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One ought not to live or change form contrary to what is proper to one's station, lest by scandalizing the world he bring upon himself the judgment suspended by the Lord. From this may we flee, O thrice-desired one, and especially we who differ from the many in both knowledge and rank; since judgment is severe for those who are in high places, but the least is pardonable, as it is written. And again the Lord: to whom much was committed, of him they will ask the more. Therefore, I beseech you, let us who ought to be a light to those in darkness not be the opposite, nor let us who are appointed to salt evangelically become foolish through inattention. Let all things be done decently and in order, cries the Apostle, all things for the benefit of one's neighbor, and not for harm. Even if a scandal should arise from those things permitted to us, this again cries Basil the Great, and absolutely every part of both the old and new testament commands each person to remain within his own bounds and ways. And do not think, my lord, that I have behaved toward you arrogantly, but rather very lovingly and with concern, taking upon myself your affairs in me according to the commingling of love and desiring the salvation of your precious soul as I do my own. But if my word has anything beyond what is fitting, let the word from you teach and persuade my lowliness that you are doing what is fitting in those matters which have been shown to be out of place. 70 {1To Theodore the deacon}1 I come at the request of your love to the response to the heretical problems. And if I should answer well, set your seal upon the argument, but if not, you yourself would clarify it more distinctly. But since it is not possible to refute the heretical opinion very well unless the proposition itself is set forth, let this be laid down first, and then the orthodox refutation. {1Problem from a heretic.}1 Confessing one incarnate nature of God the Word, you say that Christ is a certain whole, that is, one totality from parts, clearly of divinity and humanity. We ask therefore, what do you co-number with the Holy Trinity, the whole or the part? And if the whole, the Holy Trinity will not be consubstantial; but if the part, either by co-numbering the divinity you manifestly leave the humanity outside the Holy Trinity, or by co-numbering the humanity you will be caught saying the divinity is outside the Trinity. {1Refutation of this.}1 Confessing one incarnate nature of the Word, we confess Christ not as a simple whole, but as brought together from two totalities, of divinity and of humanity; according to which totalities, which are taken as parts for the composition, He is whole as God, naturally joined to the Father and the Spirit, and whole as man, essentially ordered with His mother and us, binding the extremes to Himself by his unique character and preserving the bounds of the extremes inviolate and unconfused in the union. Wherefore the Trinity remains Trinity, not admitting anything uncongenial as an addition, and the humanity remains humanity, not yet being divided from the divinity united to it. So that your problem is illogical, being detached from the confusing heresy of the Acephali. {1Another problem from the same heretic.}1 Is this Christ, who is confessed by you, co-numbered with the Holy Trinity or not? And if he is co-numbered with the Holy Trinity, how then will the Trinity be consubstantial? But if he is not co-numbered, he will not be God either, but only a mere man. Therefore, by whatever arguments you might solve the difficulty, keeping unharmed the doctrine concerning the one Christ, these will also be sufficient for us for this. {1Refutation of this.}1 This Christ confessed by us, by which arguments of truth he refuted the former proposition, by these he would also refute the present one, as it has impiety in equal measure. But the Christ whom you preach, that is, one natural totality from parts, of divinity and humanity, would be neither consubstantial with the Father, if indeed the Father is God only, and not also man, nor consubstantial with his mother, if indeed his mother is man only, and not also God. and it is time

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οὐκ ὀφείλει τις παρὰ τὰ οἰκεῖα τῆς καταστάσεως οὔτε ζῆν οὔτε μετασχηματίζεσθαι, ἵνα μὴ τὸ ἐπηρτημένον παρὰ τοῦ Κυρίου κρίμα ὡς τὸν κόσμον σκανδαλίζων ἀποίσῃ. οὗ φύγοιμεν, ὦ τριπόθητε, καὶ μάλιστα ἡμεῖς οἱ καὶ γνώσει καὶ βαθμῷ τῶν πολλῶν διαφέροντες· ἐπειδὴ κρίσις ἀπότομος ἐν τοῖς ὑπερέχουσιν, ὁ δὲ ἐλάχιστος σύγγνωστος, καθὰ γέγραπται. καὶ πάλιν ὁ Κύριος· ᾧ παρέθετο πολύ, περισσότερον ἀπαιτήσουσιν. Μὴ οὖν, παρακαλῶ, ἡμεῖς οἱ ὀφείλοντες φῶς εἶναι τῶν ἐν σκότει τοὐναντίον ὦμεν, μηδὲ οἱ ἁλίζειν εὐαγγελικῶς τεταγμένοι μωρανθείημεν ἐξ ἀπροσεξίας. πάντα εὐσχημόνως καὶ κατὰ τάξιν γινέσθω, βοᾷ ὁ ἀπόστολος, πάντα πρὸς ὠφέλειαν τοῦ πλησίον, ἀλλὰ μὴ πρὸς βλάβην. κἂν ἐπ' αὐτῶν τῶν συγκεχωρημένων ἡμῖν σκινδαλμὸς γίνοιτο, τοῦτο πάλιν βοᾷ ὁ Μέγας Βασίλειος, καὶ πᾶσα ἁπλῶς ἥ τε παλαιὰ καὶ νέα διαθήκη ἐν τοῖς ἰδίοις ὅροις καὶ τρόποις ἕκαστον διαμένειν ἐγκελεύεται. καὶ μή με νομίσῃς, δέσποτα, κατεπαρτικῶς σοι ἐνεχθῆναι, ἀλλὰ καὶ λίαν ἀγαπητικῶς καὶ πεπονημένως, ἀναδεχόμενον τὰ σὰ ἐν ἐμοὶ κατὰ τὴν τῆς ἀγάπης ἀνάκρασιν καὶ ἐφιέμενον τὸ σωτήριον τῆς τιμίας σου ψυχῆς ὡς τὸ ἐμαυτοῦ. εἰ δέ τι ἔξω τοῦ εἰκότος ὁ λόγος ἔχει, ὁ παρὰ σοῦ λόγος διδαξάτω καὶ πεισάτω τὴν ἐμὴν ταπείνωσιν τὰ εἰκότα σε πράττειν ἐν τοῖς ἀπελεγχθεῖσιν ἐκτόπως ἔχειν. 70 {1Θεοδώρῳ διακόνῳ}1 Ἥκω τῇ ἐπιτροπῇ τῆς ἀγάπης σου ἐπὶ τῇ ἀπαντήσει τῶν αἱρετικῶν προβλημάτων. καὶ εἰ μὲν εὖ ἀπαντήσοιμι, ἐπίθες τὴν σφραγῖδα τῷ λόγῳ, εἰ δὲ μή γε, σαφηνίσειας αὐτὸς εὐκρινέστερον. ἐπεὶ δὲ οὐχ οἷόν τέ ἐστιν εὖ μάλα διαλῦσαι τὸ αἱρετικὸν φρόνημα, εἰ μὴ αὐτὴ ἡ πρότασις ὑποδείκνυτο, πρῶτον κείσθω αὕτη, καὶ εἶθ' οὕτως ἡ ὀρθόδοξος λύσις. {1Πρόβλημα αἱρετικοῦ.}1 Μίαν φύσιν τοῦ θεοῦ λόγου σεσαρκωμένην ὁμολογοῦντες ὅλον τι τὸν Χριστόν, ἤγουν μίαν ὁλότητα ἐκ μερῶν, θεότητός τε καὶ ἀνθρωπότητος δῆλον ὅτι, λέγετε. πυνθανόμεθα οὖν, τί συναριθμεῖτε τῇ Ἁγίᾳ Τριάδι, τὸ ὅλον ἢ τὸ μέρος; καὶ εἰ μὲν τὸ ὅλον, οὐκ ἔσται ὁμοούσιος ἡ Ἁγία Τριάς· εἰ δὲ τὸ μέρος, ἢ τὴν θεότητα συναριθμοῦντες ἐκτὸς τῆς Ἁγίας Τριάδος τὴν ἀνθρωπότητα προδήλως καταλιμπάνετε ἢ τὴν ἀνθρωπότητα συναριθμοῦντες ἁλώσεσθε τῆς Τριάδος ἐκτὸς τὴν θεότητα λέγοντες. {1Λύσις πρὸς τοῦτο.}1 Μίαν φύσιν τοῦ λόγου σεσαρκωμένην ὁμολογοῦντες οὐχ ἁπλῶς ὅλον τι τὸν Χριστόν, ἀλλ' ἐκ δυοῖν ὁλοτήτων συνενηνεγμένων, θεότητός τε καὶ ἀνθρωπότητος, ὁμολογοῦμεν· καθ' ἃς ὁλότητας, τὰς ὡς μέρη πρὸς τὴν σύνθεσιν εἰλημμένας, ὅλος ἐστὶν ὡς θεὸς τῷ πατρί τε καὶ πνεύματι φυσικῶς συνημμένος καὶ ὅλος ὡς ἄνθρωπος τῇ μητρὶ καὶ ἡμῖν οὐσιωδῶς συντεταγμένος, τῳ μοναδικῷ χαρακτῆρι τὰ ἄκρα πρὸς ἑαυτὸν συνδέων καὶ τοὺς τῶν ἄκρων ὅρους ἀλωβήτους καὶ ἀσυγχύτους ἐν τῇ ἑνώσει διαφυλάττων. ἐφ' ᾧ ἡ Τριὰς μένει Τριάς, ἀσυμφυές τι εἰς προσθήκην μὴ προσιεμένη, καὶ ἡ ἀνθρωπότης μένει ἀνθρωπότης, τῆς ἑνωθείσης αὐτῇ θεότητος μήπω διαιρουμένη. ὥστε σου ἀλογῶδες τὸ πρόβλημα, ἐκ τῆς τῶν Ἀκεφάλων συγχυτικῆς αἱρέσεως ἀποζευγνύμενον. {1Τοῦ αὐτοῦ αἱρετικοῦ ἕτερον πρόβλημα.}1 Οὗτος ὁ Χριστὸς ὁ παρ' ὑμῶν ὁμολογούμενος συναριθμεῖται τῇ Ἁγίᾳ Τριάδι ἢ οὔ; καὶ εἰ μὲν συναριθμεῖται τῇ Ἁγίᾳ Τριάδι, πῶς ἔσται λοιπὸν ἡ Τριὰς ὁμοούσιος; εἰ δὲ οὐ συναριθμεῖται, οὐδὲ θεὸς ἔσται, ἀλλὰ μόνον ψιλὸς ἄνθρωπος. οἷς τοίνυν ὑμεῖς τὴν ἀπορίαν ἐπιλύσοισθε λόγοις, τὴν περὶ ἑνὸς Χριστοῦ φυλάττοντες δόξαν ἀπήμαντον, οὗτοι καὶ ἡμῖν πρὸς ταύτην ἀρκέσουσιν. {1Λύσις πρὸς τοῦτο.}1 Οὗτος ὁ Χριστὸς ὁ παρ' ἡμῖν ὁμολογούμενος, οἷς λόγοις ἀληθότητος ἐξεκρούσατο τὴν προτέραν πρότασιν, τούτοις καὶ τὴν παροῦσαν συνεκκρούσειεν, ὡς ἰσορρόπως τὸ ἀσεβὲς ἔχουσαν. ὃν δὲ ὑμεῖς Χριστόν, ἤγουν μίαν ὁλότητα φυσικὴν ἐκ μερῶν, θεότητός τε καὶ ἀνθρωπότητος, πρεσβεύετε, οὔτε ὁμοούσιος ἂν εἴη τῷ πατρί, εἴπερ ὁ πατὴρ θεὸς μόνον, ἀλλ' οὐχὶ καὶ ἄνθρωπος, οὔτε ὁμοούσιος τῇ μητρί, εἴπερ ἡ μήτηρ ἄνθρωπος μόνον, ἀλλ' οὐχὶ καὶ θεός. καὶ ὥρα