Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, Second Series • VOLUME 9
Hilary of Poitiers & John of Damascus
SECTION 161
Chapter XXV.--Concerning what is in our own power, that is, concerning Free-will [1874] .
Chapter XXV.--Concerning what is in our own power, that is, concerning Free-will [1874] . The first enquiry involved in the consideration of free-will, that is, of what is in our own power, is whether anything is in our power [1875] : for there are many who deny this. The second is, what are the things that are in our power, an…
871 wordsSECTION 162Chapter XXVII.--Concerning the reason of our endowment with Free-will.
Chapter XXVII.--Concerning the reason of our endowment with Free-will. We hold, therefore, that free-will [1882] comes on the scene at the same moment as reason, and that change and alteration are congenital to all that is produced. For all that is produced is also subject to change [1883] . For those things must be subject to …
2,074 wordsSECTION 163Chapter XXX.--Concerning Prescience and Predestination.
Chapter XXX.--Concerning Prescience and Predestination. We ought to understand [1911] that while God knows all things beforehand, yet He does not predetermine all things [1912] . For He knows beforehand those things that are in our power, but He does not predetermine them. For it is not His will that there should be wickedness …
1,273 wordsSECTION 164Book III.
Book III. Chapter I.--Concerning the Divine OEconomy and God's care over us, and concerning our salvation. Man, then, was thus snared by the assault of the arch-fiend, and broke his Creator's command, and was stripped of grace and put off his confidence with God, and covered himself with the asperities of a toilsome life (for …
912 wordsSECTION 165Chapter II. --Concerning the manner in which the Word [1942] was conceived, and concerning His divine incarnation.
Chapter II. --Concerning the manner in which the Word [1942] was conceived, and concerning His divine incarnation. The angel of the Lord was sent to the holy Virgin, who was descended from David's line [1943] . For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Judah, of which tribe no one turned his attention to the altar [1944] , …
775 wordsSECTION 166Chapter III.--Concerning Christ's two natures, in opposition to those who hold that He has only one [1962] .
Chapter III.--Concerning Christ's two natures, in opposition to those who hold that He has only one [1962] . For the two natures were united with each other without change or alteration, neither the divine nature departing from its native simplicity, nor yet the human being either changed into the nature of God or reduced to no…
1,730 wordsSECTION 167Chapter IV.--Concerning the manner of the Mutual Communication [1985] .
Chapter IV.--Concerning the manner of the Mutual Communication [1985] . Now we have often said already that essence is one thing and subsistence another, and that essence signifies the common and general form [1986] of subsistences of the same kind, such as God, man, while subsistence marks the individual, that is to say, Fathe…
1,380 wordsSECTION 168Chapter VI.--That in one of its subsistences the divine nature is united in its entirety to the human nature, in its entirety and not only part to part.
Chapter VI.--That in one of its subsistences the divine nature is united in its entirety to the human nature, in its entirety and not only part to part. What is common and general is predicated of the included particulars. Essence, then, is common as being a form [1999] , while subsistence is particular. It is particular not as…
1,194 wordsSECTION 169Chapter VII.--Concerning the one compound subsistence of God the Word.
Chapter VII.--Concerning the one compound subsistence of God the Word. We hold then that the divine subsistence of God the Word existed before all else and is without time and eternal, simple and uncompound, uncreated, incorporeal, invisible, intangible, uncircumscribed, possessing all the Father possesses, since He is of the s…
1,036 wordsSECTION 170Chapter VIII.--In reply to those who ask whether [2031] the natures of the Lord are brought under a continuous or a discontinuous quantity [2032] .
Chapter VIII.--In reply to those who ask whether [2031] the natures of the Lord are brought under a continuous or a discontinuous quantity [2032] . If any one asks concerning the natures of the Lord if they are brought under a continuous or discontinuous quantity [2033] , we will say that the natures of the Lord are neither one…
904 wordsSECTION 171Chapter IX.--In reply to the question whether there is Nature that has no Subsistence.
Chapter IX.--In reply to the question whether there is Nature that has no Subsistence. For although [2038] there is no nature without subsistence, nor essence apart from person (since in truth it is in persons and subsistences that essence and nature are to be contemplated), yet it does not necessarily follow that the natures t…
2,212 wordsSECTION 172Chapter XII.--That the holy Virgin is the Mother of God: an argument directed against the Nestorians.
[2054] e psile theori& 139; katanoeitai. [2055] This division is absent in some copies and is not restored in the old translation, but is not superfluous. [2056] St. John i. 14. [2057] tou siderou is absent in some codices and also in the old translation. [2058] ten oikonomian, the incarnation. [2059] he kath' hemas ousia. …
1,414 wordsSECTION 173Chapter XIII.--Concerning the properties of the two Natures.
Chapter XIII.--Concerning the properties of the two Natures. Confessing, then, the same Jesus Christ, our Lord, to be perfect God and perfect man, we hold that the same has all the attributes of the Father save that of being ingenerate, and all the attributes of the first Adam, save only his sin, these attributes being body and…
2,209 wordsSECTION 174If, then, Adam [2114] obeyed of his own will and ate of his own will, surely in us the will is the first part to suffer. And if the will is
If, then, Adam [2114] obeyed of his own will and ate of his own will, surely in us the will is the first part to suffer. And if the will is the first to suffer, and the Word Incarnate did not assume this with the rest of our nature, it follows that we have not been freed from sin. Moreover, if the faculty of free-will which is …
1,184 wordsSECTION 175Chapter XV.--Concerning the energies in our Lord Jesus Christ.
Chapter XV.--Concerning the energies in our Lord Jesus Christ. We hold, further, that there are two energies [2129] in our Lord Jesus Christ. For He possesses on the one hand, as God and being of like essence with the Father, the divine energy, and, likewise, since He became man and of like essence to us, the energy proper to h…
2,219 wordsSECTION 176Indeed, the most wise and great and holy John Chrysostom says in his interpretation of the Acts, in the second discourse [2153] , "One would
Indeed, the most wise and great and holy John Chrysostom says in his interpretation of the Acts, in the second discourse [2153] , "One would not err if he should call even His passion action: for in that He suffered all things, He accomplished that great and marvellous work, the overthrow of death, and all His other works." If …
1,634 wordsSECTION 177Chapter XVI.--In reply to those who say [2171] "If man has two natures and two energies, Christ must be held to have three natures and as many energies."
Chapter XVI.--In reply to those who say [2171] "If man has two natures and two energies, Christ must be held to have three natures and as many energies." Each individual man, since he is composed of two natures, soul and body, and since these natures are unchangeable in him, could appropriately be spoken of as two natures: for …
846 wordsSECTION 178Chapter XVII.--Concerning the deification of the nature of our Lord's flesh and of His will.
Chapter XVII.--Concerning the deification of the nature of our Lord's flesh and of His will. It is worthy of note [2176] that the flesh of the Lord is not said to have been deified and made equal to God and God in respect of any change or alteration, or transformation, or confusion of nature: as Gregory the Theologian [2177] sa…
1,909 wordsSECTION 179Chapter XIX.--Concerning the theandric energy.
Chapter XIX.--Concerning the theandric energy. When the blessed Dionysius [2197] says that Christ exhibited to us some sort of novel theandric energy [2198] , he does not do away with the natural energies by saying that one energy resulted from the union of the divine with the human energy: for in the same way we could speak of…
747 wordsSECTION 180Chapter XX.--Concerning the natural and innocent passions [2203] .
Chapter XX.--Concerning the natural and innocent passions [2203] . We confess [2204] , then, that He assumed all the natural and innocent passions of man. For He assumed the whole man and all man's attributes save sin. For that is not natural, nor is it implanted in us by the Creator, but arises voluntarily in our mode of life …
991 wordsSECTION 181Chapter XXII.--Concerning His growth.
Chapter XXII.--Concerning His growth. He is, moreover, said to grow in wisdom and age and grace [2212] , increasing in age indeed and through the increase in age manifesting the wisdom that is in Him [2213] ; yea, further, making men's progress in wisdom and grace, and the fulfilment of the Father's goodwill, that is to say, me…
852 wordsSECTION 182Chapter XXIV.--Concerning our Lord's Praying.
Chapter XXIV.--Concerning our Lord's Praying. Prayer is an uprising of the mind to God or a petitioning of God for what is fitting. How then did it happen that our Lord offered up prayer in the case of Lazarus, and at the hour of His passion? For His holy mind was in no need either of any uprising towards God, since it had been…
839 wordsSECTION 183Chapter XXVI.--Concerning the Passion of our Lord's body, and the Impassibility of His divinity.
Chapter XXVI.--Concerning the Passion of our Lord's body, and the Impassibility of His divinity. The Word of God then itself endured all in the flesh, while His divine nature which alone was passionless remained void of passion. For since the one Christ, Who is a compound of divinity and humanity, and exists in divinity and hum…
782 wordsSECTION 184Chapter XXVIII.--Concerning Corruption and Destruction.
Chapter XXVIII.--Concerning Corruption and Destruction. The word corruption [2239] has two meanings [2240] . For it signifies all the human sufferings, such as hunger, thirst, weariness, the piercing with nails, death, that is, the separation of soul and body, and so forth. In this sense we say that our Lord's body was subject …
923 wordsSECTION 185Chapter II.--Concerning the sitting at the right hand of the Father.
Chapter II.--Concerning the sitting at the right hand of the Father. We hold, moreover, that Christ sits in the body at the right hand of God the Father, but we do not hold that the right hand of the Father is actual place. For how could He that is uncircumscribed have a right hand limited by place? Right hands and left hands b…
1,453 wordsSECTION 186Chapter V.--In reply to those who ask if Christ's subsistence is create or uncreate.
Chapter V.--In reply to those who ask if Christ's subsistence is create or uncreate. The subsistence [2267] of God the Word before the Incarnation was simple and uncompound, and incorporeal and uncreate: but after it became flesh, it became also the subsistence of the flesh, and became compounded of divinity which it always pos…
1,152 wordsSECTION 187Chapter VIII.--How the Only-begotten Son of God is called first-born.
Chapter VIII.--How the Only-begotten Son of God is called first-born. He who is first begotten is called first-born [2281] , whether he is only-begotten or the first of a number of brothers. If then the Son of God was called first-born, but was not called Only-begotten, we could imagine that He was the first-born of creatures, …
2,199 wordsSECTION 188Chapter X.--Concerning Faith.
Chapter X.--Concerning Faith. Moreover, faith is twofold. For faith cometh by hearing. [2340] For by hearing the divine Scriptures we believe in the teaching of the Holy Spirit. The same is perfected by all the things enjoined by Christ, believing in work, cultivating piety, and doing the commands of Him Who restored us. For he…
1,625 wordsSECTION 189Chapter XII.--Concerning Worship towards the East.
Chapter XII.--Concerning Worship towards the East. It is not without reason or by chance that we worship towards the East. But seeing that we are composed of a visible and an invisible nature, that is to say, of a nature partly of spirit and partly of sense, we render also a twofold worship to the Creator; just as we sing both …
2,247 wordsSECTION 190Wherefore with all fear and a pure conscience and certain faith let us draw near and it will assuredly be to us as we believe, doubting noth
Wherefore with all fear and a pure conscience and certain faith let us draw near and it will assuredly be to us as we believe, doubting nothing. Let us pay homage to it in all purity both of soul and body: for it is twofold. Let us draw near to it with an ardent desire, and with our hands held in the form of the cross [2419] let…
1,250 wordsSECTION 191Chapter XIV.--Concerning our Lord's genealogy and concerning the holy Mother of God [2436] .
Chapter XIV.--Concerning our Lord's genealogy and concerning the holy Mother of God [2436] . Concerning the holy and much-lauded ever-virgin one, Mary, the Mother of God, we have said something in the preceding chapters, bringing forward what was most opportune, viz., that strictly and truly she is and is called the Mother of G…
1,912 wordsSECTION 192Chapter XV.--Concerning the honour due to the Saints and their remains.
Chapter XV.--Concerning the honour due to the Saints and their remains. To the saints honour must be paid as friends of Christ, as sons and heirs of God: in the words of John the theologian and evangelist, As many as received Him, to them gave He power to became sons of God [2466] . So that they are no longer servants, but sons…
1,375 wordsSECTION 193Chapter XVI.--Concerning Images [2496] .
Chapter XVI.--Concerning Images [2496] . But since some [2497] find fault with us for worshipping and honouring the image of our Saviour and that of our Lady, and those, too, of the rest of the saints and servants of Christ, let them remember that in the beginning God created man after His own image [2498] . On what grounds, th…
991 wordsSECTION 194Chapter XVII.--Concerning Scripture [2514] .
Chapter XVII.--Concerning Scripture [2514] . It is one and the same God Whom both the Old and the New Testament proclaim, Who is praised and glorified in the Trinity: I am come, saith the Lord, not to destroy the law but to fulfil it [2515] . For He Himself worked out our salvation for which all Scripture and all mystery exists…
1,134 wordsSECTION 195Chapter XVIII.--Regarding the things said concerning Christ.
Chapter XVIII.--Regarding the things said concerning Christ. The things said concerning Christ fall into four generic modes. For some fit Him even before the incarnation, others in the union, others after the union, and others after the resurrection. Also of those that refer to the period before the incarnation there are six mo…
2,282 wordsSECTION 196Chapter XIX.--That God [2607] is not the cause of evils.
Those then that are sublime must be assigned to the divine nature, which is superior to passion and body: and those that are humble must be ascribed to the human nature; and those that are common must be attributed to the compound, that is, the one Christ, Who is God and man. And it should be understood that both belong to one a…
1,335 wordsSECTION 197Chapter XX.--That there are not two Kingdoms.
Chapter XX.--That there are not two Kingdoms. That there are not two kingdoms [2620] , one good and one bad, we shall see from this. For good and evil are opposed to one another and mutually destructive, and cannot exist in one another or with one another. Each of them, therefore, in its own division will belong to the whole, a…
931 wordsSECTION 198Chapter XXII.--Concerning the law of God and the law of sin.
Chapter XXII.--Concerning the law of God and the law of sin. The Deity is good and more than good, and so is His will. For that which God wishes is good. Moreover the precept, which teaches this, is law, that we, holding by it, may walk in light [2632] : and the transgression of this precept is sin, and this continues to exist …
2,009 wordsSECTION 199Chapter XXIV.--Concerning Virginity.
Chapter XXIV.--Concerning Virginity. Carnal men abuse virginity [2666] , and the pleasure-loving bring forward the following verse in proof, Cursed be every one that raiseth not up seed in Israel [2667] . But we, made confident by God the Word that was made flesh of the Virgin, answer that virginity was implanted in man's natur…
1,175 wordsSECTION 200Chapter XXV.--Concerning the Circumcision.
Chapter XXV.--Concerning the Circumcision. The Circumcision [2694] was given to Abraham before the law, after the blessings, after the promise, as a sign separating him and his offspring and his household from the Gentiles with whom he lived [2695] . And this is evident [2696] , for when the Israelites passed forty years alone …
1,506 wordsSource & rights
Historical text source: Christian Classics Ethereal Library. The downloaded text itself records Public Domain.