From: Subject: Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series II, Vol. VII Date: Thu, 1 Mar 2007 22:31:02 -0600 MIME-Version: 1.0 Content-Type: multipart/related; type="text/html"; boundary="----=_NextPart_000_0000_01C75C51.4B430BE0" X-MimeOLE: Produced By Microsoft MimeOLE V6.00.2900.3028 This is a multi-part message in MIME format. ------=_NextPart_000_0000_01C75C51.4B430BE0 Content-Type: text/html; charset="Windows-1252" Content-Transfer-Encoding: quoted-printable Content-Location: http://www.ccel.org/fathers2/NPNF2-07/Npnf2-07-59.htm Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Series II, Vol. = VII

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Introduction.

Introduction.

The circumstances which called forth the two letters to Cledonius = have=20 already been described in the first section of the General Prolegomena, = and it=20 will not be necessary here to add much to what was there said. In the = letter to=20 Nectarius, his own successor on the throne of Constantinople, written = about a.d.=20 383, and sometimes reckoned as Orat. XLVI., S. Gregory gives extracts = from a=20 work of Apollinarius himself, but without mentioning the rifle of the = book. In=20 this treatise the fundamental errors of the heresy (see Proleg. c. 1, p. = 172)=20 are laid down. Apollinarius, according to S. Gregory, declares that the = Son of=20 God was from all eternity clothed with a human body, and not from the = time of=20 His conception only by the Blessed Virgin; but that this humanity of God = is=20 without human mind, the place of which was supplied by the Godhead of = the=20 Only-begotten. And he goes even further and ascribes passibility and = mortality=20 to the very Godhead of Christ. Therefore S. Gregory earnestly protests = against=20 any toleration being granted to these heretics, or even permission to = hold their=20 assemblies; for, he says, toleration or permission would certainly be = regarded=20 by them as a condonation of their doctrinal position, and a condemnation = of that=20 of the Church. Dr. Ullman, however, thinks that while S. Gregory was = certainly=20 speaking the truth in saying that he had in his hands a pamphlet by=20 Apollinarius, yet that he, perhaps unconsciously, exaggerated the = heretical=20 character of its contents, pushing its statements to consequences which=20 Apollinarius would have repudiated. The one purpose of the latter was, = in Dr.=20 Ullman's view, to safeguard the doctrine of the Unity of Christ; and he = thought=20 that the orthodox expression of Two Whole and Perfect Natures tended to = a=20 Nestorian division of the Person of Christ; and so he used language = which=20 certainly seemed to confound the natures, or at any rate to make the = Incarnation=20 imperfect, inasmuch as a Christ in Whom the human mind is absent, and = its place=20 filled up by the Godhead of the Son, cannot be said to be perfect Man. = But while=20 Epiphanius mentions these extravagances of the heresy, and does so with = a=20 lingering feeling of regret for the lapse of so good a man whose = services in the=20 past had been of so much value to the Church, yet, in the spirit common = to=20 Ecclesiastical authorities of the time, he would rather ascribe them to = an=20 expansion of Apollinarius' teaching by his younger disciples who did not = really=20 understand what Apollinarius himself meant.

Olympius, to whom the last of this series is addressed, was Governor = of=20 Cappadocia Secunda in a.d. 382. He was a man for whom S. Gregory had a = very high=20 esteem, and with whom he was upon terms of close friendship, as will be = seen=20 from other letters of Gregory to him in another division of this = Selection. The=20 occasion of the present letter was the necessity to appeal to the = secular power=20 for aid to punish a sect of Apollinarians at Nazianzus, who had ventured = to take=20 advantage of S. Gregory's absence at the Baths of Xanxaris to procure = the=20 consecration of a Bishop of their own way of thinking. Technically the = See was=20 vacant, but the administration had been committed to Gregory by the = Bishops of=20 the Province, and though he, foreseeing some such attempt on the part of = the=20 heretics, had been very earnest in pressing upon the Metropolitan and = his=20 Com-provincials the necessity of filling this throne by a canonical = election,=20 yet he was by no means prepared to hand over the authority, with which = he had=20 been invested, to an irregularly elected and uncanonically consecrated=20 heretic.

The Care of God, which throughout the time before us guarded the = Churches,=20 seems to have utterly forsaken this present life. And my soul is = immersed to=20 such a degree by calamities that the private sufferings of my own life = hardly=20 seem to be worth reckoning among evils (though they are so numerous and = great,=20 that if they befel anyone else I should think them unbearable); but I = can only=20 look at the common sufferings of the Churches; for if at the present = crisis some=20 pains be not taken to find a remedy for them, things will gradually get = into an=20 altogether desperate condition. Those who follow the heresy of Arius or = Eudoxius=20 (I cannot say who stirred them up to this folly) are making a display of = their=20 disease, as if they had attained some degree of confidence by collecting = congregations as if by permission. And they of the Macedonian party have = reached=20 such a pitch of folly that they are arrogating to themselves the name of = Bishops, and are wandering about our districts babbling of = Eleusius1=20 as to their ordinations. Our bosom evil, Eunomius, is no longer content = with=20 merely existing; but unless he can draw away everyone with him to his = ruinous=20 heresy, he thinks himself an injured man. All this, however, is = endurable. The=20 most grievous item of all in the woes of the Church is the boldness of = the=20 Apollinarians, whom your Holiness has overlooked, I know not how, when = providing=20 themselves with authority to hold meetings on an equality with myself. = However,=20 you being, as you are, thoroughly instructed by the grace of God in the = Divine=20 Mysteries on all points, are well informed, not only as to the advocacy = of the=20 true faith, but also as to all those arguments which have been devised = by the=20 heretics against the sound faith; and yet perhaps it will not be = unseasonable=20 that your Excellency should hear from my littleness that a pamphlet by=20 Apollinarius has come into my hands, the contents of which surpass all = heretical=20 pravity. For he asserts that the Flesh which the Only-begotten Son = assumed in=20 the Incarnation for the remodelling of our nature was no new = acquisition, but=20 that that carnal nature was in the Son from the beginning. And he puts = forward=20 as a witness to this monstrous assertion a garbled quotation from the = Gospels,=20 namely, No man hath Ascended up into Heaven save He which came down from = Heaven,=20 even the Son of Man which is in Heaven.2=20 As though even before He came down He was the Son of Man, and when He = came down=20 He brought with Him that Flesh, which it appears He had in Heaven, as = though it=20 had existed before the ages, and been joined with His Essence. For he = alleges=20 another saying of an Apostle, which he cuts off from the whole body of = its=20 context, that The Second Man is the Lord from Heaven.3=20 Then he assumes that that Man who came down from above is without a = mind, but=20 that the Godhead of the Only-begotten fulfils the function of mind, and = is the=20 third part of this human composite, inasmuch as soul and body are in it = on its=20 human side, but not mind, the place of which is taken by God the Word. = This is=20 not yet the most serious part of it; that which is most terrible of all = is that=20 he declares that the Only-begotten God, the Judge of all, the Prince of = Life,=20 the Destroyer of Death, is mortal, and underwent the Passion in His = proper=20 Godhead; and that in the three days' death of His body, His Godhead also = was put=20 to death with His body, and thus was raised again from the dead by the = Father.=20 It would be tedious to go through all the other propositions which he = adds to=20 these monstrous absurdities. Now, if they who hold such views have = authority to=20 meet, your Wisdom approved in Christ must see that, inasmuch as we do = not=20 approve their views, any permission of assembly granted to them is = nothing less=20 than a declaration that their view is thought more true than ours. For = if they=20 are permitted to teach their view as godly men, and with all confidence = to=20 preach their doctrine, it is manifest that the doctrine of the Church = has been=20 condemned, as though the truth were on their side. For nature does not = admit of=20 two contrary doctrines on the same subject being both true. How then = could your=20 noble and lofty mind submit to suspend your usual courage in regard to = the=20 correction of so great an evil? But even though there is no precedent = for such a=20 course, let your inimitable perfection in virtue stand up at a crisis = like the=20 present, and teach our most pious Emperor, that no gain will come from = his zeal=20 for the Church on other points if he allows such an evil to gain = strength from=20 freedom of speech for the subversion of sound faith.

I desire to learn what is this fashion of innovation in things = Concerning the=20 Church, which allows anyone who likes, or the passerby,4=20 as the Bible says, to tear asunder the flock that has been well led, and = to=20 plunder it by larcenous attacks, or rather by piratical and fallacious=20 teachings. For if our present assailants had any ground for condemning = us in=20 regard of the faith, it would not have been right for them, even in that = case,=20 to have ventured on such a course without giving us notice. They ought = rather to=20 have first persuaded us, or to have been willing to be persuaded by us = (if at=20 least any account is to be taken of us as fearing God, labouring for the = faith,=20 and helping the Church), and then, if at all, to innovate; but then = perhaps=20 there would be an excuse for their outrageous conduct. But since our = faith has=20 been proclaimed, both in writing and without writing, here and in = distant parts,=20 in times of danger and of safety, how comes it that some make such = attempts, and=20 that others keep silence?

The most grievous part of it is not (though this too is shocking) = that the=20 men instil their own heresy into simpler souls by means of those who are = worse;=20 but that they also tell lies about us and say that we share their = opinions and=20 sentiments; thus baiting their hooks, and by this cloak villainously = fulfilling=20 their will, and making our simplicity, which looked upon them as = brothers and=20 not as foes, into a support of their wickedness. And not only so, but = they also=20 assert, as I am told, that they have been received by the Western Synod, = by=20 which they were formerly condemned, as is well known to everyone. If, = however,=20 those who hold the views of Apollinarius have either now or formerly = been=20 received, let them prove it and we will be content. For it is evident = that they=20 can only have been so received as assenting to the Orthodox Faith, for = this were=20 an impossibility on any other terms. And they can surely prove it, = either by the=20 minutes of the Synod, or by Letters of Communion, for this is the = regular custom=20 of Synods. But if it is mere words, and an invention of their own, = devised for=20 the sake of appearances and to give them weight with the multitude = through the=20 credit of the persons, teach them to hold their tongues, and confute = them; for=20 we believe that such a task is well suited to your manner of life and = orthodoxy.=20 Do not let the men deceive themselves and others with the assertion that = the=20 "Man of the Lord," as they call Him, Who is rather our Lord and God, is = without=20 human mind. For we do not sever the Man from the Godhead, but we lay = down as a=20 dogma the Unity and Identity of Person, Who of old was not Man but God, = and the=20 Only Son before all ages, unmingled with body or anything corporeal; but = Who in=20 these last days has assumed Manhood also for our salvation; passible in = His=20 Flesh, impassible in His Godhead; circumscript in the body, = uncircumscript in=20 the Spirit; at once earthly and heavenly, tangible and intangible,=20 comprehensible and incomprehensible; that by One and the Same Person, = Who was=20 perfect Man and also God, the entire humanity fallen through sin might = be=20 created anew.

If anyone does not believe that Holy Mary is the Mother of God, he is = severed=20 from the Godhead. If anyone should assert that He passed through the = Virgin as=20 through a channel, and was not at once divinely and humanly formed in = her=20 (divinely, because without the intervention of a man; humanly, because = in=20 accordance with the laws of gestation), he is in like manner godless. If = any=20 assert that the Manhood was formed and afterward was clothed with the = Godhead,=20 he too is to be condemned. For this were not a Generation of God, but a = shirking=20 of generation. If any introduce the notion of Two Sons, one of God the = Father,=20 the other of the Mother, and discredits the Unity and Identity, may he = lose his=20 part in the adoption promised to those who believe aright. For God and = Man are=20 two natures, as also soul and body are; but there are not two Sons or = two Gods.=20 For neither in this life are there two manhoods; though Paul speaks in = some such=20 language of the inner and outer man. And (if I am to speak concisely) = the=20 Saviour is made of elements which are distinct from one another (for the = invisible is not the same with the visible, nor the timeless with that = which is=20 subject to time), yet He is not two Persons. God forbid! For both = natures are=20 one by the combination, the Deity being made Man, and the Manhood = deified or=20 however one should express it. And I say different Elements, because it = is the=20 reverse of what is the case in the Trinity; for There we acknowledge = different=20 Persons so as not to confound the persons; but not different Elements, = for the=20 Three are One and the same in Godhead.

If any should say that it wrought in Him by grace as in a Prophet, = but was=20 not and is not united with Him in Essence-let him be empty of the Higher = Energy,=20 or rather full of the opposite. If any worship not the Crucified, let = him be=20 Anathema and be numbered among the Deicides. If any assert that He was = made=20 perfect by works, or that after His Baptism, or after His Resurrection = from the=20 dead, He was counted worthy of an adoptive Sonship, like those whom the = Greeks=20 interpolate as added to the ranks of the gods, let him be anathema. For = that=20 which has a beginning or a progress or is made perfect, is not God, = although the=20 expressions may be used of His gradual manifestation. If any assert that = He has=20 now put off His holy flesh, and that His Godhead is stripped of the = body, and=20 deny that He is now with His body and will come again with it, let him = not see=20 the glory of His Coming. For where is His body now, if not with Him Who = assumed=20 it? For it is not laid by in the sun, according to the babble of the=20 Manichaeans, that it should be honoured by a dishonour; nor was it = poured forth=20 into the air and dissolved, us is the nature of a voice or the flow of = an odour,=20 or the course of a lightning flash that never stands. Where in that case = were=20 His being handled after the Resurrection, or His being seen hereafter by = them=20 that pierced Him, for Godhead is in its nature invisible. Nay; He will = come with=20 His body-so I have learnt-such as He was seen by His Disciples in the = Mount, or=20 as he shewed Himself for a moment, when his Godhead overpowered the = carnality.=20 And as we say this to disarm suspicion, so we write the other to correct = the=20 novel teaching. If anyone assert that His flesh came down from heaven, = and is=20 not from hence, nor of us though above us, let him be anathema. For the = words,=20 The Second Man is the Lord from Heaven;5=20 and, As is the Heavenly, such are they that are Heavenly; and, No man = hath=20 ascended up into Heaven save He which came down from Heaven, even the = Son of Man=20 which is in Heaven;6=20 and the like, are to be understood as said on account of the Union with = the=20 heavenly; just as that All Things were made by Christ,7=20 and that Christ dwelleth in your hearts8=20 is said, not of the visible nature which belongs to God, but of what is=20 perceived by the mind, the names being mingled like the natures, and = flowing=20 into one another, according to the law of their intimate union.

If anyone has put his trust in Him as a Man without a human mind, he = is=20 really bereft of mind, and quite unworthy of salvation. For that which = He has=20 not assumed He has not healed; but that which is united to His Godhead = is also=20 saved. If only half Adam fell, then that which Christ assumes and saves = may be=20 half also; but if the whole of his nature fell, it must be united to the = whole=20 nature of Him that was begotten, and so be saved as a whole. Let them = not, then,=20 begrudge us our complete salvation, or clothe the Saviour only with = bones and=20 nerves and the portraiture of humanity. For if His Manhood is without = soul, even=20 the Arians admit this, that they may attribute His Passion to the = Godhead, as=20 that which gives motion to the body is also that which suffers. But if = He has a=20 soul, and yet is without a mind, how is He man, for man is not a = mindless=20 animal? And this would necessarily involve that while His form and = tabernacle=20 was human, His soul should be that of a horse or an ox, or some other of = the=20 brute creation. This, then, would be what He saves; and I have been = deceived by=20 the Truth, and led to boast of an honour which had been bestowed upon = another.=20 But if His Manhood is intellectual and nor without mind, let them cease = to be=20 thus really mindless. But, says such an one, the Godhead took the place = of the=20 human intellect. How does this touch me? For Godhead joined to flesh = alone is=20 not man, nor to soul alone, nor to both apart from intellect, which is = the most=20 essential part of man. Keep then the whole man, and mingle Godhead = therewith,=20 that you may benefit me in my completeness. But, he asserts, He could = not=20 contain Two perfect Natures. Not if you only look at Him in a bodily = fashion.=20 For a bushel measure will not hold two bushels, nor will the space of = one body=20 hold two or more bodies. But if you will look at what is mental and = incorporeal,=20 remember that I in my one personality can contain soul and reason and = mind and=20 the Holy Spirit; and before me this world, by which I mean the system of = things=20 visible and invisible, contained Father, Son, and Holy Ghost. For such = is the=20 nature of intellectual Existences, that they can mingle with one another = and=20 with bodies, incorporeally and invisibly. For many sounds are = comprehended by=20 one ear; and the eyes of many are occupied by the same visible objects, = and the=20 smell by odours; nor are the senses narrowed by each other, or crowded = out, nor=20 the objects of sense diminished by the multitude of the perceptions. But = where=20 is there mind of man or angel so perfect in comparison of the Godhead = that the=20 presence of the greater must crowd out the other? The light is nothing = compared=20 with the sun, nor a little damp compared with a river, that we must = first do=20 away with the lesser, and take the light from a house, or the moisture = from the=20 earth, to enable it to contain the greater and more perfect. For how = shall one=20 thing contain two completenesses, either the house, the sunbeam and the = sun, or=20 the earth, the moisture and the river? Here is matter for inquiry; for = indeed=20 the question is worthy of much consideration. Do they not know, then, = that what=20 is perfect by comparison with one thing may be imperfect by comparison = with=20 another, as a hill compared with a mountain, or a grain of mustard seed = with a=20 bean or any other of the larger seeds, although it may be called larger = than any=20 of the same kind? Or, if you like, an Angel compared with God, or a man = with an=20 Angel. So our mind is perfect and commanding, but only in respect of = soul and=20 body; not absolutely perfect; and a servant and a subject of God, not a = sharer=20 of His Princedom and honour. So Moses was a God to Pharaoh,9=20 but a servant of God,10=20 as it is written; and the stars which illumine the night are hidden by = the Sun,=20 so much that you could not even know of their existence by daylight; and = a=20 little torch brought near a great blaze is neither destroyed, nor seen, = nor=20 extinguished; but is all one blaze, the bigger one prevailing over the=20 other.

But, it may be said, our mind is subject to condemnation. What then = of our=20 flesh? Is that not subject to condemnation? You must therefore either = set aside=20 the latter on account of sin, or admit the former on account of = salvation. If He=20 assumed the worse that He might sanctify it by His incarnation, may He = not=20 assume the better that it may be sanctified by His becoming Man? If the = clay was=20 leavened and has become a new lump, O ye wise men, shall not the Image = be=20 leavened and mingled with God, being deified by His Godhead? And I will = add this=20 also: If the mind was utterly rejected, as prone to sin and subject to=20 damnation, and for this reason He assumed a body but left out the mind, = then=20 there is an excuse for them who sin with the mind; for the witness of = God-=20 according to you-has shewn the impossibility of healing it. Let me state = the=20 greater results. You, my good sir, dishonour my mind (you a Sarcolater, = if I am=20 an Anthropolater11=20 that you may tie God down to the Flesh, since He cannot be otherwise = tied; and=20 therefore you take away the wall of partition. But what is my theory, = who am but=20 an ignorant man, and no Philosopher. Mind is mingled with mind, as = nearer and=20 more closely related, and through it with flesh, being a Mediator = between God=20 and carnality.

Further let us see what is their account of the assumption of = Manhood, or the=20 assumption of Flesh, as they call it. If it was in order that God, = otherwise=20 incomprehensible, might be comprehended, and might converse with men = through His=20 Flesh as through a veil, their mask and the drama which they represent = is a=20 pretty one, not to say that it was open to Him to converse with us in = other=20 ways, as of old, in the burning bush12=20 and in the appearance of a man.13=20 But if it was that He might destroy the condemnation by sanctifying like = by=20 like, then as He needed flesh for the sake of the flesh which had = incurred=20 condemnation, and soul for the sake of our soul, so, too, He needed mind = for the=20 sake of mind, which not only fell in Adam, but was the first to be = affected, as=20 the doctors say of illnesses. For that which received the command was = that which=20 failed to keep the command, and that which failed to keep it was that = also which=20 dared to transgress; and that which transgressed was that which stood = most in=20 need of salvation; and that which needed salvation was that which also = He took=20 upon Him. Therefore, Mind was taken upon Him. This has now been = demonstrated,=20 whether they like it or no, by, to use their own expression, geometrical = and=20 necessary proofs. But you are acting as if, when a man's eye had been = injured=20 and his foot had been injured in consequence, you were to attend to the = foot and=20 leave the eye uncared for; or as if, when a painter had drown something = badly,=20 you were to alter the picture, but to pass over the artist as if he had=20 succeeded. But if they, overwhelmed by these arguments, take refuge in = the=20 proposition that it is possible for God to save man even apart from = mind, why, I=20 suppose that it would be possible for Him to do so also apart from flesh = by a=20 mere act of will, just as He works all other things, and has wrought = them=20 without body. Take away, then, the flesh as well as the mind, that your=20 monstrous folly may be complete. But they are deceived by the latter, = and,=20 therefore, they run to the flesh, because they do not know the custom of = Scripture. We will teach them this also. For what need is there even to = mention=20 to those who know it, the fact that everywhere in Scripture he is called = Man,=20 and the Son of Man?

If, however, they rely on the passage, The Word was made Flesh and = dwelt=20 among us,14=20 and because of this erase the noblest part of Man (as cobblers do the = thicker=20 part of skins) that they may join together God and Flesh, it is time for = them to=20 say that God is God only of flesh, and not of souls, because it is = written, "As=20 Thou hast given Him power over all Flesh,"15=20 and "Unto Thee shall all Flesh come;"16=20 and "Let all Flesh bless His holy Name,"17=20 meaning every Man. Or, again, they must suppose that our fathers went = down into=20 Egypt without bodies and invisible, and that only the Soul of Joseph was = imprisoned by Pharaoh, because it is written, "They went down into Egypt = with=20 threescore and fifteen Souls,"18=20 and "The iron entered into his Soul,"19=20 a thing which could not be bound. They who argue thus do not know that = such=20 expressions are used by Synecdoche, declaring the whole by the part, as = when=20 Scripture says that the young ravens call upon God,20=20 to indicate the whole feathered race; or Pleiades, Hesperus, and = Arcturus21=20 are mentioned, instead of all the Stars and His Providence over = them.

Moreover, in no other way was it possible for the Love of God toward = us to be=20 manifested than by making mention of our flesh, and that for our sake He = descended even to our lower part. For that flesh is less precious than = soul,=20 everyone who has a spark of sense will acknowledge. And so the passage, = The Word=20 was made Flesh, seems to me to be equivalent to that in which it is said = that He=20 was made sin,22=20 or a curse23=20 for us; not that the Lord was transformed into either of these, how = could He be?=20 But because by taking them upon Him He took away our sins and bore our=20 iniquities.24=20 This, then, is sufficient to say at the present time for the sake of = clearness=20 and of being understood by the many. And I write it, not with any desire = to=20 compose a treatise, but only to check the progress of deceit; and if it = is=20 thought well, I will give a fuller account of these matters at greater=20 length.

But there is a matter which is graver than these, a special point = which it is=20 necessary that I should not pass over. I would they were even cut off = that=20 trouble you,25=20 and would reintroduce a second Judaism, and a second circumcision, and a = second=20 system of sacrifices. For if this be done, what hinders Christ also = being born=20 again to set them aside, and again being betrayed by Judas, and = crucified and=20 buried, and rising again, that all may be fulfilled in the same order, = like the=20 Greek system of cycles, in which the same revolutions of the stars bring = round=20 the same events? For what the method of selection is, in accordance with = which=20 some of the events are to occur and others to be omitted, let these wise = men who=20 glory in the multitude of their books shew us.

But since, puffed up by their theory of the Trinity, they falsely = accuse us=20 of being unsound in the Faith and entice the multitude, it is necessary = that=20 people should know that Apollinarius, while granting the Name of Godhead = to the=20 Holy Ghost, did not preserve the Power of the Godhead. For to make the = Trinity=20 consist of Great, Greater, and Greatest, as of Light, Ray, and Sun, the = Spirit=20 and the Son and the Father (as is clearly stated in his writings), is a = ladder=20 of Godhead not leading to Heaven, but down from Heaven. But we recognize = God the=20 Father and the Son and the Holy Ghost, and these not as bare titles, = dividing=20 inequalities of ranks or of power, but as there is one and the same = title, so=20 there is one nature and one substance in the Godhead.

But if anyone who thinks we have spoken rightly on this subject = reproaches us=20 with holding communion with heretics, let him prove that we are open to = this=20 charge, and we will either convince him or retire. But it is not safe to = make=20 any innovation before judgment is given, especially in a matter of such=20 importance, and connected with so great issues. We have protested and = continue=20 to protest this before God and men. And not even now, be well assured, = should we=20 have written this, if we had not seen that the Church was being tom = asunder and=20 divided, among their other tricks, by their present synagogue of = vanity.26=20 But if anyone when we say and protest this, either from some advantage = they will=20 thus gain, or through fear of men, or monstrous littleness of mind, or = through=20 some neglect of pastors and governors, or through love of novelty and = proneness=20 to innovations, rejects us as unworthy of credit, and attaches himself = to such=20 men, and divides the noble body of the Church, he shall bear his = judgment,=20 whoever he may be,27=20 and shall give account to God in the day of judgment.28=20 But if their long books, and their new Psalters, contrary to that of = David, and=20 the grace of their metres, are taken for a third Testament, we too will = compose=20 Psalms, and will write much in metre. For we also think we have the = spirit of=20 God,29=20 if indeed this is a gift of the Spirit, and not a human novelty. This I = will=20 that thou declare publicly, that we may not be held responsible, as = overlooking=20 such an evil, and as though this wicked doctrine received food and = strength from=20 our indifference.

Forasmuch as many persons have come to your Reverence seeking = confirmation of=20 their faith, and therefore you have affectionately asked me to put forth = a brief=20 definition and rifle of my opinion, I therefore write to your Reverence, = what=20 indeed you knew before, that I never have and never can honour anything = above=20 the Nicene Faith, that of the Holy Fathers who met there to destroy the = Arian=20 heresy; but am, and by God's help ever will be, of that faith; = completing in=20 detail that which was incompletely said by them concerning the Holy = Ghost; for=20 that question had not then been mooted, namely, that we are to believe = that the=20 Father, Son, and Holy Ghost are of one Godhead, thus confessing the = Spirit also=20 to be God. Receive then to communion those who think and teach thus, as = I also=20 do; but those who are otherwise minded refuse, and hold them as = strangers to God=20 and the Catholic Church. And since a question has also been mooted = concerning=20 the Divine Assumption of humanity, or Incarnation, state this also = clearly to=20 all concerning me, that I join in One the Son, who was begotten of the = Father,=20 and afterward of the Virgin Mary, and that I do not call Him two Sons, = but=20 worship Him as One and the same in undivided Godhead and honour. But if = anyone=20 does not assent to this statement, either now or hereafter, he shall = give=20 account to God at the day of judgment.

Now, what we object and oppose to their mindless opinion about His = Mind is=20 this, to put it shortly; for they are almost alone in the condition = which they=20 lay down, as it is through want of mind that they mutilate His mind. = But, that=20 they may not accuse us of having once accepted but of now repudiating = the faith=20 of their beloved Vitalius30=20 which he handed in in writing at the request of the blessed Bishop = Damasus of=20 Rome, I will give a short explanation on this point also. For these men, = when=20 they are theologizing among their genuine disciples, and those who are = initiated=20 into their secrets, like the Manichaeans among those whom they call the = "Elect,"=20 expose the full extent of their disease, and scarcely allow flesh at all = to the=20 Saviour. But when they are refuted and pressed with the common answers = about the=20 Incarnation which the Scripture presents, they confess indeed the = orthodox=20 words, but they do violence to the sense; for they acknowledge the = Manhood to be=20 neither without soul nor without reason nor without mind, nor imperfect, = but=20 they bring in the Godhead to supply the soul and reason and mind, as = though It=20 had mingled Itself only with His flesh, and not with the other = properties=20 belonging to us men; although His sinlessness was far above us, and was = the=20 cleansing of our passions.

Thus, then, they interpret wrongly the words, But we have the Mind of = Christ,31=20 and very absurdly, when they say that His Godhead is the mind of Christ, = and not=20 understanding the passage as we do, namely, that they who have purified = their=20 mind by the imitation of the mind which the Saviour took of us, and, as = far as=20 may be, have attained conformity with it, are said to have the mind of = Christ;=20 just as they might be testified to have the flesh of Christ who have = trained=20 their flesh, and in this respect have become of the same body and = partakers of=20 Christ; and so he says "As we have borne the image of the earth32=20 we shall also bear the image of the heavenly." And so they declare that = the=20 Perfect Man is not He who was in all points tempted like as we are yet = without=20 sin;33=20 but the mixture of God and Flesh. For what, say they, can be more = perfeet than=20 this?

They play the same trick with the word that describes the = Incarnation, viz.:=20 He was made Man, explaining it to mean, not, He was in the human nature = with=20 which He surrounded Himself, according to the Scripture, He knew what = was in=20 man;34=20 but teaching that it means, He consorted and conversed with men, and = taking=20 refuge in the expression which says that He was seen on Earth and = conversed with=20 Men.35=20 And what can anyone contend further? They who take away the Humanity and = the=20 Interior Image cleanse by their newly invented mask only our = outside,36=20 and that which is seen; so far in conflict with themselves that at one = time, for=20 the sake of the flesh, they explain all the rest in a gross and carnal = manner=20 (for it is from hence that they have derived their second Judaism and = their=20 silly thousand years delight in paradise, and almost the idea that we = shall=20 resume again the same conditions after these same thousand years); and = at=20 another time they bring in His flesh as a phantom rather than a reality, = as not=20 having been subjected to any of our experiences, not even such as are = free from=20 sin; and use for this purpose the apostolic expression, understood and = spoken in=20 a sense which is not apostolic, that our Saviour was made in the = likeness of Men=20 and found in fashion as a Man,37=20 as though by these words was expressed, not the human form, but some = delusive=20 phantom and appearance.

Since then these expressions, rightly understood, make for orthodoxy, = but=20 wrongly interpreted are heretical, what is there to be surprised at if = we=20 received the words of Vitalius in the more orthodox sense; our desire = that they=20 should be so meant persuading us, though others are angry at the = intention of=20 his writings? This is, I think, the reason why Damasus himself, having = been=20 subsequently better informed, and at the same time learning that they = hold by=20 their former explanations, excommunicated them and overturned their = written=20 confession of faith with an Anathema; as well as because he was vexed at = the=20 deceit which he had suffered from them through simplicity.

Since, then, they have been openly convicted of this, let them not be = angry,=20 but let them be ashamed of themselves; and let them not slander us, but = abase=20 themselves and wipe off from their portals that great and marvellous=20 proclamation and boast of their orthodoxy, meeting all who go in at once = with=20 the question and distinction that we must worship, not a God-bearing = Man, but a=20 flesh-bearing God. What could be more unreasonable than this, though = these new=20 heralds of truth think a great deal of the title? For though it has a = certain=20 sophistical grace through the quickness of its antithesis, and a sort of = juggling quackery grateful to the uninstructed, yet it is the most = absurd of=20 absurdities and the most foolish of follies. For if one were to change = the word=20 Man or Flesh into God (the first would please us, = the=20 second them), and then were to use this wonderful antithesis, so = divinely=20 recognized, what conclusion should we arrive at? That we must worship, = not a=20 God-bearing Flesh, but a Man-bearing God. O monstrous absurdity! They = proclaim=20 to us to-day a wisdom hidden ever since the time of Christ-a thing = worthy of our=20 tears. For if the faith began thirty years ago, when nearly four hundred = years=20 had passed since Christ was manifested, vain all that time will have = been our=20 Gospel, and vain our faith; in vain will the Martyrs have borne their = witness,=20 and in vain have so many and so great Prelates presided over the people; = and=20 Grace is a matter of metres and not of the faith.

And who will not marvel at their learning, in that on their own = authority=20 they divide the things of Christ, and assign to His Manhood such sayings = as He=20 was born, He was tempted, He was hungry, He was thirsty, He was wearied, = He was=20 asleep; but reckon to His Divinity such as these: He was glorified by = Angels, He=20 overcame the Tempter, He fed the people in the wilderness, and He fed = them in=20 such a manner, and He walked upon the sea; and say on the one hand that = the=20 "Where have ye laid Lazarus?"38=20 belongs to us, but the loud voice "Lazarus, Come Forth"39=20 and the raising him that had been four days dead, is above our nature; = and that=20 while the "He was in an Agony, He was crucified, He was buried," belongs = to the=20 Veil, on the other hand, "He was confident, He rose again, He ascended," = belong=20 to the Inner Treasure; and then they accuse us of introducing two = natures,=20 separate or conflicting, and of dividing the supernatural and wondrous = Union.=20 They ought, either not to do that of which they accuse us, or not to = accuse us=20 of that which they do; so at least if they are resolved to be consistent = and not=20 to propound at once their own and their opponents' principles. Such is = their=20 want of reason; it conflicts both with itself and with the truth to such = an=20 extent that they are neither conscious nor ashamed of it when they fall = out with=20 themselves. Now, if anyone thinks that we write all this willingly and = not upon=20 compulsion, and that we are dissuading from unity, and not doing our = utmost to=20 promote it, let him know that he is very much mistaken, and has not made = at all=20 a good guess at our desires, for nothing is or ever has been more = valuable in=20 our eyes than peace, as the facts themselves prove; though their actions = and=20 brawlings against us altogether exclude unanimity.

Even hoar hairs have something to learn; and old age, it would seem, = cannot=20 in all respects be trusted for wisdom. I at any rate, knowing better = than=20 anyone, as I did, the thoughts and the heresy of the Apollinarians, and = seeing=20 that their folly was intolerable; yet thinking that I could tame them by = patience and soften them by degrees, I let my tropes make me eager to = attain=20 this object. But, as it seems, I overlooked the fact that I was making = them=20 worse, and injuring the Church by my untimely philosophy. For gentleness = does=20 not put bad men out of countenance. And now if it had been possible for = me to=20 teach you this myself, I should not have hesitated, you may be sure, = even to=20 undertake a journey beyond my strength to throw myself at the feet of = your=20 Excellency. But since my illness has brought me too far, and it has = become=20 necessary for me to try the hot baths of Xanxaris at the advice of my = medical=20 men, I send a letter to represent me. These wicked and utterly abandoned = men=20 have dared, in addition to all their other misdeeds, either to summon, = or to=20 make a bad use of the passage (I am not prepared to say precisely which) = of=20 certain Bishops, deprived by the whole Synod of the Eastern and Western = Church;=20 and, in violation of all Imperial Ordinances, and of your commands, to = confer=20 the name of Bishop on a certain individual of their own misbelieving and = deceitful crew; encouraged to do so, as I believe, by nothing so much as = my=20 great infirmity; for I must mention this. If this is to be tolerated, = your=20 Excellency will tolerate it, and I too will bear it, as I have often = before. But=20 if it is serious, and not to be endured by our most august Emperors, = pray punish=20 what has been done-though more mildly than such madness merits.

= = =

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