Georgius Pachymeres, Chronicle II

being led. Do we not say the Father begot the Son? Does not Arius live again, conceiving a blink and an indivisible moment of time between the begetter and the begotten. But we avoid the blasphemy, and we stand by the boundaries of piety, both confessing what is of the scriptures and not accepting that which has an evil sound." Thereupon George Moschampar, who was then chartophylax of the church, said the saying was spurious. But also to him the great logothete, holding his head near, so that others would not hear, says, "And how, O you, shall we seem to speak strongly, making our defense thus? Since in the book of the sacred Panoply the saying lies word for word as a saying of a saint and of the great Damascene." But he said clearly to those who spoke against him, "I accept that the saying is from a saint, however I will not confess that the Spirit has its cause from the Father through the Word and the Son. For in this way I would speak even more hazardously than those who say the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son, 93 inasmuch as there, with the same preposition applying equally to the two, even according to the equal honor of the hypostases, the sameness of the prepositions being applied is somehow naturally able to mitigate the banefulness of the audacity, whereas here the difference of the prepositions, creating also a different meaning of the phrase, will introduce a very great difference in the one and same procession of the Spirit from the divine hypostases, as if the Father were one cause and the Son another, than which what could be worse?" When he had spoken thus and seemed to speak very forcefully, those who were unable to defend themselves against these things said only, "And why do you say these things to us? Say them to the one who said it. And if you think the one from Damascus speaks empty words, but if you accept his word, why are we accused of heresy, if we are doing the same things as you and we ourselves also honor the word as the word of a saint?" "One honors the holy gospel," says the patriarch, "when one says the Father is greater than the Son. But this alone is not sufficient, unless the God-given saying is also interpreted correctly. What then if you, while accepting the saying, distort its underlying meaning? And besides, the sayings of the saints are interconnected and interwoven, since they were spoken in different ways from one and the same simple Spirit. Show, therefore, this 94 word, which you speak of, being supported also by others. But if you do not have such support, as indeed you do not, what else does such a subtle thought intend if not to distort the saying toward a meaning foreign to and dissonant with the common understanding of the fathers?" When the patriarch had said these things, and had made his stand very nobly, they, having failed on the second point, made their defense on the first, saying, "The saying of the gospel, good sir, has its own suitable exegesis from the fathers, and wicked in every way is he who does not accept it. But this saying set before us is necessarily significant of a meaning. Show therefore the exegesis, and we will follow. If not, then you speak, since you do not accept ours, and we will listen." "They," says the patriarch, "explain the saying, who indeed say that the Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father." "And who does not hold this?" they say. "This is dear to us also and a hope of salvation." "And if you accept this," says the great logothete, "why do you put forward that other thing?" "Because the time demanded to say these things for the peace of the nations," they say. "But now," says Bekkos, "if you wish, we must be silent about the saying that seems to have much audacity in it. But if not, for those accused of transgression concerning sacred dogmas, the charge is, I think, a lesser one to 95 defend. And so attend to me, my lord," he says, "great logothete. For I see you (and I do not say this to flatter) using the rules of dialectic and conversing as is fitting." "But do not flatter," that one says, interrupting. "May it not be," he said. "But for me there is great fear in imaging the un-imageable, but in following what the saints say, holding fast in every way to the rampart, I shall have safety in whatever I may also say. They bring forward sun, ray, and light as an image of the un-imageable things, and again, the eye of a spring, water, and river. Do not the theologian fathers speak thus concerning the blessed Trinity? Behold, therefore,

αγόμενον. οὐ λέγομεν ἐγέννησεν ὁ πατὴρ τὸν υἱόν; οὐκ ἀναζῇ Ἄρειος, ἐννοῶν ῥιπὴν καὶ ἄτομον χρόνου μέσον τοῦ γεννῶντος καὶ τοῦ γεννωμένου. ἀλλὰ τὸ βλάσφημον ἀποφεύγομεν, ἱστά μεθα δὲ καὶ ὅροις τῆς εὐσεβείας, καὶ τὸ τῶν γραφῶν ὁμολογοῦν τες καὶ τὸ κακεμφαῖνον οὐ παραδεχόμενοι." ἐντεῦθεν ὁ Μοσκάμ παρ Γεώργιος, χαρτοφύλαξ ὢν τῆς ἐκκλησίας τότε, νόθον ἔλεγε τὸ ῥητόν. ἀλλὰ καὶ πρὸς αὐτὸν ὁ μέγας λογοθέτης, ἄγχι σχὼν κεφαλήν, ἵνα μὴ πυθοίατο ἄλλοι, "καὶ πῶς, ὦ οὗτος", φη σίν, "ἰσχυρῶς λέγειν δόξομεν οὕτως ἀπολογούμενοι; ἐπεὶ ἐν τῇ βίβλῳ τῆς ἱερᾶς ὁπλοθήκης κατὰ ῥῆμα κεῖται τὸ ῥητὸν ὡς ἁγίου ῥητὸν καὶ τοῦ μεγάλου ∆αμασκηνοῦ." ἀλλὰ τρανῶς πρὸς τοὺς ἀντιλέγοντας ἔλεγεν ὡς "δέχομαι μὲν τὸ ῥητὸν ἁγίου εἶναι, πλὴν οὐχ ὁμολογήσω τὸ πνεῦμα διὰ λόγου τε καὶ υἱοῦ τὴν αἰτίαν ἐκ τοῦ πατρός. οὕτω γὰρ καὶ παραβολώτερον εἴποιμι τῶν ἐκ πατρὸς καὶ υἱοῦ λεγόντων τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ἐκπορεύεσθαι, 93 παρ' ὅσον ἐκεῖ μὲν τῆς αὐτῆς προθέσεως ἐπ' ἴσης κειμένης καὶ τοῖς δυσί, κἂν κατὰ τὴν ἰσοτιμίαν τῶν ὑποστάσεων, τὸ ταὐτὸν τῶν προθέσεων κείμενον τὸ ἀτηρὸν τῆς τόλμης ἀμηγέπη πέφυκεν ἐπειλύειν, ἐνταῦθα δὲ τὸ διάφορον τῶν προθέσεων, διάφορον καὶ τὴν ἔννοιαν τῆς λέξεως ἐργαζόμενον, διαφορὰν παραστήσει μεγίστην ἐπὶ τῆς αὐτῆς καὶ μιᾶς προόδου τοῦ πνεύματος τῶν θεαρχικῶν ὑποστάσεων, ὡς ἄλλην μὲν αἰτίαν εἶναι τὸν πατέρα ἄλλην δὲ τὸν υἱόν, οὗ τί ἂν εἴη τὸ χείριστον;" οὕτως εἰπόντος καὶ ἰσχυρὰ πάνυ δόξαντος λέγειν, ἐκείνους μὴ δυναμένους ἀπο λογεῖσθαι πρὸς ταῦτα μόνον λέγειν "καὶ τί πρὸς ἡμᾶς λέγεις ταῦτα; λέγε πρὸς τὸν εἰπόντα· καὶ εἰ μὲν κενοφωνεῖν οἴει τὸν ∆αμασκόθεν, εἰ δὲ τὸν λόγον δέχῃ, ἵνα τί ἡμεῖς ἐν αἱρέσει κα τηγορούμεθα, εἰ ταὐτά σοι πράττομεν καὶ τὸν λόγον καὶ αὐτοὶ ὡς ἁγίου λόγον τιμῶμεν;" "τιμᾷ τις τὸ ἱερὸν εὐαγγέλιον," ὁ πατριάρχης φησί, "λέγων μείζονα τοῦ υἱοῦ τὸν πατέρα. ἀλλ' οὐχ ἱκανὸν τοῦτο καὶ μόνον, εἰ μὴ καὶ ὀρθῶς ἐξηγοῖτο τὸ θεο παράδοτον λόγιον. τί γοῦν εἰ καὶ ὑμεῖς δεχόμενοι τὸ ῥητὸν στρεβλοῦτε τὴν ὑπονόησιν; ἄλλως τε δὲ καὶ ἀλληλένδετά εἰσι τὰ τῶν ἁγίων ῥητὰ καὶ ἀλληλόπλοκα, ἐπεὶ καὶ ἐξ ἑνὸς καὶ ἁπλοῦ πνεύματος διαφόρως ἐρρέθησαν. δεῖξον τοίνυν τὸν λόγον τοῦ 94 τον, ὃν ὑμεῖς λέγετε, συγκροτούμενον καὶ ἐξ ἄλλων. εἰ δ' οὐκ ἔχετε, καθὼς ἄρα οὐδ' ἔχετε, τί ἄλλο βούλεται ἡ τοιαύτη περι νόησις εἰ μὴ στρεβλοῦν τὸ ῥῆμα πρὸς διάνοιαν ξένην τῆς κοινῆς τῶν πατέρων ἐννοίας καὶ ἀπεμφαίνουσαν;" ταῦτ' εἰπόντος τοῦ πατριάρχου, καὶ μάλα γενναίως ἐνστάντος, ἐκεῖνοι πρὸς τὸ δεύ τερον ἀτονήσαντες πρὸς τὸ πρῶτον ἀπελογοῦντο, "τὸ μὲν τοῦ εὐαγγελίου ῥητόν, ὦ τᾶν," λέγοντες, "ἰδίαν ἔχει παρὰ τῶν πα τέρων τὴν ἐξήγησιν πρόσφορον, καὶ κακὸς πάντως ὁ μὴ ταύτην δεχόμενος· τὸ δὲ προκείμενον τοῦτο ῥητὸν ἐξ ἀνάγκης σημαντι κὸν ἐννοίας ἐστί. δείκνυε τοιγαροῦν τὴν ἐξήγησιν, καὶ ἡμεῖς ἑψόμεθα. εἰ δ' οὖν, ἀλλὰ σὺ λέγε, ἐπεὶ τὴν ἡμετέραν οὐ πα ραδέχῃ, καὶ ἀκουσόμεθα." "ἐκεῖνοι τὸ ῥητὸν" φησὶν ὁ πα τριάρχης "ἐξηγοῦνται, οἳ δὴ ἐκ πατρός φασι τὸ πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον ἐκπορεύεσθαι." "καὶ τίς οὐ φρονεῖ τοῦτο;" φασίν. "τοῦτο καὶ ἡμῖν ἀγαπητὸν καὶ σωτηρίας ἐλπίς." "καὶ εἰ δέχεσθε τοῦτο" ὁ μέγας λογοθέτης φησί, "τί ἐκεῖνο προβάλλεσθε;" ὅτι καιρὸς ἀπῄτει εἰς ἐθνῶν εἰρήνην τὸ ταῦτα λέγειν" φασί. "νῦν δὲ" φη σὶν ὁ Βέκκος, "εἰ μὲν βούλεσθε, σιγητέον ἡμῖν τὸ ῥῆμα πολὺ τὸ τολμηρὸν ἔχειν δοκοῦν. εἰ δ' οὖν, ἀλλὰ παραβασίας περὶ τὰ ἱερὰ ἐγκαλουμένοις δόγματα αἰτία, ὡς οἶμαι, μείων ἀπολο 95 γεῖσθαι. καὶ δὴ πρόσχες μοι, κύριέ μου," φησί, "μέγα λογο θέτα· σὲ γὰρ ὁρῶ (καὶ οὐχ ὑποτρέχων λέγω) διαλεκτικοῖς κανόσι χρώμενον καὶ κατὰ τὸ προσῆκον διαλεγόμενον." "ἀλλὰ μὴ θώ πευε" ἐγκόψας φησὶν ἐκεῖνος. "μὴ γένοιτο" ἔφη. "ἀλλ' ἐμοὶ μὲν ἐξεικονίζειν τὰ ἀνεικόνιστα φόβος μέγας, τῶν δὲ ἁγίων λε γόντων ἕπεσθαι, ἐχόμενος πάντως τοῦ προτειχίσματος, ἀσφα λῶς ἕξω ἐς ὅ τι καὶ λέξω. ἥλιον ἀκτῖνα καὶ φῶς τῶν ἀνεικονί στων εἰκόνα φέρουσι, καὶ αὖθις ὀφθαλμὸν πηγῆς, ὕδωρ καὶ πο ταμόν. οὐχ οὕτω λέγουσιν ἐπὶ τῆς μακαρίας τριάδος οἱ θεολό γοι πατέρες; ἰδοὺ γοῦν,