On the Trinity 1-1 part 7/12

And securing the point once more, that it should not be thought of as an angel or some other created spirit, he added:

'We have not received the spirit of the world' — that is, a created [spirit] — 'but the Spirit that is from God' — that is, not something belonging among the rest [of creatures], but that which proceeds from the very substance of God.

and that it alone knows the things of God, as Lord, and possesses, likewise by nature, the same relation to the Father —

'A servant,' as it is said in the Gospel, 'does not know what his lord does.' But he no longer speaks [of the Spirit], as in the case of man, as 'dwelling in' God, lest the uncompounded God be thought to be composite.

'Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption:'

'You are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if indeed the Spirit of God dwells in you.'

'But if anyone does not have the Spirit of Christ, he does not belong to him.'

'And because you are sons, God sent forth the Spirit of his Son into your hearts, crying, "Abba, Father!"'

'For I know that this will turn out for my salvation, through your prayer and the supply of the Spirit of Jesus Christ.'

Observe, then, that the mere statement that it is 'the Spirit of God,' together with the addition of 'my' and 'your,' clearly signified this: that it is both uncreated and God, having a name that is not adventitious, but derives from the fact that it is by nature that very thing which it is also called.

And also its being written as 'the Spirit of the Son' likewise indicated its communion of nature with him, and served so that it should not be thought to be his creature.

For how could the Son have created for his own Father — as though the Father did not possess it of himself even before this — that which both is, and is written to be, the Spirit of God? This is not only blasphemous but also foolish.

For since these blessed hypostases proceeded from the one Father by nature, and not by any creative activity, they are referred back to that same one [Father].

For lest anyone should suspect that it has a beginning or an end, but rather, from its procession according to nature, should truly believe it to be the Spirit of God, breathed forth without beginning and not having come into being like one of the other ministering spirits, the Lord, teaching this in the Gospel according to John, says:

'The Spirit of truth, who proceeds from the Father.'

For every generation and procession is accomplished through equals and likes:

but most especially and preeminently is the generation and procession from the one Father according to the union of his own divinity.

But in the case of created things, the prototype precedes in time:

but with God it is not so; rather, [they exist] as co-subsisting and as having proceeded forth together.

And in harmony with the Lord, John too proclaimed the Holy Spirit's equality and unalterable likeness to the Father, and shows that, though found among the faithful as a partial grace, he nonetheless wholly — if one may so speak — encompasses the uncircumscribed God the Father, saying:

'By this we know that we abide in him, and he in us, because he has given us of his Spirit.'

'He who has seen me [has seen] the Father.' And:

'I came forth from the Father.' For nothing that suffers any diminution — whether in essence, or in time, or in glory — can manifest the whole truth, or be of the same kind, and possess equal knowledge:

nor could anyone attain participation in true divinity through a creature:

but the Holy Spirit is given, not by divisions of cutting apart, but by the principle of participation, and so that the Father should not be conceived of as dwelling in us in a manner different in nature or in purpose [from the Spirit's indwelling].

And the son of thunder likewise showed that wherever the Holy Spirit is, there the God and Father, whose Spirit he is, is present:

which God himself also foretold beforehand, saying:

'I will dwell in them and walk among them;'

'and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.' As, conversely, the opposite [truth] shows, that if anyone does not have the Spirit of God as true God, neither does he have the Father:

and among those in whom this [Spirit] is not present, nothing is true, nor safe, nor firm.

As, conversely, whoever speaks about him, even should he happen to be a heretic, if asked concerning which spirit he is speaking, says:

and if a further question should again be put to him, asking which 'holy' [spirit he means], he is necessarily compelled, for the most manifest declaration, to say:

'The Spirit of God' — since the others are not essentially his.

But heretics, proving harmful both to themselves and to their hearers, with violent efforts slander the saints — men better than both us and themselves, and greatly superior, who also gave oracular utterance concerning the Holy Spirit;

against whom nothing should be enacted in opposition.

For they [the heretics] say, word for word, as follows:

'My servant Isaiah'; and, 'Israel, my firstborn son' — does the syllable 'my' show that human nature has anything in common with that of God? Just as, then, he says, this was said because he is the cause of their existence,

so likewise he also called their vivifying breath 'my spirit.' But had they possessed any regard for truth and precision, they would not have erred so grievously.

For, first, by the very naming of Isaiah and Israel, he indicated [that these are] human beings:

but he added to them, in a distinguishing manner, the word 'my,' as belonging to him through their deeds.

He called Isaiah 'servant' — that is, a household servant — and Israel 'firstborn,' as being the first to begin serving him, and as being, through God's disposition and care toward him, in the rank of a son.

So that 'my,' when spoken by God of the true Son and the true Spirit, signifies the proper kinship of nature; but in the case of all others, it signifies a different belonging to him — according to lordship or according to faith.

just as we too are accustomed to say, of those who are of one substance with us, 'my son,' 'my spirit,' but of others...

My field, my horse—but also my God.

It is not the fact that Christ is said, without qualification, to be Son and Only-begotten and Word of God that proves him to have been begotten from the hypostasis of God, but rather his having the syllable 'my' or 'your' joined to these titles.

As when God says:

'This is my beloved Son'; and again:

'My good Word'; and:

'I have prepared a lamp for my Christ.' But we, in response, acclaim:

'Your Son, your Only-begotten, your Christ.'

Nor indeed does it help their case that these terms are also written of us homonymously or synonymously.

'Sons of men, how long will you be heavy of heart?'—does this draw the Son of God down through mere homonymy with the divinity?

So too with the Holy Spirit: it is not the bare fact of being called 'spirit,' but the fact that 'my'—as from God—or 'your'—as from the creature—is joined to the name, or that the words 'holy,' 'incorruptible,' or 'eternal' are used, that shows him to have proceeded from the paternal hypostasis.

Nor indeed does the fact that the ministering spirits and our own spirits are homonymously called 'holy' or 'eternal' draw him away from being, by nature, the true Spirit of God.

For even in these very enigmatic expressions concerning him, some indication of his divine nature and power is invariably to be found.

But created things received 'holy' and 'eternal' according to their own nature, not possessing these qualities absolutely, by nature, of themselves.

Otherwise these very heretics will be found accusing themselves, since they simply accept 'my' as applied to the Son of God, and 'holy' and 'eternal,' as proclaiming the identity of the divine nature. Moreover, besides this, in the proofs set before us it did not name our animating spirit, but rather his own Holy Spirit.

For although we possess our own spirit, the Spirit of God was also given to us.

'My Spirit shall not remain in these men forever'; and the Son says:

'Receive the Holy Spirit.' It is clear that this was said, concerning the divine Spirit, to those who already possessed their own proper spirit.

Just as, then, the Son, the Word of God, is begotten in a filial manner,

so also the Holy Spirit proceeds in a spiritual manner, and not by way of creation.

And just as there is no variation of essence, power, and glory between the Only-begotten Son and God the Father, but rather every difference—if indeed it be lawful to say so—in relation to creation,

so also it is with the one divine Spirit.

It is therefore more just not even to listen to the arguments of the heretics, than to listen to them while not even accepting them.

On the fact that the divine nature of the Holy Spirit is signified by various names

What we said from the beginning, the divine oracles bear witness to a second time: that there are various names befitting God given to the Spirit of God, carrying much other exalted emphasis and a relation superior to all things, names continuous with the Father and the Son, and contributing to the matters now under consideration something better than the most fitting interpretation of mere words;

and moreover unfolding, some of them his divine nature, others his sovereign power, and consoling our incapacity to attain worthily to him, whether by interpretation of words or by contemplation of the mind, and affording us confidence to call him, without risk, of one essence with God, and to trust in his work of sanctification.

And we find that none of the other spirits has been deemed worthy to be called by these names;

but that which alone and by nature possesses these qualities is none of all created things, but God.

The names are as follows:

'Holy Spirit,' as it is written everywhere;

'Spirit of holiness,' that is, the sanctifying Spirit, as Paul writes to the Romans: 'Paul, a servant of Jesus Christ, called to be an apostle, set apart for the gospel of God, which he promised beforehand through his prophets in the holy Scriptures, concerning his Son, who was descended from the seed of David according to the flesh, who was declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness'; and again:

'Sanctified in the Holy Spirit'; and elsewhere:

'But we ought always to give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God chose you as firstfruits unto salvation through sanctification of the Spirit and belief in the truth.' Also, 'Spirit of power and of love and of self-control,' as Paul wrote in the second epistle to Timothy:

'For God did not give us a spirit of slavery, but a spirit of power and of love and of self-control.' And to the Romans:

'Now I appeal to you, brethren, through our Lord Jesus Christ and through the love of the Spirit'; and elsewhere:

'But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace...'—similar to:

'God is love'; and to:

'He transferred us into the kingdom of the Son of his love'; and:

'as Christ loved the Church'; and again:

'of the Son of God, who loved me'—similar also to:

'Henceforth you shall see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power of the Father'; and to:

'I perceived that power had gone out from me.' Also, 'Spirit of wisdom and understanding, spirit of counsel and might, spirit of knowledge and of piety,'

'spirit of the fear of God, spirit of judgment and of burning,' as Isaiah prophesies:

'for the spirit of wisdom is loving toward mankind'; and as Moses relates in Exodus:

'Behold, God has called by name Bezalel, son of Uri, son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah, and has filled him with a divine spirit of wisdom and understanding and knowledge'; and according to Baruch:

'You have forsaken the fountain of wisdom'; and as the Proverbs teach:

'God founded the earth by wisdom, and established the heavens by understanding,' just as Isaiah said concerning God the Father:

'He, being wise, brought evils upon them.'

But concerning the Only-begotten, Paul said:

'Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God'; and another scripture says:

'I will bless the Lord, who has given me understanding.' Also, 'spirit of gentleness,' as Paul admonishes the Galatians:

'Brethren, even if a man is overtaken in any trespass, you who are spiritual should restore such a one in a spirit of gentleness.' Also, 'spirit of instruction,' that is, of wisdom:

'The spirit of instruction will flee deceit, and will rise up away from senseless reasonings.' Also, 'spirit of adoption,' as Paul first sent to the Romans:

'For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, these are sons of God.'

'For you have received the spirit of adoption as sons, by which we cry:'

'Abba, Father'; the Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God. Also, 'spirit of promise,' according to the same apostle writing to the Ephesians:

'in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise, who is the pledge of our inheritance'; and to the Galatians:

'Christ redeemed us from the curse of the law, having become a curse for us,'

'cursed is everyone who hangs on a tree,'

'so that the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles in Christ Jesus, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith.' Also, 'spirit of faith and of revelation,' according to the same apostle writing to the Corinthians,

declaring in the second epistle:

'And having the same spirit of faith'; and again:

'But to us God has revealed it through his Spirit.' Similar, then, to what he declared to the Romans:

'God is faithful, through whom you were called into the fellowship of his Son'; and to what was spoken by Moses in Deuteronomy:

'and you shall know this day that the Lord your God, he is God, the faithful God'; and to the psalmist who sings:

'The Lord is faithful in all his words, and holy in all his works.' Also, 'ruling spirit,' 'upright spirit,' according to David confessing in Psalm 50:

'Establish me with a ruling spirit,'

likewise to the one singing in Psalm 32:

'For the word of the Lord is upright, and all his works are done in faithfulness'; and to Moses saying:

'The Lord our God is upright, and there is no unrighteousness in him.' Also, 'spirit of grace,' as the apostle writes to the Hebrews:

'he who has trampled underfoot the Son of God and has insulted the Spirit of grace'—for indeed the same apostle wrote concerning the Father:

"And his grace toward me" — but concerning the Son:

"The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ." As for the Spirit of truth, John proclaims it from the Savior's own words:

"If you love me, keep my commandments;"

"and I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Comforter, that the Spirit of truth may be with you forever." And again, in his first epistle:

"And it is the Spirit that bears witness, because the Spirit is the truth" — in a manner like the Son's own saying:

"I am the truth." [The Spirit is also called] "divine spirit" and "breath of the Almighty" and "lover of mankind," according to the phrase of Job, and that of Moses mentioned a few verses earlier in this chapter,

the Holy Spirit was also extolled as "light," in whom and by whom we are illumined, as when the apostle writes:

"that he may give you a spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of him, the eyes of your heart being enlightened," and as David sings:

"In your light we shall see light" — that is, in your Son, the radiance of your glory, [we see] your Holy Spirit;

"The light of your countenance, O Lord, has been marked upon us." For what else could the Spirit be, who proceeds from the Father, or from the Light, than [light itself]? Concerning whom John sang praise in his first epistle:

"God is light," and in the Gospel, concerning the Only-begotten:

"He was the true light, which enlightens every man coming into the world," and:

"I am the light, I am the life." It is no wonder that, being one and ever remaining the same, he is glorified by different appellations,

for since his ineffable Godhead cannot be encompassed by mortal words, in hymning, according to our capacity, the operations that come to us from him, we also make use of various names.

But those who champion the doctrine of Macedonius, being devoted more to their own heresy than to the truth, see nothing consistent in the divine utterances.

For with these very words they concoct specious fictions, [arguing] that one ought not to pay heed to homonyms, synonyms, or similarities of expression.

"For," he says, "the name 'good' applied to God is joined with 'one God'; but with the name 'good' applied to the Holy Spirit, 'one God' is not joined."

"'Good,'" he says, "is also written of man, as when it says:"

"Do good, O Lord, to those who are good," and:

"The good man brings forth good things out of his good treasure." "Likewise," he says, "inanimate things too are called 'good' by the same name, as when it prophesies:"

"If you are willing and obedient, you shall eat the good things of the land." "But it is also said, of things that have no real subsistence at all:"

"It is good to give thanks to the Lord." "Likewise," he says, "man too is called 'holy,' and, he says, 'power of God' is even written of a worm, where it says:"

"The caterpillar — my great host," and the Savior likewise:

"The powers of the heavens shall be shaken." Now this I affirm: that this rule of not heeding homonyms and similarities of expression holds for things of different kind and different substance, but certainly not for the Holy Spirit and him whose Spirit he is, nor indeed for the Son.

For Scripture, adding its own safeguard to the homonyms or synonyms, appends the syllable "my" or "your," or the word "holy" or "good";

that is, it speaks either as from God:

"My Spirit," or as from David and from us:

"Your good Spirit shall lead me." One ought, then, to be persuaded by what is far more profitable — I mean the aforementioned scriptural testimonies — and to know that the Holy Spirit's homonymy or synonymy and similarities of expression are shared with God and his Only-begotten Son, who are hymned by like names, and not with created things, on account of the homonymy sometimes found in the latter.

For even if we should grant that these share some name or word in common with God, they do not share his essence, nor the operation of his power and sanctification.

For these do not possess such qualities by nature, once for all;

rather, "good" is ranked by comparison with "evil," and "holy" by comparison with sin, that is, with passion;

for what is not excessively evil and sinful, that is, not excessively subject to passion, is here termed "good" and "holy."

And sin — that is, passion and weakness — is not found in the one Holy Spirit, inasmuch as he is unbegotten;

thus in none of the generated things is "good" and "holy" and "powerful" present in perfection, but only by participation;

and wherever these are nowhere present in perfection, there the unbegotten is nowhere present.

For where there is darkness, there is nowhere light;

whence it was said also by the Hermes surnamed Trismegistus that it is impossible for the good to be present in what has come into being, but only in the unbegotten;

and just as participation in all things has been granted to matter, so too participation in the good. The Holy Spirit, then, is like and equal to the Godhead of the Father and the Only-begotten;

and from this very judgment it is shown that he himself is by nature holiness and goodness and power, since he is one, from the One.

For according to their contentious wrangling, not even the Son, who is most good and gracious by nature, would still be good,

since he does not have "one God" joined to it.

nor indeed would the most benevolent Father, wholly gracious, and the Son, have the aforementioned names of the Godhead as distinctive marks;

but by these very [names] they would even be brought down — as heretics are accustomed to speak — to the level of us who bear the same names.

"But," he says, "the Son, having been begotten, possesses goodness innate in him, and all else that the Father possesses."

But the Holy Spirit too, having proceeded together [with him], is by nature good, and possesses whatever God the Father possesses.

If, then, their dispute concerned chance or everyday matters, it would perhaps have been fitting for them, whenever need arose, to fabricate certain fictions, and, with a supposed Aristotelian cleverness and skill in argument, like Eunomius, to twist the matter about and obscure the truth;

"If you do not believe, you shall not understand at all," and:

"The wisdom of men is folly before God." And one ought not, by human reasonings, to sophistically twist the utterances concerning the glorious Spirit, which are greater than such reasonings.

For blame does not harm the Holy Spirit, nor do the reproaches and mockeries of the heretics, upon whom base thinking has come, go any further than mere hearing;

but those who use such things will labor to no end, and will act in a manner much like those who attempt to mock this light, which has its strength from the unapproachable Light, and to defile it with their words.

But one must believe that the teaching derived from the saints has greater power to instill true glory than that which comes from men.

It is fitting, then, for us to reproach them for this: that, out of excessive devotion to their own heresy, they, so far as lies in them, drag the Divine down by their sophistries to the level of the products of creation, and thereby engender in the simpler and less experienced a love of destruction, and lead them on to the desire for greater sins.

[Chapter] Concerning the heretics who say the following:

"And how is the Holy Spirit the spirit of the Spirit?" And again:

"Are not the angels, then," they say, "also from God, and holy, and spirits of God?" But by rejecting the simple, straightforward, and perfect [sense], and filling with ignorance the true intent of the sacred words — according to which God the Father wills his Spirit to be ranked together with himself, as also the Only-begotten Word — [an intent] which likewise secures the Spirit's exaltation above creation and his surpassing superiority, wherefore he is also glorified in the Trisagion — they nevertheless say:

"How is the Holy Spirit the spirit of the Spirit?" But that this is indeed written has been shown;

but the "how" lies beyond our mind and reason, and indeed beyond the knowledge even of angels.

For just as, he being Father, God the Word was begotten from him;

so also from him and together with him the Holy Spirit was manifested;

and in this above all his incomprehensibility is shown: that what appears — and indeed is — impossible for creation, is possible with him:

namely, for a spirit not to be consubstantial and equal in honor with him from whom it is.

Wherefore he is also holy by nature.

"Are not the angels, then," he says, "also from God, and holy, and spirits of God?" — They are "from God" in the sense that they came into being by his command, as did all things;

and they are "holy" after having been sanctified, as men are;

and they are "spirits" in that, relative to us, they are incorporeal;

not being called "spirits of God," or "from God," or "proceeding from the Father," or "divine," or "spirits of truth," or "spirits of holiness";

but rather "ministering angels" and "heavenly bodies," on account of being infinitely distant from, and inferior to, the uncreated Spirit of God, according to the experienced apostle who writes:

"earthly bodies and heavenly bodies."

For just as the spirits of the winds are not on the level of the angels, so neither are the angels on the level of the Holy Spirit of God;

for they were created, but did not proceed from the hypostasis of God the Father.

They do not regenerate us, they do not deify, they do not forgive sins, they do not give life, they do not create, they do not sanctify, they do not judge, but rather are themselves judged.

'For you,' he says, 'will even judge angels.'

Nor are the powers of the heavens present within them either.

They are not uncircumscribed by places, nor unmeasured by intervals of space.

For Gabriel, when he was speaking to Daniel, or announcing the good news to the Virgin Mother of God, was not at that time in heaven in his essence as he was in thought, but at that time abode only upon earth.

Nor are they uncontained by the ages.

'Who makes,' it says, 'his angels spirits, and his ministers a flame of fire.' They do not perform even one of the works that are wrought by the Holy Spirit, but rather they minister to it, as the archangel Gabriel showed when he ministered to Mary the Mother of God and said:

'The Holy Spirit will come upon you.' Therefore man is not their temple, as he is the temple of God and of his Spirit and of the Only-begotten Son.

They are not comprehended together with God.

The angelic hypostasis is not some single thing, but is innumerable.

But the all-resplendent Holy Spirit proceeded, connaturally and uniformly, timelessly, from the ineffable, super-essential, pre-essential, universal, and formless hypostasis of the Father, and has been called divine;

and it is one, unmultiplied, good, ungrudging, unapproachable, uncircumscribed by every conception, of infinite power, not one selected among others, existing alone;

and by nature holy, and the Spirit of God, being none of all created things, but God, existing both in heaven and present with us, the cause to all of all good things;

present to all things immaterially, without form, without change of shape;

yet not departing from being ineffably enthroned together with the Father, and extending everywhere and making room for all, and dwelling in all things without confusion;

and entering into the thoughts both of us and of those invisible to us, and scrutinizing all things exactly, although knowing all things already;

and resounding without voice, hearkening to souls that cry out silently from within, showing mercy upon all without delay, strengthening them, and imparting ineffable joy to the natures found everywhere;

encompassing the constitution of this universe, and holding all things under himself;

and illuminating with divine light, and bestowing benefits by his boundless activity and goodness;

leading those of better disposition toward a more perfect goal, while not depriving even those who are worse and behave amiss of his royal, harmonious, and undivided providence, but setting them in longing for, and mindfulness of, the consubstantial Trinity that supplies all good things universally;

and cooperating with all who cultivate the good, while yet being set apart above all in this way: that to one apostle abiding in India, to another in Spain, to another in yet another place, even to the ends of the earth, wherever each was assigned by him, he imparted a portion of his own unerring and unadulterated wisdom;

not coming now to this one and afterward to another, nor breathing more upon one and less upon another, but shining upon each — both all together and individually distinguished — always alike, just as the Lord said when he declared:

the theological statement laid down concerning the Spirit, where he said:

'God is spirit' — they apply this to God the Father, saying that it is written thus because he is spirit; and further, since it is also written:

'The breath of our countenance is Christ the Lord' — will they then, since he too is called spirit, number both the Father and the Son together with the other ministering spirits? But if that is not so, neither is the Holy Spirit to be reckoned together with the other spirits.

For Michael and Gabriel and those like them are archangels;

but after them, not even the heretics would say that the Holy Spirit of God is ranked.

Where, then, or among which creatures do they propose to rank it? For besides God, we have not been taught from the Scriptures of any other rational nature than that of the many spirits and of bodies such as ours.

Moreover, they sophistically draw the following inference from what has been proposed:

'The Father and the Son are written as true, but the Spirit is written as truth' — as though this were somehow discordant.

But it is the same thing, as has been shown in the first book, and this does not differ from that.

Concerning those who say, 'Since the Word of God is only-begotten, what then shall we call the Spirit?' And concerning the Son being attested as only-begotten.

The Holy Spirit is one and alone;

and again, the Son is the Word;

and concerning the fact that there is no parallel for the incomparable essence.

In reply to this, those who are most versatile and manifold in argument — I do not know whether also in judgment, but certainly versatile in this as well — namely the heretics estranged from the simpler and truer teaching, twisting the same words again and again, say:

'The Word of God was called only-begotten because the Holy Spirit is not from the hypostasis of the Father;'

'since otherwise he would not have been called only-begotten, and the Holy Spirit would have been styled his brother.' Such is their claim, inconsistent even with itself; but the truth, in answer to them, replies:

He is written as 'only-begotten' both because he alone was begotten from the hypostasis of the Father, and did not proceed, as the Holy Spirit does;

and also because this excludes the blasphemies of the heretics who say that he is a creature and a son such as we are.

And the Holy Spirit likewise is written as being one and only, both because it alone and singly proceeded from the hypostasis of God the Father, and was not begotten, as the Son was;

and also so that it might not be supposed to be a creature, as the other spirits are.