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worshipping the entire harmony of God, the president of all things; but she was before upright of foot, but now no longer -I mean this one, mine, and then not mine-, but lay in the depths of destruction, from which the frivolous city, full of all evils, Alexandria, mindless passion, sent Arius, the abomination of desolation, who first said: "the Trinity is not to be worshipped," and set limits of worth to one nature, unequally cutting the indivisible substance, until we were cut up into many ways. Nevertheless, although a most wretched city, being so according to the law of time -for a long-standing custom becomes law- and dying a pitiable death from unbelief had some small seed of living breath, souls perfected by the word of faith, a people small indeed, but greater to God, who counts not the multitude, but hearts, a faithful planting, a most precious branch. To these—for we seemed to be something in God in life and word among our acquaintances, although we had always lived a rustic life— the grace of the Spirit sent us, at the call of many shepherds and flocks of the people, as helpers and supporters of the word, so that we might refresh with a pious stream souls that were waterless and still verdant and that the light might be mingled with the nourishment of oil for the lamp, and that ravenous tongues and intricate webs, from which the simplicity of faith has perished, and spiderwebs, rotten prisons, binding the light things, a mockery to the strong, might be torn or loosed by strong words, and those who have fallen in might escape the snares. Thus I came, not willingly, but stolen by violent men, as a defender of the word. For there was some talk of a gathering of bishops against a newfound heresy, who were introducing a doctrine to their beloved churches, which the union of God the Word with us, which, without being changed, He accepted, taking on a man with a soul, with a mind, with bodily passions, the whole Adam of before, except for sin, cutting this, introduces a mindless God as if fearing that the mind might fight with God -for thus I would also fear the nature of the flesh, for it is more so, and very far from God- or that while other things need salvation, the mind is destined to perish completely, which indeed most of all must be saved by my God, which also most of all fell in the first creation; for what had been received, also transgressed the law, and what transgressed, this was also to be assumed. Let not the Word therefore save me half, when I have suffered whole, nor let God be dishonored as not having taken me whole, but only clay, and a soul without a mind, like some irrational animal, which has indeed been saved by your word.

And let every pious person cease from such things. For they err equally from the opposite direction who rashly introduce two sons, the one from God and the one from the virgin, who cut the lower harmony, some scraping it, others badly doubling it. For if there are two, I fear lest it be one of the two, or that we worship two gods instead of one, or, being cautious not to suffer this, we cast the composite being outside of God. For as to whose flesh it is, God would suffer nothing. But human nature partook of the whole God, not as a prophet or some other inspired person -who partook not of God, but of the things of God-, but was substantially united, as the sun with its rays. Therefore let these be gone from the midst of the discussion, unless they worship as one the man who is God, the one who assumed together with that which was assumed, the timeless and that which is mingled with time, the one from the Father alone and from a mother alone, two natures coming into one Christ. But our affairs, how and in what way did they turn out? Having come, we were met with many evils. First, the city boiled up against us as introducing more gods instead of one. No wonder; they had been so led, as to be completely ignorant of the pious doctrine, how the Monad is a Trinity, and the Trinity in turn a Unity, both being understood in a divine manner. And the people are drawn to those who are suffering, as a defender showing pity for the suffering of their then leader and shepherd, a people so great and full of pride, for whom not to conquer all is the ultimate reproach. I will pass over the stones, my complete feast, of which I blame one thing: for they were not well-aimed having hit these, for whom to hit is empty murder. Then I was brought before the governors as a murderer who look for something high and lofty, for whom the one law is the people

7

πρόεδρον τῶν ὅλων ὅλην σέβουσα τὴν θεοῦ συμφωνίαν· ἡ δ' ἦν τὸ πρόσθεν ὀρθόπους, νῦν δ' οὐκέτι -ταύτην λέγω δὴ τὴν ἐμήν, εἶτ' οὐκ ἐμήν-, ἀλλ' ἐν βυθοῖς ἔκειτο τῆς ἀπωλείας, ἐξ οὗ τὸ κοῦφον ἄστυ καὶ πλῆρες κακῶν πάντων Ἀλεξάνδρεια, θερμότης ἄνους, ἔπεμψ' Ἄρειον, τὸ βδέλυγμ' ἐρημίας, ὃς πρῶτος εἶπεν· «ἡ τριὰς οὐ σεπτέα», ὅρους δ' ἔθηκεν ἀξίας φύσει μιᾷ τεμὼν ἀνίσως τὴν ἀμέριστον οὐσίαν, ἕως κατετμήθημεν εἰς πολλὰς ὁδούς. Ὅμως δὲ καίπερ ἀθλιωτάτη πόλις οὕτως ἔχουσα κατὰ τὸν ἐκ χρόνου νόμον -ἔθος γὰρ ἐγχρονίζον εἰς νόμον τελεῖ- θανοῦσά τ' οἰκτρὸν ἐξ ἀπιστίας μόρον εἶχέν τι μικρὸν ζωτικῆς σπέρμα πνοῆς, ψυχὰς τελείας τῷ λόγῳ τῆς πίστεως, λαὸν βραχὺν μέν, τῷ θεῷ δὲ πλείονα, ὃς οὐκ ἀριθμεῖ πλῆθος, ἀλλὰ καρδίας, πιστὸν φύτευμα, κλῆμα τιμιώτατον. τούτοις-ἐδόξαμεν γὰρ ἐν θεῷ τινες εἶναι βίῳ τε καὶ λόγῳ τῶν γνωρίμων καίπερ ἀεὶ ζήσαντες ἄγροικον βίον- ἔπεμψεν ἡμᾶς ἡ χάρις τοῦ πνεύματος πολλῶν καλούντων ποιμένων καὶ θρεμμάτων λαοῦ βοηθοὺς καὶ λόγου συλλήπτορας, ὡς ἂν καταψύξαιμεν εὐσεβεῖ ῥοῇ ψυχὰς ἀνύδρους καὶ χλοαζούσας ἔτι τροφῇ τ' ἐλαίου συγκραθῇ λύχνῳ τὸ φῶς, γλῶσσαι δὲ λάβροι καὶ πολύστροφοι πλοκαί, ἐξ ὧν τὸ ἁπλοῦν οἴχεται τῆς πίστεως, ἱστοί τ' ἀράχνης, σαθρὰ δεσμωτήρια, τὰ κοῦφα συνδέοντες, ἰσχυροῖς γέλως, ῥαγεῖεν ἢ λυθεῖεν ἐν στερροῖς λόγοις, οἵ τ' ἐμπεσόντες ἐκφύγοιεν τοὺς βρόχους. Οὕτω μὲν ἦλθον, οὐχ ἑκών, ἀλλ' ἀνδράσιν κλαπεὶς βιαίοις, ὡς λόγου συνήγορος. καὶ γάρ τις ἐθρυλεῖτο καὶ συνήλυσις ἐπισκόπων νέηλυν αἵρεσιν, λόγον ἐπεισαγόντων ταῖς φίλαις ἐκκλησίαις, ὃς τὴν πρὸς ἡμᾶς τοῦ θεοῦ λόγου κρᾶσιν, ἣν οὐ τραπεὶς ἐδέξατ' ἄνθρωπον λαβών ἔμψυχον, ἔννουν, ἐμπαθῆ τὰ σώματος, Ἀδὰμ ὅλον τὸν πρόσθε πλὴν ἁμαρτίας, ταύτην τεμὼν ἄνουν τιν' εἰσάγει θεόν ὥσπερ δεδοικώς, μὴ θεῷ μάχηθ' ὁ νοῦς -οὕτω γὰρ ἂν δείσαιμι καὶ σαρκὸς φύσιν, μᾶλλον γὰρ αὕτη, καὶ θεοῦ πορρωτάτω- ἢ τῶν μὲν ἄλλων δεομένων σωτηρίας τὸν νοῦν δ' ὀλέσθαι παντελῶς δεδογμένου, ὃς δὴ μάλιστα τῷ θεῷ μου σωστέος, ὃς καὶ μάλιστ' ὤλισθεν ἐν πρώτου πλάσει· ὃ γὰρ δέδεκτο, καὶ παρεῖδε τὸν νόμον, ὃ δ' ἦν τὸ παριδόν, τοῦτο καὶ προσλήψιμον. μὴ τοίνυν ἥμισύν με σῳζέτω λόγος ὅλον παθόντα, μηδ' ἀτιμούσθω θεός ὡς οὐχ ὅλον λαβών με, πηλὸν δὲ μόνον, ψυχὴν δ' ἄνουν τε κἀλόγου ζῴου τινός, ὃ καὶ σέσωσται δηλαδὴ τῷ σῷ λόγῳ.

Καὶ ληξάτω τοιαῦτα εὐσεβῶν ἅπας. ἴσον τι γὰρ πταίουσιν ἐξ ἐναντίας τοῖς εἰσάγουσιν ἀσκόπως υἱοὺς δύο, τὸν ἐκ θεοῦ τε καὶ τὸν ἐκ τῆς παρθένου, οἱ τὴν κάτω τέμνοντες εὐαρμοστίαν, οἱ μὲν ξέοντες, οἱ δὲ διπλοῦντες κακῶς. εἰ γὰρ δύω, δέδοικα μὴ ἓν τῶν δύο, ἢ προσκυνῶμεν ἀνθ' ἑνὸς δύω θεούς, ἢ τοῦτο μὴ πάθωμεν εὐλαβούμενοι πέμπωμεν ἔξω τοῦ θεοῦ τὸ σύνθετον. ὧν μὲν γὰρ ἡ σάρξ, οὐδὲν ἂν πάθοι θεός. θεοῦ δ' ὅλου μετέσχεν ἀνθρώπου φύσις, οὐχ ὡς προφήτης ἤ τις ἄλλος ἐνθέων -ὃς οὐ θεοῦ μετέσχε, τῶν θεοῦ δέ γε-, ἀλλ' οὐσιωθεῖσ' ὥσπερ αὐγαῖς ἥλιος. οὗτοι μὲν οὖν ἔρροιεν ἐκ μέσου λόγου, εἰ μὴ σέβοιεν ὡς ἓν ἄνθρωπον θεόν, τὸν προσλαβόντα σύν γε τῷ προσλήμματι, τὸν ἄχρονόν τε καὶ τὸ συμμιγὲς χρόνῳ, τὸν ἐκ μόνου πατρός τε καὶ μητρὸς μόνης, δύω φύσεις εἰς Χριστὸν ἐλθούσας ἕνα. Τὰ δ' ἡμέτερα πῶς καὶ τίν' ἔσχε τὸν τρόπον; πολλοῖς συνηνέχθημεν ἐλθόντες κακοῖς. πρῶτον μὲν ἐξέζεσε καθ' ἡμῶν ἡ πόλις ὡς εἰσαγόντων ἀνθ' ἑνὸς πλείους θεούς. θαυμαστὸν οὐδέν· ἦσαν οὕτως ἠγμένοι, ὥστ' ἀγνοεῖν παντάπασιν εὐσεβῆ λόγον, πῶς ἡ μονὰς τριάζεθ', ἡ τριὰς πάλιν ἑνίζετ' ἀμφοῖν ἐνθέως νοουμένοιν. καὶ πρός γε τοῖς πάσχουσι δῆμος ἕλκεται, ὡς τῷ τότε σφῶν προστάτῃ καὶ ποιμένι οἶκτον λαβόντι τοῦ πάθους ὑπέρμαχον, δῆμος τοσοῦτος καὶ φρονήματος πλέως, ᾧ μὴ τὸ νικᾶν πάντα ἔσχατος ψόγος. λίθους παρήσω τὴν ἐμὴν πανδαισίαν, ὧν ἕν τι μέμφομ'· οὐ γὰρ ἦσαν εὔστοχοι τούτων τυχόντες, ὧν τυχεῖν κενὸς φόνος. ἔπειθ' ὑπάρχοις ὡς φονεὺς εἰσηγόμην βλέπουσιν ὑψηλόν τι καὶ μετάρσιον, οἷς εἷς νόμος τὸν δῆμον