EPISTLE ONE

 1. Your sacred Kindness’s letter was delivered to me in the desert. Though the persecution directed against us was indeed bitter, and a great search m

 2. To the Arians indeed this way of thinking is not strange. Having once denied the Word of God, they naturally say the same evil things against his S

 3. Where then do you find excuse for such audacity, so that you do not fear that which was spoken by the Lord, ‘Whosoever shall blaspheme against the

 4. Tell us, then, is there any passage in the divine Scripture where the Holy Spirit is found simply referred to as ‘spirit’ without the addition of ‘

 5. But do you answer the question which has been put to you whether anywhere in the divine Scripture you have found the Holy Spirit called simply ‘spi

 6. But inquire also about the contents of the Gospels and the writings of the Apostles, and you will hear how there also, inasmuch as there is a great

 7. See how the Holy Spirit is denoted in all divine Scripture ! Did you, then, notice anything of this kind in the prophet? The ‘spirit’ of which the

 8. Read the sacred Scriptures, and you will find ‘spirit’ used of the meaning which is in the divine words, as Paul writes: ‘Who also made us sufficie

 9. ‘But’, say they, ‘since the text makes mention of Christ, to be consistent we must take the spirit it speaks of to be none other than the Holy Spir

 10. Accordingly, if created spirit bears this meaning, we can appropriately take the thunder which is established to be the sure word and unshakable l

 11. What is this mighty folly of theirs? Once again, where in the Scriptures have they found the Spirit referred to as an angel? I am obliged to repea

 12. Moses too knew that the angels are creatures and that the Holy Spirit is united with the Son and the Father. For when God said to him, ‘Depart, go

 13. ‘But granting this,’ they say, ‘why did the Apostle after Christ make mention not of the Holy Spirit but of the elect angels?’ In like manner we m

 14. What will they say if they hear also the Lord saying: ‘There was in a certain place a judge who feared not God and regarded not man’? Because, aft

 15. Such, it seems to me, is the meaning of the divine oracles and it refutes the evil which these irrational men speak against the Spirit. But they,

 16. We ought therefore, as I said before, to be silent on these matters and to disregard these people. But lest our silence should furnish an excuse f

 17. For this reason too, it is madness to call him a creature. If he were a creature, he would not be ranked with the Triad. For the whole Triad is on

 18. Let them presume to tell us, as they have a glib answer to everything, how the heavens were formed, and from what material, and what is their comp

 19. Since, therefore, such an attempt is futile madness, nay, more than madness !, let no one ask such questions any more, or else let him learn only

 20. But if there is such co-ordination and unity within the holy Triad, who can separate either the Son from the Father, or the Spirit from the Son or

 21. But if, in regard to order and nature, the Spirit bears the same relation to the Son as the Son to the Father, will not he who calls the Spirit a

 22. The creatures came from nothing, having a beginning from which they came into being. For, ‘In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth’

 23. He, therefore, who is not sanctified by another, nor a partaker of sanctification, but who is himself partaken, and in whom all the creatures are

 24. Further it is through the Spirit that we are all said to be partakers of God. For it says: ‘Know ye not that ye are a temple of God and that the S

 25. The Spirit, therefore, is distinct from the creatures, and is shown rather to be proper to the Son and not alien from God. As for that wise questi

 26. That the Spirit is above the creation, distinct in nature from things originated, and proper to the Godhead, can be seen from the following consid

 27. From what follows, also, we may see how the Holy Spirit is partaken and does not partake. (We must not mind repeating ourselves.) For, ‘It is impo

 28. But, beyond these sayings, let us look at the very tradition, teaching, and faith of the Catholic Church from the beginning, which the Lord gave,

 29. Since then the Church has this foundation of faith, let these men tell us once again and let them make answer, Is God triad or dyad? If he is dyad

 30. Such absurdities meet you if you say God is dyad. But if he is triad, as indeed he is and if the Triad has been shown to be indivisible and consi

 31. This consideration also shows that the activity of the Triad is one. The Apostle does not mean that the things which are given are given different

 32. The divine Scriptures, then, consistently show that the Holy Spirit is not a creature, but is proper to the Word and to the Godhead of the Father.

 33. Dwelling as I do in a desert place, yet, because of their effrontery who have turned away from the truth, I have not heeded those who will be glad

 EPISTLE TWO—THREE

 2. This opinion of the Arians is indeed mortal and corruptible. But the argument of truth, which even they ought to ponder, runs like this: If God is

 3. When these points are thus proved, he is impious who says that the Son is a creature. For he will be compelled also to give the name of creature to

 4. Again, all things originate were not and have come into being. For, ‘He made the earth as nothing’ and, ‘Who calleth the things that are not as th

 5. Since these things are true and are written in Scripture, who does not recognize that, inasmuch as the Son has no likeness to the creatures but has

 6. In this way too we can refute the impiety of those who say that the Word of God is a creature. Our faith is in Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, as the

 7. But as they plead the passage in Proverbs, ‘The Lord created me, a beginning of his ways, for his works’, adding, ‘See, “He created” He is a creatu

 8. This character [of our faith] is from the Apostles through the Fathers. It remains that he who reads Scripture should examine and judge when it spe

 9. Then too there is that other saying, which is indeed well said, but by them ill understood—I mean: ‘Of that day or that hour knoweth no one, not ev

 Letter III. 1. Perhaps you will wonder why, when I was charged to abridge and briefly to explain the letter I had written concerning the Holy Spirit,

 2. These considerations are sufficient to dissuade anyone, be he never so contentious, from continuing to call the Spirit of God a creature, who is in

 3. Again, the Holy Spirit is called, and is, unction and seal. For John writes: ‘And as for you, the unction which ye received of him abideth in you,

 4. This the Apostle knows when he says: ‘All these worketh the one and the same Spirit, dividing to each one severally, even as he will’ and a little

 5. As it is thus written, it is clear that the Spirit is not a creature, but takes part in the act of creation. The Father creates all things through

 6. Assuredly, when he prayed for the Corinthians, he prayed in the Triad, saying: ‘The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the comm

 7. In these terms the Catholic faith is expressed. But as for those who speak evil of the Spirit and call him a creature, if what we have said does no

 Epistle Four

 2. Who, when he hears these things, will still regard them as Christians, and not rather as pagans? For such things the pagans say against us in conve

 3. Once again, in the following way also, it is just for you to be questioned from the questions you ask. If the prophets speak in the Spirit of God,

 4. Thus the Spirit is not a creature but proper to the essence of the Word and proper to God in whom he is said to be. Once more, we must not shrink f

 5. These things being thus proved, he must be mad who asks, Is the Spirit also a son? But neither let any man, because this is not written, separate h

 6. For if you ask, Is the Spirit then a son?, since by our showing he is not a creature so must you ask, Is the Son then a father?, for you have

 7. These things are sufficient to refute your foolish speech. Mock no more at the Godhead. For it is the part of those who mock to ask the questions w

11. What is this mighty folly of theirs? Once again, where in the Scriptures have they found the Spirit referred to as an angel? I am obliged to repeat what I have said before. He is called Paraclete, Spirit of adoption, Spirit of sanctification, Spirit of God, and Spirit of Christ; but never angel or archangel, or ministering spirit, as are the angels.

Rather he is himself ministered unto with the Son by Gabriel when he says to Mary, ‘The Holy Spirit shall come upon thee, and the Power of the Highest shall overshadow thee.’ But if the Scriptures do not speak of the Spirit as an angel, what excuse have they for so great and absurd an audacity? For even Valentinus, who implanted this evil-mindedness in them, called him Paraclete and them angels; though at the same time he very foolishly ranks the Spirit as coeval with the angels. ‘But see,’ they say, ‘it is written in the prophet Zechariah, “These things saith the angel that spake within me”. Clearly, he means that the Spirit who spake within him was an angel.’ They would not say this if they gave heed to their reading. For Zechariah himself, upon seeing the vision of the candlestick, says: ‘And the angel that spake within me answered and said, Knowest thou not what these things be? And I said, No, my lord. Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel, Not by great might, nor by power, but by my Spirit, saith the Lord Almighty.’ It is therefore clear that the angel who spoke to the prophet was not the Holy Spirit but an angel, while the Holy Spirit is the Spirit of the Almighty, to whom an angel ministers, who is inseparable from the Godhead and might of the Word.

But as they make the words of the Apostle the basis of their plea, because after Christ he mentions the elect angels, let them tell us which of all these is the one who is ranked with the Triad. They do not all amount to one! Which of them is he who descended to the Jordan in the form of a dove? For ‘thousand thousand’ and ‘ten thousand times ten thousand’ are they that minister. Why, again, when the heavens were opened, is it not written, ‘One of the elect angels came down’, but, ‘the Holy Spirit’? Why did the Lord himself, when conversing with the disciples concerning the End, distinguish them by saying, ‘The Son of Man shall send forth his angels’? And before this it says: ‘The angels ministered unto him.’ He himself says again: ‘The angels shall come forth.’ But in giving the Spirit to the disciples, he said: ‘Receive ye the Holy Spirit.’ And, when sending them out, he said: ‘Go ye and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.’ He did not rank an angel with the Godhead; nor was it by a creature that he linked us to himself and to the Father, but by the Holy Spirit. And when he promised him, he did not say that he would send an angel, but ‘the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father’, and from him receives and gives.

Τί οὖν ἡ τοσαύτη τούτων ἀπόνοια; Ποῦ τῶν Γραφῶν πάλιν εὗρον ἄγγελον τὸ Πνεῦμα λεγόμε νον; Τὰ αὐτὰ δέ μοι τοῖς προειρημένοις εἰπεῖν ἀνάγκη. Παράκλητος ἐλέχθη καὶ πνεῦμα υἱοθεσίας, καὶ πνεῦμα ἁγιασμοῦ, καὶ πνεῦμα Θεοῦ, καὶ πνεῦμα Χριστοῦ ἐλέχθη· οὐδαμοῦ δὲ ἄγγελος, οὐδὲ ἀρχάγ γελος, οὐδὲ πνεῦμα διακονίας, οἷοί εἰσιν οἱ ἄγ γελοι· ἀλλὰ μᾶλλον σὺν τῷ Υἱῷ καὶ αὐτὸ διακονεῖται παρὰ τοῦ Γαβριὴλ λέγοντος τῇ Μαρίᾳ· «Πνεῦμα ἅγιον ἐπελεύσεται ἐπὶ σέ· καὶ δύναμις Ὑψίστου ἐπι σκιάσει σοι.» Τῶν δὲ Γραφῶν μὴ λεγουσῶν ἄγγελον τὸ Πνεῦμα, ποία τούτοις ἀπολογία γένοιτ' ἂν τῆς τοσαύτης ἀλογίστου τόλμης ὅπου γε καὶ ὁ τὴν τοι αύτην αὐτοῖς κακόνοιαν ἐπισπείρας Οὐαλεντῖνος τὸ μὲν Παράκλητον, τοὺς δὲ ἀγγέλους ὠνόμασεν· εἰ καὶ ἐν τῷ ἴσῳ χρόνῳ, ἡλικιώτην τοῖς ἀγγέλοις συντάσσει καὶ αὐτὸς τὸ Πνεῦμα ὁ ἀφρονέστατος. Ἀλλ' ἰδοὺ, φασὶν, ἐν τῷ προφήτῃ Ζαχαρίᾳ γέγραπται· «Τάδε λέγει ὁ ἄγγελος, ὁ λαλῶν ἐν ἐμοί.» Καὶ δῆλόν ἐστιν, ὅτι ἄγγελον εἶναι τὸ Πνεῦμα σημαίνει τὸν ἐν αὐτῷ λαλοῦντα. Τοῦτο δὲ οὐκ ἂν εἶπον, εἰ τῇ ἀναγνώσει προσέχοντες ἦσαν. Αὐτὸς γὰρ ὁ Ζαχαρίας, ἡνίκα τὴν ὀπτασίαν περὶ τῆς λυχνίας ἑώρακε, φησί· «Καὶ ἀπεκρίθη ὁ ἄγγελος ὁ λαλῶν ἐν ἐμοὶ, καὶ εἶπεν· Οὐ γινώσκεις τί ἐστι ταῦτα; Καὶ εἶπον· Οὐχὶ Κύριε. Καὶ ἀπεκρίθη, καὶ εἶπε πρὸς μὲ λέγων· Οὗ τος ὁ λόγος Κυρίου πρὸς Ζοροβάβελ, λέγων· Οὐκ ἐν δυνάμει μεγάλῃ, οὐδὲ ἐν ἰσχύϊ, ἀλλ' ἐν Πνεύματί μου, λέγει Κύριος παντοκράτωρ.» Εὔδηλον οὖν, ὡς ὁ λαλῶν ἄγγελος τῷ προφήτῃ οὐκ ἦν τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, ἀλλ' αὐτὸς μὲν ἄγγελος, τὸ δὲ τὸ Πνεῦμα τοῦ Θεοῦ ἐστι τοῦ παντοκράτορος· καὶ διακονεῖται μὲν παρ' ἀγγέλου, ἀδιαίρετον δὲ τῆς θεότητός ἐστι, καὶ ἴδιον τοῦ λόγου. Ἐπεὶ εἰ τὸ ἀποστολικὸν προφασίζονται ῥητὸν, διὰ τὸ εἰρῆσθαι μετὰ τὸν Χριστὸν τοὺς ἐκλεκτοὺς ἀγγέλους, εἰπάτωσαν τίς ἐκ πάντων τούτων ἐστὶν ὁ τῇ Τριάδι συντασσόμενος; Οὐ γὰρ δὴ πάντες εἷς εἰσι τῷ ἀριθμῷ· ἢ τίς αὐτῶν ἐστιν ὁ κατελθὼν εἰς τὸν Ἰορδάνην ἐν εἴδει περιστερᾶς; Χίλιαι γὰρ χιλιάδες εἰσὶ καὶ μύριαι μυριάδες οἱ λειτουργοῦντες. Ἢ διὰ τί, ἀνοιγομένων τῶν οὐρανῶν, οὐκ εἴρηται, Καὶ κατῆλθεν ἐκ τῶν ἐκλε κτῶν ἀγγέλων, ἀλλὰ, τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον; Ἢ διὰ τί αὐτὸς ὁ Κύριος περὶ μὲν τῆς συντελείας διαλεγόμενος τοῖς μαθηταῖς, διαστέλλων μὲν ἔλεγεν· «Ἀποστελεῖ ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου τοὺς ἀγγέλους αὐτοῦ;» Καὶ πρὸ τούτων εἴρητο· «Οἱ ἄγγελοι διηκόνουν αὐτῷ.» Καὶ πάλιν αὐτὸς λέγει· «Ἐξελεύσονται οἱ ἄγγελοι.» Τοῖς δὲ μαθηταῖς διδοὺς ἔλεγε «Λάβετε Πνεῦμα ἅγιον·» ἀποστέλλων τε αὐτοὺς ἔλεγε· «Πορευθέν τες μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, βαπτίζοντες αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Πατρὸς, καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ, καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος.» Οὐ γὰρ ἄγγελον συνέτασσε τῇ θεότητι, οὐδὲ ἐν κτίσματι συνῆπτεν ἡμᾶς ἑαυτῷ τε καὶ τῷ Πατρὶ, ἀλλ' ἐν τῷ Πνεύματι τῷ ἁγίῳ, ὅπερ αὐτὸς ἐπαγγελλόμενος οὐκ εἴρηκεν ἄγγελον ἀπο στέλλειν, ἀλλὰ «τὸ Πνεῦμα τῆς ἀληθείας, ὃ παρὰ τοῦ Πατρὸς ἐκπορεύεται,» καὶ ἐκ τοῦ αὐτοῦ λαμβάνει καὶ δίδοται.