1

De trinitate

OF THE SAME ATHANASIUS Profess one nature of the divinity of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and these three hypostases, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, just as we also have been baptized. For it says, Go, make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. One nature, because to profess more and to divide the one divinity into many gods is of the Greeks; but three hypostases, that is persons, so that the opinion of the Jews may have no place, and so that the Father may not be childless and without the Word, from whom is every family; and the Word be more lacking than our word, not having Spirit; and so that what is perfect may be in three perfect hypostases. For indeed the image of the mind, word, and spirit in us is Father, and Son, and Spirit. But hearing Spirit, understand it as holy and hypostatic. For since we are corruptible, our spirit also is dissolved; but of the immortal, the spirit is certainly immortal, as a certain hypostatic substance. Therefore, there is one nature of the three hypostases, the divinity, and one will, and one operation, one power, and one purpose and movement, and radiance of the splendor of the three. God the Father, God the Son, God the Spirit, one the three; perfect God the Father, perfect the Son, perfect the Holy Spirit; of the same honor, of the same authority. Creators of all existing things, and sustaining, and providing, all things are equally of the three, and unchangeably and identically, whatever pertains to being, and whatever pertains to not-being, and whatever pertains to how things relate to created things, and whatever pertains to operation, and whatever pertains to power, whatever pertains to eternity, and whatever is said to be by pre-eminence, or by cause. For example, to be the same, to be incorporeal the incomprehensible, to reign, to create, to deify, to be able, to be eternal, 28.1605 to be a beginning beyond beginning, to be a substance beyond substance, to be called light. And the darkness, the things said symbolically, such as to be angry and to be wroth, to sleep and to be awake. Attributing all these things to the one nature, we do not declare or understand it from the things within it, but from the things around it. Therefore, knowing the one nature of the three hypostases, differing in nothing else than in these properties, I mean begetting and being begotten, and proceeding, and that one is Father, another Son, and another Spirit; and that the Father is begetter and projector, begetter of the Son, and projector of the Spirit; and the Son is begotten, and the Spirit is projected. And the Father is unbegotten, but the Son is begotten (with two nu's), and the Spirit is proceeding. And the Father is cause, but the Son and the Spirit are caused. And the Father is projector, but the Son is Son only, and the Spirit is proceeding; for they do not depart from their properties, neither the Father from being Father, nor the Son from being Son, nor the Spirit from being Spirit, but the substance is common, one divinity of the three, just as three lights united with one another and not confused. These things are sufficient to know concerning theology. The end, and thanks be to God.

1

De trinitate

ΤΟΥ ΑΥΤΟΥ ΑΘΑΝΑΣΙΟΥ Μίαν φύσιν δόξατε Πατρὸς καὶ Υἱοῦ καὶ ἁγίου Πνεύματος τὴν θεότητα, καὶ τρεῖς ταύτας τὰς ὑποστάσεις, Πατέρα, Υἱὸν, καὶ Πνεῦμα ἅγιον, καθὼς καὶ βεβαπτίσμεθα. Πορευθέντες γὰρ, φησὶ, μαθητεύσατε πάντα τὰ ἔθνη, βαπτίζοντες αὐτοὺς εἰς τὸ ὄνομα τοῦ Πατρὸς καὶ τοῦ Υἱοῦ καὶ τοῦ ἁγίου Πνεύματος. Μίαν μὲν φύσιν, ὅτι τὸ πλείους δοξάζειν καὶ κατατέμνειν εἰς πολλοὺς θεοὺς τὴν μίαν θεότητα τῶν Ἑλλήνων ἐστί· τρεῖς δὲ ὑποστάσεις, ἤτουν πρόσωπα, ἵνα μὴ σχῇ χώραν τῶν Ἰουδαίων ἡ δόξα, καὶ ἵνα μὴ ἄγονος ᾖ καὶ ἄλογος ὁ Πατὴρ, ἐξ οὗ πᾶσα πατριά· καὶ ὁ Λόγος τοῦ ἡμετέρου λόγου ἐνδεέστερος, μὴ ἔχων Πνεῦμα· καὶ ἵνα τὸ τέλειον ᾖ ἐν τρισὶ τελείαις ταῖς ὑποστάσεσι. Καὶ γὰρ τὴν εἰκόνα τοῦ ἐν ἡμῖν νοῦ, λόγου τε καὶ πνεύματος, Πατὴρ, καὶ Υἱὸς, καὶ Πνεῦμα. Πνεῦμα δὲ ἀκούων, ἅγιον ἐνυπόστατον νόει. Ἡμῶν μὲν φθαρτῶν ὄντων, καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα λυό μενον· τοῦ δὲ ἀθανάτου πάντως τὸ πνεῦμα ἀθάνατον, ὡς οὐσία τις ἐνυπόστατος. Μία οὖν ἐστι τῶν τριῶν ὑποστάσεων φύσις, ἡ θεότης, καὶ μία θέλησις, καὶ μία ἐνέργεια, μία δύναμις, ἓν βούλημά τε καὶ κίνημα, καὶ ἔξαλμα τῆς λαμπρότητος τῶν τριῶν. Θεὸς ὁ Πατὴρ, Θεὸς ὁ Υἱὸς, Θεὸς τὸ Πνεῦμα, εἷς τὰ τρία· Θεὸς τέλειος ὁ Πατὴρ, τέλειος ὁ Υἱὸς, τέλειος τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον· τῆς αὐτῆς τιμῆς, τῆς αὐτῆς ἐξουσίας. ∆ημιουργὰ τῶν ὄντων ἁπάντων, καὶ συνεκτικὰ, καὶ προνοητικὰ, ὁμοίως πάντα τοῖς τρισὶ, καὶ ἀπαραλλάκτως καὶ ταὐτῶς, ὅσα τοῦ εἶναι, καὶ ὅσα τοῦ τι μὴ εἶναι, καὶ ὅσα τοῦ πῶς ἔχει πρὸς τὰ κτιστὰ, καὶ ὅσα τῆς ἐνεργείας, καὶ ὅσα τῆς δυνάμεως, ὅσα τῆς ἀϊδιότητος, καὶ ὅσα καθ' ὑπεροχὴν, ἢ κατ' αἰτίαν εἶναι λέγεται. Οἷον τὸ εἶναι ταυτὸν, τὸ ἀσώματον εἶναι τὸν ἀκατάληπτον, τὸ βασιλεύειν, τὸ δημιουργεῖν, τὸ θεοῦν, τὸ δύνασθαι, τὸ ἀΐδιον εἶναι, 28.1605 τὸ ἀρχὴν εἶναι ὑπεράρχιον, τὸ οὐσίαν εἶναι ὑπερ ούσιον, τὸ φῶς λέγεσθαι. Τὸ δὲ σκότος τὰ συμβολικῶς λεγόμενα, οἷον θυμοῦσθαι καὶ ὀργίζεσθαι, ὑπνοῦν καὶ ἐγρηγορέναι. Ταῦτα πάντα τῇ μιᾷ φύσει προσ αρμόζοντες, οὐκ ἐκ τῶν κατ' αὐτὴν δηλοῦμεν, ἢ νοοῦμεν αὐτὴν, ἀλλ' ἐκ τῶν περὶ αὐτήν. Μίαν δ' οὖν τὴν φύσιν εἰδότες τῶν τριῶν ὑποστάσεων, οὐδενὶ τῶν ἄλλων διαφερουσῶν ἢ ταῖς ἰδιότησι ταύταις, τὸ γεννᾷν λέγω καὶ τὸ γεννᾶσθαι, καὶ τὸ ἐκπορεύεσθαι, καὶ ὅτι τὸ μὲν Πατὴρ, τὸ δὲ Υἱὸς, τὸ δὲ Πνεῦμα· καὶ ὅτι ὁ μὲν Πατὴρ γεννήτωρ καὶ προβολεὺς, γεννήτωρ μὲν τοῦ Υἱοῦ, προβολεὺς δὲ τοῦ Πνεύματος· ὁ δὲ Υἱὸς γέννημα, τὸ δὲ Πνεῦμα πρόβλημα. Καὶ ὁ μὲν Πατὴρ ἀγέννητος, ὁ δὲ Υἱὸς γεννητὸς διὰ δύο νν, τὸ δὲ Πνεῦμα ἐκπορευτόν. Καὶ ὁ μὲν Πατὴρ αἴτιος, ὁ δὲ Υἱὸς καὶ τὸ Πνεῦμα αἰτιατά. Καὶ ὁ μὲν Πατὴρ προβολεὺς, ὁ δὲ Υἱὸς Υἱὸς μόνον, καὶ τὸ Πνεῦμα ἐκπο ρευόμενον· οὐ γὰρ ἐξίστανται τῶν ἰδιοτήτων, οὔτε ὁ Πατὴρ τοῦ εἶναι Πατὴρ, οὔτε ὁ Υἱὸς τοῦ εἶναι Υἱὸς, οὔτε τὸ Πνεῦμα τοῦ εἶναι Πνεῦμα, ἀλλ' ἡ μὲν οὐσία κοινὴ, μία τῶν τριῶν ἡ θεότης, ὡσπεροῦν φῶτα τρία ἀλλήλοις ἑνούμενα καὶ οὐ συγχεόμενα. Ταῦτα μὲν ἱκανὰ εἰδέναι περὶ τὴν θεολογίαν. Τέλος καὶ τῷ Θεῷ χάρις.