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and the angels as angels, they themselves also praying for all men, and the race of demons to be unmixed with them for unending ages, having abandoned their own dwelling through apostasy and been condemned by God to just punishments; to confess also all the saints as servants of God, able to intercede with God for our salvation; further, to confess the holy icons of our Lord Jesus Christ himself, and of his mother, and of the angels and of all the saints, to venerate and accept them according to the dogma decreed by the Second Council in Nicaea, and to anathematize all heretics who are anathematized by the councils, to proclaim all the orthodox who are praised by them. This is the sincere faith of Christians, this is the witness of the confession of Christ; let him who thinks contrary to these things be anathema from the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. As Paul says, "But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we preached to you, let him be accursed." As I have said before, so now I say again: "If anyone is preaching to you a gospel contrary to what you received, let him be accursed." Since, therefore, you yourself did not reveal these things in detail in your writings, it is altogether necessary for you to confess that you think thus. And how will this be? That at the end of this very letter you should subscribe according to the accompanying note. And so the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard and direct both us and you in one spirit and one heart to believe and worship the Holy Trinity for the salvation of our own souls and of the people divided into two parts, in the presence of the lord Ioannikios, our spiritual father, and of you, our honorable father and brother. 491 {1To Diogenes the asekretis. Question. What ought one to call the icon of Christ and how ought one to venerate it. Answer.}1 The question has a twofold answer, that is, regarding the name; for the name given to it is used both in a proper and improper sense. For in a proper sense his icon is called an icon of Christ, but improperly, when it is called Christ, but this is by extension, as is the case with the life-giving cross and its type; The theory is analogous also in the case of veneration; the veneration is similar to that of the type of the cross. For it is relative, as of things that are in relation to something, of the prototype and the icon, according to the voice of Basil the Great: "For the honor of the icon passes on to the prototype." For the veneration of both is one, not being split nor divided, but in the case of the prototype it is essential, while in the case of the derivative it is relative, just as also the form of the image, because there it is present by nature, but here by participation. He, therefore, who venerates the icon of anyone, whether of Christ, or of the Theotokos, or of a saint, or simply of a king, or of a ruler, or of a subordinate person, has in it venerated him of whom it happens to be an icon; and venerating thus he is not in error, but, being grounded in orthodoxy, he justly refutes those who oppose either truth. And who are these? Both those who refuse to venerate the holy icons and those who in veneration say they venerate the prototypes themselves by nature, the blasphemy of both of whom is equal, of the one as destroying the mystery of the economy, of the other as deifying, or rather giving substance to, things that are by nature far removed from their prototypes. Therefore, one must venerate the icon of Christ (for here is the culmination of the argument) relatively, but not worship it; for this is naturally for Christ himself, since the worship of the Trinity is one. And one must not worship the Theotokos herself, nor the life-giving cross itself. Thus, one must not worship the icon of Christ either, but venerate it, since all venerations, through their respective prototypes, are referred to the one and only worshipful veneration of the Holy Trinity; for all the others are not worshipful, but honorific, according to the

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τε τοὺς ἀγγέλους ὡς ἀγγέλους, ὑπερδεομένων καὶ αὐτῶν πάντων τῶν ἀνθρώπων, τό τε δαιμόνιον φῦλον ἀμιγὲς εἶναι εἰς αἰῶνας ἀτελευτήτους πρὸς αὐτούς, τὸ ἴδιον οἰκητήριον δι' ἀποστασίαν ἀπολιπόντας καὶ καταδεδικασμένους ὑπὸ θεοῦ ἐνδίκοις κολάσεσιν· ὁμολογεῖν καὶ τοὺς ἁγίους πάντας ὡς θεράποντας θεοῦ, πρεσβεύειν τῷ θεῷ δυναμένους εἰς σωτηρίαν ἡμῶν· ἔτι ὁμολογεῖν τὰς ἁγίας εἰκόνας αὐτοῦ τε τοῦ Κυρίου ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦ Χριστοῦ, τῆς τε αὐτοῦ μητρός, ἀγγέλων τε καὶ πάντων ἁγίων, προσκυνεῖν καὶ ἀποδέχεσθαι κατὰ τὸ δογματισθὲν τῇ ἐν Νικαίᾳ τὸ δεύτερον συνόδῳ, ἀναθεματίζειν τε πάντας αἱρετικοὺς τοὺς ὑπὸ τῶν συνόδων ἀναθεματιζομένους, ἀνακηρύττειν πάντας τοὺς ὀρθοδόξους παρ' αὐτῶν εὐφημουμένους. Αὕτη ἡ εἰλικρινὴς πίστις τῶν Χριστιανῶν, τοῦτο τὸ μαρτύριον τῆς Χριστοῦ ὁμολογίας· παρὰ ταῦτα ὁ φρονῶν ἤτω ἀνάθεμα ἀπὸ τοῦ πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ Ἁγίου Πνεύματος. καθά φησιν ὁ Παῦλος, ὅτι, κἂν ἡμεῖς ἢ ἄγγελος ἐξ οὐρανοῦ εὐαγγελίζεται ὑμῖν παρ' ὃ εὐηγγελισάμεθα ὑμῖν, ἀνάθεμα ἔστω. ὡς προείρηκα, καὶ πάλιν λέγω· εἴ τις ὑμᾶς εὐαγγελίζεται παρ' ὃ παρελάβετε, ἀνάθεμα ἔστω. ἐπεὶ οὖν αὐτὸς λεπτομερῶς ταῦτα οὐκ ἐξεκάλυψας ἐν τοῖς γράμμασί σου, δέον πᾶσα ἀνάγκη ὁμολογῆσαί σε οὕτως φρονεῖν. τοῦτο δὲ ἔσται πῶς; ἵνα ἐν τῷ πληρώματι τῆς ἐπιστολῆς αὐτῆς ταύτης ὑπογράψῃς κατὰ τὸ ἐμφερόμενον πιττάκιον. καὶ οὕτως ἡ εἰρήνη τοῦ θεοῦ, ἡ ὑπερέχουσα πάντα νοῦν, φρουρήσει καὶ βραβεύσει ἡμᾶς τε καὶ ὑμᾶς ἐν ἑνὶ πνεύματι καὶ μιᾷ καρδίᾳ πιστεύειν καὶ λατρεύειν τῇ Ἁγίᾳ Τριάδι ἐπὶ σωτηρίᾳ τῶν τε οἰκείων ψυχῶν καὶ τοῦ διαιρεθέντος λαοῦ εἰς δύο μέρη, ἀπέναντι τοῦ κυρίου Ἰωαννικίου, τοῦ πνευματικοῦ ἡμῶν πατρός, καὶ σοῦ τοῦ τιμίου καὶ πατρὸς καὶ ἀδελφοῦ ἡμῶν. 491 {1∆ιογένει ἀσηκρῆτις Ἐρώτησις. Πῶς δεῖ καλεῖν τὴν Χριστοῦ εἰκόνα καὶ πῶς αὐτὴν προσκυνεῖν χρή. Ἀπόκρισις.}1 Ἡ ἐρώτησις διπλῆν ἔχει τὴν ἀπόκρισιν, ἤγουν τὴν κλῆσιν· λέγεται γὰρ καὶ κυρίως καὶ οὐ κυρίως τὸ ἐπ' αὐτῇ ὀνομαζόμενον. κυρίως μὲν γὰρ εἰκὼν Χριστοῦ εἴρηται ἡ εἰκὼν αὐτοῦ, οὐ κυρίως δέ, ὅταν καλῆται Χριστός, ἀλλὰ κατὰ κατάχρησιν, ὡς ἔχει ἐπί τε τοῦ ζωοποιοῦ σταυροῦ καὶ τοῦ τύπου αὐτοῦ· ἀναλογοῦν τὸ θεώρημα ὡσαύτως καὶ ἐπὶ τῆς προσκυνήσεως, παραπλησίως τῷ τύπῳ τοῦ σταυροῦ ἡ προσκύνησις. σχετικὴ γὰρ ὡς τῶν πρός τι ὄντων, πρωτοτύπου τε καὶ εἰκόνος, κατὰ τὴν φωνὴν τοῦ Μεγάλου Βασιλείου· ἡ γὰρ τιμὴ τῆς εἰκόνος ἐπὶ τὸ πρωτότυπον διαβαίνει. ἔστι γὰρ τῶν ἀμφοτέρων μία ἡ προσκύνησις, οὐ σχιζομένη οὐδὲ διαιρουμένη, ἀλλ' ἐπὶ μὲν τοῦ πρωτοτύπου οὐσιωδῶς, ἐπὶ δὲ τοῦ παραγώγου σχετικῶς ὑπάρχουσα, ὥσπερ καὶ τὸ εἶδος τῆς μορφῆς, ὅτι ἐκεῖ μὲν φυσικῶς, ἐνταῦθα δὲ μεθεκτῶς πάρεστιν. Ὁ γοῦν προσκυνῶν τὴν εἰκόνα οὑτινοσοῦν, εἴτε Χριστοῦ, εἴτε τῆς Θεοτόκου, εἴτε ἁγίου, εἴτε ἁπλῶς βασιλέως, εἴτε ἄρχοντος, εἴτε ὑφειμένου ἀνθρώπου, ἐν ταύτῃ προσεκύνησε τὸν οὗπερ αὕτη τυγχάνει εἰκών· καὶ οὕτω προσκυνῶν οὐ σφάλλεται, ἀλλ', ὀρθοδόξως ἐρειδόμενος, τοὺς ἐφ' ἑκατέρᾳ τῇ ἀληθείᾳ ἀντιπίπτοντας ἐνδίκως ἀποκρούεται. τίνες δὲ οὗτοι; οἵ τε ἀπαναινόμενοι προσκυνεῖν τὰς σεπτὰς εἰκόνας καὶ οἱ ἐν τῇ προσκυνήσει λέγοντες αὐτὰ τὰ πρωτότυπα φυσικῶς προσκυνεῖν, ὧν ἀμφοτέρων ἐπ' ἴσης τὸ βλάσφημον, τῶν μὲν ὡς ἀναιρούντων τὸ τῆς οἰκονομίας μυστήριον, τῶν δὲ ὡς θεοποιούντων, ἤτοι οὐσιοποιούντων, τὰ μακρὰν ἀπέχοντα τῇ φύσει ἀπὸ τῶν πρωτοτύπων. τοιγαροῦν προσκυνητέον τὴν εἰκόνα Χριστοῦ (ὧδε γὰρ ὁ κολοφὼν τοῦ λόγου) σχετικῶς, ἀλλ' οὐ λατρευτέον· τοῦτο γὰρ φυσικῶς ἐπ' αὐτοῦ Χριστοῦ, ἐπείπερ ἡ λατρεία μία τῆς Τριάδος. καὶ οὐδὲ αὐτῇ τῇ Θεοτόκῳ λατρευτέον οὐδὲ αὐτῷ τῷ ζωοποιῷ σταυρῷ. οὕτως οὐδὲ τῇ Χριστοῦ εἰκόνι λατρευτέον, ἀλλὰ προσκυνητέον, πασῶν τῶν προσκυνήσεων διὰ μέσου τῶν κατ' αὐτὰς πρωτοτύπων ἐπὶ τὴν μίαν καὶ μόνην λατρευτικὴν προσκύνησιν τῆς Ἁγίας Τριάδος ἀναφερομένων· αἱ γὰρ ἄλλαι οὐ λατρευτικαὶ ἅπασαι, ἀλλὰ τιμητικαί, κατὰ τὸ