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he most easily engaged, cleverly refuting what was proposed and being found, like an eel, ungraspable. For in those things in which he seemed to be cornered, slipping away, he would counter more powerfully with the cleverness of his thoughts and the eloquence and talkativeness of his words. But so that God might show that the kingdom of God is not in word but in power, a certain man from among the saints named Spyridon, bishop of Trimithus, most simple in nature and a layman in speech, asks for an opportunity to be given to him for a debate with the philosopher. But the fathers, knowing the man's simplicity and lack of training, tried to prevent him. But when he would not be dissuaded, he approaches the man and says, "In the name of Jesus Christ, hear, O philosopher, the doctrines of the truth. God 1.503 is one, who made the heaven and the earth, who also fashioned man from the earth, and established all things visible and invisible by his Word and by his Spirit. This Word we, knowing him to be the Son of God, worship, believing that for our salvation in the last times he was born of the virgin, and through the cross and death and resurrection has freed the human race; whom we also hope will come again to judge all in righteousness. Do you believe these things, philosopher?" But he, as one having no experience whatsoever of words for contradiction, was speechless, and being silenced as if deaf and mute, he uttered only this, that to me also these things seem to be so. And the old man says, "Then stand up and follow me to the church, and you shall receive the sign of this faith." But the philosopher, turning, says to his disciples, "Listen, O men. As long as I was concerned with arguments, I set arguments against arguments and refuted what was proposed by the art of speaking. But when instead of arguments a certain power came out of the mouth of this old man, the arguments were not strong enough to oppose the power; for man is not able to stand against God. For this reason, if any of you is able to understand as I do, let him believe in Christ, and let him follow with me this old man, in whom God has spoken." In this way, therefore, the philosopher, having become a Christian, rejoiced at being defeated by the old man. Present at that time was also the divine Paphnutius, a wonder-worker and confessor, whose right eye Maximian had gouged 1.504 out. who, when the synod wished to decree that a cleric should not live with a wife in marriage, overturned the proposal as too harsh, and established that this should be observed only by bishops.

After much precision of consideration, it seemed good to all together that it was necessary to define the homoousion for the orthodox faith, that is, to confess the Son to be of the same substance and nature as the Father. Which indeed they forcefully and unanimously affirmed, except for the impious Arius and six others of like mind with him, whom, having been anathematized by the 318 divine fathers, the emperor exiled. After these things, contentious men delivered written accusations against certain bishops to the emperor. And he, having received them and bound them and sealed them with his ring, ordered them to be kept. Then, having reconciled them to peace and concord, he burned them in the presence of all, assuring them with an oath that he had read nothing of what was written in them. For he said that it was not right for the sins of priests to become known to the many, lest they take from this a pretext for scandal and sin without fear. And if I myself were an eyewitness of a bishop committing adultery, I would have covered the unlawful deed with this purple robe of mine, so that the sight of what was done might not harm the onlookers. Thus, therefore, by acclaiming those who spoke well, and exhorting those who spoke against to concord, he made all of one mind and one opinion on all the disputed matters. And so having exhorted all, and of much 1.505 honor and gift

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ῥᾷστα προσεφέρετο, ἐπιλύων εὐφυῶς τὰ προτεινόμενα καὶ δίκην ἐγχέλυος ἀκατάσχετος εὑρισκό μενος. ἐν οἷς γὰρ ἐδόκει συνέχεσθαι, διολισθαίνων ἐπικρατεστέ ρως ἀντεφέρετο τῇ τῶν νοημάτων δεινότητι καὶ ῥημάτων εὐγλωτ τίᾳ τε καὶ στωμυλίᾳ. ἀλλ' ἵνα δείξῃ ὁ θεὸς ὅτι οὐκ ἐν λόγῳ ἡ βασιλεία τοῦ θεοῦ ἀλλ' ἐν δυνάμει, ἄνθρωπός τις ἐκ τῶν ἁγίων ὀνόματι Σπυρίδων, ἐπίσκοπος Τριμιθούντων, ἁπλούστατος δὲ τὴν φύσιν καὶ ἰδιώτης τὸν λόγον, αἰτεῖται χώραν αὐτῷ δοθῆναι διαλέξεως πρὸς τὸν φιλόσοφον. οἱ δὲ πατέρες τὸ ἁπλοῦν τε καὶ ἰδιωτικὸν τοῦ ἀνδρὸς εἰδότες ἐκώλυον αὐτόν. τοῦ δὲ μὴ ἀνεχο μένου, πρόσεισι τῷ ἀνδρὶ καὶ φησίν "ἐν ὀνόματι τοῦ Ἰησοῦ Χρι στοῦ ἄκουσον, ὦ φιλόσοφε, τὰ τῆς ἀληθείας δόγματα. θεὸς 1.503 εἷς ἐστίν, ὁ τὸν οὐρανὸν καὶ τὴν γῆν ποιήσας, ὁ καὶ ἄνθρωπον ἐκ γῆς διαπλάσας, καὶ τὰ ὁρατὰ πάντα καὶ ἀόρατα τῷ λόγῳ αὐ τοῦ καὶ τῷ πνεύματι συστησάμενος. τοῦτον τὸν λόγον ἡμεῖς υἱὸν θεοῦ εἰδότες προσκυνοῦμεν, πιστεύοντες διὰ τὴν ἡμετέραν σωτη ρίαν ἐπ' ἐσχάτων ἐκ τῆς παρθένου τεχθῆναι, καὶ διὰ σταυροῦ καὶ θανάτου καὶ ἀναστάσεως ἠλευθερωκέναι τὸ γένος τῶν ἀνθρώ πων· ὃν καὶ ἐλπίζομεν ἐλθόντα πάλιν κρῖναι πάντας ἐν δικαιο σύνῃ. πιστεύεις τούτοις, φιλόσοφε;" ὁ δέ, ὡς ἄν τις μηδέ ποτε πεῖραν λόγων ἔχων εἰς ἀντίθεσιν, ἀπηνεώθη, καὶ ὡς κωφὸς καὶ ἄλαλος ἀποσιωπήσας τοῦτο μόνον ἐφθέγξατο, ὅτι κἀμοὶ ταῦτα οὕτως ἔχειν δοκεῖ. καὶ ὁ γέρων φησίν "οὐκοῦν ἀναστὰς ἀκολού θει μοι πρὸς τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, καὶ λήψῃ τὸ σημεῖον τῆς πίστεως ταύτης." ὁ δὲ φιλόσοφος ἐπιστραφεὶς λέγει τοῖς μαθηταῖς αὐ τοῦ "ἀκούσατε, ὦ ἄνδρες. ἕως ὅτε λόγων ἐποιούμην σπουδήν, λόγους λόγοις ἀντετίθουν καὶ τὰ προτεινόμενα τέχνῃ τοῦ λέγειν ἀνέτρεπον. ὅτε δὲ ἀντὶ λόγων δύναμίς τις ἐξῆλθεν ἐκ τοῦ στόμα τος τοῦδε τοῦ γέροντος, οὐκ ἴσχυσαν οἱ λόγοι τῇ δυνάμει ἀντιτά ξασθαι· οὐδὲ γὰρ οἷός τέ ἐστιν ἄνθρωπος ἀντιστῆναι θεῷ. διά τοι τοῦτο εἴ τις ὑμῶν δύναται συνιέναι ὡς κἀγώ, πιστεύσει εἰς τὸν Χριστόν, καὶ ἀκολουθείτω σὺν ἐμοὶ τῷ γέροντι τούτῳ, ἐν ᾧ ἐλά λησεν ὁ θεός." τούτῳ οὖν τῷ τρόπῳ γενόμενος ὁ φιλόσοφος Χριστιανὸς ἔχαιρεν ἡττηθεὶς ὑπὸ τοῦ γέροντος. Παρῆν δὲ τηνικαῦτα καὶ ὁ θεῖος Παφνούτιος καὶ τερατουρ γὸς καὶ ὁμολογητής, οὗ τὸν δεξιὸν ὀφθαλμὸν Μαξιμιανὸς ἐξώ 1.504 ρυξεν. ὃς τῆς συνόδου κανονίσαι θελούσης ὥστε κληρικὸν μὴ συνέρχεσθαι γυναικὶ πρὸς γάμον, ὡς βαρὺν τὸν λόγον ἀνέτρεψε, καὶ μόνοις ἐπισκόποις ἐτύπωσε τοῦτο παραφυλάττεσθαι.

Μετὰ γοῦν πολλὴν τῆς σκέψεως ἀκρίβειαν ἔδοξε πᾶσιν ὁμοῦ δεῖν ὁρίσασθαι τὸ ὁμοούσιον ἐπὶ τῆς ὀρθοδόξου πίστεως, τουτέστι τῆς αὐτῆς οὐσίας καὶ φύσεως τῷ πατρὶ καὶ τὸν υἱὸν ὁμολογεῖν. ἣν δὴ καὶ κατὰ κράτος καὶ συμφώνως ἐβεβαίωσαν, παρὲξ Ἀρείου τοῦ ἀσεβοῦς καὶ ἑτέρων ἓξ ὁμοφρόνων αὐτῷ, οὓς ἀναθεματισθέν τας ὑπὸ τῶν θείων τιηʹ πατέρων ὁ βασιλεὺς ἐξώρισε. Μετὰ δὲ ταῦτα φιλαπεχθήμονες ἄνδρες κατά τινων ἐπι σκόπων ἐγγράφους ἐπέδωκαν τῷ βασιλεῖ κατηγορίας. ὁ δὲ ταύτας δεξάμενος καὶ δεσμήσας καὶ τῷ δακτυλίῳ σημηνάμενος ἐκέλευσε φυλάττεσθαι. εἶτα πρὸς εἰρήνην αὐτοὺς καὶ ὁμόνοιαν συμβιβάσας ταύτας ἐνώπιον πάντων κατέκαυσεν, ὅρκῳ πληροφο ρήσας αὐτοὺς μηδὲν ἀναγνῶναι τῶν ἐν αὐτοῖς γεγραμμένων. οὐδὲ γὰρ ἔφη χρῆναι τὰ πλημμελήματα τῶν ἱερέων δῆλα γενέσθαι τοῖς πολλοῖς, ἵνα μὴ σκανδάλου πρόφασιν ἐντεῦθεν λαμβάνοντες ἀδεῶς ἁμαρτάνωσιν. ἐγὼ δὲ εἰ αὐτόπτης ἐγενόμην ἐπισκόπου γάμον ἀλλότριον διορύττοντος, συνεκάλυψα ἂν τῇ πορφυρίδι μου ταύτῃ τὸ παρανόμως γινόμενον, ὡς ἂν μὴ βλάψειε τοὺς θεωμένους τῶν δρωμένων ἡ ὄψις. οὕτω τοίνυν τοὺς μὲν εὖ λέγοντας ἀνακηρύτ των, τοὺς δὲ ἀντιλέγοντας παρακλητικῶς εἰς ὁμόνοιαν ἐλαύνων, τοὺς πάντας ὁμογνώμονας καὶ ὁμοδόξους τοῖς ἀμφισβητουμένοις ἅπασι κατέστησε. καὶ οὕτω παραινέσας πάντας, καὶ πολλῆς 1.505 τιμῆς τε καὶ δωρεᾶς