40

as of an only-begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth. And his namesake, I mean the Baptist, cries out, saying: After me comes a man who has come to be before me, because he was before me. And having shown the one person, he has set forth both the divine and the human things. For 'a man' and 'comes' are human, but 'because he was before me' is divine. But nevertheless he does not know one who comes after him and another who was before him, but he knows the same one to be pre-eternal as God, but a man born after him from the Virgin. So too the thrice-blessed Thomas, having brought his hand to the flesh of the Lord, named him Lord and God, perceiving the invisible nature through the visible one. So we too know the difference between his flesh and his divinity, but we know one Son, the incarnate God the Word. For we have been taught these things both from the divine Scripture and from the Fathers who interpreted it, Alexander and Athanasius, the great-voiced heralds of the truth, who adorned your apostolic throne, and Basil and Gregory and the other luminaries of the world; and that, using the writings of the blessed Theophilus and Cyril, we silence through these those who dare to speak against them, the writings themselves bear witness. For those who deny the difference between the Lord's flesh and his divinity, and who say that at one time the divine nature was turned into flesh, and at another that the flesh was changed into the nature of divinity, we are zealous to heal with the medicines of these wonderful men. For they clearly teach us the difference of the two natures and preach the unchangeable character of the divine nature, and they call the Lord's flesh divine, as having become the flesh of God the Word; but that it was changed into the nature of divinity they denounce as impious. And that Cyril of blessed and holy memory often wrote to us, I think your holiness also knows clearly. And when he sent the writings against Julian to Antioch, and likewise those written against the scapegoat, he asked the blessed John, the bishop of Antioch, to show them to the distinguished teachers throughout the East, and indeed the blessed John, yielding to the letters, sent the books to us, and having read them, we admired them and wrote to Cyril of blessed memory. And he wrote back to us again, attesting to our accuracy and disposition, and these letters are preserved with us. And that we twice subscribed to the tomes concerning Nestorius dictated by John of blessed memory, our hands bear witness. But these men spread these reports about us, trying to conceal their own disease by their slander against us. Therefore let your holiness turn away from those who speak falsehood and take thought for the peace of the church, and either heal with alexipharmic medicines those who dare to corrupt the doctrines of the truth, or, if they do not accept the cure, as being incurably disposed, drive them out from the flocks, so that the sheep may not partake of their pestilence; and deem us worthy of your customary salutation. For that what we think, we have written, is attested also by the things written by us both on the divine Scriptures and against those who hold the opinions of Arius and Eunomius. In addition to these things I also add a brief concluding statement: If anyone does not say the holy Virgin is Theotokos, or calls our Lord Jesus Christ a mere man, or divides the one Only-begotten and firstborn of all creation into two sons, let him fall from the hope in Christ, and all the people will say: So be it, so be it. These things having been thus said by us, deign, master, to grant me your holy prayers and to gladden me with a reply, showing that your holiness has turned away the slanderers.

40

ὡς μονογε νοῦς παρὰ πατρός, πλήρης χάριτος καὶ ἀληθείας . Καὶ ὁ τούτου δὲ ὁμώνυμος, ὁ Βαπτιστὴς φημί, βοᾷ λέγων· Ὀπίσω μου ἔρχεται ἀνὴρ ὃς ἐμπροσθέν μου γέγο νεν, ὅτι πρῶτός μου ἦν . Καὶ τὸ ἓν πρόσωπον δείξας ἀμφότερα τέθεικεν καὶ τὰ θεῖα καὶ τὰ ἀνθρώπεια. Ἀνθρώπειον μὲν γὰρ καὶ τὸ ἀνὴρ καὶ τὸ ἔρχεται , θεῖον δὲ τὸ ὅτι πρῶ τός μου ἦν . Ἀλλ' ὅμως οὐκ ἄλλον οἶδε τὸν ὀπίσω ἐρχόμενον καὶ ἄλλον τὸν πρὸ αὐτοῦ ὄντα, ἀλλὰ τὸν αὐτὸν οἶδεν προαιώ νιον μὲν ὡς θεόν, ἄνθρωπον δὲ μετ' αὐτὸν ἐκ τῆς Παρθένου τεχθέντα. Οὕτω καὶ ὁ τρισμακάριος Θωμᾶς τῇ τοῦ Κυρίου σαρκὶ τὴν χεῖρα προσενεγκὼν Κύριον ὠνόμασε καὶ Θεόν, διὰ τῆς ὁρωμένης φύσεως καταμαθὼν τὴν ἀόρατον. Οὕτω καὶ ἡμεῖς τῆς μὲν αὐτοῦ σαρκὸς καὶ τῆς θεότητος τὴν διαφορὰν ἐπιστάμεθα, ἕνα δὲ ἴσμεν Υἱὸν τὸν ἐνανθρωπήσαντα Θεὸν Λόγον. Ταῦτα γὰρ καὶ παρὰ τῆς θείας Γραφῆς ἐδιδάχθημεν καὶ παρὰ τῶν ταύτην ἡρμηνευκότων Πατέρων, Ἀλεξάνδρου καὶ Ἀθανασίου τῶν μεγαλοφώνων κηρύκων τῆς ἀληθείας, οἳ τὸν ἀποσ τολικὸν ὑμῶν διεκόσμησαν θρόνον, καὶ Βασιλείου καὶ Γρηγο ρίου καὶ τῶν ἄλλων τῆς οἰκουμένης φωστήρων· ὅτι δὲ καὶ τοῖς τῶν μακαρίων Θεοφίλου καὶ Κυρίλλου συγγράμμασιν κεχρημένοι τοὺς ἀντιλέγειν τολμῶντας καὶ διὰ τούτων ἐπιστομίζομεν, αὐτὰ μαρτυρεῖ τὰ γράμματα. Τοὺς γὰρ τῆς δεσποτικῆς σαρκὸς καὶ τῆς θεότητος τὴν διαφορὰν ἀρνουμένους καὶ ποτὲ μὲν τὴν θείαν φύσιν εἰς σάρκα τετράφθαι λέγοντας, ποτὲ δὲ τὴν σάρκα εἰς θεότητος μεταβεβλῆσθαι φύσιν, τοῖς τῶν θαυμασίων τούτων ἀνδρῶν φαρμάκοις θεραπεύειν σπου δάζομεν. Σαφῶς γὰρ καὶ τῶν δύο φύσεων ἡμᾶς τὴν διαφορὰν ἐκπαιδεύουσι καὶ τὸ ἄτρεπτον τῆς θείας κηρύττουσι φύσεως καὶ τὴν δεσποτικὴν σάρκα θείαν μὲν ἀποκαλοῦσιν, ὡς τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγου σάρκα γεγενημένην· τὸ δὲ εἰς θεότητος αὐτὴν μεταβεβλῆσθαι φύσιν, ὡς ἀσεβὲς ἀποκηρύττουσιν. Ὅτι δὲ καὶ ὁ τῆς μακαρίας καὶ ὁσίας μνήμης Κύριλλος πολλάκις ἡμῖν ἐπέστειλεν, οἶμαι καὶ τὴν σὴν εἰδέναι σαφῶς ἁγιότητα. Καὶ ἡνίκα δὲ τὰ κατὰ Ἰουλιανοῦ συγγράμματα εἰς τὴν Ἀντιόχειαν πέπομφεν, ὡσαύτως δὲ καὶ τὰ εἰς τὸν ἀπο πομπαῖον γραφέντα, τὸν μακάριον ᾔτησεν Ἰωάννην τὸν τῆς Ἀντιοχείας ἐπίσκοπον ἐπιδεῖξαι αὐτὰ τοῖς κατὰ τὴν Ἑῴαν διαπρέπουσι διδασκάλοις, καὶ δὴ τοῖς γράμμασιν εἴξας ὁ μακά ριος Ἰωάννης πέπομφεν ἡμῖν τὰς βίβλους καὶ ἀναγνόντες ἐθαυμάσαμεν καὶ ἐπεστείλαμεν τῷ τῆς μακαρίας μνήμης Κυρίλλῳ. Καὶ ἀντέγραψε πάλιν ἡμῖν καὶ ἀκρίβειαν ἡμῖν καὶ διάθεσιν μαρτυρῶν καὶ σώζεται παρ' ἡμῖν ταῦτα τὰ γράμματα. Ὅτι δὲ καὶ τοῖς περὶ Νεστορίου ὑπαγορευθεῖσι τόμοις ὑπὸ τοῦ τῆς μακαρίας μνήμης Ἰωάννου δὶς ὑπεγράψαμεν, μαρτυ ροῦσιν ἡμῶν αἱ χεῖρες. Ἀλλ' οὗτοι ταῦτα περὶ ἡμῶν θρυλοῦσι, τὴν οἰκείαν νόσον τῇ καθ' ἡμῶν συκοφαντίᾳ συσκιάζειν πει ρώμενοι. Ἀποστραφήτω τοίνυν ἡ ὁσιότης σου τοὺς λαλοῦντας τὸ ψεῦ δος καὶ τῆς ἐκκλησιαστικῆς φροντισάτω γαλήνης καὶ τοὺς διαφθείρειν τολμῶντας τῆς ἀληθείας τὰ δόγματα ἢ τοῖς ἀλε ξικάκοις θεραπευέτω φαρμάκοις ἢ τὴν θεραπείαν μὴ δεχομέ νους ὡς ἀνηκέστως διακειμένους τῶν ποιμνίων ἐξελασάτω, ἵνα μὴ τῆς ἐκείνων λώβης μεταλάχῃ τὰ πρόβατα· ἡμᾶς δὲ τῆς συνήθους ἀξιούτω προσρήσεως. Ὅτι γὰρ ἃ φρονοῦμεν γεγράφαμεν, μαρτυρεῖ καὶ τὰ παρ' ἡμῶν συγγραφέντα εἴς τε τὰς θείας Γραφὰς καὶ κατὰ τῶν τὰ Ἀρείου καὶ Εὐνομίου φρονούντων. Πρὸς δὲ τούτοις καὶ σύντομον ἀκροτελεύτιον τίθημι· Εἴ τις οὐ λέγει τὴν ἁγίαν Παρθένον Θεοτόκον ἢ ψιλὸν ἄνθρωπον ἀποκαλεῖ τὸν Κύριον ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦν Χριστὸν ἢ εἰς δύο υἱοὺς μερίζει τὸν ἕνα Μονογενῆ καὶ πρωτότοκον πάσης κτίσεως, ἐκπέσοι τῆς εἰς Χριστὸν ἐλπίδος καὶ ἐρεῖ πᾶς ὁ λαός· Γένοιτο, γένοιτο. Τούτων δὲ παρ' ἡμῶν οὕτως εἰρημένων τὰς ἱεράς σου εὐχὰς παρασχεῖν μοι, δέσποτα, καταξίωσον καὶ ἀντιγράφοις εὐφρᾶ ναι, δηλοῦσιν ὡς ἀπεστράφη σου ἡ ἁγιωσύνη τοὺς συκοφάν τας.