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thinks that appellations are established, and are entirely devoid of things. What wrong thing, then, has the holy Catholic Church of God done, if it should say that the things from which Christ is, are preserved in Christ according to an indivisible union, by nature, without confusion and without division, even after the union? What has it thought that is foreign to the teaching of the holy Fathers, if it teaches the faithful to think and to say, after the union, that neither has the divine nature of the Word been changed into the nature of the flesh, nor does it hold that the nature of the flesh itself has passed over into the nature of the Word on account of the union? Or what does it not rather confirm of the patristic tradition by teaching to think thus, confessing one Lord and one Christ, and one and the same Son, and one incarnate nature of God (584) the Word, with flesh possessing a rational and intellectual soul, understanding the expression according to the interpretation of our holy and blessed Father Cyril; by saying "incarnate," understanding the signification of our substance to be introduced, and not denying the nature of the flesh of the Word on account of the union? For the things preserved by nature without confusion and immutably and indivisibly according to an indivisible union in Christ even after the union, without any diminution whatsoever, it is entirely most fitting and most just to be confessed also after the union. For it is the property of true faith to confess what we have been taught to think. If, therefore, the things from which Christ is are preserved by nature after the union, it is entirely just to think that they exist in Christ after the union. And if it is just to think that the things from which Christ is are preserved after the union, it would be much more most just and also most fitting, and most important for all who care for salvation, to confess them; if indeed the unfailing confession according to it is the demonstration of true faith. And so much for these things. For there is no need to say more, addressing my words to you, who through grace are ignorant of none of the things that look to the right faith of Christ.

And concerning what you have written to me, most honored ones, I have reported also our honored letters to the blessed servant of God, the all-laudable Eparch; and he has eagerly promised to fulfill all your command. And I do not cease reminding him, until he shall surely bring your command to completion. May the Lord and God of all and Savior Jesus Christ, who willingly accepted death for our sake, and by his own blood redeemed us from the power of darkness, and gave us the new commandment to love one another as much as we have been loved; may he take hold of your right hand, and guide you into every good work, and direct your steps according to him; bearing you in the fullness of the fruits of righteousness to the marvelous place of his tabernacle, where is the dwelling of all who rejoice.

18. Of the same, on behalf of George the all-laudable Eparch of Africa, to ascetic women who have apostatized from the Catholic Church in Alexandria.

I, for my part, thought that you were truly well established, and had the foundations of your soul unmovable from the right and pious confession and hope according to the blameless and unerring faith of Christ, revering the grace of God that called you, and united you to the living and complete and blameless (585) body of the holy, catholic, and apostolic Church; and healed you when you were already wasting away with the consumptive disease of error and ignorance, and made you a useful member of the common body of the Church; according to which the pious, and right and true and saving of the apostolic

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προσηγορίας κεῖσθαι φρονεῖ, καί παντελῶς πραγμάτων ἐρήμους. Τί μέν οὖν ἁγία τοῦ Θεοῦ καθολική Ἐκκλησία τῶν ἀτόπων πέπραχεν, εἰ τά ἐξ ὧν ὁ Χριστός ἐν Χριστῷ καθ᾿ ἕνωσιν ἀδιάσπαστον σώζεσθαι λέγοι κατά φύσιν ἀσυγχύτως τε καί ἀδιαιρέτως καί μετά τήν ἕνωσιν; Τί δέ τῆς τῶν ἁγίων Πατέρων διδασκαλίας ἀλλότριον πεφρόνηκεν, εἰ μήτε τήν θείαν τοῦ Λόγου φύσιν εἰς τήν τῆς σαρκός τετράφθαι φύσιν· μήτε τήν αὐτῆς τῆς σαρκός φύσιν εἰς τήν τοῦ Λόγου φύσιν μεταπεφοιτηκέναι δοξάζει διά τήν ἕνωσιν, φρονεῖν τε καί λέγειν διδάσκει τούς πιστούς μετά τήν ἕνωσιν; Τί δέ μᾶλλον οὐ βεβαιοῖ τῆς πατρικῆς παραδόσεως οὕτω φρονεῖν ἐκδιδάσκουσα, καί ἕνα Κύριον ὁμολογοῦσα καί ἕνα Χριστόν, καί ἕνα Υἱόν τόν αὐτόν, καί μίαν αὐτοῦ τοῦ σαρκωθέντος Θεοῦ (584) Λόγου φύσιν σεσαρκωμένην, σαρκί ψυχήν ἐχούσῃ τήν λογικήν τε καί νοεράν, κατά τήν ἑρμηνείαν τοῦ ἁγίου καί μακαρίου Πατρός ἡμῶν Κυρίλλου τήν φωνήν ἐκλαμβάνουσα· διά τοῦ σεσαρκωμένην λέγειν, τῆς καθ᾿ ἡμᾶς οὐσίας εἰσκομίζεσθαι νοοῦσα τήν δήλωσιν, καί μή ἀρνουμένη τῆς σαρκός τοῦ Λόγου τήν φύσιν διά τήν ἕνωσιν; τά γάρ σωζόμενα κατά φύσιν ἀσυγχύτως τε καί ἀτρέπτως καί ἀδιαιρέτως καθ᾿ ἕνωσιν ἀδιάσπαστον ἐν Χριστῷ καί μετά τήν ἕνωσιν χωρίς τῆς οἱασοῦν μειώσεως, πάντως καί ὁμολογεῖσθαι πρεπωδέστατόν ἐστι καί δικαιότατον μετά τήν ἕνωσιν. Ἀληθοῦς γάρ πίστεως καθέστηκεν ἴδιον, ὁμολογεῖν ὅπερ φρονεῖν ἐδιδάχθημεν. Εἰ τοίνυν σώζεται κατά φύσιν τά ἐξ ὧν ὁ Χριστός μετά τήν ἕνωσιν, καί φρονεῖν αὐτά πάντως εἶναι δίκαιον ἐστιν ἐν Χριστῷ μετά τήν ἕνωσιν. Εἰ δέ φρονεῖν σώζεσθαι τά ἐξ ὧν ὁ Χριστός δίκαιόν ἐστι μετά τήν ἕνωσιν, καί ὁμολογεῖν αὐτά πολλῷ μᾶλλον ἄν εἴη δικαιότατον τε ὁμοῦ καί πρεπωδέστατον, καί πᾶσι τοῖς σωτηρίας φροντίζουσι σπουδαιότατον· εἴπερ ἔνδειξις πίστεως καθέστηκεν ἀληθοῦς, ἡ κατ᾿ αὐτήν ἀνελλιπής ὁμολογία. Καί ταῦτα μέν περί τούτων. Οὕτε γάρ πλείονα λέγειν ἀνάγκη, πρός ὑμᾶς γε ποιούμενον τόν λόγον, καί τούς μηδέν διά τῆς χάριτος τῶν εἰς τήν ὀρθήν τοῦ Χριστοῦ πίστιν ὁρώντων ἀγνοοῦντας.

Περί δέ ὧν γεγράφατέ μοι, τιμιώτατοι, ἀνήγαγον τῷ εὐλογημένῳ δούλῳ τοῦ Θεοῦ, τῷ πανεύφημῳ ἐπάρχῳ καί τάς τιμίας ἡμῶν συλλαβάς· καί ὑπέσχετο προθύμως πᾶσαν ὑμῶν πληρῶσαι κέλευσιν. Καί οὐ παύομαι ὑπομιμνήσκων αὐτόν, ἕως ἄν πάντως εἰς πέρας ἀγάγοι τήν ὑμετέραν κέλευσιν. Ὁ Κύριος δέ καί Θεός τῶν ὅλων καί Σωτήρ Ἰησοῦς Χριστός, ὁ τόν ὑπέρ ἡμῶν ἑκουσίως καταδεξάμενος θάνατον, καί τῷ οἰκείῳ αἵματι λυτρωσάμενος ἡμᾶς τῆς ἐξουσίας τοῦ σκότους, καί δούς ἡμῖν τήν ἐντολήν καινήν ἐν τῷ τοσοῦτον ἡμᾶς ἀλήλους ἀγαπᾷν, ὅσον καί ἠγαπήμεθα· αὐτός κρατήσαι τῆς χειρός ὑμῶν τῆς δεξιᾶς, καί ὁδηγήσαι ὑμᾶς εἰς πᾶν ἔργον ἀγαθόν, καί κατευθήναι ὑμ ῶν τά κατ' αὐτόν διαβήματα· φέρων ὑμᾶς ἐν πληρώματι καρπῶν δικαιοσύνης εἰς τόν θαυμαστόν τόπον τῆς σκηνῆς αὐτοῦ, ἔνθα πάντων εὐφραινομένων ἡ κατοικία.

ΙΗ´Τοῦ αὐτοῦ, ἐκ προσώπου Γεωργίου τοῦ πανευφήμου ἐπάρχου Ἀφρικῆς, πρός ἀσκητρίας ἀποστάσας τῆς καθολικῆς Ἐκκλησίας ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ.

Ἐγώ μέν ᾤμην ὑμᾶς ὡς ἀληθῶς ἐστηρίχθαι καλῶς, καί ἀμεταθέτους ἔχειν τάς τῆς ψυχῆς βάσεις ἀπό τῆς κατά τήν ἀμώμητον καί ἄπταιστον πίστιν τοῦ Χριστοῦ ὀρθῆς καί εὐσεβοῦς ὁμολογίας τε καί ἐλπίδος, τήν καλέσασαν ὑμᾶς τοῦ Θεοῦ χάριν αἰδουμένας, καί τῷ ζῶντι καί ἀρτίῳ καί ἀμωμήτῳ (585) σώματι τῆς ἁγίας καθολικῆς καί ἀποστολικῆς Ἐκκλησίας ἑνώσασαν· καί ἤδη καταῤῥυείσας φθινάδι νόσῳ πλάνης τε καί ἀγνοίας ῥώσασαν, καί μέλος εὔχρηστον τοῦ κοινοῦ τῆς Ἐκκλησίας σώματος ποιησαμένην· καθ᾿ ἥν ὁ εὐσεβής, καί ὀρθός καί ἀληθής καί σωτήριος τῆς ἀποστολικῆς