66 ever we do not approve of, but we use the argu"ment, that Christ is so decidedly God, that some "persons have denied him the human nature, and 66 thought him only to be God; and some have be"lieved him to be God the Father himself, when "the argument and tenor of the heavenly scrip"tures point out Christ as God, but as being the "Son of God; and teach us to believe, that he is "also man, the Son of man having been assumed " by God"." 295. Novatiani de Trinitate c. 23. p. 721. After quoting John viii. 23. Ye are from beneath, I am from above: ye are of this world, I am not of this world, he says, "If every man is of this a Nam usque adeo hunc manifestum est in scripturis esse Deum tradi, ut plerique hæreticorum divinitatis ipsius magnitudine et veritate commoti, ultra modum extendentes honores ejus, ausissent non Filium, sed ipsum Deum Patrem promere vel putare. Quod etsi contra scripturarum veritatem est, tamen divinitatis Christi argumentum grande atque præcipuum est; qui usque adeo Deus, sed qua Filius Dei natus ex Deo, ut plerique illum, ut diximus, hæretici ita Deum acceperint, ut non Filium sed Patrem pronuntiandum putarent. Estiment ergo an hic sit Deus, cujus auctoritas tantum movit quosdam, ut putarent illum, ut diximus superius, jam ipsum Patrem Deum, effrenatius et effusius in Christo divinitatem confiteri ad hoc illos manifesta Christi divinitate cogente, ut quem Filium legerent, quia Deum animadverterent, Patrem putarent. Alii quoque hæretici usque adeo Christi manifestam amplexati sunt divinitatem, ut dixerint illum fuisse sine carne, et totum illi susceptum detraxerint hominem, ne decoquerent in illo divini nominis potestatem, si humanam illi sociassent, ut arbitrabantur, nativitatem. Quod tamen nos non probamus, sed argumentum afferimus usque adeo Christum esse Deum, ut quidam illum subtracto homine tantummodo putarint Deum; quidam autem ipsum crediderint Patrem Deum, quum ratio et temperamentum scripturarum coelestium Christum ostendant Deum, sed qua Filium Dei, et assumpto a Deo etiam Filio hominis credendum et hominem. b Ideo autem si omnis homo ex hoc mundo est, et ideo in hoc mundo est Christus, an homo tantummodo est ? Absit. Sed considera quod ait, Ego non sum de hoc mundo. Numquid "world, and therefore Christ is in this world, is "he therefore a mere man? By no means. But ergo mentitur, cum ex hoc mundo sit, si homo tantummodo sit? Aut si non mentitur, non est ex hoc mundo. Non ergo homo tantummodo est, quia ex hoc mundo non est. Sed ne lateret quis esset, expressit unde esset Ego, inquit, de sursum sum, hoc est, de cœlo, unde homo venire non potest: non enim in cœlo factus est. Deus est ergo qui de sursum est, et idcirco de hoc mundo non est : quamquam etiam quodammodo ex hoc mundo est, unde non Deus tantum est Christus, sed et homo. Ut merito quomodo non est ex hoc mundo secundum Verbi divinitatem, ita ex hoc mundo sit secundum suscepti corporis fragilitatem, homo est enim cum Deo junctus, et Deus cum homine copulatus. Sed idcirco nunc hic Christus in unam partem solius divinitatis incubuit, quoniam cæcitas Judaica solam in Christo partem carnis aspexit, et inde in præsenti loco silentio præterita corporis fragilitate quæ de mundo est, de sua sola divinitate locutus est, quæ de mundo non est: ut in quantum illi inclinaverant, ut hominem illum tantummodo crederent, in tantum illos Christus posset ad divinitatem suam considerandam trahere, ut se Deum crederent; volens illorum incredulitatem circa divinitatem suam omissa interim commemoratione sortis humanæ solius divinitatis oppositione superare. Si homo tantummodo Christus, quomodo dicit, Ego ex Deo prodii, et veni, cum constet hominem a Deo factum esse, non ex Deo processisse ex Deo autem homo quomodo non processit, sic Dei Verbum processit-Deus ergo processit ex Deo, dum qui processit Sermo Deus est, qui processit ex Deo. Si homo tantummodo Christus, quomodo inquit, Ante Abraham ego sum ? Nemo enim hominum ante eum potest esse, ex quo ipse est, nec potest fieri ut quicquam prius fuerit ante illum ex quo ipsam originem sumpsit. Sed enim Christus, cum ex Abraham sit, ante Abraham esse se dicit. Aut mentitur igitur et fallit, si ante Abraham non fuit, qui ex Abraham fuit; aut non fallit, si etiam Deus est, dum ante Abraham fuit: quod nisi fuisset, consequenter cum ex Abraham fuisset, ante Abraham esse non posset. Si homo tantummodo Christus, quomodo ait, Et ego agnoscam eas, et sequuntur me mea, et ego vitam æternam do illis, et nunquam peribunt in perpetuum? Sed enim cum omnis homo mortalitatis sit legibus alligatus, et idcirco in perpetuum se ipse servare non possit, multo magis in perpetuum alterum servare non poterit. At in perpetuum se Christus repromittit salutem daturum. Quam si non dat, mendax est; si dat, Deus est. Sed non fallit, dat enim quod repromittit. Deus est ergo, qui salutem perpetuam porrigit, quam homo qui seipsum servare non potest, alteri præstare non poterit. 66 "consider what he says, I am not of this world. "Does he therefore speak falsely, because if he is "merely a man, he is of this world? Or if he does "not speak falsely, he is not of this world. He is "therefore not merely a man, because he is not of "this world. But lest we might not know who he was, he has declared whence he was; I, he says, "am from above, i. e. from heaven, from whence a "man cannot come: for he is not made in heaven. "It is God therefore, who is from above, and there"fore he is not of this world: although in one sense "Christ is of this world, because he is not only God, "but also man. So that in the same manner that "he is not of this world, according to the divinity "of the Word, so he is of this world according to the "frailness of the body which he assumed: for he is 66 66 man joined with God, and God coupled with man. "But Christ in this passage dwelt upon the divine part only, because the Jewish blindness looked only to the fleshly part in Christ; and therefore, at "present passing over in silence the frailness of the body, which is of the world, he spoke of his divin"ity only, which is not of the world; that in pro"portion to their inclination to believe him only a 66 66 66 66 man, Christ might so far draw them to consider "his divinity, that they might believe him to be "God; wishing to overcome their incredulity concerning his divinity, by omitting for the present any mention of his human condition, and opposing "to it only the divine. If Christ be merely a man, "how does he say, I came forth from the Father, "and am come [into the world?] (John xvi. 28.) "whereas it is evident that a man is made by God, "and does not proceed from God: but in the same 66 66 66 way that a man does not proceed from God, so the "Word of God did proceed from Him.-God "therefore proceeded from God, since the Word "which proceeded is God, which proceeded from "God-If Christ be merely a man, how does he say, Before Abraham was, I am? for no human being can be before him, from whom he is de"scended-but Christ, though he was descended " from Abraham, says, that he was before Abraham : "he therefore either speaks falsely and deceives, if "he, who was descended from Abraham, was not "before Abraham; or he does not deceive, if he is "also God, for then he was before Abraham: which "if he were not, it follows, that since he was de"scended from Abraham, he could not be before 66 Abraham. If Christ were merely a man, how "does he say, And I will know them, and mine follow me, and I give them eternal life, and they "shall never perish? (John x. 27.) But since every man is bound by the laws of mortality, and "therefore cannot save himself for ever, he will be "still less able to save another for ever. But Christ promises, that he will give salvation for ever; which if he does not give, he is a liar: if he does give it, he is God. But he does not deceive, for "he gives what he promises; he is therefore God, "who gives eternal salvation, which a man who "cannot save himself cannot give to another." 66 66 DIONYSIUS ALEXANDRINUS. A. D. 260. The history of Dionysius is closely connected with the rise and progress of the Sabellian heresy. He was born of a good family in Alexandria, and thenism. He was a pupil of Origen, and became president of the catechetical School at Alexandria about the year 232. Heraclas had preceded him in this office, which he vacated upon being elected bishop of Alexandria: and after his death in 248 Dionysius was also appointed to succeed him in the bishopric. The persecutions of Decius and Valerian, as well as the troubles concerning the Novatian and Sabellian heresies, happened while he occupied the see. The first persecution began about the year 249, and Dionysius was obliged to retire from the city, but returned in 251. The Valerian persecution, which began in 257, fell upon him more openly, and he was banished to Cephron in Libya. After passing three or four years in exile, he returned to his bishopric in 261, when the storm had nearly exhausted itself and passed away. In the mean time he had not been inactive or free from the duties of his office. About the year 255, (though some persons place it earlier,) Sabellius began to spread his opinions concerning the Trinity o. He held that there was only one Person in the Godhead, and that the Son and the Holy Ghost were only energies, or unsubstantial emanations of the Father. This heresy began first in Ptolemais, a city of Cyrenaica. Dionysius lost no time in endeavouring to check it; but when his remonstrances were of no avail, he wrote a letter to Ammonius and Euphranor, two neighbouring bishops, exposing the error of the Sabellian tenets, and urging his colleagues to use every exertion in suppressing them. He also sent an account of the heresy, and of the In what follows, I have nasius, de Sent. Dionys. vol. I. principally depended upon Atha- p. 243, &c. |