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44.

What is "according to the image," and how man is fittingly understood as the image of the prototype; and that he who loves his enemies as benefactors is an imitator of God, and thence having become a partaker of the Holy Spirit, becomes a god by position and by grace, being known only to those who are activated by the Holy Spirit. (324)

Glory, praise, hymn, thanks to the God of all who brought all creation from non-being into being by word alone and his own will, in a Trinity of hypostases, one, both unseparated and undivided, there is one nature, one glory, one power, and likewise one will. This alone is the creation of all, this, having formed me whole from clay, and having given me a soul (325) placed me upon the earth, has given the light both to see and to perceive in it all this sensible world, the sun, the moon I say, the stars and the heaven, the earth and the sea and all the things that are between them. He has given both mind and reason; but pay attention to the word! Therefore, according to the image of the Word, the word has been given to us; for we are rational from the Word who is without beginning, uncreated, incomprehensible, my God. Truly according to the image is the soul of every man, a rational image of the Word. How, tell me, teach me. Hear the Word himself:

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Μ∆'.

Τί ἐστι τό κατ᾿ εἰκόνα, καί πῶς εἰκότως νοεῖται ὡς τοῦ πρωτοτύπου εἰκών ὁ ἄνθρωπος˙ καί ὅτι ὁ τούς ἐχθρούς ὡς εὐεργέτας φιλῶν μιμητής ἐστι τοῦ Θεοῦ, Πνεύματος δέ Ἁγίου ἐντεῦθεν μέτοχος γεγονώς θέσει θεός καί χάριτι γίνεται, μόνοις ἐκείνοις γνωριζόμενος, τοῖς ὑπό τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος ἐνεργουμένοις. (324)

∆όξα, αἶνος, ὕμνος, χάρις τῷ τήν κτίσιν ἐξ οὐκ ὄντων εἰς τό εἶναι λόγῳ μόνῳ καί θελήματι οἰκείῳ ἅπασαν παραγαγόντι Θεῷ πάντων, ἐν Τριάδι ὑποστάσεων, μιᾷ τε ἀχωρίστοις καί ἀτμήτοις, μία φύσις, μία δόξα, μία δύναμις ὑπάρχει, θέλημά τε ἕν ὡσαύτως. Αὕτη μόνη κτίσις πάντων, αὕτη ἐκ πηλοῦ με ὅλον πλάσασα, ψυχήν τε δοῦσα (325) ἔθηκεν ἐπί τῆς γῆς με, δέδωκε τό φῶς τε βλέπειν καί ὁρᾶν ἐν τούτῳ πάντα τόνδε τόν αἰσθητόν κόσμον, ἥλιον, σελήνην λέγω, τούς ἀστέρας οὐρανόν τε, γῆν καί θάλασσαν καί πάντα τά ἐν μέσῳ τούτων ὄντα. ∆έδωκε, καί νοῦν καί λόγον˙ ἀλλά πρόσεχε τῷ λόγῳ! Κατ᾿ εἰκόνα οὖν τοῦ Λόγου δέδοται ἡμῖν ὁ λόγος˙ λογικοί γάρ ἐκ τοῦ Λόγου τοῦ ἀνάρχου, τοῦ ἀκτίστου, τοῦ ἀλήπτου, τοῦ Θεοῦ μου. Ὄντως κατ᾿ εἰκόνα ἔστιν ἡ ψυχή παντός ἀνθρώπου λογική εἰκών τοῦ Λόγου. Πῶς, εἰπέ μοι, δίδαξόν με. Ἄκουσον αὐτοῦ τοῦ Λόγου˙