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on account of the oneness of the nature and the threeness of the hypostases. And the number one is applied to the three hypostases, God and God and God, but one God and not three gods, the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, so that the monarchy may not be thought of as polytheism and the one and indivisible God be divided from his own enhypostatic powers. For God and his Word and the Spirit is one God, even if each is a perfect hypostasis because of the transcendent nature of the Godhead. But the number three is not applied to one hypostasis. For each hypostasis is not three-hypostasized, so that through the triple number the three-hypostasized nature of each hypostasis might be shown. Away with it, away with it. These are not of a pious reasoning, but outside the proper mind. 26 These things, O most divine father, pillar and foundation of the truth, we implore to be read to all the fathers and brothers and to the whole fullness of the church, and that by a word of gentleness our father the lord abba Anastasius, the renowned leader of the holy monastery of our God-bearing father Euthymius, be entreated to cease from such an objection, and to follow in the footsteps with us the God-inspired fathers: saying, "Holy God" the Father, "Holy Mighty" the Son of God who was incarnate and crucified in the flesh for us, "Holy Immortal" the Holy Spirit, the one Lord of Sabaoth, "have mercy on us," and to neither accuse us nor the thrice-blessed John the patriarch as being convinced to say the Trisagion hymn of one of the divine hypostases. For everyone who thinks or speaks thus is a partaker in the coarseness of the vulgar fuller. For who knows the mind of the most blessed patriarch John more than I? No one. Who, to speak the truth, never breathed a dogmatic breath that he did not entrust to me as a student. Why were these things not said about him while the holy man was alive and speaking? These are nothing but certain pretexts that have no certainty at all. Let them not slander the zealot who breathed the fire of orthodoxy, I mean Moschus the renowned, the banisher and destroyer of all empty talk, as one who has communed in theology with the holy fathers, but let them approve of this man's zeal and praise him as holy and renowned. The God of peace, the Father of Christ our God—for he is our peace—will fill our hearts with the Holy Spirit for the discerning of what is excellent and will drive out every wicked objection from us, making peace in his holy church, which his beloved Son Jesus, who is above God, acquired for himself with his own precious blood. Pray for us, God-honored one, as you are God-honored. 27 And these things must be added to the account: In the holy proskomide of the celebration of the divine mysteries, after the people have said the Trisagion hymn, the priest, as if interpreting the hymn, says: "Holy are you, King of the ages, and Lord and giver of all holiness; holy also is your only-begotten Son, through whom you have made all things; holy also is your all-holy Spirit, who searches all things, even the depths of you, O God." Why does he not say, "Holy, holy, holy are you, King of the ages, holy, holy, holy" your only-begotten Son, but in common to the Trinity "holy, holy, holy," and for each of the hypostases "holy" once? And at the elevation of the bread of the eucharist we do not say: Thrice holy or thrice Lord, but: "One is holy, one is Lord, Jesus Christ, to the glory of God the Father with the Holy Spirit, to whom be glory." 28 And since we say the Trisagion hymn three times in the customary prayers, it is worthwhile to discuss this as well, that we do not offer the Trisagion hymn once to the Father and once to the Son and once to the Holy Spirit, but in common to the Holy Trinity three times

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διὰ τὸ ἑνικὸν τῆς φύσεως καὶ τὸ τριαδικὸν τῶν ὑποστάσεων. Καὶ ὁ μὲν ἑνικὸς ἀριθμὸς κατὰ τῶν τριῶν ὑποστάσεων φέρεται, θεὸς καὶ θεὸς καὶ θεός, ἀλλ' εἷς θεὸς καὶ οὐ τρεῖς θεοὶ ὁ πατὴρ καὶ ὁ υἱὸς καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, ἵνα μὴ πολυθεΐα νομισθῇ ἡ μοναρχία καὶ διαιρεθῇ ὁ εἷς καὶ ἀδιαίρετος θεὸς τῶν ἑαυτοῦ ἐνυποστάτων δυνάμεων. Θεὸς γὰρ καὶ ὁ τούτου λόγος καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα εἷς θεός, εἰ καὶ ἕκαστον τελεία ὑπόστασις διὰ τὸ ὑπερφυὲς τῆς θεότητος. Ὁ δὲ τριαδικὸς ἀριθμὸς κατὰ μιᾶς ὑποστάσεως οὐκ ἔστιν. Οὐ γὰρ τρισυπόστατος ἑκάστη ὑπόστασις, ἵνα διὰ τοῦ τρισσοῦ ἀριθμοῦ τὸ τρισυπόστατον δειχθῇ ἑκάστης ὑποστάσεως. Ἄπαγε, ἄπαγε. Οὐκ εὐσεβοῦς λογισμοῦ ταῦτα, ἀλλ' ἔξω νοῦ τοῦ καθήκοντος. 26 Ταῦτα, ὦ πάτερ θειότατε, στύλε καὶ ἑδραίωμα τῆς ἀληθείας, πᾶσι τοῖς πατράσι καὶ ἀδελφοῖς καὶ παντὶ τῷ τῆς ἐκκλησίας πληρώματι ἀναγνωσθῆναι ἐκλιπαροῦμεν, καὶ λόγῳ ἐπιεικείας παρακληθῆναι τὸν πατέρα ἡμῶν τὸν κῦριν ἀββᾶν Ἀναστάσιον, τὸν κλεινὸν καθηγεμόνα τῆς εὐαγοῦς μονῆς τοῦ θεοφόρου πατρὸς ἡμῶν Εὐθυμίου, παύσασθαι μὲν τῆς τοιαύτης ἐνστάσεως, σὺν ἡμῖν δὲ τοῖς θεολήπτοις πατράσι κατ' ἴχνος ἀκολουθοῦντα· «Ἅγιος», λέγειν, «ὁ θεὸς» καὶ πατήρ, «ἅγιος ἰσχυρὸς» ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ ὁ σαρκωθεὶς καὶ σταυρωθεὶς σαρκὶ δι' ἡμᾶς, «ἅγιος ἀθάνατος» τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, ὁ εἷς κύριος σαβαώθ, «ἐλέησον ἡμᾶς», καὶ μήτε ἡμῶν κατηγορεῖν μήτε τοῦ τρισμάκαρος Ἰωάννου τοῦ πατριάρχου ὡς πεπεισμένων ἐπὶ μιᾶς τῶν θεαρχικῶν ὑποστάσεων λέγειν τὸν τρισάγιον ὕμνον. Πᾶς γάρ, ὅστις οὕτω φρονεῖ ἢ λέγει, κοινωνός ἐστι τῆς τοῦ κναφέως τοῦ βαναύσου σκαιότητος. Τίς γὰρ οἶδε τοῦ μακαριωτάτου Ἰωάννου τοῦ πατριάρχου νόημα ἐμοῦ πλέον; Οὐδείς. Ὅς, ἵνα τἀληθὲς εἴπω, οὐκ ἀνέπνευσε πνοὴν δογματικὴν πώποτε, ἣν ἐμοὶ ὡς μαθητῇ οὐκ ἀνέθετο. Τί μὴ ζῶντος καὶ φθεγγομένου τοῦ ἱεροῦ ἀνδρὸς ταῦτα περὶ αὐτοῦ λέλεκτο; Οὐκ ἔστι ταῦτα ἀλλ' ἢ σκήψεις τινὲς πλεῖστον ὅτι τὸ βέβαιον οὐκ ἔχουσαι. Μὴ δυσφημείτωσαν τὸν ζηλωτὴν καὶ πῦρ ὀρθοδοξίας πνεύσαντα, μόσχον φημὶ τὸν ἀοίδιμον, τὸν πάσης κενοφωνίας ἐξοριστὴν καὶ ἀναιρέτην, ὡς τῆς θεολογίας τοῖς ἱεροῖς κεκοινωνηκότα πατράσιν, ἀλλὰ τοῦτον τοῦ ζήλου ἀποδεχέσθωσαν καὶ ὡς ἱερὸν καὶ ἀοίδιμον εὐφημείτωσαν. Ὁ θεὸς ὁ τῆς εἰρήνης, πατὴρ Χριστοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ ἡμῶν- αὐτὸς γάρ ἐστιν ἡ εἰρήνη ἡμῶν-, ἐμπλήσει τὰς καρδίας ἡμῶν πνεύματος ἁγίου εἰς τὸ δοκιμάζειν τὰ διαφέροντα καὶ ἀπελάσει πᾶσαν πονηρὰν ἔνστασιν ἀφ' ἡμῶν εἰρηνοποιῶν τὴν ἁγίαν αὐτοῦ ἐκκλησίαν, ἣν ἐκτήσατο αὐτῷ ὁ ἀγαπητὸς αὐτοῦ υἱὸς Ἰησοῦς ὁ ὑπέρθεος τῷ τιμίῳ αὑτοῦ αἵματι. Εὔχου ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν, θεοτίμητε, ὡς θεοτίμητος. 27 Προσθετέον δὲ τῷ λόγῳ καὶ τάδε· Ἐν τῇ ἱερᾷ προσκομιδῇ τῆς τελετῆς τῶν θείων μυστηρίων μετὰ τὸ εἰπεῖν τὸν λαὸν τὸν τρισάγιον ὕμνον ὁ ἱερεὺς ὥσπερ ἑρμηνεύων τὸν ὕμνον φησίν· «Ἅγιος εἶ, βασιλεῦ τῶν αἰώνων, καὶ πάσης ἁγιωσύνης κύριος καὶ δοτήρ· ἅγιος καὶ ὁ μονογενής σου υἱός, δι' οὗ τὰ πάντα ἐποίησας· ἅγιον δὲ καὶ τὸ πνεῦμά σου τὸ πανάγιον, τὸ ἐρευνῶν τὰ πάντα καὶ τὰ βάθη σου τοῦ θεοῦ.» ∆ιὰ τί μὴ λέγει ἅγιος, ἅγιος, ἅγιος εἶ, βασιλεῦ τῶν αἰώνων, ἅγιος, ἅγιος, ἅγιος», ὁ μονογενής σου υἱός, ἀλλὰ κοινῶς μὲν τῇ τριάδι «ἅγιος, ἅγιος, ἅγιος», καθ' ἑκάστην δὲ τῶν ὑποστάσεων ἅπαξ τὸ ἅγιος; Καὶ ἐν τῇ ὑψώσει δὲ τοῦ ἄρτου τῆς εὐχαριστίας οὐ λέγομεν· Τρὶς ἅγιος ἢ τρὶς κύριος, ἀλλ'· «Εἷς ἅγιος, εἷς κύριος, Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, εἰς δόξαν θεοῦ πατρὸς σὺν ἁγίῳ πνεύματι, ᾧ ἡ δόξα.» 28 Ἐπειδὴ δὲ τὸν τρισάγιον ὕμνον ἐν ταῖς συνήθεσιν εὐχαῖς τρίτον φαμέν, ἄξιον καὶ περὶ τούτου διαλαβεῖν, ὅτιπερ οὐχ ἅπαξ τῷ πατρὶ καὶ οὐχ ἅπαξ τῷ υἱῷ καὶ οὐχ ἅπαξ τῷ ἁγίῳ πνεύματι τὸν τρισάγιον ὕμνον προσάγομεν, ἀλλὰ κοινῶς τῇ ἁγίᾳ τριάδι τρὶς