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is Christ, he cannot say that the difference is preserved. For the difference after the union is of a natural otherness of those things from which Christ is, but not of a dissimilarity according to quality alone, without the natures underlying the qualities; without which it is among the impossible things for a quality to exist in itself; so that we do not introduce a bare, or rather, to speak more properly, a false and non-existent difference.

Being persuaded that we hold this confession of faith precisely according to the Fathers, I did not hesitate to write everywhere to all patriarchs and bishops and rulers, and to our most pious and all-gentle emperors themselves, for the thanksgiving of God, making manifest to all your genuine conversion and faith in Christ. And I never thought, as I said, that you would so quickly turn away from your saving call. But since, on account of my sins, the evil one, who from the beginning through deceit dragged the race of men down to ruin and destruction, has been strong enough to persuade you also to prefer falsehood to the truth; and more than God, and the good things laid up for the saints, for the sake of an evil habit, to grant deception to men who have been taught only to entice to death; and has been able to make you return to your own vomit, like dogs, to speak prophetically, I command, if indeed you are so incurably disposed, and have resolved to the end to turn away from the grace of Christ; that for the time being you give the (589) gifts made to you by me to the man Theopemptus, sent by me for this reason alone with a written command, so that you may have no doubt about this. And again, whatever occurs to our most pious and Christ-loving and all-gentle emperors, and to the most holy patriarchs, they will learn everything concerning you from me, with God, when I am in their serene presence, concerning your apostasy and such great villainy and ingratitude; I shall judge it well for this to happen. For I will not pass over in silence so great an evil. But if you, taking to mind the dreadful tribunal of Christ, before which, in the presence of angels and archangels and the whole company of the heavenly hosts, and of all human nature, the judgment from me against you concerning this will be convened, repent, and return again to God who called you in grace; then I want you to have the very property already gifted to you by me; and I will not cease, as long as I am appointed to live this present and temporary life, devising ways for your greater establishment; and I would not refuse to give myself as a ransom for your souls, if ever the time should call for this to be necessary. And indeed I will give it eagerly, with God through grace calling me to this; if only you would restore yourselves again to Christ our God; and may you, through your return, rightly heal the cut and separation from his body which has happened to you.

19. Of the same to Pyrrhus the most holy presbyter and hegumen. Having read your holy letter, God-honored Father, I recognized your mind as wholly formed by the whole Spirit; the

your mind I recognized as formed; and I discerned it to be as far removed from natural understanding, as I apprehended it to be possessed of divine and supernatural wisdom. For through your letters I seemed to see, as it were, your God-wise mind itself present, flashing only with the pure rays of the Spirit; by which he is naturally transfigured toward the more divine, who is deemed worthy to be adopted as son by the Father of all (592); and delivering me from ignorance concerning the divine dogmas, as much as before concerning the

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ἐστιν ὁ Χριστός, τήν διαφοράν σώζεσθαι λέγειν οὐ δύναται. Φυσικῆς γάρ τῶν ἐξ ὧν ἐστιν ὁ Χριστός ἑτερότητός ἐστι μετά τήν ἕνωσιν ἡ διαφορά, ἀλλ᾿ οὐ τῆς κατά ποιότητα μόνην ἀνομοιότητος, χωρίς τῶν ὑποκειμένων ταῖς ποιότησι φύσεων· ὧν ἄνευ ποιότητα καθ᾿ ἑαυτήν εἶναι τῶν ἀδυνάτων ἐστίν· ἵνα μή ψιλήν, μᾶλλον δέ κυριώτερον εἰπεῖν, ψευδῆ τήν διαφοράν εἰσάγωμεν καί ἀνύπαρκτον.

Ταύτην ἀκριβῶς κατέχειν ἡμᾶς κατά τούς Πατέρας τῆς πίστεως τήν ὁμολογίαν πεπεισμένος, πᾶσι πανταχοῦ ποτε γράφειν οὐκ ὤκνουν πατριάρχαις καί ἐπισκόποις καί ἄρχουσι, καί αὐτοῖς τοῖς εὐσεβεστάτοις καί πανημέροις ἡμῶν βασιλεῦσιν, ὑπέρ εὐχαριστίας Θεοῦ, κατάδηλον πᾶσι ποιῶν τήν ὑμῶν εἰς Χριστόν γνησίαν μετάθεσίν τε καί πίστιν. Καί οὐκ ᾤμην ποτέ, καθάπερ ἔφην, ὑμᾶς οὕτω ταχέως μετατίθεσθαι τῆς σωτηρίου κλήσεως ὑμῶν. Ἐπειδή δέ διά τάς ἐμάς ἁμαρτίας, ὁ ἐξ ἀρχῆς δι᾿ ἀπάτης εἰς ὄλεθρον καί ἀπώλειαν τό γένος τῶν ἀνθρώπων ὑποσυρόμενος πονηρός, καί ὑμᾶς ἴσχυσε παραπεῖσαι, τῆς ἀληθείας προτιμῆσαι τό ψεῦδος· καί πλέον Θεοῦ, καί τῶν ἀποκειμένων ἀγαθῶν τοῖς ἁγίοις, συνηθείας ἕνεκεν πονηρᾶς, ἀπαταίωσιν ἀνθρώποις χαρίσασθαι πρός θάνατον δελεάζειν μόνον δεδιδαγμένοις· καί πρός τόν ἴδιον ἔμετον ὑμᾶς καθάπερ κύνας προφητικῶς εἰπεῖν ἐπιστρέψαι δεδύνηται, παρεγγυῶ, εἴπερ οὕτως ἀνιάτως ἔχετε, καί εἰς τέλος προέθεσθε τήν τοῦ Χριστοῦ χάριν ἀποστραφῆναι· τέως τάς (589) γινομένας εἰς ὑμᾶς παρ᾿ ἐμοῦ δωρεάς δοῦναι Θεοπέμπτῳ τῷ ἀνθρώπῳ, ἐπί τούτῳ καί μόνον παρ᾿ ἐμοῦ σταλέντι μετ᾿ ἐγγράφου ἐντάλματος, πρός τό μηδεμίαν ἀμφιβολίαν ἔχειν ὑμᾶς περί τούτου. Καί πάλιν, εἴ τι παρίσταται τοῖς εὐσεβεστάτοις καί φιλοχρίστοις καί πανημέροις ἡμῶν βασιλεῦσι, καί τοῖς ἁγιωτάτοις πατριάρχαις, τά καθ᾿ ὑμᾶς πάντα δι᾿ ἐμοῦ σύν Θεῷ παρά τήν αὐτῶν γαληνότητα γινομένου μανθάνουσι περί τῆς ἀποστασίας ὑμῶν, καί τῆς τοσαύτης κακουργίας καί ἀγνωμοσύνης, γενέσθαι καλῶς ἔχειν κρινῶ. Οὔτε γάρ παρασιωπήσομαι τοσοῦτον κακόν. Εἰ δέ τό φρικτόν τοῦ Χριστοῦ κατά νοῦν λαμβάνουσαι δικαστήριον, ἐφ᾿ οὗ παρουσίᾳ ἀγγέλων καί ἀρχαγγέλων καί παντός δήμου τῶν κατ᾿ οὐρανόν στρατιῶν, καί πάσης τῆς ἀνθρωπίνης φύσεως, ἡ παρ᾿ ἐμοῦ πρός ὑμᾶς περί τούτου συγκροτηθήσεται δίκη, μεταμελήθητε, καί πρός τόν καλέσαντα πάλιν ὑμᾶς ἐν χάριτι Θεόν ἐπανέλθετε· καί αὐτήν ἤδη τήν ἐμοῦ δωρηθεῖσαν ὑμῖν κτίσιν ἔχειν ὑμᾶς βούλομαι· καί οὐ παύσομαι ἕως τήν παροῦσαν καί πρόσκαιρον ταύτην ζωήν οἰκονομοῦμαι ζῇν, τρόπους ἐπινοῶν εἰς σύστασιν ὑμῶν περισσοτέραν· καί ἑμαυτόν ἀντίλυτρον τῶν ὑμετέρων ψυχῶν οὐκ ἄν παραιτήσομαι δοῦναι, εἴπερ ἀναγκαίως τοῦτο γενέσθαι καλέσοι καιρός. Καί δώσω γε προθύμως πρός τοῦτό με καλοῦντος τοῦ Θεοῦ διά τῆς χάριτος· εἰ μόνον ὑμεῖς ἑαυτάς Χριστῷ τῷ Θεῷ πάλιν ἀποκαταστήσητε· καί τήν γενομένην ὑμῖν ἀπό τοῦ σώματος αὐτοῦ διά τῆς ἐπανόδου, καλῶς ἐξιάσησθε τομήν καί διάστασιν.

ΙΘ´Τοῦ αὐτοῦ πρός Πύῤῥον τόν ὁσιώτατον πρεσβύτερον καί ἡγούμενον. Τήν ἁγίαν σου, θεοτίμητε Πάτερ, ἐπιστολήν ἀναγνούς, ὅλον ὅλῳ τῷ Πνεύματι τόν

σόν νοῦν ἐπέγνων πεποιωμένον· καί τοσοῦτον τῆς φυσικῆς ἐξεστηκότα διέγνων συνέσεως, ὅσον τῆς θείας καί ὑπέρ τήν φύσιν κατέλαβον σοφίας ἐπειλημμένον. Αὐτόν γάρ σου παρόντα διά τῶν γραμμάτων οἷον ὁρᾷν ἐδόκουν τόν θεόσοφον νοῦν, μόναις ἀστράπτοντα ταῖς ἀκηράτοις ἀκτῖσι τοῦ Πνεύματος· αἷς μεταμορφοῦσθαι πρός τό θειότερον πέφυκεν, ὁ τῷ Πατρί τῶν ὅλων (592) υἱοθετεῖσθαι καταξιούμενος· καί τοσοῦτόν με τῆς ἐπί τοῖς θείοις δόγμασιν ἀγνοίας λυτρούμενον, ὅσον τό πρίν τῆς ἐπ᾿