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Has the divine Scripture called no one 'body'? {ERAN.} It called those who have been enslaved to the flesh, "flesh." For it says, "God said: My Spirit shall not remain in these men, because they are flesh." {ORTH.} But has it called no one "flesh" without censure? {ERAN.} I do not remember. {ORTH.} I, therefore, will remind you and teach you that it called the exceedingly holy "flesh." Answer then: what would you call the apostles? Spiritual or carnal? {ERAN.} Spiritual, and leaders and teachers of the spiritual. {ORTH.} Listen then to the divine Paul saying: "But when He who had set me apart from my mother’s womb and called me through His grace was pleased to reveal His Son in me, so that I might preach Him among the Gentiles, I did not immediately consult with flesh and blood, nor did I go up to those who were apostles before me." Was he censuring the apostles when he then called them so? {ERAN.} Certainly not. {ORTH.} But naming them from their visible nature and comparing the call through men with the call from heaven? {ERAN.} True. {ORTH.} Therefore also listen to the hymnographer David singing and saying to God: "To You all flesh will come;" and of the prophet Isaiah prophesying, that "All flesh will see the salvation of our God." {ERAN.} It has been clearly demonstrated that the divine Scripture names human nature from the flesh even without censure. {ORTH.} And I will show you the other thing as well. {ERAN.} What other thing? 116 {ORTH.} That the divine Scripture, even when censuring some, names them from the soul alone. {ERAN.} And where will you find this in the divine Scripture? {ORTH.} Listen to the Lord God saying through Ezekiel the prophet: "The soul that sins, it shall die." And indeed through the great Moses he says: "The soul that sins;" and again: "And it shall be that every soul that will not listen to that prophet shall be destroyed." And many other such things can be found. {ERAN.} These things have been demonstrated. {ORTH.} If, therefore, where there is a certain natural union and a connection of created, fellow-serving, and co-temporal things, it is the custom of the divine Scripture to name this living being not only from the better nature, but also from the lesser and the greater; how do you accuse us for naming the Lord Christ "man" after confessing him as God, especially when many things compel us to do this? {ERAN.} And what compels you to name the Savior Christ "man"? {ORTH.} The different and entirely contrary dogmas of the heretics. {ERAN.} And which dogmas are contrary to which? {ORTH.} That of Arius to that of Sabellius. For the one divides the substances, while the other confuses the hypostases. Arius introduces three substances; Sabellius says one hypostasis instead of three. Tell me, then, how must each sickness be healed; by applying one medicine to both ailments, or the appropriate one to each? {ERAN.} The appropriate one to each. {ORTH.} Therefore, we shall try to persuade Arius to confess one substance of the Holy Trinity, and we will offer proofs of this from the divine Scripture. {ERAN.} It must be done so. {ORTH.} But in arguing with Sabellius, we will do the opposite. 117 For we will offer no argument concerning the substance, since he too confesses one. {ERAN.} Clear. {ORTH.} But we shall be eager to heal the ailing part of his doctrine. {ERAN.} Absolutely. {ORTH.} And what sickness did we say he suffers from? {ERAN.} We said that he is lame regarding the hypostases. {ORTH.} Therefore, since he says there is one hypostasis of the Trinity, we will show him the divine Scripture proclaiming the three hypostases. {ERAN.} This indeed must be done so; but we have left behind the subject at hand. {ORTH.} Not at all. For we are collecting the proofs concerning it, and you will learn this immediately. Tell me then, have you supposed all the heresies that are named from Christ to confess and
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σώματος οὐδένα κέκληκεν ἡ θεία γραφή; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Τοὺς τῇ σαρκὶ δεδουλευκότας προσηγόρευσε σάρκας. "Εἶπε, γάρ φησιν, ὁ θεός· οὐ μὴ καταμείνῃ τὸ πνεῦμά μου ἐν τοῖς ἀνθρώποις τούτοις, διὰ τὸ εἶναι αὐτοὺς σάρκας." {ΟΡΘ.} ∆ίχα δὲ κατηγορίας οὐδένα προσηγόρευσε σάρκα; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Οὐ μέμνημαι. {ΟΡΘ.} Ἐγώ σε τοιγαροῦν ἀναμνήσω καὶ διδάξω, ὡς τοὺς ἄγαν ἁγίους σάρκας προσηγόρευσεν. Ἀπόκριναι τοίνυν· τοὺς ἀποστόλους τί ἂν καλέσῃς; πνευματικοὺς ἢ σαρκικούς; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Πνευματικοὺς καὶ τῶν πνευματικῶν κορυφαίους καὶ διδασκάλους. {ΟΡΘ.} Ἄκουσον τοίνυν τοῦ θεσπεσίου Παύλου λέγοντος· "Ὅτε δὲ ηὐδόκησεν ὁ ἀφορίσας με ἐκ κοιλίας μητρός μου καὶ καλέσας διὰ τῆς χάριτος αὑτοῦ ἀποκαλύψαι τὸν υἱὸν αὑτοῦ ἐν ἐμοί, ἵνα αὐτὸν εὐαγγε λίζωμαι ἐν τοῖς ἔθνεσιν, εὐθέως οὐ προσανεθέμην σαρκὶ καὶ αἵματι, οὐδὲ ἀνῆλθον πρὸς τοὺς πρὸ ἐμοῦ ἀποστόλους." Μὴ κατηγορῶν τῶν ἀποστόλων οὕτω τότε αὐτοὺς προσηγόρευσεν; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Οὐ δῆτα. {ΟΡΘ.} Ἀλλ' ἀπὸ τῆς ὁρωμένης φύσεως ὀνομάζων καὶ συγκρίνων τῇ οὐρανόθεν κλήσει τὴν δι' ἀνθρώπων κλῆσιν; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἀληθές. {ΟΡΘ.} Τοιγάρτοι καὶ τοῦ ὑμνοποιοῦ ∆αβὶδ ἄκουσον ᾄδοντος καὶ τῷ θεῷ λέγοντος· "Πρὸς σὲ πᾶσα σὰρξ ἥξει·" καὶ τοῦ προφήτου Ἡσαΐου θεσπίζοντος, ὅτι "Ὄψεται πᾶσα σὰρξ τὸ σωτήριον τοῦ θεοῦ ἡμῶν." {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἀποδέδεικται σαφῶς, ὡς καὶ δίχα κατηγορίας ἀπὸ τῆς σαρκὸς ἡ θεία γραφὴ τὴν ἀνθρωπείαν ὀνομάζει φύσιν. {ΟΡΘ.} Ἐγὼ δέ σοι καὶ τὸ ἕτερον ἐπιδείξω. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ποῖον ἕτερον; 116 {ΟΡΘ.} Ὅτι καὶ κατηγοροῦσά τινων ἡ θεία γραφὴ ἀπὸ τῆς ψυχῆς ὀνομάζει μόνης. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Καὶ ποῦ τοῦτο εὑρήσεις παρὰ τῇ θείᾳ γραφῇ; {ΟΡΘ.} Ἄκουσον τοῦ δεσπότου θεοῦ διὰ Ἰεζεκιὴλ τοῦ προφήτου λέγοντος· "Ψυχὴ ἡ ἁμαρτάνουσα, αὐτὴ ἀποθανεῖται." Καὶ μέντοι καὶ διὰ Μωϋσέως τοῦ μεγάλου φησί· "Ψυχὴ ἣ ἐὰν ἁμάρτῃ·" καὶ πάλιν· "Καὶ ἔσται πᾶσα ψυχή, ἥτις οὐκ ἀκούσεται τοῦ προφήτου ἐκείνου, ἐξολοθρευθήσεται." Καὶ ἄλλα δὲ πολλὰ τοιαῦτα ἔστιν εὑρεῖν. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἀποδέδεικται ταῦτα. {ΟΡΘ.} Εἰ τοίνυν ἔνθα φυσική τίς ἐστιν ἕνωσις καὶ κτιστῶν καὶ ὁμοδούλων καὶ ὁμοχρόνων συνάφεια, οὐκ ἀπὸ μόνης τῆς κρείττονος φύσεως τόδε τὸ ζῷον ὀνομάζειν ἔθος τῇ θείᾳ γραφῇ, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς ἥττονός τε καὶ μείζονος· πῶς ἡμῖν ἐγκαλεῖτε τὸν δεσπότην Χριστὸν μετὰ τοῦ θεὸν ὁμολογεῖν καὶ ἄνθρωπον ὀνομάζουσι, καὶ ταῦτα πολλῶν ἄγαν τοῦτο ποιεῖν ἀναγκαζόντων; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Καὶ τί τὸ ἀναγκάζον ὑμᾶς ἄνθρωπον ὀνομάζειν τὸν σωτῆρα Χριστόν; {ΟΡΘ.} Τὰ διάφορα καὶ παντάπασιν ἐναντία τῶν αἱρετικῶν δογμά των. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Καὶ τίνα τίσιν ἐναντία δόγματα; {ΟΡΘ.} Τὸ Ἀρείου τῷ Σαβελλίου. Ὁ μὲν γὰρ διαιρεῖ τὰς οὐσίας, ὁ δὲ τὰς ὑποστάσεις συγχέει. Ὁ μὲν Ἄρειος τρεῖς οὐσίας εἰσφέρει· ὁ δὲ Σαβέλλιος μίαν ὑπόστασιν ἀντὶ τῶν τριῶν λέγει. Εἰπὲ τοίνυν, πῶς δεῖ νόσον ἑκατέραν ἰάσασθαι· ἓν ἀμφοτέροις προσενεγκεῖν τοῖς παθή μασι φάρμακον, ἢ ἑκατέρῳ τὸ πρόσφορον; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Ἑκατέρῳ τὸ πρόσφορον. {ΟΡΘ.} Οὐκοῦν τὸν μὲν Ἄρειον πειρασόμεθα πεῖσαι μίαν τῆς ἁγίας τριάδος τὴν οὐσίαν ὁμολογεῖν, καὶ τούτου τὰς ἀποδείξεις προσ οίσομεν ἀπὸ τῆς θείας γραφῆς. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Οὕτω ποιητέον. {ΟΡΘ.} Τῷ δέ γε Σαβελλίῳ διαλεγόμενοι τοὐναντίον πράξομεν. 117 Περὶ μὲν γὰρ τῆς οὐσίας οὐδένα προσοίσομεν λόγον· μίαν γὰρ κἀκεῖ νος ὁμολογεῖ. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Σαφές. {ΟΡΘ.} Τὸ δέ γε νοσοῦν τῆς δόξης θεραπεῦσαι σπουδάσομεν. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Πάνυγε. {ΟΡΘ.} Ποίαν δὲ νοσεῖν αὐτὸν εἰρήκαμεν νόσον; {ΕΡΑΝ.} Περὶ τὰς ὑποστάσεις ἔφαμεν αὐτὸν χωλεύειν. {ΟΡΘ.} Οὐκοῦν ἐπειδὴ μίαν ἐκεῖνος εἶναι λέγει τῆς τριάδος ὑπό στασιν, ἐπιδείξομεν αὐτῷ τὴν θείαν γραφὴν τὰς τρεῖς ὑποστάσεις κη ρύττουσαν. {ΕΡΑΝ.} Τοῦτο μὲν οὕτω πρακτέον· τὸν δὲ προκείμενον καταλελοί παμεν λόγον. {ΟΡΘ.} Οὐδαμῶς. Αὐτοῦ γὰρ πέρι τὰς ἀποδείξεις συλλέγομεν, καὶ τοῦτο παραυτίκα μαθήσῃ. Εἰπὲ οὖν μοι, πάσας τὰς αἱρέσεις τὰς ἀπὸ Χριστοῦ καλουμένας ὁμολογεῖν ὑπείληφας καὶ