29

to this one we make the attribution of glory. 24.12 And since the Son has all things that are the Father's, and all the good things of the Son are contemplated in the Spirit, we find no difference in the holy Trinity with respect to the height of glory; for neither according to some bodily comparison is one higher and another lower —for that which is invisible and unformed is not comprehended by measure—, nor is difference found comparatively in the holy Trinity according to power or goodness, so as to say there is variation in these things on account of being more or less; for one who has said that one is stronger than the other has implicitly confessed that the one who is less in power is weaker than the more powerful, and this is of the utmost impiety, to conceive any suggestion of weakness or powerlessness, whether in a small or a greater degree, concerning the only-begotten God and concerning the Spirit of God; for the word of truth hands down that both the Son and the Spirit are perfect in power and goodness and incorruptibility and in all lofty conceptions. 24.13 If, therefore, the perfection of every good is piously confessed in each of the persons believed in the holy Trinity, it is not natural to call the same thing both perfect and again, by comparison, imperfect; for to say less according to the magnitude of power or of goodness is nothing other than to maintain that it is imperfect in this respect. If therefore the Son is perfect, and the Spirit is perfect, reason does not conceive of a perfect thing from a perfect thing as either less perfect or more perfect. 24.14 But also from the energies we learn the indivisibility of the glory. The Father gives life, as the Gospel said; the Son also gives life; and the Spirit also gives life, according to the testimony of the Lord who said that 24.15 It is the Spirit that gives life. It is fitting, therefore, to conceive of a power beginning from the Father and proceeding through the Son and being perfected in the Holy Spirit; for we have learned that all things are from God, and all things have their being through the only-begotten and in him, and that the power of the Spirit extends through all things, working all things in all as it wills, as the apostle says.

25.t To Amphilochius

25.1 I am already persuaded that I have succeeded, by the grace of God, in the zealous effort for the martyrium. Should you be willing; the thing eagerly sought will have its end by the power of God who is able to make the word a deed wherever he may speak. Since, as the apostle says, He who began a good work will also complete it, be entreated in this also to become an imitator of the great Paul and to bring our hopes to fruition and for us artisans 25.2 to send so many, so as to be sufficient for the work. And it would become known to your Perfection by calculation to what measure the whole work will be calculated; for which reason I will try to make clear to you the whole construction through the writing of this letter. 25.3 A cross is the shape of the oratory, being filled out, as is likely, by four chambers from all sides; but the junctions of the chambers meet each other, just as we see happens everywhere in the cruciform type. But a circle divided by eight angles is set in the cross; and I have called the octagonal shape a circle because of its circumference, so that the four sides of the octagon that lie opposite each other diametrically, through arches, to the four chambers lying beside it 25.4 join the circle in the middle. And the other four sides of the octagon extending between the square chambers, not even these will be extended continuously into chambers, but a semi-circle will be placed around each of these, resting spirally on top of an arch; so that there are eight arches in all, through which, side by side, both the squares and the semi-circles towards the middle 25.5 will have their connection. And inside the diagonal piers an equal number of columns will be set up for the sake of both order and strength; and these too will support above

29

τούτῳ τῆς δόξης ποιούμεθα τὴν ἀπόδοσιν. 24.12 καὶ ἐπεὶ πάντα μὲν τὰ τοῦ πατρὸς ὁ υἱὸς ἔχει, πάντα δὲ τὰ τοῦ υἱοῦ ἀγαθὰ ἐνθεωρεῖται τῷ πνεύματι, οὐδεμίαν εὑρίσκομεν ἐν τῇ ἁγίᾳ τριάδι κατὰ τὸ ὕψος τῆς δόξης πρὸς ἑαυτὴν διαφοράν· οὔτε γὰρ κατά τινα σωματικὴν σύγκρισιν τὸ μὲν ὑψηλότερόν ἐστι τὸ δὲ ταπεινότερον τὸ γὰρ ἀόρατον καὶ ἀσχημάτιστον μέτρῳ οὐ καταλαμβάνεται , οὔτε κατὰ δύναμιν ἢ ἀγαθότητα τὸ διάφορον συγκριτικῶς ἐπὶ τῆς ἁγίας τριάδος εὑρίσκεται, ὡς εἰπεῖν παρὰ τὸ πλεῖον καὶ ἔλαττον εἶναι ἐν τούτοις παραλλαγήν· ὁ γὰρ ἰσχυρότερον τὸ ἓν τοῦ ἑτέρου εἰπὼν κατὰ τὸ σιωπώμενον ὡμολόγησε τὸ ἐλαττούμενον ἐν τῇ δυνάμει ἀσθενέστερον εἶναι τοῦ δυνατωτέρου, τοῦτο δὲ τῆς ἐσχάτης ἀσεβείας ἐστὶν ἔμφασίν τινα ἀσθενείας ἢ ἀδυναμίας εἴτε ἐν ὀλίγῳ εἴτε ἐν πλείονι περὶ τὸν μονογενῆ θεὸν καὶ περὶ τὸ πνεῦμα τοῦ θεοῦ ἐννοεῖν· τέλειον γὰρ ἐν δυνάμει καὶ ἀγαθότητι καὶ ἀφθαρσίᾳ καὶ πᾶσι τοῖς ὑψηλοῖς νοήμασι καὶ τὸν υἱὸν καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα ὁ τῆς ἀληθείας παραδίδωσι λόγος. 24.13 εἰ οὖν παντὸς ἀγαθοῦ ἡ τελειότης <ἐφ'> ἑκάστου τῶν ἐν τῇ ἁγίᾳ τριάδι πιστευομένων προσώπων εὐσεβῶς ὁμολογεῖται, οὐκ ἔχει φύσιν τὸ αὐτὸ καὶ τέλειον λέγειν καὶ πάλιν διὰ συγκρίσεως ἀτελὲς ὀνομάζειν· τὸ γὰρ ἔλαττον <λέγειν> κατὰ τὸ μέγεθος τῆς δυνάμεως ἤτοι τῆς ἀγαθότητος οὐδὲν ἄλλο ἐστὶν ἢ ἀτελὲς εἶναι κατὰ τοῦτο διισχυρίζεσθαι. εἰ οὖν τέλειος ὁ υἱός, τέλειον καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα, τελείου τέλειον οὔτε ἀτελέστερον οὔτε τελειότερον ἐπινοεῖ ὁ λόγος. 24.14 Ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐκ τῶν ἐνεργειῶν τὸ ἀδιαίρετον τῆς δόξης καταμανθάνομεν. ζωοποιεῖ ὁ πατήρ, καθὼς ἔφη τὸ εὐαγγέλιον· ζωοποιεῖ καὶ ὁ υἱός· ζωοποιεῖ δὲ καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα κατὰ τὴν τοῦ κυρίου μαρτυρίαν τοῦ εἰπόντος ὅτι 24.15 Τὸ πνεῦμά ἐστι τὸ ζωοποιοῦν. προσήκει οὖν δύναμιν ἐκ πατρὸς ἀρχομένην καὶ δι' υἱοῦ προϊοῦσαν καὶ ἐν πνεύματι ἁγίῳ τελειουμένην νοεῖν· ἐμάθομεν γὰρ πάντα ἐκ θεοῦ εἶναι, καὶ πάντα διὰ τοῦ μονογενοῦς καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ συνεστάναι, καὶ διὰ πάντων διήκειν τὴν τοῦ πνεύματος δύναμιν, πάντα ἐν πᾶσι καθὼς βούλεται ἐνεργοῦσαν, ὥς φησιν ὁ ἀπόστολος.

25.τ Ἀμφιλοχίῳ

25.1 Ἤδη μοι πέπεισμαι κατορθώσασθαι κατὰ θεοῦ χάριν τὴν ἐπὶ τῷ

μαρτυρίῳ σπουδήν. θελήσειας· πέρας τὸ σπουδαζόμενον ἕξει τῇ δυνάμει τοῦ θεοῦ ἔργον ποιῆσαι δυναμένου τὸν λόγον ᾗ ἂν εἴπῃ. ἐπειδή, καθώς φησιν ὁ ἀπόστολος, Ὁ ἐναρξάμενος ἔργον ἀγαθὸν καὶ ἐπιτελέσει, παρακλήθητι καὶ ἐν τούτῳ μιμητὴς γενέσθαι τοῦ μεγάλου Παύλου καὶ εἰς ἔργον ἡμῖν προαγαγεῖν τὰς ἐλπίδας καὶ τεχνίτας ἡμῖν 25.2 τοσούτους πέμψαι, ὥστε ἱκανοὺς πρὸς τὸ ἔργον εἶναι. γένοιτο δ' ἂν ἐκ συλλογισμοῦ τῇ τελειότητί σου γνώριμον εἰς ὅσον μέτρον ἅπαν τὸ ἔργον συλλογισθήσεται· οὗ χάριν φανεράν σοι ποιῆσαι πειράσομαι πᾶσαν τὴν κατασκευὴν διὰ τῆς τοῦ λόγου γραφῆς. 25.3 Σταυρός ἐστι τοῦ εὐκτηρίου τὸ σχῆμα τέσσαρσιν, ὡς εἰκός, οἴκοις ἁπανταχόθεν ἀναπληρούμενος· ἀλλὰ καταλαμβάνουσιν ἀλλήλας αἱ συμβολαὶ τῶν οἴκων, ὥσπερ ὁρῶμεν πανταχοῦ ἐν τῷ σταυροειδεῖ τύπῳ γινόμενον. ἀλλ' ἔγκειται τῷ σταυρῷ κύκλος ὀκτὼ γωνίαις διειλημμένος· κύκλον δὲ διὰ τὸ περιφερὲς ὠνόμασα τὸ ὀκτάγωνον σχῆμα, ὥστε τὰς τέσσαρας τοῦ ὀκταγώνου πλευρὰς τὰς ἐκ διαμέτρων ἀλλήλαις ἀντικειμένας δι' ἁψίδων τοῖς τετραχῇ παρακειμένοις 25.4 οἴκοις τὸν ἐν τῷ μέσῳ συνάπτειν κύκλον. αἱ δὲ ἄλλαι τέσσαρες τοῦ ὀκταγώνου πλευραὶ αἱ μεταξὺ τῶν τετραγώνων οἴκων διήκουσαι, οὐδὲ αὐταὶ κατὰ τὸ συνεχὲς εἰς οἴκους ἀποταθήσονται, ἀλλ' ἑκάστῃ τούτων ἡμικύκλιον περικείσεται κοχλοειδῶς κατὰ τὸ ἄνω ἐπὶ ἁψῖδος ἀναπαυόμενον· ὥστε ὀκτὼ γενέσθαι ἁψῖδας τὰς πάσας, δι' ὧν ἐκ παραλλήλου τὰ τετράγωνά τε καὶ ἡμικύκλια πρὸς τὸ μέσον 25.5 τὴν συνάφειαν ἕξει. ἔσωθεν δὲ τῶν διαγωνίων πεσσῶν ἰσάριθμοι παραστήσονται κίονες εὐκοσμίας τε καὶ ἰσχύος χάριν· ἀνέξουσι δὲ καὶ οὗτοι ὑπὲρ