Cyril of Alexandria, Sermon to the Alexandrians

Of the same Saint Cyril, from the first homily, that one must not say a God-bearing man, but God having become man.

Truly great was the blessed Moses; for he heard God saying, "I know you above all, and you have found grace with Me;" but he was as a faithful servant in the house; admirable was the prophet Samuel, but he was numbered "among those who call upon" the God of all; holy have the blessed prophets become, yet they confess the measure of their servitude, and they fulfilled the stewardship befitting servants, conveying the words from above and from God to those of that time, and rather also to us ourselves; for they always cried out, "Thus says the Lord;" and Christ Himself said somewhere concerning the blessed Baptist, "Among those born of women there has not arisen one greater than John the Baptist;" but he, although according to the true voice of the Savior he obtained the highest rank in righteousness, did not ignore the preeminence, he confessed the Lord, he yielded the victory to the glory of Christ; for he said clearly, "This was He of whom I said, 'After me comes a man, the strap of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie.'" Therefore, though very many saints have had the Word of God within themselves, about none of them is it written that "The Word became flesh and dwelt among us," for none of the holy prophets will we find the powers above dancing; for at whose birth, tell me, did "a multitude of the heavenly 460 host" make thankful songs for us? for Emmanuel alone have they said, "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men;" Therefore, though God dwelt in many saints, as I said, once at the consummation of the ages the Word of God is said to have visited, once He became man, and concerning one the prophet says, "Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel;" one alone "has redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us;" one Son the Father has given for us; one Son has laid down His own soul for us; one was crucified and rose again, having trampled down the power of death. Therefore we acknowledge the Word of God as having become in flesh in truth, that is, united to the flesh; and we do not say that Emmanuel is a God-bearing man; but we confess that being God by nature, having taken the form of a servant, He also became son of man; and He is the same, at once both God and man.

Sermo ad Alexandrinos

Τοῦ αὐτοῦ ἁγίου Κυρίλλου ἐκ τῆς πρώτης ὁμιλίας τῆς ὅτι οὐ χρὴ λέγειν ἄνθρωπον θεοφόρον, ἀλλὰ Θεὸν ἐνανθρωπήσαντα.

Μέγας ἦν ὄντως ὁ μακάριος Μωϋσῆς· ἤκουσε γὰρ Θεοῦ λέγοντος "Οἶδά σε

παρὰ πάντας, καὶ χάριν εὗρες παρ' "ἐμοί·" ἀλλ' ἦν ὡς οἰκέτης ἐν οἴκῳ πιστός· ἀξιάγαστος ἦν ὁ προφήτης Σαμουὴλ, ἀλλ' ἦν ἐναρίθμιος "τοῖς ἐπικαλου"μένοις" τὸν τῶν ὅλων Θεόν· ἅγιοι γεγόνασιν οἱ μακάριοι προφῆται, πλὴν ὁμολογοῦσι τὸ τῆς δουλείας μέτρον, καὶ τὴν οἰκέταις πρέπουσαν ἀνεπλήρουν οἰκονομίαν, τοὺς ἄνωθεν καὶ παρὰ Θεοῦ λόγους τοῖς τὸ τηνικάδε διαπορθμεύοντες, μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ ἡμῖν αὐτοῖς· διακεκράγασι γὰρ ἀεί Τάδε λέγει Κύριος· ἔφη δέ που καὶ αὐτὸς ὁ Χριστὸς περὶ τοῦ μακαρίου Βαπτιστοῦ "Μείζων ἐν γεννητοῖς γυναικῶν Ἰωάννου τοῦ "βαπτιστοῦ οὐκ ἐγήγερται·" ὁ δὲ, καίτοι κατὰ τὴν ἀψευδῆ τοῦ Σωτῆρος φωνὴν τὴν ἄνω τάξιν ἐν δικαιοσύνῃ λαχὼν, οὐκ ἠγνόησε τὴν ὑπεροχὴν, ὡμολόγησε τὸν δεσπότην, παρεχώρησε τὸ νικᾶν τῇ δόξῃ Χριστοῦ· ἔφη γὰρ ἐναργῶς "Οὗτος ἦν περὶ οὗ εἶπον ἐγώ Ὀπίσω μου ἔρχεται ἀνὴρ, "οὗ οὐκ εἰμὶ ἄξιος λῦσαι τὸν ἱμάντα τῶν ὑποδημάτων "αὐτοῦ." πλείστων οὖν ἁγίων ἐν ἑαυτοῖς ἐσχηκότων τὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγον, περὶ οὐδενὸς ἐκείνων γέγραπται ὅτι "̔Ο "Λόγος σὰρξ ἐγένετο καὶ ἐσκήνωσεν ἐν ἡμῖν," ἐπ' οὐδενὶ τῶν ἁγίων προφητῶν τὰς ἄνω δυνάμεις χορευούσας εὑρήσομεν· τίνος γὰρ εἰπέ μοι γεννηθέντος "πλῆθος οὐρανίου 460 "στρατιᾶς" τὰς ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ἐποιήσατο χαριστηρίους ᾠδάς; ἐπὶ μόνῳ τῷ Ἐμμανουὴλ εἰρήκασι "∆όξα ἐν ὑψίστοις Θεῷ, "καὶ ἐπὶ γῆς εἰρήνη, ἐν ἀνθρώποις εὐδοκία·" ἐν πολλοῖς οὖν, ὡς ἔφην, ἁγίοις κατοικήσαντος τοῦ Θεοῦ, ἅπαξ ἐπὶ συντελείᾳ τῶν αἰώνων ὁ τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγος ἐπιδημῆσαι λέγεται, ἅπαξ γέγονεν ἄνθρωπος, καὶ περὶ ἑνὸς ὁ προφήτης φησίν " ̓Ιδοὺ ἡ παρθένος ἐν γαστρὶ ἕξει καὶ τέξεται υἱὸν, καὶ "καλέσουσι τὸ ὄνομα αὐτοῦ Ἐμμανουήλ·" εἷς ἡμᾶς καὶ μόνος "ἐξηγόρασεν ἐκ τῆς κατάρας τοῦ νόμου, γενόμενος "ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν κατάρα·" ἕνα δέδωκεν Υἱὸν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ὁ Πατήρ· εἷς Υἱὸς τέθεικεν ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν τὴν ἰδίαν ψυχήν· εἷς ἐσταυρώθη καὶ ἀνεβίω, τοῦ θανάτου πατήσας τὸ κράτος. οὐκοῦν ἐν σαρκὶ γεγονότα κατὰ ἀλήθειαν, ἤγουν ἑνωθέντα τῇ σαρκὶ τὸν τοῦ Θεοῦ Λόγον ἐπιγινώσκομεν· καὶ οὐκ ἄνθρωπον εἶναί φαμεν θεοφόρον τὸν Ἐμμανουήλ· ὁμολογοῦμεν δὲ ὅτι Θεὸς ὢν φύσει, μορφὴν δούλου λαβὼν, γέγονε καὶ υἱὸς ἀνθρώπου· καί ἐστιν ὁ αὐτὸς Θεός τε ὁμοῦ καὶ ἄνθρωπος.