The Church Fathers
ALEXANDER OF CAPPADOCIA
FROM THE EPISTLES OF
ALEXANDER
Translated by the Rev. S. D. F. Salmond, M.A.
THIS FILE CONTAINS:
Alexander of Cappadocia
Theognostus of Alexandria
Pierius of Alexandria
Theonas of Alexandria
Phileas
Pamphilius
Malchion
AN EPISTLE TO THE PEOPLE OF ANTIOCH
Alexander, a servant and prisoner of Jesus
Christ, sends greeting in the Lord to the blessed church of Antioch. Easy and
light has the Lord made my bonds to me during the time of my imprisonment
since I have learned that in the providence of God, Asclepiades--who, in
regard to the right faith, is most eminently qualified for the office--has
undertaken the episcopate of your holy church of Antioch. And this epistle, my
brethren and masters, I have sent by the hand of the blessed presbyter
Clement,(2) a man virtuous and well tried, whom ye know already, and will know
yet better; who also, coming here by the providence and supervision of the
Master, has strengthened and increased the Church of the Lord.
II. FROM AN EPISTLE TO THE ANTINOITES.(3)
Narcissus salutes you, who held the
episcopate in this district before me, who is now also my colleague and
competitor in prayer for you,(4) and who, having now attained to(5) his
hundred and tenth year, unites with me in exhorting you to be of one mind.(6)
III. FROM AN EPISTLE TO ORIGEN.(7)
For this, as thou knowest, was the will of
God, that the friendship subsisting between us from our forefathers should be
maintained unbroken, yea rather, that it should increase in fervency and
strength. For we are well acquainted with those blessed fathers who have
trodden the course before us, and to whom we too shall soon go: Pantaenus,
namely, that man verily blessed, my master; and also the holy Clement, who was
once my, master and my benefactor; and all the rest who may be like them, by
whose means also I have come to know thee, my lord and brother, who excellest
all.(8)
IV. FROM AN EPISTLE TO DEMETRIUS, BISHOP OF
ALEXANDRIA.(9)
And he(10)--i.e., Demetrius--has added to
his letter that this is a matter that was never heard of before, and has never
been done now,--namely, that laymen should take part in speaking,(11) when
there are bishops present. But in this assertion he has departed evidently far
from the truth by some means. For, indeed, wherever there are found persons
capable of profiling the brethren, such persons are exhorted by the holy
bishops to address the people. Such was the case at Laranda, where Evelpis was
thus exhorted by Neon; and at Iconium, Paulinus was thus exhorted by Celsus;
and at Synada, Theodorus also by Atticus, our blessed brethren. And it is
probable that this is done in other places also, although we know not the
fact.(12)
THEOGNOSTUS OF ALEXANDRIA.
FROM HIS SEVEN BOOKS OF HYPOTYPOSES OR
OUTLINES.
I.[11]
The substance[12] of the Son is not a
substance devised extraneously,[13] nor is it one introduced out of
nothing;[14] but it was born of the substance of the Father, as the reflection
of light or as the steam of water. For the reflection is not the sun itself,
and the steam is not the water itself, nor yet again is it anything alien;
neither He Himself the Father, nor is He alien, but He is[15] an emanation[16]
from the substance of the Father, this substance of the Father suffering the
while no partition. For as the sun remains the same and suffers no diminution
from the rays that are poured out by it, so neither did the substance of the
Father undergo any change in having the Son as an image of itself.
II.[17]
Theognostus, moreover, himself adds words to
this effect: He who has offended against the first term[18] and the second,
may be judged to deserve smaller punishment; but he who has also despised the
third, can no longer find pardon. For by the first term and the second, he
says, is meant the teaching concerning the Father and the Son; but by the
third is meant the doctrine committed to us with respect to the perfection[1]
and the partaking of the Spirit. And with the view of confirming this, he
adduces the word spoken by the Saviour to the disciples: "I have yet many
things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. But when the Holy Spirit
is come, He will teach you."[2]
III.[13]
Then he says again: As the Saviour converses
with those not yet able to receive what is perfect,[4] condescending to their
littleness, while the Holy Spirit communes with the perfected, and yet we
could never say on that account that the teaching of the Spirit is superior to
the teaching of the Son, but only that the Son condescends to the imperfect,
while the Spirit is the seal of the perfected; even so it is not on account of
the superiority of the Spirit over the Son that the blasphemy against the
Spirit is a sin excluding impunity and pardon, but because for the imperfect
there is pardon, while for those who have tasted the heavenly gift,[5] and
been made perfect, there remains no plea or prayer for pardon.
PIERIUS OF ALEXANDRIA.[1]
I.--A FRAGMENT OF A WORK OF PIERIUS ON THE
FIRST EPISTLE OF PAUL TO THE CORINTHIANS.[1]
Origen, Dionysius, Pierius, Eusebius of
Caesareia, Didymus, and Apollinaris, have interpreted this epistle most
copiously;[2] of whom Pierius, when he was expounding and unfolding the
meaning of the apostle, and purposed to explain the words. For I would that
all men were even as I myself,[3] added this remark: In saying this, Paul,
without disguise, preaches celibacy.[4]
II.--A SECTION ON THE WRITINGS OF PIERIUS.[1]
DIFFERENT DISCOURSES OF THE PRESBYTER PIERIUS.
There was read a book by Pierius the
presbyter, who, they say, endured the conflict[2] for Christ, along with his
brother Isidorus. And he is reputed to have been the teacher of the martyr
Pamphilus in ecclesiastical studies, and to have been president of the school
at Alexandria. The work contained twelve books.[3] And in style he is
perspicuous and clear, with the easy flow, as it were, of a spoken address,
displaying no signs of laboured art,[4] but bearing us quietly along, smoothly
and gently, like off-hand speaking. And in argument he is most fertile, if any
one is so. And he expresses his opinion on many things outside what is now
established in the Church, perhaps in an antique manner;[5] but with respect
to the Father and the Son, he sets forth his sentiments piously, except that
he speaks of two substances and two natures; using, however, the terms
substance and nature, as is apparent from what follows, and from what precedes
this passage, in the sense of person[6] and not in the sense put on it by the
adherents of Arius. With respect to the Spirit, however, he lays down his
opinion in a very dangerous and far from pious manner. For he affirms that He
is inferior to the Father and the Son in glory.[7] He has a passage also in
the book[8] entitled, On the Gospel according to Luke, from which it is
possible to show that the honour or dishonour of the image is also the honour
or dishonour of the original. And, again, he indulges in some obscure
speculations, after the manner of the nonsense of Origen, on the subject of
the "pre-existence of souls." And also in the book on the Passover
(Easter) and on Hosea, he treats both of the cherubim made by Moses, and of
the pillar of Jacob, in which passages he admits the actual construction of
those things, but propounds the foolish theory that they were given
economically, and that they were in no respect like other things which are
made; inasmuch as they bore the likeness of no other form, but had only, as he
foolishly says, the appearance of wings.[9]
THEONAS OF ALEXANDRIA.
THE EPISTLE OF THEONAS, BISHOP OF
ALEXANDRIA, TO LUCIANUS, THE CHIEF CHAMBERLAIN.[4] BISHOP THEONAS TO LUCIANUS,
THE CHIEF CHAMBERLAIN OF OUR MOST INVINCIBLE EMPEROR.
I.
I give thanks to Almighty God and our Lord
Jesus Christ, who has not given over the manifesting of His faith throughout
the whole world, as the sole specific for our salvation,[5] and the extending
of it even in the course of the persecutions of despots. Yea, like gold
reduced in the furnace, it has only been made to shine the more under the
storms of persecution, and its truth and grandeur have only become always the
more and more illustrious, so that now, peace being granted to the churches by
our gracious prince, the works of Christians are shining even in sight of the
unbelieving, and God your Father, who is in heaven, is glorified thereby;[6] a
thing which, if we desire to be Christians in deed rather than in word, we
ought to seek and aspire after as our first object on account of our
salvation. For if we seek our own glory, we set our desire upon a vain and
perishing object, and one which leads ourselves on to death. But the glory of
the Father and of the Son, who for our salvation was nailed to the cross,
makes us safe for the everlasting redemption; and that is the greatest hope of
Christians.
Wherefore, my Lucianus, I neither suppose
nor desire that yon should make it a matter of boasting, that by your means
many persons belonging to the palace of the emperor have been brought to the
knowlege of the truth; hut rather does it become us to give the thanks to our
God who has made thee a good instrument for a good work, and has raised thee
to great honour with the emperor, that you might diffuse the sweet savour of
the Christian name to His own glory and to the salvation of many. For just the
more completely that the emperor himself. though not yet attached[7] to the
Christian religion, has entrusted the care of his life and person to these
same Christians as his more faithful servants, so much the more careful ought
ye to be, and the more diligent and watchful in seeing to his safety and in
attending upon him, so that the name of Christ may be greatly glorified
thereby, and His faith extended daily through you who wait upon the emperor.
For in old times some former princes thought us malevolent and filled with all
manner of crime; but now, seeing your good works, they should not be able to
avoid glorifying Christ Himself.[1]
II.
Therefore you ought to strive to the utmost
of your power not to fall into a base or dishonourable, not to say an
absolutely flagitious way of thinking, lest the name of Christ be thus
blasphemed even by you. Be it far from you that you should sell the privilege
of access to the emperor to any one for money, or that you should by any means
place a dishonest account of any affair before your prince, won over either by
prayers or by bribes. Let all the lust of avarice be put from you, which
serves the cause of idolatry rather than the religion of Christ.[2] No filthy
lucre, no duplicity, can befit the Christian who embraces the simple and
unadorned[3] Christ. Let no scurrilous or base talk have place among you. Let
all things be done with modesty, courteousness, affability, and uprightness,
so that the name of our God and Lord Jesus Christ may be glorified in all.
Discharge the official duties to which yon
are severally appointed with the utmost fear of God and affection to your
prince, and perfect carefulness. Consider that every command of the emperor
which does not offend God has proceeded from God Himself;[4] and execute it in
love as well as in fear, and with all cheerfulness. For there is nothing which
so well refreshes a man who is wearied out with weighty cares as the
seasonable cheerfulness and benign patience of an intimate servant; nor,
again, on the other hand, does anything so much annoy and vex him as the
moroseness and impatience and grumbling of his servant. Be such things far
from you Christians, whose walk is in zeal for the faith.[5] But in order that
God may be honoured[6] in yourselves, suppress ye and tread down all your
vices of mind and body. Be clothed with patience and courtesy; be replenished
with the virtues and the hope of Christ. Bear all things for the sake of your
Creator Himself; endure all things; overcome and get above all things, that ye
may win Christ the Lord. Great are these duties, and full of painstaking. But
he that striveth for the mastery[7] is temperate in all things; and they do it
to obtain a corruptible crown, but we an incorruptible.
III.
But because, as I apprehend it, ye are
assigned to different offices, and you, Lucianus, are styled the head of them
all, whom, also, by the grace of Christ given you, you are able to direct and
dispose in their different spheres, I am certain that it will not displease
you if I also bring before your notice, in a particular and summary manner,
some of my sentiments on the subject of these offices. For I hear that one of
you keeps the private moneys of the emperor; another the imperial robes and
ornaments; another the precious vessels; another the books, who, I understand,
does not as yet belong to the believers; and others the different parts of the
household goods. And in what manner, therefore, these charges ought, in my
judgment, to be executed, I shall indicate in a few words.
IV.
He who has charge of the private moneys of
the emperor ought to keep every thing in an exact reckoning. He should be
ready at any time to give an accurate account of all things. He should note
down every thing in writing, if it is at all possible, before giving money to
another. He should never trust such things to his memory, which, being drawn
off day by day to other matters, readily fails us, so that, without writing,
we sometimes honestly certify things which have never existed; neither should
this kind of writing be of a commonplace order, but such as easily and clearly
unfolds all things, and leaves the mind of the inquirer without any scruple or
doubt on the subject; a thing which will easily he effected if a distinct and
separate account is kept in writing of all receipts, and of the time when, and
the person by whom, and the place at which they were made.[8] And, in like
manner, all that is paid out to others, or expended by order of the emperor,
should be entered in its own place by itself in the reckoning; and that
servant should be faithful and prudent, so that his lord may rejoice that he
has set him over his goods? and may glorify Christ in him.
V.
Nor will the diligence and care of that
servant be less who has the custody of the robes and imperial ornaments. All
these he should enter in a most exact catalogue, and he should keep a note of
what they are and of what sort, and in what places stored, and when he
received them, and from whom, and whether they are soiled or unsoiled. All
these things he should keep in his diligence; he should often review again,
and he should often go over them that they may be the more readily known
again. All these he should have at hand, and all in readiness; and he should
always give the clearest information on every matter on which it is sought, to
his prince or his superior, whenever they ask about any thing; and all this at
the same time in such wise that every thing may be done in humility and
cheerful patience, and that the name of Christ may be praised even in a small
matter.
VI. In a similar manner should he conduct
himself to whose fidelity are entrusted the vessels of silver and gold, and
crystal or murrha,[1] for eating or for drinking. All these he should arrange
suitably, of them all he should keep an account, and with all diligence he
should make an inventory of how many and which sort of precious stones are in
them. He should examine them all with great prudence; he should produce them
in their proper places and on their proper occasions. And he should observe
most carefully to whom he gives them, and at what time, and from whom he
receives them again, lest there should occur any mistake or injurious
suspicion, or perhaps some considerable loss in things of value.
VII.
The most responsible person. however, among
you, and also the most careful, will be he who may be entrusted by the emperor
with the custody of his library. He will himself select for this office a
person of proved knowledge, a man grave and adapted to great affairs, and
ready to reply to all applications for information, such a one as Philadelphus
chose for this charge, and appointed to the superintendence of his most noble
library--I mean Aristeus, his confidential chamberlain, whom he sent also as
his legate to Eleazar, with most magnificent gifts, in recognition of the
translation of the Sacred Scriptures; and this person also wrote the full
history of the Seventy Interpreters. If, therefore, it should happen that a
believer in Christ is called to this same office, he should not despise that
secular literature and those Gentile intellects which please the emperor.[2]
To be praised are the poets for the greatness of their genius, the acuteness
of their inventions, the aptness and lofty eloquence of their style. To be
praised are the orators; to be praised also are the philosophers in their own
class. To be praised, too, are the historians, who unfold to us the order of
exploits, and the manners and institutions of our ancestors, and show us the
rule of life from the proceedings of the ancients. On occasion also he will
endeavour to laud the divine Scriptures, which, with marvellous care and most
liberal expenditure, Ptolemy Philadelphus caused to be translated into our
language;[3] and sometimes, too, the Gospel and the Apostle will be landed for
their divine oracles; and there will be an opportunity for introducing the
mention of Christ; and, little by little, His exclusive divinity will be
explained; and all these things may happily come to pass by the help of
Christ.
He ought, therefore, to know all the books
which the emperor possesses; he should often turn them over, and arrange them
neatly in their proper order by catalogue; if, however, he shall have to get
new books, or old ones transcribed, he should be careful to obtain the most
accurate copyists; and if that cannot be done, he should appoint learned men
to the work of correction, and recompense them justly for their labours. He
should also cause all manuscripts to be restored according to their need, and
should embellish them, not so much with mere superstitious extravagance, as
with useful adornment; and therefore he should not aim at having the whole
manuscripts written on purple skins and in letters of gold, unless the emperor
has specially required that. With the utmost, most submission, however, he
should do every thing that is agreeable to Caesar. As he is able, he should,
with all modesty, suggest to the emperor that he should read, or hear read,
those books which suit his rank and honour, and minister to good use rather
than to mere pleasure. He should himself first be thoroughly familiar with
those books, and he should often commend them in presence of the emperor, and
set forth, in an appropriate fashion, the testimony and the weight of those
who approve them, that he may not seem to lean to his own understanding only.
VIII.
Those, moreover, who have the care of the
emperor's person should be in all things as prompt as possible; always, as we
have said, cheerful in countenance, sometimes merry, but ever with such
perfect modesty as that he may commend it above all else in you all, and
perceive that it is the true product of the religion of Christ. You should
also all be elegant and tidy in person and attire, yet, at the same time, not
in such wise as to attract notice by extravagance or affectation, lest
Christian modesty be scandalised.[4] Let every thing be ready at its proper
time, and disposed as well as possible in its own order. There should also be
due arrangement among you, and carefulness that no confusion appear in your
work, nor any loss of property in any way; and appropriate places should be
settled and suitably prepared, in accordance with the capacity (captu) and
importance of the places.
Besides this, your servants should be the
most thoroughly honest, and circumspect, and modest, and as serviceable to you
as possible. And see that you instruct and teach them in true doctrine with
all the patience and charity of Christ; but if they despise and lightly esteem
your instructions, then dismiss them, lest their wickedness by any hap recoil
upon yourselves. For sometimes we have seen, and often we have heard, how
masters have been held in ill-repute in consequence of the wickedness of their
servants.
If the emperor visits her imperial majesty,
or she him, then should ye also be most circumspect in eye and demeanour, and
in all your words. Let her mark your mastery of yourselves and your
modesty;(1) and let her followers and attendants mark your demeanour; let them
mark it and admire it, and by reason thereof praise Jesus Christ our Lord in
you. Let your conversation always be temperate and modest, and seasoned with
religion as with salt.(2) And, further, let there be no jealousy among you or
contentiousness, which might bring you into all manner of confusion and
division, and thus also make you objects of aversion to Christ and to the
emperor, and lead you into the deepest abomination, so that not one stone of
your building could stand upon another.
IX.
And do thou, my dearest Lucianus, since thou
art wise, bear with good- will the unwise;(3) and they too may perchance
become wise. Do no one an injury at any time, and provoke no one to anger. If
an injury is done to you, look to Jesus Christ; and even as ye desire that He
may remit your transgressions, do ye also forgive them theirs;(4) and then
also shall ye do away with all ill-will, and bruise the head of that ancient
serpent,(5) who is ever on the watch with all subtlety to undo your good works
and your prosperous attainments. Let no day pass by without reading some
portion of the Sacred Scriptures, at such convenient hour as offers, and
giving some space to meditation.(6) And never cast off the habit of reading in
the Holy Scriptures; for nothing feeds the soul and enriches the mind so well
as those sacred studies do. But look to this as the chief gain you are to make
by them, that, in all due patience, ye may discharge the duties of your office
religiously and piously --that is, in the love of Christ--and despise all
transitory objects for the sake of His eternal promises. which in truth
surpass all human comprehension and understanding? and shall conduct you into
everlasting felicity.
A happy adieu to you in Christ, my Lord
Lucianus.
PHILEAS.
FRAGMENTS OF THE EPISTLE OF PHILEAS TO THE
PEOPLE OF THMUIS.(2) I.
Having before them all these examples and
signs and illustrious tokens which are given us in the divine and holy
Scriptures, the blessed martyrs who lived with us did not hesitate. but,
directing the eye of their soul in sincerity to that God who is over all, and
embracing with willing mind the death which their piety cost them, they
adhered steadfastly to their vocation. For they learned that our Lord Jesus
Christ endured man's estate on our behalf, that He might destroy all sin, and
furnish us with the provision needful for our entrance into eternal life.
"For He thought it not robbery to be equal with God: but made Himself of
no reputation, taking upon Him the form of a servant: and being found in
fashion as a man, He humbled Himself unto death, even the death of the
cross."(3) For which reason also these Christ-bearing(4) martyrs sought
zealously the greater gifts, and endured, some of them, every kind of pain and
all the varied contrivances of torture not merely once, bat once and again;
and though the guards showed their fury against them not only by threatenings
m word, but also by deeds of violence, they did not swerve from their
resolution, because perfect love casteth out fear.(5)
II.
And to narrate their virtue and their manly
endurance under every torment, what language would suffice? For as every one
who chose was at liberty to abuse them, some beat them with wooden clubs,(6)
and others with rods, and others with scourges, and others again with thongs,
land others with ropes. And the spectacle of these modes of torture had great
variety in it, and exhibited vast malignity. For some had their hands bound
behind them, and were suspended on the rack and bad every, limb in their body
stretched with a certain kind of pulleys.(7) Then after all this the
torturers, according to their orders, lacerated with the sharp iron claws(8)
the whole body, not merely, as in the case of murderers, the sides only, but
also the stomach and the knees and the cheeks. And others were hung up in
mid-air, suspended by one hand from the portico, and their sufferings were
fiercer than any other kind of agony by reason of the distention of their
joints and limbs. And others were bound to pillars, face to face, not touching
the ground with their feet, but hanging with all the weight of the body, so
that their chains were drawn all the more tightly by reason of the tension.
And this they endured not simply as long as the governor(9) spoke with them,
or had leisure to hear them, but well-nigh through the whole day. For when he
passed on to others he left some of those under his authority to keep watch
over these former, and to observe whether any of them, being overcome by the
torture, seemed likely to yield. But he gave them orders at the same time to
cast them into chains without sparing, and thereafter, when they were
expiring, to throw them on the ground and drag them along. For they said that
they would not give themselves the slightest concern about us, but would look
upon us and deal with us as if we were nothing at all. This second mode of
torture our enemies devised then over and above the scourging.
III.
And there were also some who, after the
tortures, were placed upon the stocks and had both their feet stretched
through all the four holes, so that they were compelled to lie on their back
on the stocks, as they were unable (to stand) in, consequence of the fresh
wounds they had over the whole body from the scourging. And others being
thrown upon the ground lay prostrated there by the excessively frequent
application of the tortures; in which condition they exhibited to the
onlookers a still more dreadful spectacle than they did when actually
undergoing their torments, bearing, as they did, on their bodies the varied
and manifold tokens of the cruel ingenuity of their tortures. While this state
of matters went on some died under their tortures putting the adversary to
shame by their constancy. And others were thrust half-dead into the prison,
where in a few days, worn out with their agonies, they met their end. But the
rest, getting sure recovery under the application of remedies, through time
and their lengthened detention in prison, became more confident. And thus
then, when they were commanded to make their choice between these
alternatives, namely, either to put their hand to the unholy sacrifice and
thus secure exemption from further trouble, and obtain from them their
abominable sentence of absolution and liberation,(1) or else to refuse to
sacrifice, and thus expect the judgment of death to be executed on them, they
never hesitated, but went cheerfully to death.(2) For they knew the sentence
declared for us of old by the Holy Scriptures: "He that sacrificeth to
other gods," it is said, "shall be utterly destroyed."(3) And
again(4) "Thou shalt have no other gods before Me."(5)
THE EPISTLE OF THE SAME PHILEAS OF THMUIS TO
MELETIUS, BISHOP OF LYCOPOLIS.
THE BEGINNING OF THE EPISTLE OF THE
BISHOPS.(1)
Hesychius, Pachomius, Theodorus, and Phileas,
to Meletius, our friend and fellow-minister in the Lord, greeting. Some
reports having reached us concerning thee, which, on the testimony of certain
individuals who came to us, spake of certain things foreign to divine order
and ecclesiastical rule which are being attempted, yea, rather which are being
done by thee, we, in an ingenuous manner held them to be untrustworthy,
regarding them to be such as we would not willingly credit, when we thought of
the audacity implied in their magnitude and their uncertain attempts. But
since many who are visiting us at the present time have lent some credibility
to these reports, and have not hesitated to attest them as facts, we, to our
exceeding surprise, have been compelled to indite this letter to thee. And
what agitation and sadness have been caused to us all in common and to each of
us individually by (the report of) the ordination carried through by thee in
parishes having no manner of connection with thee, we are unable sufficiently
to express. We have not delayed, however, by a short statement to prove your
practice wrong. There is the law of our fathers and forefathers, of which
neither art thou thyself ignorant, established according to divine and
ecclesiastical order; for it is all for the good pleasure of God and the
zealous regard. of better things.(2) By them it has been established and
settled that it is not lawful for any bishop to celebrate ordinations in other
parishes(3) than his own; a law which is exceedingly important(4) and wisely
devised. For, in the first place, it is but right that the conversation and
life of those who are ordained should be examined with great care; and in the
second place, that all confusion and turbulence should be done away with. For
every one shall have enough to do in managing his own parish, and in finding
with great care and many anxieties suitable subordinates among these with whom
he has passed his whole life, and who have been trained under his hands. But
thou, neither making any account of these things, nor regarding the future,
nor considering the law of our sainted fathers and those who have been taken
to Christ time after time. nor the honour of our great bishop and father,(1)
Peter? on whom we all depend in the hope which we have in the Lord Jesus
Christ, nor softened by our imprisonments and trials, and daily and multiplied
reproach, hast ventured on subverting all things at once. And what means will
be left thee for justifying thyself with respect to these things? But perhaps
thou wilt say: I did this to prevent many being drawn away with the unbelief
of many, because the flocks were in need and forsaken, there being no pastor
with them. Well, but it is most certain that they are not in such destitution:
in the first place, because there are many going about them and in a position
to act as visitors; and in the second place, even if there was some measure of
neglect on their side, then the proper way would have been for the
representation to be made promptly by the people, and for us to take account
of them according to their desert.(3) But they knew that they were in no want
of ministers, and therefore they did not come to seek them. They knew that we
were wont to discharge them with an admonition from such inquisition for
matter of complaint, or that everything was done with all carefulness which
seemed to be for their profit; for all was done under correction,(4) and all
was considered with well-approved honesty. Thou, however, giving such
strenuous attention to the deceits of certain parties and their vain words,
hast made a stealthy leap to the celebrating of ordinations. For if, indeed,
those with thee were constraining thee to this, and in their ignorance were
doing violence to ecclesiastical order, thou oughtest to have followed the
common rule and have informed us by letter; and in that way what seemed
expedient would have been done. Anti if perchance some persuaded you to credit
their story that it was all over with us,--a thing of which thou couldest not
have been ignorant, because there were many passing and repassing by us who
might visit you,--even although, I say, this had been the case, yet thou
oughtest to have waited for the judgment of the superior father and for his
allowance of this practice. But without giving any heed to these matters, I
but indulging a different expectation, yea rather, indeed, denying all respect
to us, thou hast provided certain rulers for the people. For now we have
learned, too, that there were also divisions,(5) because thy unwarrantable
exercise of the right of ordination displeased many. And thou wert not
persuaded to delay such procedure or restrain thy purpose readily even by the
word of the Apostle Paul, the most blessed seer,(6) and the man who put on
Christ, who is the Christ of all of us no less; for he, in writing to his
dearly-beloved son Timothy, says: "Lay hands suddenly on no man, neither
be partaker of other men's sins."(7) And thus he at once shows his own
anxious consideration for him,(8) and gives him his example and exhibits the
law according to which, with all carefulness and caution, parties are to be
chosen for the honour of ordination.(9) We make this declaration to thee, that
in future thou mayest study(10) to keep within the safe and salutary limits of
the law.
THE CONCLUSION OF THE EPISTLE OF THE
BISHOPS.
After receiving and perusing this epistle,
he neither wrote any reply nor repaired to them in the prison, nor went to the
blessed Peter. But when all these bishops and presbyters and deacons had
suffered martyrdom in the prison at Alexandria, be at once entered Alexandria.
Now in that city there was a certain person, by name Isidorus, turbulent in
character, and possessed with the ambition of being a teacher. And there was
also a certain Arius, who wore the habit of piety, and was in like manner
possessed with the ambition to be a teacher. And when they discovered the
object of Meletius's passion(11) and what it was that he sought, hastening to
him, and looking with an evil eye on the episcopal authority of the blessed
Peter, that the aim and desire of Meletius might be made patent,(12) they
discovered to Meletius certain presbyters, then in hiding, to whom the blessed
Peter had given power to act as parish-visitors. And Meletius recommending
them to improve the opportunity given them for rectifyng their error,
suspended them for the time, and by his own authority ordained two persons in
their place,(13) namely, one in prison and another in the mines. On learning
these things the blessed Peter, with much endurance, wrote to the people of
Alexandria an epistle in the following terms.(14)
PAMPHILUS.
AN EXPOSITION OF THE CHAPTERS OF THE ACTS OF
THE APOSTLES.(1)
Having had ourselves the advantage of the
method and model received from our fathers and teachers, we attempt, in a
modest way, to give these in this exposition of the chapters, entreating your
forgiveness for the rashness of such an endeavour in us who are young in point
both of years and of study,(2) and looking to have the indulgences of every
one who reads this writing in prayer on our behalf. We make this exposition,
therefore, after the history of Luke, the evangelist and historian. And,
accordingly, we have indicated whole chapters by the letters of the
alphabet,(4) and their subdivisions into parts we have noted by means of the
asterisk.(5)
A. Of Christ's teaching after His
resurrection, and of His appearing to the disciples, and of the promise of the
gift of the Holy Ghost, and of the spectacle and manner of Christ's
assumption.(6)
B. Peter's discourse to those who were made
disciples, on the subject of the death and reprobation(7) of Judas;(8) * in
this chapter we have also the section on the substitution of Matthias, who was
elected by lot through the grace of God with prayer.
C. Of the divine descent(9) of the Holy
Ghost on the day of Pentecost which lighted on them who believed. In this we
have also the instruction delivered by Peter, and * passages from the prophets
on the subject, and * on the passion and resurrection and assumption of
Christ, and the gift of the Holy Ghost; also * of the faith of those present,
and their salvation by baptism; and, further, * of the unity of spirit
pervading the believers and promoting the common good, and of the addition
made to their number.
D. Of the healing in (the name of) Christ of
the man lame from his birth; and of the discourse(10) of Peter, in which he
reasons and sympathizes and counsels with respect to his(11) salvation. And
here we have * the interposition (12) of the chief priests through jealousy of
what had taken place, and their judgment on the miracle, and Peter's
confession(13) of the power and grace of Christ. Also the section on * the
unbelieving chief priests, commanding that they should not speak boldly in the
name of Christ,(14) and of the dismissal(15) of the apostles. Then * the
thanksgivings offered up by the Church for the faithful constancy of the
apostles.
E. Of the harmonious and universal
fellowship of the believers; and also * of Ananias and Sapphira and their
miserable end.
F. Of the apostles being cast into prison,
and led out of it by night by the angel of the Lord, who enjoined them to
preach Jesus without restraint; and * of the fact that, on the following day,
the chief priests apprehended them again, and, after scourging them, sent them
away with the charge not to teach any longer. Then * the trusty opinion of
Gamaliel touching the apostles, together with certain examples and proofs. G.
Of the election of the seven deacons.
H. The rising and slanderous information of
the Jews against Stephen, and his address concerning the covenant of God with
Abraham, and concerning the twelve patriarchs. Also the account of the famine
and the buying of corn, and the mutual recognition of the sons of Jacob, and
of the birth of Moses and the appearance of God(16) to Moses, which took place
at Mount Sinai. * Also of the exodus and calf-making of Israel (and other
matters), up to the times of Solomon and the building of the temple. * Then
the acknowledgment of the supercelestial glory of Jesus Christ which was
revealed to Stephen himself, on account of which Stephen was himself stoned,
and fell asleep piously.
I. Of the persecution of the Church and the
burial of Stephen; also * of the healing of many in Samaria by Philip the
apostle.
J. Of Simon Magus, who believed and was
baptized with many others; also * of the sending of Peter and John to them,
and their praying for the descent of the Holy Ghost upon the baptized.
K. That the participation of the Holy Ghost
was not given(1) for money,' nor to hypocrites, but to saints by faith; also *
of the hypocrisy and the reproof of Simon.
L. That the Lord helps the good and the
believing on the way to salvation, as is shown from the instance of the
eunuch.
M. Of the divine call that came from heaven
for Paul to the apostleship of Christ; also * of the healing and the baptism
of Paul by the hand of Ananias, in accordance with the revelation from God,
and of his boldness of speech and his association with the apostles by the
instrumentality of Barnabas.(3)
N. Of the paralytic AEneas who was cured by
Peter at Lydda. Also * the account of Tabitha, the friend of widows, whom
Peter raised from the dead by means of prayer in Joppa.
O. Of Cornelius, and what the angel said to
him. Also what was spoken(4) to Peter from heaven with respect to the calling
of the Gentiles. Then * that Peter, on being summoned, came to Cornelius. *
The repetition by Cornelius of the things which the angel hid(5) to Cornelius
himself. * Peter's instruction of them in Christ, and the gift of the Holy
Ghost upon those who heard him, and how those who believed from among the
Gentiles were baptized there.
P. That Peter recounts to the apostles who
contended with him(6) all the things that had happened in order and
separately. Then the sending of Barnabas to the brethren in Antioch.
Q. The prophecy of Agabus respecting the
famine in the world,(7) and the liberal relief sent to the brethren in
Jerusalem.
R. The slaying of the Apostle James. *Also
the apprehension of Peter by Herod, and the account of the manner in which the
angel by divine command delivered him from his bonds, and how Peter, after
showing himself to the disciples by night, quietly withdrew. Also of the
punishment of the keepers, and then of the miserable and fatal overthrow(8) of
the impious Herod.
S. The sending of Barnabas and Paul by the
Holy Ghost to Cyprus. * The things which he did(9) there in the name of Christ
on Elyruns the sorcerer.
T. Paul's admirable(10) exposition of the
truth concerning Christ, both from the law and from the prophets in their
order, both historical and evangelical;* his use both of the confuting and the
argumentative mode of discourse on the subject of the transference of the word
of preaching to the Gentiles, and of their persecution and their arrival at
Iconium.
U. How, when they had preached Christ in
Iconium, and many had believed, the apostles were persecuted.
V. Of the man lame from his birth in Lystra
who was healed by the apostles; on account of which they were taken by the
people of the place for gods who had appeared on earth. After that, however,
Paul is stoned there by the neighbouring people.
W. That according to the decree and judgment
of the apostles, the Gentiles who believe ought not to be circumcised. Here,
also, is the epistle of the apostles themselves to those from among the
Gentiles, on the subject of the things from which they should keep
themselves.(11)* The dissension of Paul with Barnabas on account of Mark.
X. Of the teaching of Timothy, and of the
coming of Paul into Macedonia according to revelation. *Of the faith and
salvation of a certain woman Lydia, and* of the cure of the damsel having a
spirit of divination, on account of which the masters of the damsel cast Paul
into prison; and* of the earthquake and miracle which happened there; and how
the jailer believed and was baptized forthwith that same night with all his
house.(12)* That the apostles on being besought went out from the prison.
Y. Of the tumult that arose in Thessalonica
on account of their preaching, and of the flight of Paul to Berea, and thence
to Athens.
Z. Of the inscription on the altar at
Athens, and of the philosophic preaching and piety of Paul.
AA. Of Aquila and Priscilla, and, the
unbelief of the Corinthians, and of the good-will of God towards them
according to fore-knowledge revealed to Paul. Also* of Priscus,(1) the chief
ruler of the synagogue, who believed with certain others and was baptized.
And* that a tumult being stirred up in Corinth, Paul departed; and coming to
Ephesus, and having discoursed there, he left it.*And concerning Apollos, an
eloquent man and a believer.]
BB. Of baptism and the gift of the Holy
Ghost conferred by means of the prayer of Paul on those who believed in
Ephesus, and of the healing of the people. *Of the sons of Sceva, and as to
its not being meet to approach(2) those who have become unbelieving and
unworthy of the faith; and of the confession of those who believed;* and of
the tumult that was stirred up in Ephesus by Demetrius, the silversmith,
against the apostles.
CC. Of the circuit of Paul, in which also we
have the account of the death of Eutychus and his restoration by prayer in
Troas; also Paul's own pastoral exhortations(3) to the presbyters at Ephesus;
also Paul's voyage from Ephesus to Caesareia in Palestine.
DD. The prophecy of Agabus as to what should
befall Paul in Jerusalem.
EE. The address of James to Paul touching
the matter that he should not offer to keep the Hebrews back from the practice
of circumcision.
FF. Of the tumult that was excited against
Paul in Jerusalem, and how the chief-captain rescues him from the mob. *Also
Paul's speech(4) concerning himself and his vocation to be an apostle;* and of
what Ananias said to Paul in Damascus, and of the vision and the voice of God
that befell him once in the temple. *And that when Paul was about to be beaten
for these words, on declaring that he was a Roman, he was let go.
GG. What Paul endured, and what he said, and
what he did exactly(5) when he came down into the council.
HH. Of the ambush planned by the Jews
against Paul, and its discovery to Lysias;* and that Paul was sent to
Caesareia to the governor with soldiers and with a letter.
II. Of the accusation laid by Tertullus in
Paul's case, and of his efence of himself before the governor.
JJ. Of the removal of Felix and the arrival
of Festus as his successor, and of Paul's pleading before them,(6) and his
dismissal.
KK. The coming of Agrippa and Bernice, and
their inquiry into the case of Paul.(7)* Paul's defence of himself before
Agrippa and Bernice, respecting his nurture in the law, and his vocation to
the Gospel. That Paul does no wrong to the Jews, Agrippa said to Festus.
LL. Paul's voyage to Rome, abounding in very
many and very great perils. *Paul's exhortation to those with him as to his
hope of deliverance. The shipwreck of Paul, and how they effected their safety
on the island of Melita, and what marvellous things he did on it.
MM. How Paul reached Rome from Melita.
NN. Of Paul's discourse with the Jews in
Rome.
There are in all forty chapters; and the
sections following these, and marked with the asterisk,(8) are forty-eight.
MALCHION.
I.--THE EPISTLE WRITTEN BY MALCHION, IN NAME
OF THE SYNOD OF ANTIOCH, AGAINST PAUL OF SAMOSATA.(1)
To Dionysius and Maximus, and to all our
fellows in the ministry throughout the world, both bishops and presbyters and
deacons, and to the whole Catholic Church under heaven, Helenus and Hymenaeus
and Theophilus and Theotecnus and Maximus, Proclus, Nicomas, and Aelianus, and
Paul and Bolanus and Protogenes and Hierax and Eutychius and Theodorus and
Malchion and Lucius, and all the others who are with us, dwelling in the
neighbouring cities and nations, both bishops and presbyters and deacons,
together with the churches of God, send greeting to our brethren beloved in
the Lord.
1. After some few introductory words, they
proceed thus:--We wrote to many of the bishops, even those who live at a
distance, and exhorted them to give their help in relieving us from this
deadly doctrine; among these, we addressed, for instance, Dionysius, the
bishop of Alexandria, and Firmilian of Cappadocia, those men of blessed name.
Of these, the one wrote to Antioch without even deigning to honour the leader
in this error by addressing him; nor did he write to him in his own name, but
to the whole district? of which letter we have also subjoined a copy. And
Firmilian, who came twice in person, condemned the innovations in doctrine, as
we who were present know and bear witness, and as many others know as well as
we. But when he (Paul) promised to give up these opinions, he believed him;
and hoping that, without any reproach to the Word, the matter would be rightly
settled, he postponed his decision; in which action, however, he was deceived
by that denier of his God and Lord, and betrayer of the faith which he
formerly held. And now Firmilian was minded to cross to Antioch; and he came
as far as Tarsus, as having already made trial of the man's infidel(3)
iniquity. But when we had just assembled, and were calling for him and waiting
for his arrival, his end came upon him.
2. After other matters again, they tell us
in the following terms of what manner of life he was:--But there is no need of
judging his actions when he was outside (the Church), when he revolted from
the faith and turned aside to spurious and illegitimate doctrines. Nor need we
say any thing of such matters as this, that, whereas he was formerly poor and
beggarly, having neither inherited a single possession from his fathers, nor
acquired any property by art or by any trade, he has now come to have
excessive wealth by his deeds of iniquity and sacrilege, and by those means by
which he despoils and concusses the brethren, casting the injured unfairly in
their suit,(4) and promising to help them for a price, yet deceiving them all
the while and to their loss, taking advantage of the readiness of those in
difficulties to give in order to get deliverance from what troubled them, and
thus supposing that gain is godliness.(5) Neither need I say any thing about
his pride and the haughtiness with which he assumed worldly dignities, and his
wishing to be styled procurator(6) rather than bishop, and his strutting
through the market-places, and reading letters and reciting them(7) as he
walked in public, and his being escorted by multitudes of people going before
him and following him; so that he brought ill-will and hatred on the faith by
his haughty demeanour and by the arrogance of his heart. Nor shall I say any
thing of the quackery which he practises in the ecclesiastical assemblies, in
the way of courting popularity and making a great parade, and astounding by
such arts the minds of the less sophisticated; nor of his setting up for
himself a lofty tribunal and throne, so unlike a disciple of Christ; nor of
his having a secretum(1) and calling it by that name, after the manner of the
rulers of this world; nor of his striking his thigh with his hand and beating
the tribunal with his feet; nor of his censuring and insulting those who did
not applaud him nor shake their handkerchiefs,(2) as is done in the theatres,
nor bawl out and leap about after the manner of his partisans, both male and
female, who were such disorderly listeners to him, but chose to hear
reverently and modestly as in the house of God; nor of his unseemly and
violent attacks in the congregation upon the expounders of the Word who have
already departed this life, and his magnifying of himself, not like a bishop,
but like a sophist and juggler; nor of his putting a stop to the psalms sung
in honour of our Lord Jesus Christ, as the recent compositions of recent men,
and preparing women to sing psalms in honour of himself in the midst of the
Church. in the great day of the Paschal festival, which choristers one might
shudder to hear. And besides, he acted on those bishops and presbyters, who
fawned upon him in the neighbouring districts and cities, to advance the like
opinions in their discourses to their people.
3. For we may say, to anticipate a little
what we intend to write below, that he does not wish to acknowledge that the
Son of God came down from heaven. And this is a statement which shall not be
made to depend on simple assertion; for it is proved abundantly by those
memoranda which we sent you, and not least by that passage in which he says
that Jesus Christ is from below. And they who sing his praise and eulogise him
among the people, declare that their impious teacher has come down as an angel
from heaven. And such utterances the haughty man does not check, but is
present even when they are made. And then again there are these women--these
adopted sisters,(3) as the people of Antioch call them--who are kept by him
and by the presbyters and deacons with him, whose incurable sins in this and
other matters, though he is cognisant of them, and has convicted them, he
connives at concealing, with the view of keeping the men subservient to
himself, and preventing them, by fear for their own position, from daring to
accuse him in the matter of his impious words and deeds. Besides this, he has
made his followers rich, and for that he is loved and admired by those who set
their hearts on these things. But why should we write of these things? For,
beloved, we know that the bishop and all the clergy(4) ought to be an example
in all good works to the people. Nor are we ignorant of the fact that many
have fallen away through introducing these women into their houses, while
others have fallen under suspicion. So that, even although one should admit
that he has been doing nothing disgrace fill in this matter, yet he ought at
least to have avoided the suspicion that springs out of such a course of
conduct. lest perchance some might be offended, or find inducement to imitate
him. For how, then, should any one censure another, or warn him to beware of
yielding to greater familiarity with a woman, lest perchance he might slip, as
it is written:(5) if, although he has dismissed one, he has still retained two
with him, and these in the bloom of their youth, and of fair countenance; and
if when he goes away he takes them with him; and all this, too, while he
indulges in luxury and surfeiting?
4. And on account of these things all are
groaning and lamenting with themselves; yet they have such a dread of his
tyranny and power that they cannot venture on accusing him. And of these
things, as we have said already, one might take account in the case of a man
who held Catholic sentiments and belonged to our own number; but as to one who
has betrayed(6) the mystery (of the faith), and who swaggers(7) with the
abominable heresy of Artemas,--for why should we hesitate to disclose his
father?--we consider it unnecessary to exact of him an account for these
things.
5. Then at the close of the epistle they add
the following words:--We have been compelled, therefore, to excommunicate this
man, who thus opposeth God Himself, and refuses submission, and to appoint in
his place another bishop for the Church Catholic, and that, as we trust, by
the providence of God--namely, the son of Demetrianus, a man of blessed
memory, and one who presided over the same Church with distinction in former
times, Domnus by name, a man endowed with all the noble qualities which become
a bishop. And this fact we have communicated to you in order that ye may write
him, and receive letters of communion(1) from him. And that other may write to
Artemas, if it please him; and those who think with Artemas may hold communion
with him, if they are so minded.
II.--FRAGMENTS APPARENTLY OF THE SAME
EPISTLE OF THE SYNOD OF ANTIOCH; TO WIT, OF THAT PART OF IT WHICH IT IS AGREED
THAT EUSEBIUS LEFT UNNOTICED.(1)
He says, therefore, in the commentaries
(they speak of Paul), that he maintains the dignity of wisdom.
And thereafter:
If, however, he had been united(2) according
to formation and generation, this is what befalls the man. And again: For that
wisdom, as we believe, was not congenerate(3) with humanity substantially, but
qualitatively.(4)
And thereafter:
In what respect, moreover, does he mean to
allege that the formation(5) of Christ is different and diverse from ours,
when we hold that, in this one thing of prime consequence, His constitution
differs from ours, to wit, that what in us is the interior man, is in Him the
Word.(6)
And thereafter:
If he means to allege that Wisdom dwells in
Him as in no other, this expresses indeed the same mode of inhabitation,
though it makes it excel in respect of measure and multitude; He being
supposed to derive a superior knowledge from the Wisdom, say for example,
twice as large as others, or any other number of times as large; or, again, it
may be less than twice as large a knowledge as others have. This, however, the
catholic and ecclesiastical canons disallow, and hold rather that other men
indeed received of Wisdom as an inspiration from without, which, though with
them, is distinct from them;(7) but that Wisdom in verity came of itself
substantially into His body by Mary.
And after other matters:
And they hold that there are not two Sons.
But if Jesus Christ is the Son of God, and if Wisdom also is the Son of God;
and if the Wisdom is one thing and Jesus Christ another, there are two Sons.
And thereafter:
Moreover understand (Paul would say) the
union with Wisdom in a different sense, namely as being one according to
instruction and participation;(8) but not as if it were formed according to
the substance in the body.
And after other matters:
Neither was the God who bore the human body
and had assumed it, without knowledge(9) of human affections(10) in the first
instance; (11) nor was the human body without knowledge, in the first
instance, of divine operations in him in whom He (the God) was, and by whom He
wrought these operations. He was formed, in the first instance, as man in the
womb; and, in the second instance,(12) the God also was in the womb, united
essentially with the human,(13) that is to say, His substance being wedded
with the man.
III.--FROM THE ACTS OF THE DISPUTATION
CONDUCTED BY MALCHION AGAINST PAUL OF SAMOSATA.(1)
The compound is surely made tip of the
simple elements,(2) even as in the instance of Jesus Christ, who was made one
(person), constituted by God the Word, and a human body which is of the seed
of David, and who subsists without having any manner of division between the
two, but in unity. You, however, appear to me to decline to admit a
constitution(3) after this fashion: to the effect that there is not in this
person, the Son of God according to substance, but only the Wisdom according
to participation. For you made tiffs assertion, that the Wisdom bears
dispensing, and therefore cannot be compounded;(4) and you do not consider
that the divine Wisdom remained undiminished, even as it was before it
evacuated itself;(5) and thus in this self-evacuation, which it took upon
itself in compassion (for us), it continued undiminished and unchangeable. And
this assertion you also make, that the Wisdom dwelt in Him, just as we also
dwell in houses, the one in the other,(6) and yet not as if we formed a part
of the house, or the house a part of us.
IV.--A POINT IN THE SAME DISPUTATION.(1)
Did I not say before that you do not admit
that the only-begotten Son, who is from all eternity before every creature,
was made substantially existent(2) in the whole person of the Saviour;(3) that
is to say, was united with Him according to substance?
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