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to know the one begotten and his perfect spirit, which proceeds from the Father and receives from the Son. And this is fitting for the dignity 3.382 of the substance of God, in an additive way not to be in need of any dignity, but to have it eternally in its own identity. 33. 16. If the unbegotten is indicative of substance, it is reasonably contrasted with the substance of the begotten; but if the unbegotten signifies nothing, much more does the begotten indicate nothing. And how could nothing be contrasted with nothing? But if the unbegotten utterance is contrasted with the begotten utterance, with silence succeeding utterance, it happens that the hope of Christians comes into being and ceases to be, lying in a different utterance, but not in natures that are such as the meaning of the names intends. Refutation. How are those who have learned to astound the minds of the inexperienced accustomed to anticipate the testimonies against themselves? For Aetius, who has his hope in utterance only and not in truth, has boldly come forth to ascribe this to us, he who was not ashamed to confess that the Son of God and God the Father differ by mere word, while we especially confess that the Father is by nature and the Son is by nature and the Holy Spirit is by nature; for nothing else will be compared to the Trinity. And for this reason the foundation of our confession is truly consubstantial and not through utterance which is destroyed through coming into being and not being, as is the opinion of Aetius concerning the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. For there is truly a true Father and truly a true Son and a true Holy Spirit, even if he should sow countless vain reasonings, as the divine word says concerning such things, that "I will set aside the understanding of the understanding," and that "the Lord knows the reasonings of men, that they are vain," and so forth. 34. 17. If the unbegotten grants nothing more for the superiority of substance compared to the begotten, the Son, being surpassed only in utterance, will know those who addressed him to be better than himself, not the one addressed as his God and Father. Refutation. No pious argument would concede, even if Aetius should stage countless dramas for us, that those who have received their being from the one who is are better than the Son. For he himself also confesses that they have come to be through him. For they do not know to call the begotten one according to an utterance of a word, but true 3.383 from true begotten, those who have been benefited by him and deemed worthy to be called Christians by knowing him in truth and having been taught by the Father and not from flesh and blood, and for this reason are rightly called blessed, as the one who recognized him as Son of the living God with the addition, nor are they judged spiritually as he who is spirit and only-begotten judges the carnal Aetius who does not accept the things of the spirit. * And if he should say, "I am going to my Father and your Father, and my God and your God"; since both of these names cannot be equated with alien names, with the truth always remaining and each necessary order in the Son of God in truth teaching what is clear. For neither should "my Father and your Father" be fulfilled for them according to the flesh—for how is God the father of flesh, he who has not put on flesh?—nor should "my God and your God" be fulfilled according to the divinity of the Son and according to the adoption of the disciples; but by "my God and your God," he who is true in all things mysteriously assured the disciples about his own incarnation for our salvation; and by saying "my Father and your Father," through the "my" he signifies God's communion with him according to nature and at the same time with us, of which, he says, having come to dwell through loving-kindness, I gave you to partake according to the saying: "He gave them power to become children of God." Wherefore he himself, having come to be among them, took the form of a servant, having recently communed with the recent, with the ancient things remaining in

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εἰδέναι τὸν γεγεννημένον καὶ τὸ τέλειον αὐτοῦ πνεῦμα, ὃ ἐκ τοῦ πατρὸς ἐκπορεύεται καὶ τοῦ υἱοῦ λαμβάνει. καὶ τοῦτο πρέπον ἐστὶν ἀξιώματος 3.382 οὐσίας θεοῦ, τὸ προσληπτικῶς μὴ ἐπιδεῖσθαί τινος ἀξιώματος, ἀλλ' ἔχειν αὐτὸ ἀϊδίως ἐν τῇ ἰδίᾳ ταυτότητι. 33. ˉιˉ. Εἰ τὸ ἀγέννητον οὐσίας ἐστὶ δηλωτικόν, εἰκότως πρὸς τὴν τοῦ γεννήματος οὐσίαν ἀντιδιαστέλλεται· εἰ δὲ μηδὲν σημαίνει τὸ ἀγέννητον, πολλῷ μᾶλλον οὐδὲν δηλοῖ τὸ γέννημα. μηδενὶ δὲ μηδὲν πῶς ἂν ἀντιδιασταλείη; εἰ δὲ ἡ ἀγέννητος προφορὰ πρὸς τὴν γεννητὴν προφορὰν ἀντιδιαστέλλεται, σιωπῆς τὴν προφορὰν διαδεχομένης, γίνεσθαι συμβαίνει καὶ ἀπογίνεσθαι τὴν τῶν Χριστιανῶν ἐλπίδα, ἐν διαφόρῳ προφορᾷ κειμένην, ἀλλ' οὐκ ἐν φύσεσιν οὕτως ἐχούσαις ὡς ἡ τῶν ὀνομάτων βούλεται σημασία. Ἀνατροπή. Πῶς προλαμβάνειν εἰώθασι τὰς καθ' ἑαυτῶν μαρτυρίας οἱ ἐκθαμβεῖν τὴν διάνοιαν τῶν ἀπείρων μεμαθηκότες; ὁ γὰρ ἐν προφορᾷ τὴν ἐλπίδα κεκτημένος Ἀέτιος μόνον καὶ οὐκ ἀληθείᾳ, ταύτην ἡμῖν ἐπιφημίζειν τολμηρῶς προῆλθεν, αὐτὸς υἱὸν θεοῦ καὶ θεὸν πατέρα ψιλῷ λόγῳ διαφέρειν μὴ αἰδεσθεὶς ὁμολογῆσαι, ἡμῶν δὲ μάλιστα ὁμολογούντων φυσικὸν εἶναι πατέρα καὶ φυσικὸν εἶναι υἱὸν καὶ φυσικὸν εἶναι ἅγιον πνεῦμα· τῇ γὰρ τριάδι οὐδὲν ἄλλο συγκριθήσεται. καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἀληθινῶς ὁμοούσιόν ἐστι τὸ τῆς ὁμολογίας ἡμῶν ἔρεισμα καὶ οὐ διὰ προφορᾶς τῆς διὰ τοῦ γίνεσθαι καὶ μὴ γίνεσθαι ἀναιρουμένης, ὡς ἡ τοῦ Ἀετίου περὶ πατρὸς δόξα καὶ υἱοῦ καὶ ἁγίου πνεύματος. ἔστι γὰρ ὄντως πατὴρ ἀληθινὸς καὶ υἱὸς ὄντως ἀληθινὸς καὶ πνεῦμα ἅγιον ἀληθινόν, κἄν τε μυρίους συλλογισμοὺς ματαίους ὑποσπείρῃ, ὥς φησιν ὁ θεῖος λόγος περὶ τῶν τοιούτων λέγων ὅτι «τὴν σύνεσιν τῶν συνετῶν ἀθετήσω» καὶ ὅτι «οἶδε κύριος τοὺς λογισμοὺς τῶν ἀνθρώπων, ὅτι εἰσὶ μάταιοι», καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. 34. ˉιˉζ. Εἰ μηδὲν πλέον νέμει εἰς ὑπεροχὴν οὐσίας τὸ ἀγέννητον πρὸς τὸ γέννημα, προφορᾷ μόνον ὑπερεχόμενος ὁ υἱὸς βελτίους ἑαυτοῦ γνώσεται τοὺς προσαγορεύσαντας, οὐ τὸν προσαγορευθέντα θεὸν αὐτοῦ καὶ πατέρα. Ἀνατροπή. Οὐδεὶς εὐσεβὴς λόγος συγχωρήσειε, κἄν τε μυρία δραματουργήσῃ ἡμῖν Ἀέτιος, ἀμείνους εἶναι τοῦ υἱοῦ τοὺς τὸ εἶναι παρὰ τοῦ ὄντος εἰληφότας. δι' αὐτοῦ γὰρ καὶ αὐτὸς ὁμολογεῖ τοὺς αὐτοὺς γεγενῆσθαι. οὔτε γὰρ κατὰ προφορὰν λόγου ἴσασι τὸ γέννημα καλεῖν, ἀλλὰ ἀληθινὸν 3.383 ἐξ ἀληθινοῦ γεγεννημένον οἱ ἐξ αὐτοῦ εὐεργετηθέντες καταξιωθέντες τε κληθῆναι Χριστιανοὶ τῷ εἰδέναι αὐτὸν ἐν ἀληθείᾳ καὶ διδαχθῆναι διὰ πατρὸς καὶ οὐκ ἀπὸ σαρκὸς καὶ αἵματος, καὶ διὰ τοῦτο εἰκότως μακαριζόμενοι, ὡς ὁ μετὰ προσθήκης τοῦ ζῶντος υἱὸν θεοῦ αὐτὸν ἐπιγνούς, οὔτε πνευματικῶς ἀνακρινόμενοι ὡς ἀνακρίνει ὁ πνεῦμα ὢν καὶ μονογενὴς τὸν ψυχικὸν Ἀέτιον μὴ παραδεχόμενον τὰ τοῦ πνεύματος. * κἄν τε εἴποι «ἀπέρχομαι πρὸς τὸν πατέρα μου καὶ πατέρα ὑμῶν, καὶ θεόν μου καὶ θεὸν ὑμῶν»· τῶν ἀμφοτέρων τούτων ὀνομασιῶν πρὸς τὰ ἀλλογενῆ ὀνόματα μὴ δυναμένων ἐξισοῦσθαι, τῆς ἀληθείας ἀεὶ μενούσης καὶ ἑκάστης χρειώδους τάξεως ἐν υἱῷ θεοῦ ἐν ἀληθείᾳ τὸ σαφὲς διδασκούσης. οὔτε γὰρ τὸ «πατέρα μου καὶ πατέρα ὑμῶν» κατὰ τὴν σάρκα εἰς αὐτοὺς πληρωτέον πῶς γὰρ πατὴρ σαρκὸς ὁ θεὸς ὁ σάρκα μὴ ἐνδυσάμενος; οὔτε τὸ «θεόν μου καὶ θεὸν ὑμῶν» κατὰ τὴν τοῦ υἱοῦ θεότητα καὶ κατὰ τὴν μαθητῶν υἱοθεσίαν πληρωτέον· ἀλλὰ τῷ «θεόν μου καὶ θεὸν ὑμῶν» διὰ τὴν ἡμετέραν σωτηρίαν περὶ τῆς ἑαυτοῦ ἐνανθρωπήσεως μυστηριωδῶς ὁ ἀληθεύων ἐν ἅπασι τοὺς μαθητὰς ἠσφαλίζετο· πατέρα δέ μου καὶ πατέρα ὑμῶν εἰπὼν διὰ τοῦ ἐμοῦ σημαίνει τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ πρὸς αὐτὸν κατὰ φύσιν καὶ ὁμοῦ πρὸς ἡμᾶς ἐπικοινωνίαν, ἧς ἐγὼ μέν, φησίν, κατὰ φιλανθρωπίαν ἐνδημήσας ἔδωκα ὑμῖν περιγενέσθαι κατὰ τὸ ῥητόν· «ἔδωκεν αὐτοῖς ἐξουσίαν τέκνα θεοῦ γενέσθαι». διόπερ καὶ αὐτὸς παρ' αὐτοῖς γενόμενος μορφὴν δούλου ἔλαβε, προσφάτως προσφάτῳ ἐπικοινωνήσας, τῶν ἀρχαϊζόντων μενόντων ἐν