Procopius of Gaza, Refutation of Proclus

Refutation of Proclus (fragment from cod. Vat. gr. 1096)

From the refutations by Procopius of Gaza against the theological chapters of Proclus, a refutation of chapter 140.

A divine procession without beginning and without end might alone be called the begetting of the one and only Son from the one and only Father, and the procession of the one and only Holy Spirit from the same, according to which the paternal and originating, or rather pre-originating, monad, having been moved to the dyad contemplated in the Son and the Spirit, has come to rest at the Triad, as our Theologian Gregory says. And this alone is a divine procession by nature, if indeed it is right to speak of nature in the case of supernatural and divine things; and of this the beginning is the Father, without beginning, for it is from Him; the middle is the Son, co-unoriginate, for it is through Him; the end is the most perfect and endless Holy Spirit, for it is unto it; and this is distinguished from the other processions; for those things that are from the beginning do not at all depart from it, but it keeps them entirely within itself, because of the identity of substance; even though they proceed as distinct persons; therefore they do not need the reversion according to desire; But all other processions of beings besides this one, are divided together with the beings; and none of these is without beginning, because none of the beings is without beginning, but all things have come to be from the Father through the Son, perfected by the Spirit; but not every one is without end; nor indeed in every respect, but for the eternal things, which remain after their production from there, the procession according to substance has indeed been completed; for neither are other things additionally produced besides those produced from the beginning; nor do those very things that were produced, undergoing substantial change, again need another production; but the procession according to illumination proceeds from there eternal and without end, to some in a primary way, to others in a secondary way, and so on in order; with the divine effulgences being poured forth by participation, in proportion to the orders or stations of each, down to the very last things among them; and so all things also revert in an uplifting manner to the one beginning; and the eternal and endless circle is preserved for these things both in their processions and their reversions; But the procession of things subject to generation and corruption and time, as for the universal, has already been completed. For in six days the whole sensible cosmos was completed; and on the seventh God rested from all His works; and the procession of another world is no longer expected to be brought to completion at all, at the consummation of the present age; but as for the particular, it is still at work, as was said by the Savior: 'My Father is working until now, and I am working;' but it will certainly cease also at the common consummation; and then there will be another procession, according to which God will be all in all; and all things will revert to him, the transformation of all things, and the remaking from corruption into incorruption.

Refutatio Procli (fragmentum e cod. Vat. gr. 1096)

̓Εκ τῶν εἰς τὰ Πρόκλου θεολογικὰ κεφάλαια ἀντιῤῥήσεων Προκοπίου Γάζης ἀντίῤῥησις κεφαλαίου ρμʹ.

Θεία πρόοδος ἄναρχος καὶ ἀτελεύτητος, μόνη ἂν λέγοιτο ἡ ἀπὸ τοῦ ἑνὸς μόνου Πατρὸς γέννησις τοῦ ἐνὸς καὶ μόνου Υἱοῦ, καὶ ἀπὸ τοῦ αὐτοῦ πρόβλησις τοῦ ἐνὸς καὶ μόνου ἁγίου Πνεύματος καθ' ἣν ἡ πατρική τε καὶ ἀρχικὴ μᾶλλον δὲ προάναρχος μονὰς εἰς δυάδα κινηθεῖσα τὴν ἐν Υἱῷ θεωρουμένην καὶ Πνεύματι, μέχρι Τριάδος ἔστη, καθάπερ φησιν ὁ ἡμέτερος Θεολόγος Γρηγόριος. Αὕτη δὲ καὶ μόνη θεία φύσει πρόοδος, εἴπερ δεῖ φύσει λέγειν ἐπὶ τῶν ὑπερφυῶν καὶ θείων· καὶ ταύτης ἀρχὴ μὲν ἄναρχος ὁ Πατὴρ, ἐξ αὐτοῦ γάρ· μεσότης δὲ σύναρχος ὁ Υἱὸς, δι' αὐτοῦ γάρ· τέλος δὲ ὑπερτελέστατον καὶ ἀτελεύτητον τὸ Πνεῦμα τὸ ἅγιον, εἰς αὐτὸ γάρ· ἐξῄρηται δὲ καὶ τῶν ἄλλων προόδων αὕτη· οὐδὲ γὰρ ἐξίστησιν ὅλως τῆς ἀρχῆς τὰ ἐξ αὐτῆς, ἀλλ' ἀνεκ- φοίτητα πάντη ταύτης τηρεῖ, διὰ τὴν τῆς οὐσίας ταυτότητα· εἰ καὶ ὡς ἴδια πρόσωπα πρόεισι· διὸ οὐδὲ τῆς κατ' ἔφεσιν ἐπιστροφῆς δέονται· αἱ δὲ παρὰ ταύτην πᾶσαι τῶν ὄντων πρόοδοι, τοῖς οὖσι συνδιαιροῦνται· καὶ ἄναρχος μὲν τούτων οὐδεμία, ὅτι καὶ τῶν ὄντων ἄναρχον οὐδὲν, ἀλλὰ πάντα γέγονε παρὰ τοῦ Πατρὸς διὰ τοῦ Υἱοῦ συντελεσθέντα τῷ Πνεύματι· ἀτελεύτητος δὲ, οὐ πᾶσα· οὔτε μὴν πάντη, ἀλλὰ τῶν μὲν ἀϊδίων μετὰ τὴν ἐκεῖθεν παραγωγὴν μενόντων, ἡ μὲν κατ' οὐσίαν καὶ δὴ τετέλεσται· οὔτε γὰρ ἀλλάττα παρὰ τὰ ἐξ ἀρχῆς παραχθέντα ἐπιπαράγονται· οὔτ' αὐτὰ ἐκεῖνα τὰ παραχθέντα, τὴν κατ' οὐσίαν μεταβολὴν ὑπομένοντα, πάλιν ἄλλης παραγωγῆς δέονται· ἡ δὲ κατ' ἔλλαμψιν, ἀΐδιος ἐκεῖθεν προβαίνει καὶ ἀτελεύτητος, τοῖς μὲν πρω- τοδότως, τοῖς δὲ δευτεροδότως, καὶ καθεξῆς· τῶν θείων ἀπαυγασμάτων προχεομένων κατὰ μετάδοσιν, ἀναλόγως ταῖς ἑκάστων τάξεσιν εἴτ' οὖν στάσεσι, μέχρι καὶ τῶν ἐν ἐκείνοις ἐσχάτων· οὕτω δὲ καὶ πάντα πρὸς τὴν μίαν ἀρχὴν ἀνατατικῶς ἐπιστρέφει· καὶ ὁ ἀΐδιος τούτοις καὶ ἀτελεύτητος ἔν τε ταῖς προόδοις καὶ ταῖς ἐπιτροφαῖς κύκλος σώζεται· ἡ δὲ τῶν ὑπὸ γένεσιν καὶ φθορὰν καὶ χρόνον, κατὰ μὲν τὸ καθόλου, καὶ ἤδη τετέλεσται. Ἐν ἓξ γὰρ ἡμέραις σύμπας ὁ αἰσθητὸς συμπεπλήρωται κόσμος· ἐν δὲ τῇ ἑβδόμῃ κατέπαυσεν ὁ Θεὸς ἀπὸ πάντων τῶν ἔργων αὐτοῦ· καὶ οὐκέτι πρόοδος ἄλλου κόσμου καὶ ἔτι προσδοκᾶται πάμπαν συντελεσθῆναι, κατὰ τὴν τοῦ παρόντος αἰῶνος συντέλειαν· κατὰ δὲ τὸ κατὰ μέρος, ἕτι μὲν ἐνεργεῖται καθὰ εἴρηται τῷ Σωτῆρι· "ὁ Πατήρ μου ἕως ἄρτι ἐργάζεται, κἀγὼ ἐργάζομαι·" πεπαύσεται δὲ πάντως καὶ ἡ κατὰ τὴν κοινὴν συντέλειαν· καὶ ἄλλη τηνικαῦτα πρόοδος ἔσται, καθ' ἣν ἔσται ὁ Θεὸς τὰ πάντα ἐν πᾶσι· καὶ πάντα πρὸς αὐτὸν ἐπιστρέψουσιν, ἡ τῶν ὅλων μεταστοιχείωσις, καὶ ἐκ φθορᾶς εἰς ἀφθαρσίαν μεταποίησις.