Syllogismi sanctoruum patrum

1. Every evil is to be punished; but nothing that is to be punished is incorruptible; therefore no evil is incorruptible. 2. Nothing corruptible is uncreated; but evil is corruptible; therefore evil is not uncreated. 3. The divine scriptures say that the devil is delivered over to punishment <not only the other evil ones, but also him>; but everything <that> is delivered over to punishment is mutable; but nothing mutable is uncreated; therefore nothing of evil is uncreated. 4. Nothing uncreated is mutable; but evil is changed when overcome by the good; therefore evil is not uncreated. 5. Partial good and evil are changed; for they are not uncreated. But the essential good is immutable. But evil, which the Manichaeans say is essential, is mutable, if indeed they themselves confess that it is to be punished. 6. Nothing is evil in substance, since evil is a quality; and no quality is a substance. Therefore evil is not a substance. 7. All opposites are destructive of one another; but uncreated things are incorruptible; therefore opposites are not uncreated. 8. Everyone who reasonably desires something has his desire fulfilled, which he reasonably desires; but God desires to destroy wickedness; therefore wickedness is among the corruptible things; and being among the corruptible things, it will be destroyed; but being destroyed, it is not uncreated. 9. If evil is uncreated, it is evil by nature; but no one who acts according to nature sins; therefore evil does not sin; that which does not sin is not culpable; but Satan is culpable; therefore he is not uncreated. 10. Some say, if punishment reforms the wicked, it is good; but if punishment is good, and the promise of good things is its opposite, and opposites cannot both be good at the same time, then the promise is evil. <But God promises this; therefore it is not evil.> Since the promise is not evil, but good, punishment is evil. And if punishment is evil, then not God, but Satan inflicts it; but he does not inflict punishment on his own; for they are wicked like him, and it is necessary that he himself, being wicked, should fall under punishment. Therefore he will bring it upon the good; but this is impossible; therefore the wicked one does not inflict it, but God does. To whom it must be said: everything inflicted by God is inflicted usefully, being good or productive of good or preventive of evil; for God, wishing to prevent evil, inflicts this; but he would not attempt to prevent evil, if it were not possible for evil to be prevented; but this, being prevented, cannot be by nature and uncreated. 11. Evil is found in actions; for it is evil for rational beings to use natural things improperly ... 12. The uncreated does not desire the destruction of anything, nor is it destructive, but evil desires destruction; therefore evil is not uncreated. 13. of things entirely opposite there is nothing in common, so that of absolute necessity what belongs to the one does not belong to the other; but it belongs to the good to be uncreated; therefore neither of these belongs to evil. Therefore evil is not being.

Syllogismi sanctoruum patrum

1. Πᾶν κακὸν κολαστέον· οὐδὲν δὲ κολαστέον ἄφθαρτον· οὐδὲν ἄρα κακὸν ἄφθαρτον. 2. Οὐδὲν φθαρτὸν ἀγένητον· ἔστι δὲ τὸ κακὸν φθαρτόν· τὸ ἄρα κακὸν οὐκ ἀγένητον. 3. Αἱ θεῖαι γραφαὶ κολάσει παραδίδοσθαι <οὐ τοὺς ἄλλους κακοὺς μόνον, ἀλλὰ καὶ αὐτὸν> τὸν διάβολόν φασιν· πᾶν δὲ <τὸ> κολάσει παραδιδόμενον τρεπτόν· οὐδὲν δὲ τρεπτὸν ἀγένητον· οὐδὲν ἄρα τῶν κακῶν ἀγένητον. 4. Οὐδὲν ἀγένητον τρεπτόν· τρέπεται δὲ τὸ κακὸν κρατηθὲν ὑπὸ τοῦ ἀγαθοῦ· τὸ ἄρα κακὸν οὐκ ἀγένητον. 5. Τὸ μερικὸν ἀγαθὸν καὶ τὸ κακὸν τρέπεται· οὐ γάρ ἐστιν ἀγένητα. Τὸ δὲ οὐσιῶδες ἀγαθὸν ἄτρεπτον. Τὸ δὲ κακόν, ὅ φασιν οἱ Μανιχαῖοι οὐσιῶδες εἶναι, τρεπτόν ἐστιν, εἴ γε καὶ αὐτοὶ ὁμολογοῦσιν αὐτὸ εἶναι κολαστέον. 6. Οὐδὲν κατ' οὐσίαν κακόν, τῷ τὸ κακὸν ποιὸν εἶναι· οὐδὲν δὲ ποιὸν οὐσία. Τὸ ἄρα κακὸν οὐκ οὐσία. 7. Πάντα τὰ ἐναντία ἀλλήλων ἐστὶ φθαρτικά· τὰ δὲ ἀγένητα ἄφθαρτα· τὰ ἄρα ἐναντία οὐκ ἀγένητα. 8. Πᾶς ὁ εὐλόγως ὀρεγόμενός τινος ἐπιτετευγμένην ἔχει τὴν ὄρεξιν, ἧς εὐλόγως ὀρέγεται· θεὸς δὲ φθεῖραι τὴν κακίαν ὀρέγε- ται· τῶν φθαρτῶν ἄρα ἐστὶν ἡ κακία· τῶν δὲ φθαρτῶν οὖσα ἀφανισθήσεται· ἀφανιζομένη δέ, οὐκ ἔστιν ἀγένητος. 9. Εἰ ἀγένητον τὸ κακόν, κατὰ φύσιν αὐτῷ ὑπάρχει τὸ κακὸν εἶναι· οὐδεὶς δὲ τὸ κατὰ φύσιν ἐνεργῶν ἁμαρτάνει· τὸ ἄρα κακὸν οὐχ ἁμαρτάνει· τὸ μὴ ἁμαρτάνον οὐχ ὑπαίτιον· ὑπαίτιος δὲ ὁ Σατανᾶς· οὐκ ἄρα ἀγένητος. 10. Φασί τινες, εἰ μεταποιεῖ τοὺς φαύλους ἡ κόλασις, ἀγαθὴν αὐτὴν εἶναι· εἰ δὲ ἡ κόλασις ἀγαθή, ἐναντία δὲ ταύτῃ ἡ ἐπαγγελία τῶν ἀγαθῶν, τὰ δὲ ἐναντία οὐ δύναται ἅμα ἀγαθὰ εἶναι, ἡ ἄρα ἐπαγγελία κακόν. <Ἀλλὰ θεὸς ὑπισχνεῖται ταύτην· οὐκ ἄρα κα- κόν.> Μὴ κακοῦ δὲ τῆς ἐπαγγελίας, ἀλλ' ἀγαθοῦ οὔσης, ἡ κόλασίς ἐστι κακόν. Εἰ δὲ κακὸν ἡ κόλασις, ἄρα οὐχ ὁ θεός, ἀλλ' ὁ Σατανᾶς αὐτὴν ἐπιφέρει· ἐπιφέρει δὲ τὴν κόλασιν οὐ τοῖς ἑαυτοῦ· εἰσὶ γὰρ ὡς αὐτὸς πονηροί, καὶ ἀνάγκη καὶ αὐτὸν ὄντα πονηρὸν ὑποπίπτειν τῇ κολάσει. Τῷ ἄρα ἀγαθῷ ἐποίσει αὐτήν· ἀλλ' ἀδύνατον τοῦτο· οὐκ ἄρα ὁ πονηρὸς αὐτὴν ἐπιφέρει, ἀλλ' ὁ θεός. Πρὸς οὓς ῥητέον· πᾶν τὸ ὑπὸ θεοῦ ἐπιφερόμενον χρησίμως ἐπιφέρεται, τυγχάνον ἀγαθὸν ἢ ἀγαθοῦ ποιητικὸν ἢ κωλυτικὸν κακοῦ· ὁ γὰρ θεὸς κωλύειν τὸ κακὸν βουλόμενος ἐπιφέρει τοῦτο· οὐκ ἂν δὲ ἐπεχείρει κωλύειν τὸ κακόν, εἰ μὴ δυνατὸν ἦν κωλύεσθαι τὸ κακόν· κωλυόμενον δὲ τοῦτο οὐ δύναται εἶναι φύσει καὶ ἀγένητον. 11. Τὸ κακὸν ἐν ταῖς ἐνεργείαις εὑρίσκεται· κακὸν γάρ ἐστι τὸ μεταχειρίζεσθαι τοὺς λογικοὺς τὰ κατὰ φύσιν οὐ δέοντας ... 12. Τὸ ἀγένητον οὐκ ἔστι ὀρεκτικὸν φθορᾶς τινος, οὐδέ γε φθαρτικόν, τὸ δέ γε κακὸν ὀρεκτικὸν φθορᾶς· τὸ ἄρα κακὸν οὐκ ἀγένητον. 13. τῶν δι' ὅλων ἐναντιουμένων οὐδὲν κοινόν, ὥστε πᾶσα ἀνάγκη τὸ θατέρῳ ὑπάρχον τῷ λοιπῷ μὴ ὑπάρχειν· ὑπάρχει δὲ τῷ ἀγαθῷ τὸ εἶναι ἀγένητον· τῷ ἄρα κακῷ οὐδέτερον τούτων ὑπάρχει. Μὴ ὂν ἄρα τὸ κακόν.