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a scientific mind? how great is the one beyond, so as to conceive something and declare it, where the many-eyed ones close their eyes, where the Cherubim shudder, where all the powers and angels are silent, knowing only one song of praise, the Trisagion, without curiosity and this praise itself raised above technical terms in its simplicity? For it was necessary for the simple ones or for the simple one or even for what is beyond the simple itself, that the songs also be simple. Why then do we who are composite and constituted of many mixtures not emulate simple words in our conceptions about the divine and gather our voices accordingly, so that we might also be gathered into one by the one creative all-ruling principle, weaving together one human harmony, so that we might partake of the angelic? We shall be content with what we have been taught here by Christ and by Christ's own; but if there is anything more hidden, let us store it up there for ourselves. For what else could we grant to be of the life from there, if we were to know all things of God here? Or how could we know, being flesh and partaking of matter, if we were to strive to grasp all divine things?

1.10 If it were true that the Holy Spirit proceeds also from the Son, the teachers would not have hesitated to indicate it in their own writings; for I cannot say: they were envious. But they were silent, fearing in themselves a praiseworthy fear, but you, what sort of person are you to be so bold in your utterance? And Christ did not say it; for I think that it was not so. For how, if it were so, did he not teach it to those for whom he made all theology clear? And after him none of the teachers dared to say it, but you who say these things, who are you for us to believe? Sending and giving and bestowing and procession are not the same as proceeding; for if they were the same, using these terms in their discourses everywhere, they would not have been reverent about the term "procession"; for they did not wish not to be in accord with Christ. Therefore, one must abide by the words of Christ and the teachings after him. But you have Paul as your advocate, teaching of the Spirit of Christ and the Spirit of truth. And who does not say that the Spirit is of Christ, that is, of the Son? Alien to the church of Christ is he who does not say these things. But that it proceeds also from the Son, neither the Son himself, who taught most clearly the things of the Father and of himself and of the Spirit, has said, nor indeed has any of the teachers declared, as many as we are to know, and whose writings men set forth for the teaching and benefit of the many. You seek again, I think, the words of sending, of bestowing, of giving; "if they are distinct from proceeding, what then are they? Sending, bestowing and giving are the same." Who are you who examines concerning God? He has spoken about himself, and abide by those same things and ponder the words yourself and keep the names unharmed by any of those who wrongly counterfeit even the royal drachma, for which the master made the effort, in order to find it buried in the passions.

1.11 Again you chatter, and again I speak of God. Say the sayings as they were spoken or written, and you will not endanger your soul nor will you contend with me for the luxury of words, if indeed some have wrongly practiced reveling in such things, making theology a pretext for words, as if there were not other things in which they might display their ambition. There is nature, numbers, continuous quantities, harmony and the forms of all sorts of arguments, knowledge of the soul, purification of the mind, distinction of sense-perception, and the contraction of external things in themselves or their elevation to the mind. We must philosophize about these things, but about God we must be altogether reverent. Some of those who have wished to speak of God in concepts, in words, have indeed acted shamelessly, but they were ostracized, but they were cast out, but as rotten members of the church they were cut off from the head, and now they are pitiable for their audacity and are ridiculed and lamented. May we too not appear to be of such a portion. Let us persevere in what has been taught by Christ, by the apostles, by the

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ἐπιστημονικὸς νοῦς; ἡλίκος ὁ ὑπερέκεινα, ὥστε νοῆσαί τι καὶ ἀποφήνασθαι, ὅπου ἐπιμύει τὰ πολυόμματα, ὅπου ἐπι φρίττει τὰ χερουβίμ, ὅπου σιγῶσι δυνάμεις πᾶσαι καὶ ἄγγελοι, ἐν μόνον εἰδότες ᾆσμα τοῦ τρισαγίου τὴν αἴνεσιν, ἀπεριέρ γως καὶ ταύτην καὶ τῶν τεχνικῶν λεξειδίων ὑπερανῳκισμένην ἐν τῇ ἁπλότητι; ἔδει γὰρ τοῖς ἁπλοῖς ἢ τῷ ἁπλῷ ἢ καὶ ὑπὲρ αὐτὸ τὸ ἁπλοῦν ἁπλᾶς γενέσθαι καὶ τὰς ᾠδάς. τί γοῦν ἡμεῖς οἱ σύνθετοι καὶ πολλοῖς συνεστηκότες τοῖς κρά μασιν οὐ τοὺς ἁπλοῦς ζηλοῦμεν λόγους ταῖς περὶ τὸ θεῖον ὑπολήψεσι καὶ κατ' αὐτὸ τὰς φωνὰς συνάγομεν, ἵνα καὶ συναχθῶμεν ὑπὸ τῆς μιᾶς δημιουργικῆς πανταρχίας εἰς ἕν, μίαν συμφωνίαν συμπλέξαντες ἀνθρωπίνην, ὡς τῆς ἀγγε λικῆς συμμετάσχοιμεν; ἀρκεσθησόμεθα τοῖς ἐνταῦθα παρὰ Χριστοῦ καὶ τῶν τοῦ Χριστοῦ δεδιδαγμένοις ἡμῖν· εἰ δέ τι εἴη καὶ κρυφιωδέστερον, ἐκεῖ ταμιεύσωμεν ἑαυτοῖς. ἢ τί γὰρ ἂν ἄλλο τῆς ἐκεῖθεν εἶναι δοίημεν βιοτῆς, εἰ πάντα ἐνταῦθα τὰ τοῦ θεοῦ γνοίημεν; ἢ πῶς εἰδείημεν ἂν καὶ σάρκες ὄντες καὶ ὕλης μετέχοντες, εἰ πάντων τῶν θείων ἐφικέσθαι σπουδάσαιμεν;

1.10 Εἴπερ ἦν ἀληθὲς ἐκπορεύεσθαι καὶ ἐκ τοῦ υἱοῦ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, οὐκ ὤκνησαν οἱ διδάσκαλοι ταῖς ἑαυτῶν συγγραφαῖς ἐνσημήνασθαι· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἔχω λέγειν· ἐφθόνησαν. ἀλλ' ἐκεῖνοι μὲν ἐσιώπησαν, δειλίαν ἐπαινουμένην ἐν ἑαυτοῖς δειλιάσαντες, σὺ δὲ οἷος ὢν ἀποθρασύνῃ τὴν προ φοράν; καὶ Χριστὸς μὲν οὐκ εἴρηκεν· οἴομαι γάρ, ὡς οὐκ ἦν. πῶς γάρ, ἂν ὄν, οὐκ ἐδίδαξεν, οἷς τὴν πᾶσαν θεο λογίαν ἐτράνωσε; καὶ μετ' αὐτὸν οὐδεὶς τῶν διδασκάλων εἰπεῖν ἀπετόλμησε, σὺ δὲ ὁ ταῦτα λέγων τίς ὢν τυγχάνεις εἰς πίστωσιν; οὐκ ἔστιν ἡ πέμψις καὶ ἡ δόσις καὶ ἡ χορηγία καὶ ἡ πρόοδος τῇ ἐκπορεύσει ταὐτά· εἰ γὰρ ἦσαν ταὐτά, οὐκ ἂν τούτοις χρώμενοι ἐν τοῖς ἁπανταχοῦ λόγοις τὴν ἐκπόρευσιν ηὐλαβήθησαν· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἤθελον μὴ συνᾴδειν Χριστῷ. ἐμμένειν γοῦν χρεὼν τοῖς ῥήμασι τοῦ Χριστοῦ καὶ τοῖς μετὰ τοῦτον διδάγμασιν. ἀλλὰ Παῦλον ἔχεις συνη γοροῦντά σοι, πνεῦμα Χριστοῦ καὶ πνεῦμα τῆς ἀληθείας διδάσκοντα. καὶ τίς οὐ λέγει τὸ πνεῦμα εἶναι Χριστοῦ εἴτουν υἱοῦ; ἀλλότριος τῆς ἐκκλησίας Χριστοῦ ὁ ταῦτα μὴ συμφθεγγόμενος. ἐκπορεύεσθαι δὲ καὶ ἐξ υἱοῦ οὔτ' αὐτὸς ὁ υἱὸς ὁ τὰ τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τὰ ἑαυτοῦ καὶ τὰ τοῦ πνεύ ματος διδάξας ἀριδηλότατα εἴρηκεν, οὔτε μήν τις τῶν διδασ κάλων ἐθέσπισεν, ὅσα ἡμᾶς· εἰδέναι, καὶ ὧν τὰς γραφὰς εἰς διδασκαλίαν καὶ ὄνησιν τῶν πολλῶν παρατιθέασιν ἄν θρωποι. ζητεῖς καὶ αὖθις, ὡς οἶμαι, τοὺς λόγους τῆς ἀποστολῆς, τῆς χορηγίας, τῆς δόσεως· «εἰ παρὰ τὴν ἐκπόρευσιν ὄντα, τί γε ἄρα εἰσίν; ἀποστολὴ χορηγία καὶ δόσις ταὐτά εἰσι.» τίς εἶ ὁ ἐξετάζων περὶ θεοῦ; αὐτὸς εἰρήκει περὶ ἑαυτοῦ, καὶ κατάμενε τοῖς αὐτοῖς καὶ τοὺς λόγους κατάτριβε καὶ αὐτὸς καὶ τὰ ὀνόματα ἔχε μὴ παραβλαπτόμενα παρά του τῶν κακῶς παραχαραττόντων καὶ τὴν βασιλικὴν δραχ μήν, ὑπὲρ ἧς ὁ δεσπότης ἐποιήσατο τὴν σπουδήν, ἵνα εὕρῃ ταύτην συγκεχωσμένην τοῖς πάθεσι.

1.11 Πάλιν ἀδολεσχεῖς, καὶ πάλιν θεολογῶ. λέγε τὰς ῥήσεις καθὼς ἐλέχθησαν ἢ ἐγράφησαν, καὶ οὐ κινδυνεύσεις περὶ ψυχὴν οὐδὲ φιλονεικήσεις μοι πρὸς λόγων τρυφήν, εἴ γε τοῖς τοιούτοις τινὲς κακῶς μεμελετήκασιν ἐντρυφᾶν, ἀφορμὴν λόγων τὴν θεολογίαν ποιούμενοι, ὡς μὴ ὄντων ἄλλων ἐν οἷς ἂν ἐπιδείξαιντο τὸ φιλότιμον. φύσις ἐστίν, ἀριθμοί, ποσὰ συνεχῆ, ἁρμονία καὶ λόγων παντοίων ἰδέαι, ψυχῆς γνῶσις, νοὸς κάθαρσις, αἰσθήσεως διαφορά, καὶ τῶν ἔξωθεν ἐν ἑαυταῖς συστολὴ ἢ ἀναγωγὴ πρὸς τὸν νοῦν. ταῦτα φιλο σοφητέον ἡμῖν, περὶ δὲ θεοῦ πάμπαν εὐλαβητέον. ἀπη ναισχυντήκασι μὲν ἔνιοι τῶν θεολογεῖν βεβουλημένων ἐν ἐννοίαις, ἐν λέξεσιν, ἀλλ' ἐξωστρακίσθησαν, ἀλλ' ἀπερρίφη σαν, ἀλλ' ὡς σεσηπότα μέλη τῆς ἐκκλησίας τῆς κεφαλῆς ἀπεκόπησαν, καὶ νῦν εἰσιν ἐλεεινοὶ τοῦ θράσους καὶ κατα γελώμενοι καὶ θρηνούμενοι. μὴ τοιαύτης μερίδος φανείημεν καὶ ἡμεῖς. ἐγκαρτερήσωμεν τοῖς δεδιδαγμένοις παρὰ Χρι στοῦ, παρὰ τῶν ἀποστόλων, παρὰ τῶν