EXPOSITION OF THE ORTHODOX FAITH.

Having sufficiently gone through the refutation against the Jews and Greeks, we consequently set forth again the sound account of the faith. For it was necessary, I suppose, after the demonstration of the truth, for those proceeding to know how it was also fitting to think concerning it. For not simply does the doxology to the Father and Son provide salvation for us, but the sound confession of the Trinity bestows the enjoyment of the good things laid up for the pious; since one will hear also of the heterodox praising the Father and Son, but not offering their reverence according to a right understanding. Whence we necessarily needed this exposition in writing, leading those who encounter it to the pure understanding of the truth. Therefore, both the divine scriptures teach us and the teachings of the fathers instruct us to worship one God. For it is necessary for there to be one ultimate cause of all things, so that nothing standing outside might mar the things that come into being. For if anything was in the beginning outside of God, it would be entirely necessary either to confess it as God or as another power. But if one should say God, he has contradicted the divine voices openly crying out: I am the first God and I am after these things and besides me there is no God. But if not God, he would obviously say angels or powers. But even so he will reject the scriptures which say that these also came to be from God. For, it says, Praise God from the heavens, praise him in the highest, praise him, all his angels, praise him, all his powers! And what follows: Because he spoke, and they were made; he commanded, and they were created. Therefore it would be confessed that nothing in the beginning co-existed with the God of all, since all things have been shown to have been produced by him. One, therefore, in truth is the God of all things, known in Father and Son and Holy Spirit. For since the Father begot the Son from his own essence, and from the same brought forth the Spirit, it is reasonable that partaking of the same and one essence they have been deemed worthy of the same and one divinity. How then, he says, if he who begets differs from him who is begotten and that which proceeds from that from which it proceeds (and the Father is unbegotten, from whom both the Son is begotten and the Spirit has proceeded), are the Son and the Spirit the same as the Father? Because unbegotten and begotten and proceeding are not names of essence, but modes of existence; and the modes of existence are characterized by these names. But the indication of the essence is signified by the name God, so that the difference for the Father with respect to the Son and the Spirit is according to the mode of existence, but the sameness is according to the principle of essence. For where the one has his being unbegottenly, the other begottenly, and the other processionally, the points of difference are naturally observed;

but where the being according to essence of his hypostasis is signified,

EΚΘEΣIΣ ΤHΣ OΡΘHΣ ΠIΣΤEΩΣ.

Ἱκανῶς τὸν κατὰ Ἰουδαίων καὶ Ἑλλήνων ἐπελθόντες ἔλεγχον, ἀκολούθως αὖθις τὸν ὑγιᾶ τῆς πίστεως ἐκτιθέμεθα λόγον. Ἐχρῆν γὰρ δήπου μετὰ τὴν τῆς ἀληθείας ἐπίδειξιν, ὅπως καὶ φρονεῖν περὶ αὐτῆς προσῆκεν, προϊόντας εἰδέναι. Oὐ γὰρ ἁπλῶς ἡ πρὸς τὸν πατέρα καὶ υἱὸν δοξολογία τὴν σωτηρίαν ἡμῖν πορίζει, ἀλλ' ἡ ὑγιὴς τῆς τριάδος ὁμολογία τῶν ἀποκειμένων τοῖς εὐσεβέσιν ἀγαθῶν τὴν ἀπόλαυσιν δωρεῖ ται· ἐπεὶ καὶ τῶν ἑτεροφρόνων ἀκούσεταί τις τὸν πατέρα καὶ υἱὸν ἀνυμνούντων, ἀλλ' οὐ κατ' ὀρθὴν ἔννοιαν τὸ σέβας προσαγόντων. Ὅθεν ἀναγκαίως ἡμῖν ἡ τοῦδε τοῦ γράμματος ἐδέησεν ἔκθεσις, εἰς τὴν ἀκραιφνῆ τῆς ἀληθείας ἀνάγουσα τοὺς ἐντυγχάνοντας κατανόησιν. Ἕνα τοίνυν θεὸν σέβειν ἡμᾶς αἵ τε θεῖαι γραφαὶ δι δάσκουσιν καὶ αἱ τῶν πατέρων διδασκαλίαι παιδεύουσιν. ∆εῖ γὰρ ἕνα πάντων αἰτιώτατον εἶναι, ἵνα μηδὲν ἔξωθεν περιστὰν λυμαίνηται τὰ γινόμενα. Καὶ γὰρ εἴ τι τὴν ἀρχὴν ἔξωθεν ἦν τοῦ θεοῦ, τοῦτο πάντως ἀναγκαῖον ἢ θεὸν ὁμολο γεῖν ἢ δύναμιν ἑτέραν. Ἀλλ' εἰ μὲν θεὸν εἴποι τις, διέ γραψεν τὰς θείας φωνὰς ἀναφανδὸν βοώσας· Ἐγὼ θεὸς πρῶτος καὶ ἐγὼ μετὰ ταῦτα καὶ πλὴν ἐμοῦ οὐκ ἔστιν θεός. Eἰ δὲ οὐ θεόν, ἀγγέλους ἢ δυνάμεις φήσειεν δηλονότι. Ἀλλὰ καὶ οὕτως ἀθετήσει τὰς γραφὰς παρὰ τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τούτους γενέσθαι λεγούσας. Aἰνεῖτε γάρ, φησίν, τὸν θεὸν ἐκ τῶν οὐρανῶν, αἰνεῖτε αὐτὸν ἐν τοῖς ὑψίστοις, αἰνεῖτε αὐτὸν πάντες οἱ ἄγγελοι αὐτοῦ, αἰνεῖτε αὐτὸν πᾶσαι αἱ δυνάμεις αὐτοῦ! Καὶ ἑξῆς· Ὅτι αὐτὸς εἶπεν καὶ ἐγενήθησαν, αὐτὸς ἐνετείλατο καὶ ἐκτίσθησαν. Oὐκοῦν ὁμολογούμενον ἂν εἴη μηδὲν τὴν ἀρχὴν τῷ θεῷ τῶν ὅλων συνυπάρχειν, ἐπείπερ ἅπαντα παρῆχθαι παρ' αὐτοῦ ἀπεδείχθη. Eἷς οὖν ταῖς ἀληθείαις ἐστὶν ὁ τῶν ἁπάντων θεός, ἐν πατρὶ καὶ υἱῷ καὶ πνεύματι ἁγίῳ γνωριζόμενος. Ἐπεὶ γὰρ ἐκ τῆς ἰδίας οὐσίας ὁ πατὴρ τὸν υἱὸν ἀπεγέννησεν, ἐκ δὲ τῆς αὐτῆς τὸ πνεῦμα προήγαγεν, εἰκότως ἂν τῆς αὐτῆς καὶ μιᾶς οὐσίας μετέχοντα τῆς αὐτῆς καὶ μιᾶς θεότητος ἠξίωνται. Πῶς οὖν, φησίν, εἰ διαφέρει τὸ γεννῶν τοῦ γεννω μένου καὶ τὸ ἐκπορευτὸν τοῦ ἀφ' οὗπερ ἐκπορεύεται (ἔστιν δὲ ὁ πατὴρ ἀγέννητος, ἀφ' οὗ καὶ ὁ υἱὸς γεγέννηται καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα προῆλθεν), ταὐτὸν τῷ πατρὶ ὁ υἱὸς καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα; Ὅτι τὸ μὲν ἀγέννητον καὶ γεννητὸν καὶ ἐκπορευτὸν οὐκ οὐσίας ὀνόματα, ἀλλὰ τρόποι ὑπάρξεως· οἱ δὲ τῆς ὑπάρξεως τρό ποι τοῖς ὀνόμασιν χαρακτηρίζονται τούτοις. Ἡ δὲ τῆς οὐσίας δήλωσις τῇ θεὸς ὀνομασίᾳ σημαίνεται, ὡς εἶναι μὲν τὴν διαφορὰν τῷ πατρὶ πρὸς τὸν υἱὸν καὶ τὸ πνεῦμα κατὰ τὸν τῆς ὑπάρξεως τρόπον, τὸ δὲ ταὐτὸν κατὰ τὸν τῆς οὐσίας λό γον. Ἠι γὰρ ὁ μὲν ἀγεννήτως ἔχει τὸ εἶναι, ὁ δὲ γεννητῶς, τὸ δὲ ἐκπορευτῶς, τὰ τῆς διαφορᾶς ἐπιθεωρεῖσθαι πέφυκεν·

ᾗ δὲ τῆς ὑποστάσεως αὐτοῦ τὸ κατ' οὐσίαν εἶναι σημαίνεται,