37

what they dogmatized through the exposition, they invalidated through the Typus; and they deposed themselves so many times. Those, therefore, who have been condemned by themselves and by the Romans, and deposed by the synod that took place after these things in the eighth indiction, what sort of sacred mystery will they perform? or what spirit visits those things performed by such men? And they say to him: Are you alone saved, and all others perishing? And he said: (121) The three youths condemned no one for not worshiping the image, when all men were worshiping it. For they were not considering the affairs of others, but were considering how they themselves might not fall away from true piety. So too Daniel, when cast into the den of lions, did not condemn anyone who did not pray to God according to the decree of Darius, but considered his own situation; and he chose to die rather than to fall away from God and be scourged by his own conscience for the transgression of the laws of nature. And so may God not grant that I condemn anyone, or say that I alone am saved. But I choose to die, rather than to have a disturbance in my conscience, that I have erred in any way concerning the faith in God.

7. They say to him: And what will you do, when the Romans are united with the Byzantines?

For behold, yesterday the apocrisiaries of Rome arrived, and tomorrow, on Sunday, they will be in communion with the patriarch; and it is clear to all that you were perverting the Romans; indeed, when you were removed from there, they came to an agreement with those here. And he said to them: Those who have come create no precedent against the throne of Rome, even if they enter communion, since they did not bring a letter to the patriarch; and I am not at all persuaded that the Romans are united with those here, unless they confess our Lord and God, in each of the natures from which, in which, and which He is, to be by nature willing and active for our salvation. And they say: But if the Romans come to terms with those here, what will you do? And he said: The Holy Spirit, through the Apostle, anathematizes even angels who legislate anything contrary to the proclamation.

8. And they say: Is it absolutely necessary that wills and energies be spoken of in Christ?

He answered: It is absolutely necessary, if indeed we wish to be pious according to the truth. For none of the things that exist subsists without a natural energy. For the holy Fathers clearly say: that any nature whatsoever neither exists nor is known without its own essential energy. But if a nature neither exists nor is known without the energy that essentially characterizes it, how is it possible for Christ to exist, or be known as truly God and man by nature, without the divine and human energy? For a lion, according to the Fathers, having lost the power of roaring, is not a lion; and a dog, having lost the power of barking, is not a dog. And anything else that has lost that which naturally constitutes it, is no longer what it was. And they say to him: We know indeed that it was so; but do not grieve the emperor, who made the Typus for the sake of peace alone, not for the abolition of any of the things conceived of in Christ; but for the sake of peace, (124) dispensing a silence on the expressions that cause division.

9. And the servant of God, casting himself on the ground with tears: He ought not to have been

grieved, the good and pious lord, at my lowliness. For I cannot grieve God by being silent about those things which He Himself commanded to be spoken and confessed. For if, according to the divine Apostle, it is he who placed in the

37

ἐδογμάτισαν διά τῆς ἐκθέσεως, διά τοῦ τύπου ἠκύρωσαν· καί καθεῖλαν ἑαυτούς τοσαυτάκις. Οἱ τοίνυν ὑφ' ἑαυτῶν κατακριθέντες καί ὑπό τῶνῬωμαίων, καί τῆς μετά ταῦτα ἐπί τῆς ὀγδόης ἰνδικτιῶνος γενομένης συνόδου καθαιρεθέντες, ποίαν ἐπιτελέσουσι μυσταγωγίαν· ἤ ποῖον πνεῦμα τοῖς παρά τῶν τοιούτων ἐπιτελουμένοις ἐπιφοιτᾷ; Καί λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· Σύ μόνος σώζῃ, καί πάντες ἀπόλλυνται; Καί εἶπεν· (121) Οὔδένα κατέκριναν οἱ τρεῖς παῖδες μή προσκυνήσαντες τῇ εἰκόνι, πάντων ἀνθρώπων προσκυνούντων. Οὐ γάρ ἐσκόπουν τά τῶν ἄλλων, ἀλλ' ἐσκόπουν ὅπως ἄν αὐτοί μή ἐκπέσωσι τῆς ἀληθοῦς εὐσεβείας. Οὕτω καί ∆ανιήλ βληθείς εἰς τόν λάκκον τῶν λεόντων, οὐ κατέκρινέ τινα τῶν μή προσευξαμένων τῷ Θεῷ κατά τό θέσπισμα ∆αρείου, ἀλλά τό ἴδιον ἐσκόπησε· καί εἵλετο ἀποθανεῖν, καί μή παραπεσεῖν τῷ Θεῷ, καί ὑπό τῆς ἰδίας μαστιγωθῆναι συνειδήσεως, ἐπί τῇ παραβάσει τῶν φύσει νομίμων. Κἀμοί οὖν μή δῷ ὁ Θεός κατακρῖναί τινα, ἤ εἰπεῖν, ὅτι ἐγώ μόνος σώζομαι. Αἱροῦμαι δέ ἀποθανεῖν, ἤ θρόησιν ἔχειν κατά τό συνειδός, ὅτι περί τήν εἰς Θεός πίστιν παρεσφάλην καθ' οἱονδήποτε τρόπον.

Ζ´. Λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· Καί τί ἔχεις ποιῆσαι, τῶνῬωμαίων ἑνουμένων τοῖς Βυζαντίοις;

Ἰδού γάρ χθές ἦλθον οἱ ἀποκρισιάριοιῬώμης, καί αὔριον τῇ Κυριακῇ κοινωνοῦσι τῷ πατριάρχη· καί πᾶσι δῆλον γίνεται, ὅτι σύ διέστρεφες τούςῬωμαίους· ἀμέλει σοῦ ἀπαρθέντος ἐκεῖθεν, συνέθεντο τοῖς ἐνταῦθα. Καί εἶπε πρός αὐτούς· Οἱ ἐλθόντες, οἱονδήποτε πρόκριμα τῷ θρόνῳῬώμης, κἄν κοινωνήσωσιν, ἐπάν οὐκ ἤγαγον πρός τόν πατριάρχην ἐπιστολήν, οὐ ποιοῦσι· καί οὐ πείθομαι πάντως ὅτι οἱῬωμαῖοι ἑνοῦνται τοῖς ἐνταῦθα, εἰ μή ὁμολογήσωσι τόν Κύριον ἡμῶν καί Θεόν, καθ' ἑκατέραν τῶν ἐξ ὧν, ἐν οἷς τε καί ἅπερ ἐστίν, εἶναι φύσει θελητικόν τε καί ἐνεργητικόν τῆς ἡμῶν σωτηρίας. Καί λέγουσιν· Εἰ δέ συμβιβασθῶσι τοῖς ἐνταῦθα οἱῬωμαῖοι, τί ποιεῖς; Καί εἶπε· Τό Πνεῦμα τό ἅγιον διά τοῦ Ἀποστόλου, καί ἀγγέλους ἀναθεματίζει παρά τό κήρυγμά τι νομοθετοῦντας.

Η´. Καί λέγουσι· Πάντως ἀνάγκη ἐστί, θελήσεις λέγεσθαι ἐπί Χριστοῦ καί ἐνεργείας;

Ἀπεκρίθη· Πᾶσα ἀνάγκη, εἴπερ εὐσεβεῖν κατά ἀλήθειαν θέλωμεν. Οὔδέν γάρ τῶν ὄντων χωρίς ἐνεργείας φυσικῆς ὑφέστηκεν. Οἱ γάρ ἅγιοι Πατέρες φανερῶς λέγουσι· Μήτε εἶναι, ἤ γινώσκεσθαι χωρίς τῆς οὐσιώδους αὐτῆς ἐνεργείας τήν οἱανδήποτε φύσιν. Εἰ δέ οὔτε ἔστιν, οὔτε γινώσκεται φύσις, ἄνευ τῆς αὐτήν οὐσιωδῶς χαρακτηριζούσης ἐνεργείας, πῶς εἶναι τόν Χριστόν, ἤ γνωρίζεσθαι Θεόν ἀληθῶς φύσει καί ἄνθρωπον, ἄνευ τῆς θεϊκῆς καί ἀνθρωπίνης ἐνεργείας, ἐστί δυνατόν; Ἀπολέσας γάρ, κατά τούς Πατέρας, τό βρυχικόν ὁ λέων, οὐκ ἔστι λέων· καί κύων τό ὑλακτικόν οὐκ ἔστι κύων. Καί ἄλλο τό οἱονοῦν τό φυσικῶς αὐτοῦ συστατικόν ἀπολέσας, οὐκ ἔστιν ἔτι ὅπερ ἦν. Καί λέγουσιν αὐτῷ· Οἴδαμεν ὄντως ὅτι οὕτως ἦν· πλήν μή λυπήσῃς τόν βασιλέα, διά τήν εἰρήνην καί μόνον ποιήσαντα τόν τύπον, οὐκ ἐπ' ἀναιρέσει τινός τῶν ἐπί Χριστοῦ νοουμένων· ἀλλ' ἐπί εἰρήνῃ τήν (124) σιωπήν τῶν ποιουσῶν τήν διάστασιν φωνῶν οἰκονομοῦντα.

Θ´. Καί ῥίψας ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ δοῦλος ἑαυτόν εἰς τήν γῆν μετά δακρύων· Οὔκ ὤφειλε

λυπηθῆναι ὁ ἀγαθός καί εὐσεβής δεσπότης κατά τῆς ἐμῆς ταπεινώσεως. Οὐ γάρ δύναμαι λυπῆσαι τόν Θεόν σιωπῶν, ἅπερ αὐτός λαλεῖσθαι καί ὁμολογεῖσθαι προσέταξεν. Εἰ γάρ κατά τόν θεῖον Ἀπόστολον, αὐτός ἔστιν ὁ θέμενος ἐν τῇ