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there are reports about him. For indeed in other respects his life was venerable, his character good, desired in all things by the people because of his life, which was extolled by all. But some people, concerning him—I cannot say whether moved by hatred or envy or wanting to magnify their own affairs—have suggested certain things, such as that the action against him did not happen on account of orthodoxy, but, he says, on account of canonical matters and the contentiousness between him and his 3.310 priesthood, and that he received certain persons whom he had long ago cast out and anathematized. But we did not take these things to heart at all, on account of the things that were especially corrected daily and confessed in the faith later in the synod concerning him, as has been previously shown by me above. For it is necessary in this part to speak the truth, as much as is possible according to our weakness in all things. For if you wish, something escaped the man in the rush of the exposition of his arguments; I cannot say; if you wish, the statement was put forth by him out of simplicity; it is known to God. Nevertheless, in one part, two or three exceptionable statements are found in the same exposition: in taking the Son of God altogether as a creature in his divinity, even if only in name, and in saying that he is “beyond wisdom,” and if there is anything else. 36. But having related a few things in response to what was suggested by them, we will also pass over this account. Tell us, you people, what was the trouble in calling the homoiousion, homoousion? Confess clearly to us, so that we may recognize you as our own and not as strangers. For bronze can be of like substance to gold, tin to silver, lead to iron. But your contrived and finely-turned myth-making will not deceive us. For if, wishing to deceive some, you want to make false excuses, saying that one must not say homoousion, lest we make a confusion of the Son with the Father or the Spirit with the Son and the Father, even in this your contrived argument has failed. For we did not say hamaousion, but homoousion, so that we might confess the Son to be in no way different from the Father, but truly God begotten of God, and not from elsewhere nor from non-being, but having come forth from the Father, begotten timelessly and without beginning and ineffably, always being with the Father and never ceasing to be, but begotten, not a co-brother, not a forefather. For the homo signifies two hypostases, but not alien in nature. Therefore the bond of truth in this was managed 3.311 by the Holy Spirit in the mouth of those who set this forth. And you see that there will be no excuse for you, nor can you speak against orthodoxy and frighten those who receive from you the hearing of your counterfeit word, that if anyone says homoousion, he has confessed a confusion. For this will no longer be the case. For from the homoousion two will be signified, and from the homoousion it will be shown that the offspring is not alien to the Father. But you, having fabricated the homoiousion, will be refuted by the name of 'substance', and by your altered confession you will be condemned, not for thinking what you say, but for teaching what you think in a counterfeit manner; for if he is not from him at all, but is like him, you are far removed from the truth. For with whatever materials one might wish to fashion the copy, one could not make it equal to the model; for it is the work of construction. But what is begotten from someone, that preserves the form of the same and equal kind of genuineness. If, therefore, the Son is not begotten from the Father himself, but should be outside of him, and he is called by you homoiousios by grace, you have given him nothing, but have fallen from his grace. "For he who does not honor the Son as he honors the Father, the wrath of God remains upon him," the holy apostle says, and again, "I came forth from the Father and have come," he who said, "I am in the

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περὶ αὐτοῦ φήμας ὑπάρχει. καὶ γὰρ καὶ τἄλλα αὐτοῦ βίος σεμνός, τρόπος ἀγαθός, εἰς πάντα τοῖς λαοῖς ἐπιπόθητος διὰ τὸν βίον αὐτοῦ παρὰ πᾶσιν ἐκθειαζόμενον. τινὲς δὲ καὶ περὶ τούτου, οὐκ οἶδα λέγειν εἰ μίσει φερόμενοι ἢ φθόνῳ ἢ τὰ ἑαυτῶν μεγαλύνειν βουλόμενοι, τινὰ ὑφηγήσαντο, ὡς ὅτι οὐχ ἕνεκεν ὀρθοδοξίας ἡ κατ' αὐτοῦ γέγονε κίνησις, ἀλλ' ἕνεκεν, φησί, κανονικῶν πραγμάτων καὶ τῆς ἀνὰ μέσον αὐτοῦ καὶ τοῦ αὐτοῦ 3.310 ἱερατείου ἐρεσχελίας, καὶ ὅτι τινὰς ἐδέξατο, οὓς πάλαι ἀπεβάλετο καὶ ἀνεθεμάτισεν. ἀλλ' οὐ πάνυ ταῦτα κατὰ νοῦν ἐθήκαμεν, διὰ τὰ μάλιστα εἰς ὕστερον ἐν τῇ κατ' αὐτὸν συνόδῳ ὁσημέραι διορθούμενα καὶ ὁμολογούμενα ἐν τῇ πίστει, ὡς ἄνω μοι προδεδήλωται. δεῖ γὰρ κατὰ τὸ μέρος τοῦτο ἀληθεύειν, ὅση δύναμις κατὰ τὸ ἀσθενὲς τὸ ἡμέτερον ἐν πᾶσι. θέλεις γάρ, παρῆλθέ τι τὸν ἄνδρα ἐν τῷ ῥοίζῳ τῆς τῶν λόγων ἐξηγήσεως· οὐκ ἔχω λέγειν· θέλεις, κατὰ ἀφέλειαν ἀπ' αὐτοῦ ὁ λόγος προήχθη· θεῷ ἔγνωσται. πλὴν ἐν ἑνὶ μέρει ἐπιλήψιμοι δύο ἢ τρεῖς λόγοι ἐν τῇ αὐτῇ ἐξηγήσει εὑρίσκονται, ἐν τῷ ὅλως ὡς περὶ κτίσματος περὶ υἱοῦ τοῦ θεοῦ λαμβάνειν ἐν τῇ αὐτοῦ θεότητι κἂν ἕως ὀνόματος, καὶ ἐν τῷ εἰπεῖν ὅτι «ὑπὲρ σοφίαν» καὶ εἴ τι ἕτερον. 36. Ὀλίγα δὲ πρὸς τὰ ὑπ' αὐτῶν ὑποβληθέντα διηγησάμενοι καὶ ταύτην παρελευσόμεθα τὴν ὑφήγησιν. λέγετε ἡμῖν, ὦ οὗτοι, τί ἐλύπει λέγειν τὸ ὁμοιοούσιον ὁμοούσιον; σαφῶς ἡμῖν ὁμολογήσατε, ἵνα καὶ ὑμᾶς ἐπιγνῶμεν ἰδίους ὄντας καὶ μὴ ἀλλοτρίους. δύναται γὰρ καὶ ὁμοιοούσιον εἶναι πρὸς χρυσὸν χαλκός, πρὸς ἄργυρον κασσίτερος, πρὸς σίδηρον ὁ μόλιβδος. ἀλλ' οὐκ ἀπατήσει ἡμᾶς ἡ ὑμῶν ἐπιτετηδευμένη καὶ τετορνευμένη μυθοπλαστία. εἰ μὲν γάρ τινας βουλόμενοι ἀπατῆσαι βούλεσθε προφασίζεσθαι προφάσεις ψευδεῖς λέγοντες, ὅτι οὐ χρὴ λέγειν τὸ ὁμοούσιον, ἵνα μὴ συναλοιφὴν ποιήσωμεν τὸν υἱὸν πρὸς πατέρα ἢ τὸ πνεῦμα πρὸς τὸν υἱὸν καὶ πατέρα, καὶ ἐν τούτῳ διέπεσεν ὑμῶν ὁ ἐπιτετηδευμένος λόγος. οὐ γὰρ εἴπομεν ἁμαούσιον, ἀλλ' ὁμοούσιον, ἵνα μηδὲν τοῦ πατρὸς παρηλλαγμένον τὸν υἱὸν ὁμολογήσωμεν, ἀλλὰ θεὸν ὄντως ἐκ θεοῦ γεγεννημένον, καὶ οὐκ ἀλλαχόθεν οὐδὲ ἐξ οὐκ ὄντων, ἀλλὰ ἐκ πατρὸς προελθόντα, ἀχρόνως καὶ ἀνάρχως καὶ ἀνεκδιηγήτως γεγεννημένον, ἀεὶ ὄντα πρὸς τὸν πατέρα καὶ μηδέποτε διαλείποντα τοῦ εἶναι, ἀλλὰ γεγεννημένον, οὐ συνάδελφον, οὐ προπάτορον. τὸ γὰρ ὁμο δύο μὲν ὑποστάσεών ἐστι σημαντικόν, οὐκ ἀλλοτρίων δὲ τῇ φύσει. διὸ ὁ σύνδεσμος τῆς ἀληθείας ἐν τούτῳ ἐκ τοῦ πνεύματος τοῦ ἁγίου ᾠκονόμη3.311 ται ἐν στόματι τῶν τοῦτο ἐκθεμένων. καὶ ὁρᾷς ὅτι οὐκ ἔσται σοι πρόφασις οὐδὲ δύνασαι κατὰ τῆς ὀρθοδοξίας λέγειν καὶ πτύρειν τοὺς παρὰ σοῦ τὴν ἀκοὴν τοῦ παραπεποιημένου σου λόγου παραδεχομένους ὅτι, ἐάν τις εἴπῃ τὸ ὁμοούσιον, συναλοιφὴν ὡμολόγησεν. οὐκέτι γὰρ ἔσται τοῦτο. ἀπὸ γὰρ τοῦ ὁμοουσίου σημανθήσεται δύο, καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ ὁμοουσίου δηλωθήσεται οὐκ ἀλλότριον τὸ γέννημα πρὸς τὸν πατέρα ὑπάρχον. σὺ δὲ ἐπιπλασάμενος τὸ ὁμοιοούσιον διὰ μὲν τοῦ ὀνόματος τῆς οὐσίας ἐλεγχθήσῃ, διὰ δὲ τῆς παρηλλαγμένης ὁμολογίας κατακριθήσῃ οὐχ ἃ λέγεις φρονῶν, ἀλλὰ ἃ φρονεῖς παραπεποιημένως διδάσκων· εἰ γὰρ ὅλως οὐκ ἔστιν ἐξ αὐτοῦ, ὅμοιος δὲ αὐτῷ ἐστι, πολὺ ἀφέστηκας τῆς ἀληθείας. ὁποίαις γὰρ ὕλαις τὸν ἐκτυπούμενον εἴ τις ἂν θέλοι διακοσμήσειν, οὐκ ἂν ἴσον τῷ ἐκτυπουμένῳ κατασκευάσειε· καὶ γὰρ καὶ κατασκευῆς τὸ ἔργον. τὸ δὲ γεννώμενον ἐκ τοῦ τινός, ἐκεῖνο πρὸς τὸ γένος τὸ ὅμοιον καὶ τὸ ἴσον τῆς γνησιότητος ἀποσῴζει εἶδος. εἰ τοίνυν οὐκ ἐξ αὐτοῦ γεγέννηται τοῦ πατρὸς ὁ υἱός, ἐκτὸς δὲ αὐτοῦ εἴη, ὁμοιοούσιος δὲ παρὰ σοὶ κατὰ χάριν λεχθήσεται, οὐδὲν αὐτῷ δέδωκας, ἀλλ' ἐξέπεσας τῆς παρ' αὐτοῦ χάριτος. «ὁ γὰρ μὴ τιμῶν τὸν υἱὸν ὡς τιμᾷ τὸν πατέρα, ἡ ὀργὴ τοῦ θεοῦ μένει ἐπ' αὐτόν» ὁ ἅγιος ἀπόστολός φησι, καὶ πάλιν «ἐγὼ ἐκ τοῦ πατρὸς ἐξῆλθον, καὶ ἥκω», ὁ φήσας «ἐγὼ ἐν τῷ