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in our innermost parts and thus being enlightened to speak of the things concerning God, inasmuch as it is possible and we are enlightened by God.

But for the present, believe with me in one God, you who are also eager to theologize in this way: the one who has not come into being from any other (for neither was there anything older before him, nor has there come to be), nor has he made himself, as some of the utterly foolish have supposed (for it is impossible for that which is not to come into being spontaneously), the one who always is and pre-exists and will be eternally, one God in three hypostases. For one who rightly upholds the truth would not say that the enhypostatic and tri-hypostatic one is without hypostasis, but being taught the things beyond himself from the things concerning himself, he worships the one divinity in three consubstantial persons. For if the passions have not confused and darkened that which is according to the image, first, having come to know, he understands himself, that he has received a living and enhypostatic soul from the creator, and this is threefold, having mind and reason accompanying it; and thus from the things concerning himself he conceives the things concerning God with a most wise and brilliant mind. For he is moved to conceive by the Spirit that moves from above that God the Father, who established the universe from non-being by his own Word and by the power of his Spirit holds it together and sustains it, timelessly and eternally begets the consubstantial Son, (32) in no way separated from him, with whom the divine Spirit also proceeds forth, being consubstantial with the Son, from the consubstantial Father. And so, by rightly conceiving and at the same time confessing the things concerning God, according to the image of the creator he shows himself to bear a rational, intellectual, and immortal soul, created with mind and reason that are consubstantial and enhypostatic; but if not, he certainly declares himself to be without mind and without reason. For from where else and from what characteristics, then, will he be according to the image of the creator, if he falls short of the divine properties? But if someone attests to these things in himself and rightly claims them, but, as far as it is in his power, unreasonably deprives his own maker and God of the aforementioned things, such a person in my opinion differs in no way from the gentiles; for I hesitate to say, from cattle or reptiles and wild beasts.

I for my part, therefore, believe that, just as the soul did not pre-exist the mind nor does the mind pre-exist the reason that is begotten from it, but they have their being from God at the same time, and the mind begets the reason and through it brings forth the will of the soul, so also God the Father did not pre-exist either the Son or the Spirit, but as the mind exists in the soul and has the reason with itself, in the same way God the Father exists wholly in the Holy Spirit and has the whole God the Word, begotten, within himself; and just as it is impossible for reason or mind to exist apart from a soul, so it is impossible for the Son to be spoken of with the Father without the Holy Spirit. For how could the living God ever exist without life? For the Holy Spirit is life and life-giving. Therefore, confess with me the Father, not pre-existent to his begetting, the Son, not subsequently begotten or made, the Holy Spirit, proceeding, but co-eternal and consubstantial with the Father together with the Son; worship the whole Holy Spirit in the whole and only co-unoriginate Father, (33) and the whole Father in the whole and only co-eternal Son and the whole Son in the whole and only Father and the Spirit, the one tri-hypostatic and co-eternal and consubstantial, undivided and unconfused substance and nature, as the one origin of all things and one God, the creator of the universe, since also in the whole mind that exists in you, so that being initiated into the things beyond you from the things concerning you, you may not forget the image of which you were deemed worthy by him, the whole reason is, and the spirit; and in these two the soul is, undividedly, unconfusedly. For this is the image, and this is the wealth we have received from above: to be made like God the Father and to bear the image of the one who begot and created us; for in this way also, when we pay respect to a person, we offer him a single honor, as one who has a mind, and is ensouled and rational, not dividing or preferring one of these three, but as one who has the three in himself undividedly and unconfusedly; and not as being three, but as

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ἐγκάτοις καί οὕτως ἐλλαμπομένους τά περί Θεοῦ φθέγγεσθαι, καθόσον οἷόν τε καί ἀπό Θεοῦ ἐλλαμπόμεθα.

Τό δέ νῦν ἔχον πίστευέ μοι εἰς ἕνα Θεόν, ὁ καί οὕτω θεολογεῖν ἐφιέμενος, τόν μή παρ᾿ ἑτέρου γεγονότα τινός (οὐδέ γάρ ἦν πρό αὐτοῦ τι πρεσβύτερον οὔτε γέγονε), μήτε πεποιηκότα ἑαυτόν, ὥς τινες τῶν λίαν ἀνοήτων ὑπέλαβον (αὐτομάτως γάρ τό μή ὄν γενέσθαι ἀδύνατον), τόν ἀεί ὄντα καί προόντα καί ἀϊδίως ἐσόμενον ἕνα Θεόν ἐν τρισίν ὑποστάσεσιν. Οὐδέ γάρ ἀνυπόστατον τόν ἐνυπόστατον καί τρισυπόστατον φαίη τις ἄν, πρεσβεύων ὀρθῶς τήν ἀλήθειαν, ἀλλ᾿ ἐκ τῶν κατ᾿ αὐτόν τά ὑπέρ αὐτόν διδασκόμενος ἐν τρισίν ὁμοουσίοις προσώποις προσκυνεῖ τήν μίαν θεότητα. Εἰ γάρ τό κατ᾿ εἰκόνα τοῖς πάθεσι μή συνέχεέ τε καί συνεζόφωσε, πρῶτον μέν ἐπιγνούς ἐπίσταται ἑαυτόν ὅτι δή ψυχήν ζῶσαν καί ἐνυπόστατον παρά τοῦ κτίσαντος εἴληφεν, αὕτη δέ τριμερής ἐστι, νοῦν καί λόγον τά συνεπόμενα ἔχουσα· καί οὕτως ἐκ τῶν κατ᾿ αὐτόν τά περί Θεοῦ νῷ σοφωτάτῳ καί λαμπροτάτῳ νοεῖ. Κινεῖται γάρ νοεῖν ἀπό τοῦ κινοῦντος ἄνωθεν Πνεύματος ὅτι δή ὁ Θεός καί Πατήρ, ὁ τό πᾷν ἐξ οὐκ ὄντων τῷ ἑαυτοῦ Λόγῳ ὑποστησάμενος καί δυνάμει τοῦ Πνεύματος αὐτοῦ συνέχων αὐτό καί διακρατῶν, γεννᾷ τόν ὁμοούσιον ἀχρόνως καί ἀϊδίως Υἱόν (32) μηδαμῶς ἐξ αὐτοῦ χωριζόμενον, μεθ᾿ οὗ καί τό θεῖον Πνεῦμα συνεκπορεύεται, ὁμούσιον ὄν τῷ Υἱῷ, ἐξ ὁμοουσίου Πατρός. Οὕτω δέ καλῶς περί Θεοῦ νοῶν καί ἅμα ὁμολογῶν, κατ᾿ εἰκόνα τοῦ κτίσαντος ἑαυτόν ἀποδείκνυσι ψυχήν λογικήν τε καί νοεράν καί ἀθάνατον περιφέροντα, νῷ καί λόγῳ τοῖς ὁμοουσίοις καί ἐνυποστάτοις δεδημιουργημένην· εἰ δ᾿ οὖν, ἀλλ᾿ ἄνουν πάντως καί ἄλογον κατηγορεῖ ἑαυτόν. Πόθεν γάρ ἄν ἄλλοθεν καί ἐκ ποίων ἄρα τῶν χαρακτήρων κατ᾿ εἰκόνα τοῦ κτίσαντος ἔσται, τῶν θείων ἐμπίπτων ἰδιωμάτων; Εἰ δέ ταῦτα μέν τις ἑαυτῷ προσμαρτυρεῖ καί ὀρθῶς ἐπιγράφεται, τόν δέ ποιητήν ἑαυτοῦ καί Θεόν ἀλόγως τῶν εἰρημένων ἀποστερεῖ τό γε ἐφ᾿ ἑαυτόν, οὐδέν μοι τῶν ἐθνικῶν διενήνοχε ὁ τοιοῦτος· ὀκνῶ γάρ εἰπεῖν κτηνῶν ἤ ἑρπετῶν καί θηρίων.

Ἔγωγε οὖν πιστεύω ὅτι, ὥσπερ οὐ προϋπέστη ἤ προϋφίσταται ἡ ψυχή τοῦ νοός ἤ ὁ νοῦς τοῦ ἐξ αὐτοῦ γεννωμένου λόγου, ἀλλ᾿ ἅμα μέν ἔχουσι τό εἶναι ὑπό Θεοῦ, ὁ δέ νοῦς τόν λόγον ἀπογεννᾷ καί ἐξάγει δι᾿ αὐτοῦ τήν βούλησιν τῆς ψυχῆς, οὕτως οὐδέ ὁ Πατήρ καί Θεός, ἤ τοῦ Υἱοῦ, ἤ τοῦ Πνεύματος προϋπέστη, ἀλλ᾿ ὡς ὁ νοῦς ὑπάρχει ἐν τῇ ψυχῇ τόν δέ λόγον ἔχει παρ᾿ ἑαυτῷ, τῷ ὁμοίῳ τρόπῳ ὁ Θεός καί Πατήρ ἐν ὅλῳ ὑπάρχει Πνεύματι τῷ Ἁγίῳ καί τόν Θεόν Λόγον γεγεννημένον ἔχει ὅλον ἐν ἑαυτῷ· καί καθάπερ ἀδύνατον δίχα ψυχῆς λόγον ἤ νοῦν εἶναι, οὕτως ἀμήχανον Υἱόν σύν Πατρί ἄνευ Ἁγίου λέγεσθαι Πνεύματος. Πῶς γάρ τόν ζῶντα Θεόν δίχα ζωῆς ὑπάρξαι ποτέ; Ζωή γάρ καί ζωοποιόν τό Πνεῦμα τό Ἅγιον. Τοιγαροῦν ὁμολόγει μοι τόν Πατέρα οὐ προόντα γεννῶντα, τόν Υἱόν οὐχ ὕστερον γεννηθέντα ἤ γεγονότα, τό Πνεῦμα τό Ἅγιον ἐκπορευτόν μέν, συναΐδιον δέ καί ὁμοούσιον αὐτῷ σύν Υἱῷ τῷ Πατρί· προσκύνει ὅλον τό Ἅγιον Πνεῦμα ἐν ὅλῳ καί μόνῳ τῷ συνανάρχῳ Πατρί, (33) καί ὅλον τόν Πατέρα ἐν ὅλῳ καί μόνῳ τῷ συναϊδίῳ Υἱῷ καί ὅλον τόν Υἱόν ἐν ὅλῳ καί μόνῳ τῷ Πατρί καί τῷ Πνεύματι, τήν μίαν τρισυπόστατον καί συναΐδιον καί ὁμοούσιον, ἀδιαίρετόν τε καί ἀσύγχυτον οὐσίαν καί φύσιν, ὡς μίαν τῶν ὅλων ἀρχήν καί ἕνα Θεόν τόν δημιουργόν τοῦ παντός, ἐπειδή καί ἐν ὅλῳ τῷ ἐνυπάρχοντί σοι νῷ, ἵν᾿ ἐκ τῶν κατά σέ τά ὑπέρ σέ μυσταγωγούμενος τῆς εἰκόνος μή ἐπιλάθῃ, ἧς πρός αὐτοῦ ἠξιώθης, ὅλος ὁ λόγος ἐστί καί τό πνεῦμα ἐν τοῖς δυσίν ἡ ψυχή ἀδιαιρέτως, ἀσυγχύτως. Τοῦτο γάρ ἡ εἰκών καί τοῦτο πεπλουτήκαμεν ἄνωθεν τό ἀφομοιωθῆναι Θεῷ τῷ Πατρί καί τήν εἰκόνα φέρειν τοῦ γεγεννηκότος καί κτίσαντος· ταύτῃ γάρ καί ἄνθρωπον προσκυνοῦντες μίαν αὐτῷ προσάγομεν τήν τιμήν, ὡς νοῦν ἔχοντι καί ἐμψύχῳ καί λογικῷ, οὐ διαιροῦντες ἤ προτιμῶντες τούτων ἕν τῶν τριῶν, ἀλλ᾿ ὡς ἀδιαίρετα ἔχοντι τά τρία ἐν ἑαυτῷ καί ἀσύγχυτα· καί οὐχ ὡς τρία ὄντα, ἀλλ᾿ ὡς