you bring astronomical science, that is, the geometrical necessities will become weaker than spiderwebs and will fall apart, dissolved by your most demonstrative thought; for how could you hold propositions as known by nature, since it is not possible to agree with Sextus and Pyrrho and those like them?

Divine matters, therefore, are not superior to this, (for no one will say the sun is brighter than a firefly), but also to the tradition of the fathers, and not even this from their opinion, (p. 512) nevertheless we bring forth what is possible when need calls, and having as our principle for this the power moved by the Spirit, by which the divinely wise theologians, having spoken beyond the mind to those beyond the mind, were both taught by divine grace and taught us in imitation of God. For just as, even if divine things are removed from all things and from every word, and hymn, and any glory whatsoever, yet we both speak a word about God and we hymn and we glorify Him as is possible with works and with words and with sufferings, and we call it the glory of God, and we say the doxology offered by us is a hymn of God, so also do we reason and demonstrate and call the syllogism concerning divine things a demonstration, whether we speak to hearing ears or not, since not every discourse is also dialectic. And we think it necessary to call it by a more venerable name, not venerating our own words, as one might think, but because we are addressing things concerning God more venerably and in harmony with the voices of the fathers and in no way departing from the divinely delivered oracles.

So be it. But please deign to take this to mind just now, that from the same principles and according to you I have discoursed with you, and if something is not very well-omened, to love it as your own; "for one's own evil," they say, "is to be loved." Do not then be ill-disposed toward us, nor cease loving than before, just as we also; for thus, even if our arguments have happened to be so opposed, yet in the loving part of the soul we shall have the good of peace unharmed. May it be so, O wisest of men, and I would not hesitate to say best of lovers and of beloved, and that we may see each other and embrace each other and that through each other the same greeting may be ours in a holy kiss.

Second Letter to Barlaam (p. 514)

THAT THERE IS DEMONSTRATION IN SOME DIVINE MATTERS AND THAT THIS IS PROPERLY A DEMONSTRATION The matter of the dyarchy has been removed; for it was cut from the arguments of the philosopher and

our argument bore fruit, being consistent with the pious proclamation of the monarchy. But the point according to Aristotle, that demonstration is surpassed in divine matters, is not yet willing to be made persuasive by argument. Therefore let this be the hypothesis of our argument again with the philosopher. First, then, this must be shown, that he insists in vain in his arguments Against the Latins that there is no demonstration concerning any of the divine matters, and his whole struggle tends toward no end at all. For if this becomes quite clear, if for no other reason, he will at least abstain from his objection through not wanting to speak idly. And it will be quite clear immediately if we learn from him for what reason he stripped for this contest, and this is shown to be useless.

He himself says, then, in his preface and in his arguments against us, "It is now necessary to say to what my arguments about these things tend. I considered how it might be possible in a single argument to refute them all and to show that the syllogisms made by the Latins are sophisms. I saw, then, that it was possible to achieve this if one were able to show that these are neither

ἀστρῴαν ἐπιστήμην φέρεις, αἱ γεωμετρικαί ἀνάγκαι δηλαδή τῶν ἀραχνίων νημάτων ἀδρανέστεραι γενήσονται καί διαπεσοῦνταί σου λυθεῖσαι τῆς σῆς ἀποδεικτικωτάτης διανοίας˙ πῶς γάρ ἄν καί φύσει γνωρίμους σχοίης τάς προτάσεις, ἐπεί καί Σέξτῳ καί Πύρωναι καί τοῖς κατ᾿ ἐκείνους οὐκ ἔνι συνδοκεῖν;

Οὐ ταύτης οὖν ὑπερτέρα τά θεῖα, (οὐδέ γάρ τόν ἥλιον ἐρεῖ τις φανότερον πυγολαμπίδος), ἀλλά καί τῆς πατροπαραδότου, καί οὐδέ τοῦτ᾿ ἀπό τῆς ἐκείνων γνώμης, (σελ. 512) προσάγομεν δ᾿ ὅμως χρείας καλούσης τήν δυνατήν, καί ταύτης ἀρχήν ἔχοντες τήν πνευματοκίνητον δύναμιν, καθ᾿ ἥν ὑπέρ νοῦν τοῖς ὑπέρ νοῦν ὡμιληκότες οἱ θεόσοφοι θεολόγοι θεοχαρίστως τε ἐδιδάχθησαν καί θεομιμήτως ἡμᾶς ἐδίδαξαν. Ὡς γάρ, εἰ καί πάντων ὑπεξῄρηται τά θεῖα καί λόγου παντός, ὕμνου τε καί δόξης ἡστινοσοῦν, ἀλλά καί λόγον λαλοῦμεν περί Θεοῦ καί ὑμνοῦμεν καί δοξάζομεν κατά τό ἐγχωροῦν αὐτόν ἔργοις τε καί λόγοις καί πάθεσι, καί δόξαν Θεοῦ καλοῦμεν, καί ὕμνον Θεοῦ τήν παρ᾿ ἡμῶν αὐτῶν δοξολογίαν ἀναφερομένην λέγομεν, οὕτω καί συλλογιζόμεθα καί ἀποδείκνυμεν καί τόν ἐπί τά θεῖα συλλογισμόν ἀπόδειξιν καλοῦμεν, κἄν εἰς ὦτα ἀκουόντων λέγωμεν κἄν μή, ἐπεί μηδέ πᾶσα διάλεξις καί διαλεκτική˙ κἀκ τοῦ σεμνοτέρου δεῖν οἰόμεθα καλεῖν αὐτόν, οὐ τούς οἰκείους λόγους, ὡς ἄν τις οἰηθείη, σεμνύνοντες, ἀλλ᾿ ὅτι περί Θεοῦ σεμνοτέρως προσαγορεύοντες καί ταῖς τῶν πατέρων συνῳδά φωναῖς καί κατ᾿ οὐδέν ἀπό τρόπου τῶν θεοπαραδότων λογίων.

Εἷεν˙ ἐκεῖνό γε μήν ἀρτίως καταξίωσον ἐπί νοῦν λαβεῖν ὡς ἀπό τῶν αὐτῶν καί κατά σέ διελεξάμην πρός σέ, κἄν τι μή λίαν εὔφημον ἀγαπᾶν ὡς σόν˙ «ἑόν γάρ» φασι «κακόν, ἀγαπητόν». Μή δή πρός ἡμᾶς ἀπαχθῶς σχοίης, μηδ᾿ ἀνῇς φιλῶν ἤ πρότερον, καθάπερ δή καί ἡμεῖς˙ οὕτω γάρ, εἰ καί τά τῶν λόγων ἡμῖν οὕτω συμβάν ἀντιτέτακται, ἀλλ᾿ ἐν τῷ φιλοῦντι τῆς ψυχῆς ἀδιαλώβητον ἕξομεν τό τῆς εἰρήνης καλόν˙ εἴη σοφώτατε ἀνδρῶν, οὐκ ὀκνήσαιμι δ᾿ ἄν εἰπεῖν καί φιλούντων τε καί φιλουμένων ἄριστε, καί ἰδεῖν ἠμᾶς ἀλλήλους καί περιχυθῆναι ἀλλήλοις καί δι᾿ ἀλλήλων ἀσπασμόν ἡμῖν γενέσθαι τόν αὐτόν ἐν ἁγίῳ φιλήματι.

Β' ΠΡΟΣ ΒΑΡΛΑΑΜ (Σελ. 514)

ΟΤΙ ΕΣΤΙΝ ΕΦ' ΩΝ ΑΠΟ∆ΕΙΞΙΣ ΤΩΝ ΘΕΙΩΝ ΚΑΙ ΟΤΙ ΚΥΡΙΩΣ ΑΠΟ∆ΕΙΞΙΣ ΑΥΤΗ Τά μέν τῆς δυαρχίας ἐκ μέσου γέγονεν˙ ἐξεκόπη γάρ τῶν λόγων τοῦ φιλοσόφου καί

καρπόν ἤνεγκεν ὁ ἡμέτερος λόγος τῷ τῆς μοναρχίας εὐσεβεῖ κηρύγματι συνιστάμενος˙ τό δέ κατ᾿ Ἀριστοτέλην ὑπέρ ἀπόδειξιν ἐπί τῶν θείων οὐκ ἐθέλει πω γενέσθω τῷ λόγῳ καταπειθές. Ὑπόθεσις οὐκοῦν ἡμῖν αὖθις λόγου τοῦτο γενέσθαι τόν φιλόσοφον. Πρῶτον μέν οὖν τοῦτο δεικτέον ὡς μάτην ἔγκειται τοῖς Πρός Λατίνους αὐτῷ λόγοις ὡς οὐκ ἔστιν ἀπόδειξις ἐπ᾿ οὐδενός τῶν θείων, καί ὁ πᾶς ἀγών αὐτῷ πρός οὐδέν ὅλως τείνει τέλος. Ἄν γάρ τοῦτο γένηται κατάδηλον, εἰ μηδέν ἄλλο, διά γοῦν τό μή θέλειν ματαιολογεῖν ἀφέξεται τῆς ἐνστάσεως˙ ἔσται δέ κατάδηλον εὐθύς ἄν παρ᾿ ἐκείνου μάθωμεν οὗπερ ἕνεκα πρός τήν ἀγωνίαν ἀπεδύσατο ταύτην, καί τοῦτ᾿ ἀχρεῖον ὄν φανῇ.

Φησί τοίνυν αὐτός ἐν τῇ προθεωρίᾳ κἀν τοῖς πρός ἡμᾶς λόγοις ὡς, «δεῖ νῦν εἰπεῖν πρός τί μοι τείνουσιν οἱ περί τούτων λόγοι˙ ἐσκεψάμην πῶς ἄν εἴη ἑνί λόγῳ ἅπαντας ἀνασκευάσαι καί δεῖξαι σοφίσματα τούς ὑπό Λατίνων γινομένους συλλογισμούς. Ἑώρων οὖν δυνατόν ὄν τούτου τυχεῖν εἴ τις οἷος τ᾿ εἴη δεῖξαι τούτους μήτε