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we worship with the Holy Spirit, incorporeal before the Incarnation and now the same one incarnate and made man while being God. His flesh, therefore, according to its own nature, if you separate with subtle thoughts the visible from the intelligible, is not to be worshipped as a created thing, but having been united to God the Word, through him and in him it is worshipped. For in the same way that a king is worshipped both naked and clothed, and the purple, when it is mere purple, is trodden upon and cast aside, but having become a royal garment is honored and glorified and, if anyone should treat it with contempt, he is usually condemned to death, and as a mere piece of wood is not unapproachable to the touch, but having associated with fire and become charcoal, not through itself, but through the united fire it becomes unapproachable, and it is not the nature of the wood that is unapproachable, but the charcoal, that is, the ignited wood, so the flesh, according to its own nature, is not to be worshipped, but it is worshipped in the incarnate God the Word, not for its own sake, but because of God the Word united to it hypostatically, and we do not say that we worship mere flesh, but the flesh of God, that is, God incarnate.

77 Why the Son became incarnate and not the Father nor the Spirit and what

by becoming man he achieved. Father is the Father and not Son, Son is the Son and not Father, Holy Spirit is the Spirit and not Father nor Son; for the property is unchangeable. Or how could a property be moveable and changing? For this reason the Son of God becomes the Son of Man, so that the property may remain unchangeable; for being Son of God, he became Son of Man by being incarnate of the holy Virgin, and did not depart from his own property. But the Son of God became man so that He might again grant him that for which He made man; for He made him in His own image, intelligent and with free will, and in His likeness, that is, perfect in virtues as is possible for human nature; for these are, as it were, the characteristics of the divine nature: freedom from care, from distraction, and from harm, goodness, wisdom, justice, freedom from all evil. Having therefore placed man in communion with himself ("for he created him for incorruption"), through communion with himself he led him up to incorruption. But since through the transgression of the commandment we both darkened and confused the characteristics of the divine image, and having come into evil were stripped of divine communion ("for what fellowship has light with darkness?"), and having fallen outside of life, we fell under the corruption of death, since he gave us of the better and we did not keep it, he partakes of the worse, I mean our nature, so that through himself and in himself he might renew that which is according to the image and likeness, and teach us a virtuous way of life and make this easy for us to follow through himself, and through communion in life might free us from corruption, becoming the first-fruits of our resurrection and might renew the useless and shattered vessel, in order to ransom us from the tyranny of the devil, having called us to the knowledge of God, and to strengthen and train us through patience and humility to wrestle down the tyrant. So the worship of demons has ceased, creation has been sanctified by the divine blood, altars and temples of idols have been destroyed, the knowledge of God has been planted, the consubstantial Trinity, the uncreated Godhead, is worshipped, one true God, creator of all things and Lord; virtues are practiced, the hope of resurrection has been given through the resurrection of Christ, demons shudder at the men who were once their subjects, and what is wonderful is that all these things have been achieved through the cross and sufferings and death; the gospel of the knowledge of God has been preached to all the earth, not by turning back enemies with war and weapons and armies, but a few poor, unlettered men, persecuted, tortured, put to death, proclaiming one crucified in the flesh and dead, have prevailed over the wise and powerful; for the almighty power of the Crucified followed them. Death, once most fearsome

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ἁγίῳ πνεύματι προσκυνοῦμεν, ἀσώματον μὲν πρὸ τῆς ἐνανθρωπήσεως καὶ νῦν τὸν αὐτὸν σεσαρκωμένον καὶ γενόμενον ἄνθρωπον μετὰ τοῦ εἶναι θεόν. Ἡ τοίνυν σὰρξ αὐτοῦ κατὰ μὲν τὴν ἑαυτῆς φύσιν, ἂν διέλῃς ἰσχναῖς ἐπινοίαις τὸ ὁρώμενον ἐκ τοῦ νοουμένου, ἀπροσκύνητός ἐστιν ὡς κτιστή, ἑνωθεῖσα δὲ τῷ θεῷ λόγῳ δι' αὐτὸν καὶ ἐν αὐτῷ προσκυνεῖται. Ὅνπερ γὰρ τρόπον ὁ βασιλεὺς καὶ γυμνὸς προσκυνεῖται καὶ ἐνδεδυμένος, καὶ ἡ ἁλουργὶς ὡς μὲν ψιλὴ ἁλουργὶς πατεῖται καὶ περιρρίπτεται, βασιλικὸν δὲ γενομένη ἔνδυμα τιμᾶται καὶ δοξάζεται καί, εἴ τις αὐτὴν παροικτρώσειε, θανάτῳ ὡς τὰ πολλὰ κατακρίνεται, ὡς δὲ καὶ ξύλον ψιλὸν οὐκ ἔστι τῇ ἁφῇ ἀπρόσιτον, πυρὶ δὲ προσομιλῆσαν καὶ ἄνθραξ γενόμενον οὐ δι' ἑαυτό, διὰ δὲ τὸ συνημμένον πῦρ ἀπρόσιτον γίνεται καὶ οὐχ ἡ τοῦ ξύλου φύσις ὑπάρχει ἀπρόσιτος, ἀλλ' ὁ ἄνθραξ ἤτοι τὸ πεπυρωμένον ξύλον, οὕτως ἡ σὰρξ κατὰ μὲν τὴν ἑαυτῆς φύσιν οὐκ ἔστι προσκυνητή, προσκυνεῖται δὲ ἐν τῷ σεσαρκωμένῳ θεῷ λόγῳ οὐ δι' ἑαυτήν, ἀλλὰ διὰ τὸν ἡνωμένον αὐτῇ καθ' ὑπόστασιν θεὸν λόγον, καὶ οὔ φαμεν, ὅτι σάρκα προσκυνοῦμεν ψιλήν, ἀλλὰ σάρκα θεοῦ ἤτοι σεσαρκωμένον θεόν.

77 ∆ιὰ τί ὁ υἱὸς ἐνηνθρώπησε καὶ οὐχ ὁ πατὴρ οὐδὲ τὸ πνεῦμα καὶ τί

ἐνανθρωπήσας κατώρθωσεν Πατὴρ ὁ πατὴρ καὶ οὐχ υἱός, υἱὸς ὁ υἱὸς καὶ οὐ πατήρ, πνεῦμα ἅγιον τὸ πνεῦμα καὶ οὐ πατὴρ οὐδὲ υἱός· ἡ γὰρ ἰδιότης ἀκίνητος. Ἢ πῶς ἂν ἰδιότης εἴη κινουμένη καὶ μεταπίπτουσα; ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου γίνεται, ἵνα μείνῃ ἡ ἰδιότης ἀκίνητος· υἱὸς γὰρ ὢν τοῦ θεοῦ υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου γέγονεν σαρκωθεὶς ἐκ τῆς ἁγίας παρθένου, καὶ οὐκ ἐξέστη τῆς οἰκείας ἰδιότητος. Ἐνηνθρώπησε δὲ ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ θεοῦ, ἵνα, ἐφ' ὅπερ ἐποίησε τὸν ἄνθρωπον, πάλιν αὐτῷ χαρίσηται· ἐποίησε γὰρ αὐτὸν κατ' εἰκόνα ἑαυτοῦ νοερὸν καὶ αὐτεξούσιον καὶ καθ' ὁμοιότητα ἤτοι ἐν ἀρεταῖς τέλειον ὡς ἐφικτὸν ἀνθρώπου φύσει· αὗται γὰρ οἱονεὶ χαρακτῆρες τῆς θείας ὑπάρχουσι φύσεως· τὸ ἀμέριμνον καὶ ἀπερίσπαστον καὶ ἀκέραιον, τὸ ἀγαθόν, τὸ σοφόν, τὸ δίκαιον, τὸ πάσης κακίας ἐλεύθερον. Ἐν κοινωνίᾳ μὲν οὖν ἑαυτοῦ καταστήσας τὸν ἄνθρωπον («ἐπ' ἀφθαρσίᾳ γὰρ τοῦτον ἐποίησε»), διὰ δὲ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ κοινωνίας ἀνήγαγεν αὐτὸν πρὸς τὸ ἄφθαρτον. Ἐπειδὴ δὲ διὰ τῆς παραβάσεως τῆς ἐντολῆς τοὺς τῆς θείας εἰκόνος χαρακτῆρας ἐζοφώσαμέν τε καὶ συνεχέαμεν καὶ ἐν κακίᾳ γενόμενοι τῆς θείας κοινωνίας ἐγυμνώθημεν («τίς γὰρ μετουσία πρὸς σκότος φωτί;») καὶ ἔξω τῆς ζωῆς γενόμενοι τῇ τοῦ θανάτου φθορᾷ ὑπεπέσαμεν, ἐπειδὴ μετέδωκε τοῦ κρείττονος καὶ οὐκ ἐφυλάξαμεν, μεταλαμβάνει τοῦ χείρονος, τῆς ἡμετέρας λέγω φύσεως, ἵνα δι' ἑαυτοῦ ἐν ἑαυτῷ ἀνακαινίσῃ μὲν τὸ κατ' εἰκόνα καὶ καθ' ὁμοίωσιν, διδάξῃ δὲ ἡμᾶς τὴν ἐνάρετον πολιτείαν καὶ ταύτην δι' ἑαυτοῦ ποιήσῃ ἡμῖν εὐεπίβατον καὶ τῇ τῆς ζωῆς κοινωνίᾳ ἐλευθερώσῃ τῆς φθορᾶς ἀπαρχὴ γενόμενος τῆς ἡμῶν ἀναστάσεως καὶ τὸ ἀχρειωθὲν καὶ συντριβὲν σκεῦος ἀνακαινίσῃ, ἵνα τῆς τυραννίδος τοῦ διαβόλου λυτρώσηται πρὸς θεογνωσίαν ἡμᾶς καλέσας καὶ νευρώσῃ καὶ παιδεύσῃ δι' ὑπομονῆς καὶ ταπεινώσεως καταπαλαίειν τὸν τύραννον. Πέπαυται γοῦν ἡ τῶν δαιμόνων θρησκεία, ἡ κτίσις τῷ θείῳ ἡγίασται αἵματι, βωμοὶ καὶ ναοὶ εἰδώλων καθῄρηνται, θεογνωσία πεφύτευται, τριὰς ἡ ὁμοούσιος, ἡ ἄκτιστος θεότης λατρεύεται, εἷς θεὸς ἀληθής, δημιουργὸς τῶν ἁπάντων καὶ κύριος· ἀρεταὶ πολιτεύονται, ἀναστάσεως ἐλπὶς διὰ τῆς Χριστοῦ δεδώρηται ἀναστάσεως, φρίττουσι τοὺς πάλαι ὑποχειρίους ἀνθρώπους οἱ δαίμονες, καὶ τό γε θαυμαστόν, ὅτι ταῦτα πάντα διὰ σταυροῦ καὶ παθῶν καὶ θανάτου κατώρθωται· εἰς πᾶσαν τὴν γῆν τὸ εὐαγγέλιον τῆς θεογνωσίας κεκήρυκται οὐ πολέμῳ καὶ ὅπλοις καὶ στρατοπέδοις τοὺς ἐναντίους τροπούμενον, ἀλλ' ὀλίγοι πτωχοί, ἀγράμματοι, διωκόμενοι, αἰκιζόμενοι, θανατούμενοι σταυρωθέντα σαρκὶ καὶ θανόντα κηρύττοντες τῶν σοφῶν καὶ δυνατῶν κατεκράτησαν· εἵπετο γὰρ αὐτοῖς τοῦ σταυρωθέντος ἡ παντοδύναμος δύναμις. Ὁ θάνατος ὁ πάλαι φοβερώτατος