De Filio (Orat. 30)

Gregory, of Nazianzus

Gregorius Nazianzenus, The Five Theological Orations, Mason, Cambridge, 1899

Δοκεῖ γάρ μοι λέγεσθαι υἱὸς μέν, ὅτι ταὐτόν ἐστι [*](1 θέον] + και b || 2 επειδη] επει b || 9 om ουν b) [*](1. παντὸς Ἰσραήλ] Ps. lxvii 9, 36 (lxviii 8, 35). The epithets are Gr.'s own addition, intended to interpret the phrase. Ὁρῶντος θεόν seems to be introduced in ref. to the circumstances in which Jacob’s name was changed (Gen. xxxii 30).) [*](2. τρισὶ τούτοις] The three things are (1) fear of punishment, (2) hope of salvation and of glory, (3) practice of virtues. It might seem a more logical classification to make the third the ‘hope of glory,’ the ‘practice of virtues’ being added to shew how the motives which Gr. has mentioned act. But this is forbidden by the τὸ δὲ τῶν ἀρετῶν below. Διοικούμεθα therefore is used in a somewhat different sense with ἀσκήσει from what it is with δέει and ἐλπίδι. We are governed by two great prevailing motives, and on one great moral principle.) [*](4. ἀσκ. τῶν ἀρ. ἐξ ὧν τ.] ‘the practice of the virtues which result in these.’ Ταῦτα sc. σωτηρία and δόξα.) [*](5. τῶν σωτηρίων] Ps. xxvii (xxviii) 8, lxvii 20 (lxviii 19), lxxxiv 5 (lxxxv 4). It is prob. the plur. of σωτήριον, and not to be written σωτηριῶν.) [*](6. τῶν ἀρετῶν] sc. δικαιοσύνης, εἰρήνης.) [*](ib. ἵν᾿ ὡς τὸν θεόν κτλ.] Α comparison of what is said of Enos in ii 18 would suggest that τούτων τι means the φόβος and the ἐλπίς. Α man who carries within him the presence of the God of vengeance and of salvation, and thus attains to some measure of fear and hope, is spurred on to seek moral perfection and the kinship with God which comes of it. This gives more point to the sentence than if ἄσκησις itself is included in τούτων τι.) [*](8. οἰκείωσιν] Cp. ii 17 τῷ οἰκείῳ.) [*](9. ἔτι] ‘so far.’) [*](13. ὡρμήθη λέγειν] ‘meant at the outset to say.’ Cp. ii 11.) [*](20. He is the Son, Only begotten, Word, Wisdom, Power, Truth, Image, Light, Life, Righteousness, Sanctification, Redemption, Resurrection.)

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τῷ πατρὶ κατ’ οὐσίαν ’ καὶ οὐκ ἐκεῖνο μόνον, ἀλλὰ κἀκεῖθεν. μονογενὴς δέ, οὐχ ὅτι μόνος ἐκ μόνου καὶ μόνον, ἀλλ’ ὅτι καὶ μονοτρόπως, οὐχ ὡς τὰ σώματα. λόγος δέ, ὅτι οὕτως ἔχει πρὸς τὸν πατέρα, ὡς πρὸς νοῦν λόγος· οὐ μόνον διὰ τὸ ἀπαθὲς τῆς γεννήσεως, ἁλλὰ καὶ τὸ συναφές, καὶ τὸ ἐξαγγελτικόν. τάχα δ’ ἃν εἴποι τις, ὅτι καὶ ὡς ὅρος πρὸς τὸ ὁριζόμενον, ἐπειδὴ καὶ τοῦτο λέγεται λόγος. ὁ γὰρ νενοηκώς, φησι, τὸν υἱόν, τοῦτο γάρ ἐστι τὸ ἑωρακώς, νενόηκε τὸν πατέρα· καὶ σύντομος ἀπόδειξις καὶ ῥᾳδία τῆς τοῦ πατρὸς φύσεως ὁ υἱός. γέννημα γὰρ ἅπαν τοῦ γεγεννηκότος κότος σιωπῶν λόγος. εἰ δὲ καὶ διὰ τὸ ἐνυπάρχειν τοῖς οὖσι λέγοι τις, οὐχ ἁμαρτήσεται τοῦ λόγου. τί γάρ ἐστιν, ὃ μὴ λόγῳ συνέστηκεν ; σοφία δέ, ὡς ἐπιστήμη θείων τε καὶ ἀνθρωπίνων πραγμάτων. πῶς γὰρ οἷόν τε τὸν πεποιηκότα τοὺς λόγους ἀγνοεῖν ὧν πεποίηκεν ; δύναμις δέ, ὡς συντηρητικὸς τῶν γενομένων, καὶ τὴν τοῦ συνέχεσθαι ταῦτα χορηγῶν δύναμιν. ἁλήθεια δέ, ὡς ἕν, οὐ πολλὰ τῇ φύσει· τὸ μὲν γὰρ ἀληθὲς ἕν, τὸ δὲ ψεῦδος πολυσχιδές· καὶ ὡς καθαρὰ τοῦ πατρὸς σφραγίς, καὶ χαρακτὴρ ἀψευδέστατος. εἰκὼν δέ, ὡς ὁμοούσιον, καὶ [*](20, 2 μονον] μόνος e2 || 13 συνέστηκεν] συνέστη καὶ c) [*](1. ἐκεῖνο] sc. ὄπερ ὁ πατήρ. Kἀκεῖθεν, sc. ἐκ τοῦ πατρός.) [*](ib. μόνον] ’nothing but a Son.' Cp. iii 5.) [*](3. μονοτρόπως] ‘by a single process,’ as distinguished from corporeal births, to which various processes contribute through a long space of time. Cp. iii 4.) [*](4. πρὸς νοῦν λόγος] ‘ His relation to the Father is that of word to mind.’) [*](ib. διὰ τὸ ἀπαθές] i.e. to indicate that when He is called Son, there is nothing of ‘ passion ’ in His generation. The title of ’Word’ does more than this; it indicates the abiding connexion between the Word and God, — for mind and word are inseparable, — and also the fact that He gives expression to the mind of God.) [*](6. ὄρος] ‘definition, for λόγος is used in this sense also.' xxxviii 13 ὀ τοῦ πατρὸς ὅρος καὶ λόγος.) [*](7. ὁ γὰρ νεν. . .ἐωρακώς] John xiv 9.) [*](13. λόγφ συνόστηκεν] λόγοςο takes a fresh shade of meaning, that of ’law’ or principle; as in λόγους ἀγνοεῖν immediately below.) [*](15. δύναμις ] 1 Cor. i 24, where it occurs in conjunction with σοφία.) [*](17. ἀλήθεια] John xiv 6.) [*](19. σφραγίς] Cp. iii 17.) [*](20. χαρακτῆρι Heb. i 3.) [*](ib. εἰκών] 2 Cor. iv 4, Col. i 15.)
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ὅτι τοῦτο ἐκεῖθεν, ἀλλ’ οὐκ ἐκ τούτου πατήρ. αὕτη γὰρ εἰκόνος φύσις, μίμημα εἶναι τοῦ ἀρχετύπου, καὶ οὗ λέγεται· πλὴν ὅτι καὶ πλεῖον ἐνταῦθα. ἐκεῖ μὲν γὰρ ἀκίνητος κινουμένου· ἐνταῦθα δὲ ζῶντος καὶ ζῶσα, καὶ πλεῖον ἔχουσα τὸ ἀπαράλλακτον, ἢ τοῦ Ἀδὰμ ὁ Σήθ, καὶ τοῦ γεννῶντος παντὸς τὸ γεννώμενον. τοιαύτη γὰρ ἢ τῶν ἁπλῶν φύσις, μὴ τῷ μὲν ἐοικέναι, τῷ δὲ ἀπεοικέναι, ἀλλ’ ὅλον ὅλου τύπον εἶναι, καὶ ταὐτὸν μᾶλλον, ἢ ἀφομοίωμα. φῶς δέ, ὡς λαμπρότης ψυχῶν καὶ λόγῳ καὶ βίῳ καθαιρομένων. εἰ γὰρ σκότος ἡ ἄγνοια καὶ ἡ ἁμαρτία, φῶς ἂν εἴη ἡ γνῶσις, καὶ βίος ὁ ἔνθεος. ζωὴ δέ, ὅτι φῶς, καὶ πάσης λογικῆς φύσεως σύστασις καὶ οὐσίωσις. ἐν αὐτῷ γὰρ ζῶμεν, καὶ κινούμεθα, καὶ ἐσμέν, κατὰ τὴν διπλῆν τοῦ ἐμφυσήματος δύναμιν, καὶ πνοὴν ἐκεῖθεν ἐμφυσώμενοι πάντες, καὶ πνεῦμα ἅγ ἴον ὅσοι χωρητικοί, καὶ τοσοῦτον, [*](3 ἀκίνητος κινουμένου ἐνταῦθα] ἀκινήτως νοουμένου ἔκει b || 7 τω μεν...τω δε] τὸ μεν...το ’δε c || ΙΙ βίος] ο βίος f ’plures Reg. et Colb.' || ὅτι] + καὶ e || 14 om ἐκεῖθεν aceg) [*](1. τοῦτο] instead of οδτος.) [*](2. καὶ οὗ λέγεται] ‘ and of the thing whose image it is called'; or perh. by ’Attic attraction,' ‘and of the thing which it is called.’) [*](3. ἐκεῖ] in the case of the material image; ἐνταῦθα, in the case of the Son. Κινουμένου suggests that Gr. understood εἰκών to apply only to pictures or effigies of persons.) [*](5. τὸ ἀπαράλλακτον] Παραλλαγή would express the slight variations that occur in all cases of human copying, or in the course of generations. There is ‘ less ’ of such variation in the ’s representation of His Father, than there was when Adam begat Seth κατὰ τὴν ἰδέαν αὐτοῦ καὶ κατὰ τὴν εἰκόνα αὐτοῦ (Gen. v 3). By ’less’ Gr. of course means that there is none.) [*](6. τῶν ἁπλῶν] such as God’s.) [*](7. τῷ μέν...τῷ δέ] not here the dative of comparison, but kin this particular, and in that.’) [*](8. ταὐτὸν μ. ἢ ἀφομ.] ’ identical rather than like.’) [*](9. φῶς] John i 9 etc.) [*](ib. λόγῳ] Gr. seems to mean rather the reasoning mind, which takes account of truth, than speech; ’ cleansed in mind and life. ’ This is shewn by the parallels ἄγνοια, γνῶσις, which follow.) [*](11. ζωή] John xi 25 etc. He is Life, just because, as has been shewn, He is Light.) [*](12. οὐσί ὦσις] ’ the giving of being. ’ He is that by virtue of which all reasonable creatures have permanence and substantive existence.) [*](ib. ἐν αὐτῷ γάρ] Acts xvii 28. The words are not said of the Son.) [*](14. καὶ πνοήν...καὶ πν.ἅγ.] Gen. ii 7, John xx 22. Ἐκεῖθεν in the same way as at the beginning of the § All of us have received from Him the ‘ breath of life ’ ; as many as are capable of it have received the Holy Spirit, in measure proportioned to our receptivity.)
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καθ’ ὅσον ἃν τὸ στόμα τῆς διανοίας ἀνοίξωμεν. δικαιοσύνη δέ, ὅτι τοῦ πρὸς ἀξίαν διαιρέτης, καὶ διαιτῶν δικαίως τοῖς ὑπὸ νόμον καὶ τοῖς ὑπὸ χάριν, ψυχῇ καὶ σώματι, ὥστε τὸ μὲν ἄρχειν, τὸ δὲ ἄρχεσθαι, καὶ τὴν ἡγεμονίαν ἔχειν τὸ κρεῖττον κατὰ τοῦ χείρονος, ὡς μὴ τὸ χεῖρον ἐπανίστασθαι τῷ βελτίονι. ἁγιασμὸς δέ, ὡς καθαρότης, ἵνα χωρῆται τὸ καθαρὸν καθαρότητι. ἀπολύτρωσις δέ, ὡς ἐλευθερῶν ἡμᾶς ὑπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας κατεχομένους, καὶ λύτρον ἑαυτὸν ἀντιδιδοὺς ἡμῶν τῆς οἰκουμένης καθάρσιον. ἀνάστασις δέ, ὡς ἐντεῦθεν ἡμᾶς ἀπανιστάς, καὶ πρὸς τὴν ζωὴν ἐπανάγων νενεκρωμένους ὑπὸ τῆς ἁμαρτίας.