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to the fellow ministers in Phoenicia and to the rest who think the same things as we do, greetings in the Lord. We prayed indeed that after the trial as if by fire of the ecclesiastical faith with the temptations that have happened in the meantime for the sake of the faith, and after the events in the city of Constantine on account of Marcellus, and after the exposition of the faith in the synod assembled for the dedication of the church in Antioch, and after these things at Sardica and the faith that flourished there again, and still after the events in Sirmium concerning Photinus, and moreover also the reasonings which we set forth when questioned on each main point concerning the faith by those at Sardica who were separated from the East, that at last we might be at rest, and that with the church from East to West being united in the pious reign of our master Constantius, and the scandals having been cast out, we might be at peace and attend to the worship of God. But since, as it seems, the devil does not cease striving on his own through his own instruments, so that he might by all means work towards apostasy according to what was foretold by the Lord and proclaimed in harmony by the holy apostle for the protection of the faithful, devising innovations against the ecclesiastical faith, and now having appropriated some in a "form of godliness" * and devising "profane novelties of words" through them against the pious genuineness of the only-begotten son of God, at first hearing that some were running about in Antioch, but also in Alexandria, and still in Lydia or in Asia, and casting sparks 3.270 of impiety into the souls of the more simple, we hoped that on account of the audacity of the impiety and their great shamelessness, with our lords the fellow ministers in each place also fighting for it, the devised heresy would wither and the evil would be extinguished. But since in succession both those visiting from the aforementioned places and those from Illyricum report that the inventors of this evil are applying themselves diligently and dare to harm more people and to leaven them with evil, no longer bearing to put it off, but also having read the letters of our like-minded fellow minister George of the church of Laodicea, of which we have subjoined the copies, and reverencing before God the testimonies of those who have testified to us, as the time allowed, with the holy day of Pascha approaching, having gathered as many of us as were able to be gathered (because the winter was also an obstacle for many, as they signified by letters), we hastened to set forth this particular form of the faith, as far as concerns the rest * with the synod in Antioch, as we said before, with the faith set forth at the dedication, but also at Sardica, which the synod in Sirmium has taken up, and with the reasonings from there, wishing to articulate precisely the faith of the catholic church in the holy trinity, and against this, as we have said, the form of the innovation, only dictating as the Spirit allowed. And we exhort you, most honorable lords and fellow ministers, having read this, to signify by your subscription that you are established in the faith handed down from the fathers and that we think in harmony with you, as we have believed, so that those who dare to introduce the same impiety, being fully assured that we are guarding the faith which we received as a kind of inheritance from the 3.271 apostolic times through those in between even unto us from the fathers, may either be corrected out of shame or, if they persist, be renounced by the church, as they are already preparing through themselves the apostasy for the son of lawlessness, who threatens and dares "to sit in the temple of God." 3. "Our faith in the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, which is. For thus our Lord Jesus Christ taught his own disciples, saying, "Go, make disciples of all nations, baptizing

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συλλειτουργοῖς τοῖς ἐν Φοινίκῃ καὶ τοῖς λοιποῖς τοῖς τὰ αὐτὰ ἡμῖν φρονοῦσιν ἐν κυρίῳ χαίρειν. Εὐχόμεθα μὲν μετὰ τὴν ὡς ἐν πυρὶ τοῖς ἐν μέσῳ γεγενημένοις ὑπὲρ τῆς πίστεως πειρασμοῖς βάσανον τῆς ἐκκλησιαστικῆς πίστεως καὶ μετὰ τὰ ἐπὶ τῆς Κωνσταντίνου πόλεως διὰ Μάρκελλον γεγενημένα καὶ μετὰ τὴν ἔκθεσιν τῆς πίστεως ἐν τῇ συνόδῳ συγκροτηθείσῃ ἐπὶ τοῖς ἐγκαινίοις τῆς ἐν Ἀντιοχείᾳ ἐκκλησίας καὶ μετὰ ταῦτα κατὰ Σαρδικὴν καὶ τὴν ἐκεῖ αὖθις ἀνθήσασαν πίστιν καὶ ἔτι μετὰ τὰ ἐν Σιρμίῳ ἐπὶ Φωτεινῷ γεγενημένα, ἔτι μὴν καὶ λογισμούς, οὓς ἐφ' ἑκάστῳ περὶ τῆς πίστεως κεφαλαίῳ ἐπερωτηθέντες παρὰ τῶν ἐν Σαρδικῇ πρὸς τὴν ἀνατολὴν διεστώτων ἐξεθέμεθα, ἠρεμῆσαι λοιπὸν καὶ ἑνωθείσης ἐν τῇ εὐσεβεῖ βασιλείᾳ τοῦ δεσπότου ἡμῶν Κωνσταντίου τῆς ἀπὸ ἀνατολῆς ἕως δυσμῶν ἐκκλησίας, ἐκβεβλημένων τῶν σκανδάλων, εἰρηνεύειν τε καὶ ταῖς λατρείαις τοῦ θεοῦ προσανέχειν. ἐπειδὴ δὲ ὡς ἔοικεν οὐ παύεται ὁ διάβολος διὰ τῶν οἰκείων σκευῶν σπουδάζων καθ' ἑαυτόν, ἵνα δὴ πάντως κατὰ τά τε παρὰ τοῦ κυρίου προρρηθέντα καὶ διὰ τοῦ ἁγίου ἀποστόλου συμφώνως ἐπὶ προφυλακῇ τῶν πιστῶν κηρυχθέντα εἰς ἀποστασίαν ἐργάσηται, ἐπινοῶν καινισμοὺς κατὰ τῆς ἐκκλησιαστικῆς πίστεως, καὶ νῦν ἐν «μορφώσει τινὰς εὐσεβείας» οἰκειώσασθαι * καὶ «βεβήλους καινοφωνίας» δι' αὐτῶν ἐπινοήσας κατὰ τῆς εὐσεβοῦς γνησιότητος τοῦ μονογενοῦς υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ, πρότερον μὲν ἀκούοντες κατὰ τὴν Ἀντιόχειαν διατρέχειν τινάς, ἀλλὰ καὶ κατὰ τὴν Ἀλεξάνδρειαν, ἔτι τε καὶ τὴν Λυδίαν εἴτε κατὰ τὴν Ἀσίαν καὶ ἐμβαλεῖν σπινθῆρας 3.270 ἀσεβείας ταῖς τῶν ἁπλουστέρων ψυχαῖς, ἠλπίζομεν διὰ τὸ τολμηρὸν τῆς ἀσεβείας καὶ τὸ τοσοῦτον ἀναιδὲς αὐτῶν, ὑπερμαχούντων καὶ τῶν κατὰ τόπον κυρίων συλλειτουργῶν, μαρανθῆναι τὴν ἐπινοηθεῖσαν αἵρεσιν καὶ σβεσθῆναι τὴν κακίαν. ἐπειδὴ δὲ ἑξῆς οἵ τε ἐκ τῶν προειρημένων τόπων ἐπιδημοῦντες καὶ οἱ ἀπὸ τῶν κατὰ τὸ Ἰλλυρικὸν ἀπαγγέλλουσιν, ὡς σπουδὴν τιθέντες οἱ τούτου τοῦ κακοῦ ἐξευρεταὶ καὶ πλείονας βλάπτειν τολμῶσι καὶ πρὸς κακίαν ζυμοῦν, οὐκέτι ἀνασχόμενοι ὑπερτίθεσθαι, ἀλλὰ καὶ τοῖς γράμμασιν ἐντυγχάνοντες τοῖς τοῦ ὁμοψύχου συλλειτουργοῦ ἡμῶν Γεωργίου τοῦ τῆς Λαοδικείας ἐκκλησίας, ὧν τὰ ἀντίτυπα ὑπετάξαμεν, καὶ τὰς μαρτυρίας τῶν διαμαρτυραμένων πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἐπὶ θεοῦ εὐλαβηθέντες, ὡς ἐνεδίδου ὁ καιρός, τῆς ἁγίας ἡμέρας τοῦ Πάσχα ἐπικειμένης, συναχθέντες ὅσοι γε ἠδυνήθημεν καὶ συναχθῆναι, διὰ τὸ καὶ τὸν χειμῶνα τοῖς πολλοῖς ἐμποδὼν γενέσθαι, ὡς διὰ τῶν γραμμάτων ἐσήμαναν, ἐκθέσθαι εἰς τοῦτο τὸ εἶδος τῆς πίστεως τὸ ἰδίωμα ἐσπουδάσαμεν, ὅσον ἐπὶ τοῖς λοιποῖς * τῇ ἐν Ἀντιοχείᾳ ὡς προέφαμεν συνόδῳ, ἐκτεθείσῃ τε πίστει τῇ ἐν τοῖς ἐγκαινίοις, ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν τῇ Σαρδικῇ, ἣν ἀνείληφεν ἡ ἐν Σιρμίῳ σύνοδος, καὶ τοῖς ἐκεῖθεν λογισμοῖς, διαρθρώσειν ἀκριβῶς βουλόμενοι τὴν εἰς τὴν ἁγίαν τριάδα τῆς καθολικῆς ἐκκλησίας πίστιν, πρὸς δὲ τοῦτο ὡς προέφημεν τῆς καινοτομίας τὸ εἶδος, μόνον ὡς ἐνεδίδου τὸ πνεῦμα ὑπαγορεύσαντες. καὶ παρακαλοῦμεν ὑμᾶς, κύριοι τιμιώτατοι συλλειτουργοί, ἐντυχόντας, ὅτι ἡδράσθητε τῇ ἐκ πατέρων παραδοθείσῃ πίστει καὶ ὡς σύμφωνα ὑμῖν φρονοῦμεν, ὡς πεπιστεύκαμεν, ὑποσημήνασθαι, ἵνα πληροφορηθέντες οἱ τὴν αὐτὴν ἀσέβειαν ἐπεισάγειν τολμῶντες, ὅτι καθάπερ κλῆρόν τινα τὴν ἐκ τῶν 3.271 ἀποστολικῶν χρόνων διὰ τῶν ἐν τῷ μέσῳ ἄχρι καὶ ἡμῶν παραδοθεῖσαν ἀπὸ τῶν πατέρων ὑποδεξάμενοι πίστιν φυλάσσομεν, ἢ αἰσχυνθέντες διορθωθήσονται ἢ ἐπιμένοντες ἀποκηρυχθῶσι τῆς ἐκκλησίας, ὡς τὴν ἀποστασίαν τῷ υἱῷ τῆς ἀνομίας, ὃς τολμᾶν ἀπειλεῖ καὶ «εἰς τὸν ναὸν τοῦ θεοῦ καθίσαι», ἤδη δι' ἑαυτῶν προπαρασκευάζοντες.» 3. «Ἡ πίστις ἡμῶν εἰς πατέρα καὶ υἱὸν καὶ ἅγιον πνεῦμα ὅ ἐστιν. οὕτω γὰρ ἐδίδασκε τοὺς ἑαυτοῦ μαθητὰς ὁ κύριος ἡμῶν Ἰησοῦς Χριστὸς εἰπών «πορευθέντες μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, βαπτίζοντες