Letter 45: Everything about the supernatural and ineffable birth was itself supernatural.
The divine Scripture calls the covenant, that is, the promise, a "testament" because of its firmness and inviolability. For covenants are often overturned, but lawful testaments never. So too the promises of God: once given, they stand forever, for he who promised is faithful and cannot deny himself.
AI-assisted translation — This translation was produced with AI assistance and has not been peer-reviewed. See the 19th-century translation or original Latin/Greek below for scholarly use.
Latin / Greek Original
Α΄. ΤΩ ΔΟΜΕΣΤΙΚΩ ΚΥΡΙΛΛΩ.
Ἔδει τὴν τῶν αὐτῶν πόνων σπουδὴν διὰ μ
P4G. - ΤΟ ΑΥΤΩ.
Τὴν συνθήκην, τουτέστι τὴν ἐπαγγελίαν, διαθήκην ἡ θεία καλεῖ Γραφή, διὰ τὸ βέβαιον καὶ ἀπαράβατον. Συνθῆκαι μὲν γὰρ πολλάκις ἀνατρέπονται, διαθῆκαι δὲ νόμιμοι οὐδαμῶς.
ΜΕ΄. – ΤΩ ΑΥΤΩ
Εἰ τοίνυν καινὸς ὁ ἀνὴρ κἀπειδὴ ὁ νέος, οὐδὲν ἄμεινον εὕροι ἂν τῆς φρονήσεως· αὕτη γὰρ καὶ τὴν ἔριν καταπαῦσαι καὶ τὴν μάχην καὶ τὴν ἀλλοτρίωσιν πάλιν ἐνωτικωτέραν ἀποδεῖξαι δύναται.
ΛΕ΄. – ΑΘΑΝΑΣΙΟ.
Εἰ χρὴ συντόμως τὴν ἀρετὴν καὶ τὴν κακίαν λόγῳ ὑπογράψαι, φήσαμι, ὅτι Ὥσπερ τὸ πῦρ πεπεδημένον τυγχάνον πρὸς τὴν κάτω ὁρμὴν, ἀεικίνητόν ἐστι πρὸς τὴν ἄνω φορὰν, οὕτω καὶ ἡ ἀρετή. Καὶ ὥσπερ τὰ βαρέα σώματα τὴν μὲν ἄνω φορὰν παντάπασιν ἀγνοεῖ, τὴς δὲ πρὸς τὰ κάτω ὁρμὴν ἐπίσταται, τοῦ βάρους τὴν φορὰν ἐπιτείνοντος, ὡς κρείττον λόγου εἶναι τὸ τάχος· οὕτω καὶ ἡ πονηρία. Οὐκοῦν ἐκείνης μὲν ἀνθεκτέον, ταύτης δὲ ἀφεκτέον.
ΡΞΒ΄. – ΣΥΝΕΣΙΩ ΣΧΟΛΑΣΤΙΚΩ
Μὴ φοβεῖσθαι τὴν τῶν ἀρχόντων ἀπειλήν.
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