stubborn proponent of orthodoxy, Basil was never afraid of entering into conflict with political power, and even with papal authority whenever it was at odds with his own theological position.
Feast day in the West: formerly 14 June (his day of consecration), but since 1969 on 2 January with St. Gregory Nazianzen.
Feast day in the East: 1 January.
See: Francisco de Zurbarán St. Basil.
Theophanes the Greek. St. Basil the Great.

Recommended reading:
The Book of Saints: The Lives of the Saints According to the Liturgical Calendar by George Angelini, Victor Hoagland (Editor). Regina Press, Malhame & Company, 1986.
365 Saints: Your Daily Guide to the Wisdom and Wonder of Their Lives by Woodeene Koenig-Brick (Author). Harper SanFrancisco, 1995.
The Golden Legend by Jacobus De Voragine, William Granger Ryan (Translator). Princeton Univ Pr, 1995.