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For some of the Antidicomarianites, as if having enmity towards the virgin and wishing to belittle her glory, stirred by some envy or error and wishing to defile the minds of men, have dared to say that the holy Mary after the birth of Christ was joined to a man, I mean, to Joseph himself. And they say, as was stated by me above, that this report has resounded from the elder Apollinarius himself or from some of his disciples; and I am in doubt * but concerning those who say these things, I am compelled to speak. But so that I might not involve myself in a second labor, I shall subjoin in order the letter which I mentioned before, written to the land of the Arabs. And it is this: 2. To my most honored and most beloved children and genuine and orthodox brothers of the same faith, from priest to layman and catechumens throughout Arabia, Epiphanius, least of bishops, in the Lord, greeting. It is possible to marvel in the present time and not to marvel; to marvel, that in our generation all things are fulfilled, and not to marvel, for it is necessary that they be fulfilled. For daily by addition there now comes to us from human reasonings and thoughts a sophistical suspicion that progresses to the worse, forsaking the apostolic teaching, just as the most holy apostle foretold that “some will depart from the sound teaching, giving heed to myths and doctrines of demons,” and the rest. For if there is anything to investigate and devise wicked ways, men are more zealous for these things * than 3.453 fulfilling the commandment which says to seek what is good and acceptable, and “let your speech be seasoned with salt, so that it may give grace to those who hear.” And if we should consider these things, whence it happens that evil things are renewed for us each day, we ourselves shall be as uninstructed and not heeding the divine and prophetic words. For these things must be fulfilled. For in all parts of the faith must be perfected what was said: “When the Son of Man comes, will he find faith on the earth?” For where has “the thought of men, intent on evil from youth” reached? What parts of the faith has it not destroyed? And in what words has malevolence not disturbed what is useful, of things both most fitting and in the constitution of a rational nature, for which it was fitting to think rather on venerable things and to strive to add to these, even if it was necessary to go against nature, and not rather, striving for the worse, to pervert true things into things unseemly? 3. For finally, since all things have been filled in our generation, both the blasphemous things and the things outside the Holy Spirit, they are turning again to other new things. For some blaspheme the Father, the God and creator of all, those called Gnostics, and others again, Marcionites and those called Archontics and their followers the Manichaeans, who have most justly received their designation from a certain just dispensation of God, possessing a name of madness; all these, along with many heresies—I mean Cainites, Sethians, Melchizedekians, Colorbasians, Cerdonians and the others—dare to blaspheme against the Father of all in that they deny this one to be the God who spoke in the Law and in the Prophets, who is justly worshiped by all creatures as founder and creator; these, along with reverence, attempt to do away with lordship as well, denying the one who truly is, and imagining another who is not according to their mythical supposition, so that they might fall from the one who is and not find the one whom they suppose. For thus the nonsense and the devil's sowing of words is accustomed to produce such confusion and turmoil, through blasphemous reasonings stirring up the mind of created men to war against their own Lord 3.454 with evil suspicions and denials of God. But again, having turned aside from this, some proceed to other things

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Ἀντιδικομαριαμιτῶν γάρ τινες, ὥσπερ ἐχθρίαν πρὸς τὴν παρθένον ἔχοντες καὶ βουλόμενοι κατευτελίζειν ἐκείνης τὸ κλέος, φθόνῳ τινὶ ἀρθέντες ἢ σφάλματι καὶ χρᾶναι βουλόμενοι διανοίας ἀνθρώπων, ἐτόλμησαν λέγειν τὴν ἁγίαν Μαρίαν μετὰ τὴν τοῦ Χριστοῦ γέννησιν ἀνδρὶ συνῆφθαι, φημὶ δὲ αὐτῷ τῷ Ἰωσήφ. φασὶ δέ, ὡς ἄνω μοι εἴρηται, ὅτι ἀπ' αὐτοῦ τοῦ πρεσβύτου Ἀπολιναρίου ἐξήχηται ὁ λόγος ἢ ἀπό τινων τῶν αὐτῷ μεμαθητευμένων· καὶ ἀμφιβάλλω * περὶ δὲ τῶν ταῦτα λεγόντων ἀνάγκην ἔχω λέγειν. ἵνα δὲ μὴ εἰς δεύτερον κάματον ἑαυτὸν περιβάλλοιμι, καθεξῆς ἣν προεῖπον γραφεῖσαν ἐπιστολὴν εἰς τὴν Ἀράβων χώραν ὑποτάξω. καὶ ἔστιν ἥδε· 2. Κυρίοις μου τιμιωτάτοις καὶ ποθεινοτάτοις τέκνοις καὶ ἀδελφοῖς γνησίοις καὶ ὁμοπίστοις ὀρθοδόξοις ἀπὸ ἱερέως ἄχρι λαϊκοῦ καὶ κατηχουμένοις τοῖς κατὰ τὴν Ἀραβίαν, Ἐπιφάνιος ἐλάχιστος ἐπισκόπων ἐν κυρίῳ χαίρειν. Θαυμάζειν ἔστιν ἐν τῷ παρόντι καιρῷ καὶ μὴ θαυμάζειν· θαυμάζειν μέν, ὅτι ἐπὶ τῇ ἡμετέρᾳ γενεᾷ πάντα πληροῦται, καὶ μὴ θαυμάζειν· δεῖ γὰρ πληροῦσθαι. ὁσημέραι γὰρ κατὰ πρόσθεσιν νῦν γίνεται ἡμῖν ἐκ λογισμῶν ἀνθρωπίνων καὶ διανοημάτων σοφιστικὴ ὑπόνοια καὶ ἐπὶ τὸ χεῖρον προκόπτουσα, καταλιμπάνουσά τε τὴν ἀποστολικὴν διδασκαλίαν, καθὼς ὁ ἁγιώτατος ἀπόστολος προεῖπεν ὅτι «ἀποστήσονταί τινες τῆς ὑγιαινούσης διδασκαλίας, προσέχοντες μύθοις καὶ διδασκαλίαις δαιμονίων» καὶ τὰ ἑξῆς. εἴ τι γὰρ ἔνι ἀνερευνᾶν καὶ ἐπινοεῖν ὁδοὺς πονηράς, ταῦτα μᾶλλον σπουδάζουσιν οἱ ἄνθρωποι * ἤπερ 3.453 πληροῦντες τὴν ἐντολὴν τὴν λέγουσαν καλὰ καὶ εὐπρόσδεκτα ζητεῖν καὶ τὸ «ὁ λόγος ἅλατι ᾖ ἠρτυμένος, ὅπως δῷ χάριν τοῖς ἀκούουσι». καὶ εἰ ταῦτα διανοηθείημεν, ὅτι πόθεν συμβαίνει καθ' ἑκάστην ἡμέραν ἀνακαινίζεσθαι ἡμῖν τὰ φαῦλα, ἐσόμεθα καὶ αὐτοὶ ὡς ἀπαίδευτοι καὶ μὴ προσέχοντες τοῖς θείοις καὶ προρρητικοῖς λόγοις. δεῖ γὰρ ταῦτα πληροῦσθαι. ἐν ἅπασι γὰρ μέρεσι τῆς πίστεως δεῖ τελειοῦσθαι τὸ εἰρημένον «ἆρα ἐλθὼν ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου εὑρήσει τὴν πίστιν ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς;» ποῦ γὰρ ἔφθασεν «ἡ διάνοια τῶν ἀνθρώπων ἐγκειμένη ἐπὶ τὸ πονηρὸν ἐκ νεότητος»; ποῖα μέρη τῆς πίστεως οὐκ ἀπώλεσεν; ἐν ποίοις δὲ λόγοις ἡ κακοβουλία τὸ χρήσιμον οὐκ ἐτάραξε τῶν τε πρεπωδεστάτων καὶ ἐν καταστάσει ὄντων λογικῆς φύσεως, ἧς τὸ πρέπον ἦν τὰ σεμνὰ μᾶλλον διανοεῖσθαι καὶ τούτοις προστιθέναι βιάζεσθαι εἰ καὶ ἔδει παρὰ φύσιν, καὶ μὴ μᾶλλον τὰ ἀληθινὰ εἰς τὰ ἄσεμνα παρατρέπειν βιαζομένους ἐπὶ τὸ χεῖρον; 3. Λοιπὸν γάρ, ἐπειδὴ πάντα ἡμῶν πεπλήρωται τῇ γενεᾷ, τά τε βλάσφημα καὶ τὰ ἐκτὸς ἁγίου πνεύματος, ἐφ' ἕτερα πάλιν καινὰ τρέπονται. οἱ μὲν γὰρ τὸν πατέρα βλασφημοῦσι, τὸν τῶν ὅλων θεὸν καὶ δημιουργόν, οἱ ἀμφὶ τὴν γνῶσιν λεγόμενοι, οἱ δ' αὖ πάλιν Μαρκίωνες καὶ Ἀρχοντικοὶ καλούμενοι καὶ τούτοις οἱ συνεπόμενοι Μανιχαῖοι, οἱ τὴν ὀνομασίαν δικαιότατα εἰληφότες ἐκ δικαίας τινὸς οἰκονομίας θεοῦ, τὸ μανιῶδες κεκτημένοι ὄνομα· οὗτοι πάντες μετὰ πλειόνων αἱρέσεων, Καϊανῶν φημι Σηθιανῶν Μελχισεδεκιανῶν Κολορβασίων Κερδωνιανῶν καὶ τῶν ἄλλων, βλασφημεῖν εἰς τὸν τῶν ὅλων πατέρα τολμῶσι ἐν τῷ τοῦτον ἀρνεῖσθαι εἶναι τὸν θεὸν τὸν ἐν νόμῳ καὶ ἐν προφήταις λαλήσαντα, δικαίως τε προσκυνούμενον ὑπὸ πάντων κτισμάτων ὡς κτίστην καὶ δημιουργόν· οὗτοι μετὰ τοῦ σεβάσματος ἀναιρεῖν πειρῶνται καὶ τὴν δεσποτείαν, τὸν μὲν ὄντως ὄντα ἀρνούμενοι, ἕτερον δὲ τὸν μὴ ὄντα τῇ μυθώδει αὐτῶν ὑπονοίᾳ φανταζόμενοι, ἵνα ἐκ τοῦ ὄντος πέσωσι καὶ ὃν ὑπονοοῦσι μὴ εὕρωσιν. οὕτω γὰρ ἡ ληρωδία καὶ ἡ τοῦ διαβόλου σπορὰ τῶν λόγων τοιαύτην εἴωθε ταραχὴν ἐμποιεῖν καὶ θόλωσιν, διὰ λογισμῶν βλασφήμων ἐπεγείρουσα τὴν τῶν κεκτισμένων ἀνθρώπων διάνοιαν περὶ τοῦ κατὰ τοῦ αὐτῶν δεσπότου 3.454 στρατεύεσθαι ταῖς κακαῖς ὑπονοίαις καὶ ἐπαρνησιθεΐαις. ἀλλά γε πάλιν ἐκ τούτου ἐκτραπέντες τινὲς ἐφ' ἕτερα βαδίζειν