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79. It is observed that at the beginning of philosophy, fear follows; but at the end, love precedes.

80. The mind, beginning philosophy from imminent faith, ends in theology which is beyond all mind, which they define as unforgettable faith and the vision of an unseen reality.

81. The words concerning God are contemplated by our holy and blessed Fathers not from the things that are of His essence, but from the things that are around Him.

82. But the things around Him—clearly, God—are conceived, all words, some by affirmation, others by negation, for example.

83. 1468) The essence, the divinity, the goodness, and whatever else is said affirmatively and by affirmation; but again, the unoriginate, and infinite, and indefinite and whatever is said negatively, by negation.

84. While the one divinity of the Holy Trinity is beyond mind and word and hidden, the things contemplated around it they say are the aforementioned, and things like them.

85. And just as they speak of one divinity of the Holy Trinity, so also they glorify the three hypostases of the one divinity.

86. But they understand the aforementioned things by negation and affirmation as common to the holy and consubstantial Trinity, apart from the properties; since they also say that most of these are by affirmation, but some by negation.

87. And again they say that the properties of the divine hypostases are these, for example, paternity, sonship, procession, and whatever else is said specifically.

88. And they define hypostasis as essence with properties, on account of which each hypostasis has one common thing of the essence, and the particular thing of the hypostasis.

89. And again, concerning the common things of the Holy Trinity, they judge the aforementioned things stated by negation to be more authoritative than those stated by affirmation, but not so, however, with the properties; since they say that some of these are by affirmation, and others by negation, as was said before, such as the begotten, and the like. For unbegottenness differs from begottenness only in meaning. For the one signifies that the Father is not begotten, while the other signifies that the Son is begotten.

Τέσσ. ἀν´.And again they have used verbs and nouns for the clarification of the words contemplated concerning the essence, as has been said, of the Holy Trinity; not, however, those of the essence itself; for these are entirely unknown to the mind, and entirely ineffable in word, and are known only to the Trinity.

Τέσσ. ἀν. α´. And just as they say the one essence of the divinity is three-hypostased, so also they confess the Holy Trinity to be consubstantial.

Τέσσ. ἀν. β´. And again, the Father is contemplated by them as both without beginning and as a beginning; without beginning, as unbegotten, and a beginning, as begetter and producer of those who are from Him according to essence, existing from eternity in Himself, I mean both the Son and the Holy Spirit.

Τέσσ. ἀν. γ´. The monad, moving among them as far as the Trinity, remains a monad, and the Trinity, being brought together as far as the monad, remains a Trinity; which is also a paradox.

Τέσσ. ἀν. δ´. And again they conceive the Son, and the Spirit, not as without beginning, but as eternal; and not without beginning, as referred to the Father as beginning and source, but eternal, as from eternity, the one by begetting, the other by procession, co-existing with the Father.

Τέσσ. ἀν. ε´. (1469) And they guard the one divinity of the Trinity as undivided, and they preserve the three hypostases of the one divinity as unconfused.

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οθ.´. Θεωρεῖται τῇ μέν ἀρχῇ τῆς φιλοσοφίας φόβος ἑπόμενος· τῷ δέ τέλει ἀγάπη προηγουμένη.

π´. Ἐκ πίστεως τῆς προσεχοῦς ὁ νοῦς ἀρχόμενος φιλοσοφίαν εἰς τήν παντός ἐπέκεινα νοῦ καταλήγει θεολογίαν, ἥν ἄληστον πίστιν καί πράγματος ἀφανοῦς θεωρίαν ὁρίζουσι.

πα´. Οἱ περί Θεοῦ λόγοι οὐκ ἐκ τῶν κατ᾿ αὐτόν, ἀλλ᾿ ἐκ τῶν περί αὐτόν τοῖς ἁγίοις καί μακαρίοις ἡμῶν Πατράσι θεωροῦνται.

πβ´. Νοοῦνται δέ οἱ περί αὐτόν, δῆλον ὅτι τόν Θερόν, πάντες λόγοι, οἱ μέν κατά θέσιν, οἱ δέ κατά ἀφαίρεσιν, οἷον.

πγ´. 1468) Ἡ οὐσία, ἡ θεότης, ἡ ἀγαθότης, καί ὅσα ἄλλα καταφατικῶς λέγεται καί κατά θέσιν· τό δέ ἄναρχον πάλιν, καί ἄπειρον, καί ἀόριστον καί ὅσα ἀποφατικῶς, κατά τήν ἀφαίρεσιν.

πδ´. Μιᾶς οὔσης τῆς ὑπέρ νοῦν καί λόγον καί κρυφίας θεότητος τῆς ἁγίας Τριάδος, τά περί αὐτήν θεωρούμενα τά προειρημένα εἶναί φασιν, καί τά ὅμοια.

πε´. Ὥσπερ δέ μίαν θεότητα τῆς ἁγίας Τριάδος λέγουσιν· οὕτως καί τρεῖς τάς ὑποστάσεις τῆς μιᾶς θεότητος δοξάζουσιν.

πστ´. Νοοῦσι δέ τά κατά ἀφαίρεσιν καί θέσιν προειρημένα, κοινά ἐπί τῆς ἁγίας καί ὁμοουσίου Τριάδος χωρίς τῶν ἰδιωμάτων· ἐπειδή καί αὐτῶν τά πλεῖστα μέν κατά θέσιν, τινά δέ κατά ἀφαίρεσιν λέγουσιν.

πζ´. Λέγουσιν δέ πάλιν τά ἰδιώματα τῶν θείων ὑποστάσεων ταῦτα, οἷον τήν πατρότητα, τήν υἱότητα, τήν ἐκπόρευσιν, καί ὅσα ἄλλα ἰδικῶς λέγεται.

πη´. Ὑπόστασιν δέ ὁρίζουσιν, οὐσίαν μετά ἰδιωμάτων, δι᾿ ὅ ἑκάστη ἡ ὑπόστασις ἔχει ἕν τό κοινόν τῆς οὐσίας, καί τό ἴδιον τῆς ὑποστάσεως.

πθ´. Τά δέ κοινῶν πάλιν ἐπί τῆς ἁγίας Τριάδος κατά ἀφαίρεσιν προειρημένα, τῶν κατά θέσιν λεχθέντων κυριώτερα κρίνουσιν, οὐχ οὕτως μέντοι καί ἐπί τῶν ἰδιωμάτων· ἐπειδή καί αὐτῶν τά μέν κατά θέσιν, τά δέ κατά ἀφαίρεσιν, ὡς προείρηται, λέγουσιν, ὡς τό γεννητόν, καί τά ὅμοια. Ἡ γάρ ἀγεννησία τῆς γεννήσεως, κατά μόνην διαφέρει τήν σημασίαν. Ἡ μέν γάρ τό μή γεγεννῆσθαι τόν Πατέρα, ἡ δέ τό γεγεννῆσθαι τόν Υἱόν σημαίνει.

Τέσσ. ἀν´.Ῥήμασι δ᾿ αὖ καί ὀνόμασι κέχρηνται πρός τήν τῶν περί τήν οὐσίαν, ὡς εἴρηται, τῆς ἁγίας Τριάδος θεωρουμένων λόγων σαφήνειαν· οὐ μέντοι γε τῶν κατά τήν οὐσίαν· ἄγνωστοι γάρ οὗτοι νῷ πάντη, καί ἀῤῥήτῳ λόγῳ πάντη, καί μόνῃ τῇ Τριάδι εἰσίν γινωσκόμενοι.

Τέσσ. ἀν. α´. Ὥσπερ δέ τρισυπόστατον τήν μίαν οὐσίαν τῆς θεότητος λέγουσιν, οὕτως καί ὁμοούσιον τήν ἁγίαν Τριάδα ὁμολογοῦσιν.

Τέσσ. ἀν. β´. Θεωρεῖται δέ αὐτοῖς πάλιν ὁ Πατήρ καί ἄναρχος καί ἀρχή· καί ἄναρχος μέν ὡς ἀγέννητος, ἀρχή δέ ὡς γεννήτωρ καί προβολεύς τῶν ἐξ αὐτοῦ κατ᾿ οὐσίαν ἐξ ἀϊδίου ὑπαρχόντων ἐν ἑαυτῷ, Υἱοῦ τε λέγω καί Πνεύματος ἁγίου.

Τέσσ. ἀν. γ´. Ἡ μονάς μέχρι Τριάδος παρ᾿ αὐτοῖς κινουμένη μένει μονάς, καί ἡ Τριάς μέχρι μονάδος συναγομένη, μένει Τριάς· ὅ καί παράδοξον.

Τέσσ. ἀν. δ´. Νοσοῦσι δέ πάλιν τόν Υἱόν, καί τό Πνεῦμα, οὐκ ἄναρχα μέν, ἀΐδια δέ· καί οὐκ ἄναρχα μέν ὡς πρός ἀρχήν καί πηγήν ἀναφερόμενα τόν Πατέρα, ἀΐδια δέ, ὡς ἐξ ἀϊδίου, τοῦ μέν γεννητῶς, τοῦ δέ ἐκπορευτῶς Πατρί συνυπάρχοντος.

Τέσσ. ἀν. ε´. (1469) Ἀδιαίρετον δέ τήν μίαν θεότητα τῆς Τριάδος φυλάττουσι, καί ἀσυγχύτους τάς τρεῖς ὑποστάσεις τῆς μιᾶς θεότητος διατηροῦσι.