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14__310 FOURTH CENTURY 4.1 (a) First, the mind marvels when it conceives of the divine in every way

infinitude and that unsurpassable and much-desired sea. Second, it is astonished how He brought the existence of beings into being out of nothing. But just as there is no limit to His greatness, so too there is no finding out of His wisdom.

4.2 (b) For how can one not marvel when contemplating that boundless and astonishing sea of goodness? Or how can one not be amazed when conceiving how and from where both rational and intelligible substance came to be, and the four elements, from which bodies are made, when no pre-existing matter for their generation existed? And what was that power, which, having been moved to action, brought these things into being? But the children of the Greeks do not accept this, being ignorant of the all-powerful goodness and its active and supra-rational wisdom and knowledge.

4.3 (c) God, being Creator from eternity, creates when He wills by the consubstantial Word and Spirit, on account of His infinite goodness. And do not say: for what reason did He create now, being always good14__312? For I also tell you that the unsearchable wisdom of the infinite essence does not fall under human knowledge.

4.4 (d) The Creator of beings, when He willed, gave substance to and brought forth the knowledge pre-existing in Himself from eternity. But it is absurd to doubt concerning the almighty God whether He can give substance to something whenever He wills.

4.5 (e) Seek for what cause God created; for this is knowledge. But do not seek how and why recently; for it does not fall under your mind, because some divine things are comprehensible to humans, and some are incomprehensible. And unbridled contemplation would push one over a cliff, as one of the saints said.

4.6 (f) Some say that created things co-exist with God from eternity, which is impossible. For how can things that are in every way finite co-exist from eternity with that which is in every way infinite? Or how are they truly created things, if they are co-eternal with the Creator? But this is the argument of the Greeks, who introduce God as the creator not of substances at all, but of qualities only. But we, who have come to know the almighty God, say that He is the creator not of qualities, but of qualified substances. If this is so, created things do not co-exist with God from eternity.

4.7 (g) In one respect the divine and divine things are knowable, but in another respect unknowable; and knowable, on the one hand, in the theorems concerning it; but unknowable, on the other hand, in what it is in itself.

4.8 (h) Do not seek states and aptitudes in the simple and14__314 infinite essence of the Holy Trinity, lest you make it composite like created things; which is absurd and unlawful to conceive of God.

4.9 (i) Only the infinite, almighty, and creative essence of all things is simple and uniform and without quality and peaceful and without strife. But all creation is composite, being of substance and accident, and is always in need of divine providence, as it is not free from change.

4.10 (j) Every intelligible and sensible substance, having been brought into being by God, has received powers perceptive of beings: the intelligible substance, thoughts; the sensible substance, sensations.

4.11 (k) God only is participated in, but creation both participates and imparts; and it participates in being and in well-being, but imparts only well-being; but the corporeal substance does so in one way, and the incorporeal substance in another.

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14__310 ΕΚΑΤΟΝΤΑΣ ΤΕΤΑΡΤΗ 4.1 (α') Πρῶτον μὲν θαυμάζει ὁ νοῦς τὴν θείαν ἐννοούμενος κατὰ πάντα

ἀπειρίαν καὶ τὸ ἀνέκβατον ἐκεῖνο καὶ πολυπόθητον πέλαγος. ∆εύτερον δὲ ἐκπλήττεται πῶς ἐκ τοῦ μηδενὸς τῆς τῶν ὄντων εἰς τὸ εἶναι παρήγαγεν ὕπαρξιν. Ἀλλ᾽ ὥσπερ τῆς μεγαλωσύνης αὐτοῦ οὐκ ἔστι πέρας, οὕτως οὐδὲ τῆς φρονήσεως αὐτοῦ ἔστιν ἐξεύρεσις.

4.2 (β') Πῶς γὰρ οὐ θαυμάζει τὸ ἄπλετον ἐκεῖνο καὶ ὑπὲρ ἔκπληξιν θεωρῶν τῆς ἀγαθότητος πέλαγος; Ἢ πῶς οὐκ ἐξίσταται ἐννοούμενος πῶς καὶ πόθεν ἥ τε λογικὰ καὶ νοερὰ γέγονεν οὐσία καὶ τὰ τέσσαρα στοιχεῖα, ἐξ ὧν τὰ σώματα, μηδεμιᾶς ὕλης τῆς τούτων προϋπαρξάσης γενέσεως; Ποία τε ἡ δύναμις ἐκείνη, ἡ εἰς ἐνέργειαν κινηθεῖσα ταῦτα εἰς τὸ εἶναι παρήγαγεν; Ἀλλὰ τοῦτο Ἑλλήνων παῖδες οὐ παραδέχονται, ἀγνοοῦντες τὴν παντοδύναμον ἀγαθότητα καὶ τὴν δραστήριον αὐτῆς καὶ ὑπὲρ νοῦν σοφίαν καὶ γνῶσιν.

4.3 (γ') Ἐξ ἀϊδίου δημιουργὸς ὑπάρχων ὁ Θεός, ὅτε βούλεται δημιουργεῖ Λόγῳ ὁμοουσίῳ καὶ Πνεύματι δι᾽ ἄπειρον ἀγαθότητα. Καὶ μὴ εἴπῃς· τίνι λόγῳ νῦν ἐδημιούργησεν, ἀεὶ ἀγαθὸς 14__312 ὑπάρχων; Ἐπεί, κἀγώ σοι λέγω, ὅτι ἡ τῆς ἀπείρου οὐσίας ἀνεξιχνίαστος σοφία τῇ ἀνθρωπίνῃ οὐχ ὑποπίπτει γνώσει.

4.4 (δ') Τὴν ἐξ ἀϊδίου ἐν ἑαυτῷ ὁ ∆ημιουργὸς τῶν ὄντων προϋπάρχουσαν γνῶσιν, ὅτε ἐβουλήθη, οὐσίωσε καὶ προυβάλετο. Ἄτοπον δέ ἐστιν ἐπὶ Θεοῦ τοῦ παντοδυνάμου διστάσαι εἰ δύναταί τι οὐσιῶσαι, ὅτε βούλεται.

4.5 (ε') ∆ι᾽ ἣν μὲν αἰτίαν ὁ Θεὸς ἐδημιούργησε ζήτει· ἔστι γὰρ γνῶσις. Τὸ δὲ πῶς καὶ διὰ τί προσφάτως μὴ ζήτει· οὐκ ἔστι γὰρ τῷ σῷ ὑποπίπτουσα νῷ, διότι τῶν θείων τὰ μὲν ληπτά, τὰ δὲ ἄληπτα τοῖς ἀνθρώποις. Θεωρία δὲ ἀχαλίνωτος κατὰ κρημνὸν ὤσειεν, ὡς ἔφη τις τῶν ἁγίων.

4.6 (στ') Τινές φασι συνυπάρχειν ἐξ ἀϊδίου τῷ Θεῷ τὰ δημιουργήματα, ὅπερ ἀμήχανον. Πῶς γὰρ τῷ πάντη ἀπείρῳ τὰ κατὰ πάντα πεπερασμένα συνυπάρχειν δύναται ἐξ ἀϊδίου; Ἢ πῶς κυρίως δημιουργήματα, εἰ συναΐδια τῷ ∆ημιουργῷ; Ἀλλ᾽ οὗτος ὁ λόγος τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἐστίν, οἵτινες οὐσίας μὲν οὐδαμῶς, ποιοτήτων δὲ μόνον δημιουργὸν τὸν Θεὸν εἰσάγουσιν. Ἡμεῖς δὲ τὸν παντοδύναμον ἐγνωκότες Θεόν, οὐ ποιοτήτων, ἀλλ᾽ οὐσιῶν πεποιωμένων δημιουργὸν αὐτὸν εἶναί φαμεν. Εἰ δὲ τοῦτο, οὐκ ἐξ ἀϊδίου συνύπαρκτα τῷ Θεῷ τὰ δημιουργήματα.

4.7 (ζ') Κατά τι μὲν γνωστὸν τὸ θεῖον καὶ τὰ θεῖα, κατά τι δὲ ἄγνωστον· καὶ γνωστὸν μέν, τοῖς περὶ αὐτὸ θεωρήμασιν· ἄγνωστον δέ, τοῖς κατ᾽ αὐτό.

4.8 (η') Μὴ ἕξεις καὶ ἐπιτηδειότητας ζητήσῃς ἐπὶ τῆς ἁπλῆς καὶ 14__314 ἀπείρου οὐσίας τῆς ἁγίας Τριάδος, ἵνα μὴ σύνθετον αὐτὴν ποιήσῃς ὥσπερ τὰ κτίσματα· ὅπερ ἄτοπον καὶ ἀθέμιτον ἐπὶ Θεοῦ ἐννοῆσαι.

4.9 (θ') Μόνη ἁπλῆ καὶ μονοειδὴς καὶ ἄποιος καὶ εἰρηναία καὶ ἀστασίαστος ἡ ἄπειρος οὐσία καὶ παντοδύναμος καὶ δημιουργικὴ τῶν ὅλων. Πᾶσα δὲ ἡ κτίσις σύνθετος ὑπάρχει ἐξ οὐσίας καὶ συμβεβηκότος καὶ ἐπιδεὴς ἀεὶ τῆς θείας προνοίας, ὡς τροπῆς οὐκ ἐλευθέρα.

4.10 (ι') Πᾶσα ἡ νοερὰ οὐσία καὶ ἡ αἰσθητικὴ ἔλαβον δυνάμεις, παρὰ Θεοῦ εἰς τὸ εἶναι παραχθεῖσαι, ἀντιληπτικὰς τῶν ὄντων· ἡ μὲν νοερὰ τὰς νοήσεις, ἡ δὲ αἰσθητικὴ τὰς αἰσθήσεις.

4.11 (ια') Ὁ μὲν Θεὸς μετέχεται μόνον, ἡ δὲ κτίσις καὶ μετέχει καὶ μεταδίδωσι· καὶ μετέχει μὲν τοῦ εἶναι καὶ τοῦ εὖ εἶναι, μεταδίδωσι δὲ τοῦ εὖ εἶναι μόνον· ἀλλ᾽ ἑτέρως μὲν ἡ σωματική, ἑτέρως δὲ ἡ ἀσώματος οὐσία.