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after the ineffable knowledge of the divine conception, after the great display of miracles, there will be a certain turmoil also concerning your soul. For it was necessary for the Lord to taste death for everyone and, having become an expiation for the world, to justify all in his blood. And so, a certain trial, that is, a sword, will touch you yourself, who were taught from above the things concerning the Lord.” “so that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed” intimates that after the offense that occurred at the cross of Christ, a swift healing will follow for both the disciples and Mary herself from the Lord, confirming their hearts in the faith in him. For thus we have seen Peter also, after he was scandalized, clinging more firmly to the faith in Christ. Therefore, human weakness was exposed, so that the strength of the Lord might be shown.

261. TO THOSE IN SOZOPOLIS

261.1 I have read your letters, most honored brethren, which you sent concerning the affairs among you. And that you took us as partners in your cares for the oversight of things necessary and worthy of attention for you, we have given thanks to the Lord. But we groaned upon hearing that, in addition to the disturbance brought upon the Churches by the Arians and the confusion which they have created concerning the doctrine of the faith, yet another empty-sounding doctrine has appeared among you, throwing the brotherhood into great distress, as you have written to us, from men who introduce new and unusual things to the ears of the faithful, supposedly from the teaching of the Scriptures. For you wrote that there are some among you who are subverting the saving economy of our Lord Jesus Christ, as far as it is in their power, setting aside the grace of the great mystery, which was kept silent from the ages but was manifested in its own times, when the Lord, having gone through all things pertaining to the care of the human race, at last bestowed upon us his own visitation. For he helped his own creation, first through the patriarchs whose lives were set forth as examples and rules for those wishing to follow in the footsteps of the saints and, according to a similar zeal to theirs, to arrive at the perfection of good works. Then he gave the law for assistance, ordaining it through angels in the hand of Moses; then prophets foretelling the salvation that was to come, judges, kings, righteous men, performing mighty works by a hidden hand. After all these, in the last days he himself was manifested in the flesh, “Born of a woman, born under the law, that he might redeem those under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.” 261.2 If, therefore, the Lord’s visitation in the flesh did not happen, then the redeemer did not give the price for us to death, nor did he break the reign of death through himself. For if that which was ruled by death was one thing, and that which was assumed by the Lord another, then death would not have ceased its working, nor would the sufferings of the God-bearing flesh have become our gain, nor would he have killed sin in the flesh, nor would we who died in Adam have been made alive in Christ, nor would that which had fallen been refashioned, nor would that which was broken have been set upright, nor would that which was estranged through the deceit of the serpent have been reconciled to God. For all these things are destroyed by those who say that the Lord came having a heavenly body. What need was there of the Holy Virgin, if the Christ-bearing flesh was not to be assumed from the dough of Adam? But who is so bold as to renew now again, through sophistical words and supposed testimony from the Scriptures, the doctrine of Valentinus that was long ago silenced? For this impiety of the phantasm is not new, but long ago from

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μετὰ τὴν ἀπόρρητον γνῶσιν τῆς θείας συλλήψεως, μετὰ τὴν μεγάλην τῶν θαυμάτων ἐπίδειξιν, γενήσεταί τις καὶ περὶ τὴν σὴν ψυχὴν σάλος. Ἔδει γὰρ τὸν Κύριον ὑπὲρ παντὸς γεύσασθαι θανάτου καὶ ἱλαστήριον γενόμενον τοῦ κόσμου πάντας δικαιῶσαι ἐν τῷ αὐτοῦ αἵματι. Καὶ σοῦ οὖν αὐτῆς, τῆς ἄνωθεν δεδιδαγμένης τὰ περὶ τοῦ Κυρίου, ἅψεταί τις διάκρισις, τουτέστι ῥομφαία». «Ὅπως ἂν ἀποκαλυφθῶσιν ἀπὸ πολλῶν καρδιῶν διαλο γισμοὶ» αἰνίττεται ὅτι μετὰ τὸν σκανδαλισμόν, τὸν ἐπὶ τῷ σταυρῷ τοῦ Χριστοῦ γενόμενον, τοῖς τε μαθηταῖς καὶ αὐτῇ τῇ Μαρίᾳ ταχεῖά τις ἴασις ἐπακολουθήσει παρὰ τοῦ Κυρίου βεβαιοῦσα αὐτῶν τὴν καρδίαν εἰς τὴν ἐπ' αὐτὸν πίστιν. Οὕτω γὰρ εἴδομεν καὶ Πέτρον μετὰ τὸ σκανδαλισθῆναι βεβαιότερον τῆς εἰς Χριστὸν πίστεως ἀντισχόμενον. Τὸ ἀνθρώπινον οὖν σαθρὸν διηλέγχθη, ἵνα τὸ ἰσχυρὸν τοῦ Κυρίου δειχθῇ.

261.τ ΤΟΙΣ ΕΝ ΣΩΖΟΠΟΛΕΙ

261.1 Ἐνέτυχον τοῖς γράμμασιν ὑμῶν, ἀδελφοὶ τιμιώτατοι, ἃ περὶ τῶν καθ'

ὑμᾶς πραγμάτων ἐπεστείλατε. Καὶ ὅτι μὲν ἡμᾶς κοινωνοὺς φροντίδων παρελάβετε εἰς τὴν τῶν ἀναγ καίων ὑμῖν καὶ σπουδῆς ἀξίων ἐπιμέλειαν, ηὐχαριστήσαμεν τῷ Κυρίῳ. Ἐστενάξαμεν δὲ ἀκούσαντες ὅτι, πρὸς τῇ παρὰ τῶν Ἀρειανῶν ἐπαγομένῃ ταραχῇ ταῖς Ἐκκλησίαις καὶ τῇ συγχύσει ἣν ἐκεῖνοι περὶ τὸν τῆς πίστεως λόγον πεποίηνται, ἔτι καὶ ἄλλη τις ὑμῖν ἀνεφάνη κενοφωνία εἰς πολλὴν ἀδημονίαν ἐμβάλλουσα τὴν ἀδελφότητα, ὡς ἐπεστείλατε ἡμῖν, ἀνθρώπων καινὰ καὶ ἀσυνήθη ταῖς ἀκοαῖς τῶν πιστῶν ὡς ἐκ τῆς τῶν Γραφῶν διδασκαλίας δῆθεν παρεισαγόντων. Ἐγράφετε δὲ εἶναί τινας παρ' ὑμῖν τοὺς λύοντας τὴν σωτήριον οἰκονομίαν τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, ὅσον τὸ ἐπ' αὐτοῖς, ἀθετοῦντας τοῦ μεγάλου μυστηρίου τὴν χάριν, τοῦ σεσιγημένου μὲν ἀπὸ τῶν αἰώνων, φανερωθέντος δὲ καιροῖς ἰδίοις, ὅτε ὁ Κύριος πάντα διεξελθὼν τὰ εἰς ἐπιμέλειαν ἥκοντα τοῦ γένους τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐπὶ πᾶσι τὴν οἰκείαν ἐχαρίσατο ἡμῖν ἐπιδημίαν. Ὠφέλησε γὰρ τὸ ἑαυτοῦ πλάσμα πρῶτον μὲν διὰ πατριαρχῶν ὧν οἱ βίοι ὑποδείγματα καὶ κανόνες προετέθησαν τοῖς βουλομένοις ἀκολουθεῖν τοῖς ἴχνεσι τῶν ἁγίων καὶ κατὰ τὸν ὅμοιον ἐκείνοις ζῆλον φθάσαι πρὸς τὴν τῶν ἀγαθῶν ἔργων τελείωσιν. Εἶτα νόμον ἔδωκεν εἰς βοήθειαν, δι' ἀγγέλων αὐτὸν διαταξάμενος ἐν χειρὶ Μωσέως· εἶτα προφήτας προκαταγγέλλοντας τὴν μέλλουσαν ἔσεσθαι σωτηρίαν, κριτάς, βασιλεῖς, δικαίους, ποιοῦντας δυνάμεις ἐν χειρὶ κρυφαίᾳ. Μετὰ πάντας τού τους ἐπ' ἐσχάτων τῶν ἡμερῶν αὐτὸς ἐφανερώθη ἐν σαρκί, «Γενόμενος ἐκ γυναικός, γενόμενος ὑπὸ νόμον, ἵνα τοὺς ὑπὸ νόμον ἐξαγοράσῃ, ἵνα τὴν υἱοθεσίαν ἀπολάβωμεν». 261.2 Εἰ τοίνυν μὴ γέγονε τοῦ Κυρίου ἡ ἐν σαρκὶ ἐπιδημία, οὐκ ἔδωκε μὲν ὁ λυτρωτὴς τὸ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν τίμημα τῷ θανάτῳ, οὐ διέκοψε δὲ τοῦ θανάτου τὴν βασιλείαν δι' ἑαυτοῦ. Εἰ γὰρ ἄλλο μὲν ἦν τὸ βασιλευόμενον ὑπὸ τοῦ θανάτου, ἄλλο δὲ τὸ παρὰ τοῦ Κυρίου προσληφθέν, οὐκ ἂν μὲν ἐπαύσατο τὸ ἑαυτοῦ ἐνεργῶν ὁ θάνατος, οὐκ ἂν δὲ ἡμέτερον κέρδος ἐγένετο τῆς θεοφόρου σαρκὸς τὰ πάθη, οὐκ ἀπέκτεινε δὲ τὴν ἁμαρτίαν ἐν τῇ σαρκί, οὐκ ἐζωοποιήθημεν ἐν τῷ Χριστῷ οἱ ἐν τῷ Ἀδὰμ ἀποθανόντες, οὐκ ἀνεπλάσθη τὸ διαπεπτω κός, οὐκ ἀνωρθώθη τὸ κατερραγμένον, οὐ προσῳκειώθη τῷ Θεῷ τὸ διὰ τῆς ἀπάτης τοῦ ὄφεως ἀλλοτριωθέν. Ταῦτα γὰρ πάντα ἀναιρεῖται παρὰ τῶν οὐράνιον σῶμα λεγόντων ἔχοντα τὸν Κύριον παραγεγενῆσθαι. Τίς δὲ χρεία τῆς Ἁγίας Παρ θένου, εἰ μὴ ἐκ τοῦ φυράματος τοῦ Ἀδὰμ ἔμελλεν ἡ χρισ τοφόρος σὰρξ προσλαμβάνεσθαι; Ἀλλὰ τίς οὕτω τολμηρὸς ὥστε τὸ πάλαι σιωπηθὲν Οὐαλεντίνου δόγμα νῦν πάλιν διὰ σοφιστικῶν ῥημάτων καὶ τῆς ἐκ τῶν Γραφῶν δῆθεν μαρτυ ρίας ἀνανεοῦσθαι; Οὐ γὰρ νεώτερον τοῦτο τῆς δοκήσεως τὸ ἀσέβημα, ἀλλὰ πάλαι ἀπὸ