CHAPTER 14. An answer to the objection that some were

CHAPTER 14. An answer to the objection that some were

52,

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when they heard the description of the people's unholy deeds. "Be appalled, O heavens, at this; be shocked, be utterly desolate, says the Lord, for my people have committed two evils." "* Paul calls the angels to testify because he knows they have been set in command over men as teachers and guardians. Joshua, the son of Nun, even calls a stone to give testimony (a heap of stones had already been called to testify between Jacob and Laban) when he said: "Behold, this stone shall be a witness against us; for it has heard all the works of the Lord which He spoke to us; therefore it shall be a witness against you, lest you deal falsely with your God." *® Perhaps he believed that the power of God would enable the stones to cry out in testimony against the transgressors or at least that every man's conscience would be wounded by the force of the reminder. So those who have been entrusted with the care of souls provide various kinds of witnesses to testify at a future date. But the Spirit is organically united with God, not because of the needs of each moment, but through communion in the divine nature. He is joined to the Lord;

He is not brought in by our efforts.

CHAPTER 14. An answer to the objection that some were baptized into Moses, and believed in him. Also, some remarks concerning typology.

31.

Some say that just because we are baptized in the Spirit, it is not sufficient reason for the Spirit to be ranked with God. In the Old Testament, "all were baptized into Moses in the cloud and in the sea." ™ Furthermore, it is nothing new to profess faith in men: "they

148 Jer, 2:12-13.

1° Cf. Gen. 31:46ff.

™° Jos. 24:27.

111 Cor. 10:2.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

believed in the Lord and in his servant Moses." ** Therefore, they ask, why do we exalt and magnify the Holy

Spirit as if He were above creation, on the grounds of faith and baptism? There is evidence that the same faith has been professed in men in days gone by. How can we answer this? We believe in the Spirit as we believe in the Father and the Son, and we are baptized in the name of each. What is said concerning Moses and the cloud is a shadow or type. Surely you realize that just because divine things are foreshadowed by finite, human things, we cannot conclude that the divine nature is finite. Divine things are very often prefigured by means of shadowy types. Typology points out what is to be expected, indicating through imitation what is to happen before it happens. Adam was a type of Him who was to come;** "the Rock was Christ" ** typologically, and the water from the rock was a type of the living power of the Word, for He says, "If anyone thirst, let him come to Me and drink." ** The manna was a type of the living bread which came down from heaven, and the serpent suspended on the pole *"' was a type of the saving passion accomplished on the cross, since the life of every one who looked at the serpent was preserved. Similarly, the history of Israel's exodus was recorded to typify those who would be saved through baptism. The firstborn of the Israelites were saved in the same way as the bodies of the baptized: through grace given to those who were marked with blood. The blood of the lamb is a type of the blood of Christ, and the firstborn is a type of the first-formed man. Since the firstformed man necessarily exists in each of us and will continue to be transmitted among us until the end, it is said that in Adam we all die,"* and that death reigned until

152 Rx, 14:31.

155 Jn, 7:37.

157 Num. 21: 8ff.

153 Rom. 5:14.

156 Jn, 6:41.

4587 Cor. 15:22.

154 T Cor. 10:4.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

the fulfillment of the law and the coming of Christ. The firstborn were preserved by God from the destroyer's touch to show that we who are made alive in Christ no longer die in Adam. At the time of the exodus, the sea and the cloud led the people from amazement to faith, but they also typified the grace which was yet to come. "Whoever is wise, let him understand these things" *°: how the baptism in the sea which brought about Pharaoh's demise typifies the washing which makes the devil's tyranny depart.

The sea killed the enemy in its waves, and baptism kills the enmity between us and God. The people emerged from the sea unharmed, and we come up from the water as alive from the dead, saved by the grace of Him Who has called us. The cloud is a shadow of the Spirit's gifts, for He cools the flames of our passions through the mortification of our bodies.

32.

What can be said? Is the grace of baptism lessened because it was already foreshadowed by Israel's baptism into Moses? If this is true, and if we prejudice the dignity of any one of our privileges by comparing it to its type, we would find that not a single one is anything especially great. God's love for man, though He gave His

Only-Begotten Son for our sins, would be nothing great or extraordinary; after all, Abraham did not spare his only son. What would be so glorious about the Lord's passion?

A ram was a suitable substitution for Isaac, who prefigured the sacrifice. What would be so awesome about the descent into hell? Had not Jonah already typified His three days and three nights of death? The same comparison is made in the case of baptism by those who judge the reality by the shadow. They compare what was typified to the type, and by using Moses and the sea they attempt to undermine the entire dispensation of the Gospel. What

159 Hos. 14:9.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

remission of sins or renewal of life was found in the Red Sea? What spiritual gift comes through Moses? Is deadness to sin found there? Those men did not die with Christ; therefore they were not raised with Him. They did not bear the image of the heavenly man;*" they did not carry the dying of Jesus in their bodies;*" they did not put off the old man or put on the new man, who is being renewed after the image of his Creator.' Why do you compare these baptisms? The only thing they have in common is the fact that they are baptisms; the difference between them is as great as the difference between dream and reality, or between shadows and substantial figures.

33.

If we adopt our opponents' position, not only will faith in Moses reveal that faith in the Spirit is worth little, but it will also diminish our confession of faith in the God of the universe. It is written that the people believed in the Lord and in His servant Moses." Notice that Moses is mentioned together with God, not with the Spirit; he was a type of Christ, not of the Spirit. Under the ministry of the law, he himself foreshadowed the Mediator between God and men, Christ Jesus;** he did not prefigure the Spirit when he mediated between God and the people. The law was ordained by angels through an intermediary," namely Moses, because of the people's proposal: "You speak to us, and we will hear; but let not God speak to us, lest we die." *° Faith in Moses was supposed to lead to faith in the Lord, the Mediator between God and men,

Who said:

"If you believed Moses, you would believe Me." ** Is our faith in the Lord a trifle, because it was foreshadowed by Moses? Even if men were baptized into Moses, it does not mean that the grace given by the Spirit

160] Cor. 15:49.

16s x 142317 166 Rx, 20:19.

161 TT Cor. 4:10. acs Tune 225.

167 Jn, 5:46.

162 Co], 3:9-10.

165 Gal, 3:19.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

is small. Furthermore, it is customary for the Scripture to personify the law in Moses, as in the passage, "They have

Moses (i.e., the law) and the prophets." ** Therefore when it says that they were baptized into Moses, it means that they were baptized into the law. Why do these enemies of the truth attempt through shadows and types to show contempt to the "pride of our hope," *® the rich gift of our God and Savior who through regeneration renews our youth like the eagle's? Surely only an infantile mind, like a baby who can only drink milk, is ignorant of the great mystery of our salvation. Education progressed gradually; the school of righteousness attempts to bring us to perfection by first teaching us easy, elementary lessons suited for our limited intelligence. Then God, Who provides us with every good thing, leads us to the truth, by gradually accustoming our darkened eyes to its great light. In the deep riches of His wisdom and the unsearchable judgements of His intelligence, He spares our weakness, and prescribes a gentle treatment. He knows our eyes are accustomed to dim shadows, so He uses these at first. Then

He shows us the sun's reflection in water, so as to spare us from being blinded by its pure light. The law was a shadow of things to come, and the teachings of the prophets were a reflection of truth. He devised them to train the eyes of our hearts, so that we could make an easy transition to the secret and hidden wisdom of God, which God decreed before the ages for our glorification." We have spoken sufficiently concerning typology; it is not possible to linger on this topic any longer. If we did, tangential discussions would become many times bulkier than our main argument!

18 Tk. 16:29.

169 Heb. 3:6. ate Cor. 257,

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

CHAPTER 15. Reply to the objection that we are baptized into water.

Concerning baptism in general.

34.

The arguments of our opponents know no bounds.

How can I answer this one? We are baptised into water, they say, and surely we will not honor water more than the rest of creation, or give water a share of the honor due the Father and the Son. As might be expected, these men argue like raging warriors sparing no attempt in their attack when they are offended. They have allowed their passions to obscure their reasoning. But we will not reject a discussion even of these questions. How can we teach the ignorant, if we retreat from evildoers? Let us regress for a moment, and prepare our strategy.

35.

God our Savior planned to recall man from the fall. Man's disobedience separated him from God's household, and God wished to bring him back. This is why

Christ took flesh, and accomplished everything described in the Gospels: His sufferings, the cross, the tomb, the resurrection, so that man might be saved through imitation of Christ and receive his original birthright. If we are to be perfect we must not only imitate Christ's meekness, humility, and longsuffering, but His death as well. Paul surely was an imitator of Christ, and he says, "that I may know Him and the power of His resurrection, and may share His sufferings, becoming like Him in His death, that if possible I may attain the resurrection from the dead."

How can we become like Him in His death? *" By being buried with Him in baptism.*"* What kind of burial is it, and what is gained from such imitation? First, it is necessary

171 Phil. 3: 10-11.

172 Rom. 6:5.

173 Rom. 6:4.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

that the old way of life be terminated, and this is impossible unless a man is born again, as the Lord has said." Regeneration, as its very name reveals, is a beginning of a second life. Before beginning a second life, one must put an end to the first. When a runner has to run around the post at the end of the racetrack in order to return on the other side of the course, he has to stop and pause momentarily, in order to negotiate such a sharp turn. So also if we are going to change our lives, death must come between what has already happened (ending it) and what is just beginning. How can we accomplish this descent into death? By imitating the burial of Christ through baptism. The bodies of those being baptized are buried in the water. Thus baptism signifies the putting off of the works of the flesh, as the Apostle says: "In Him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of flesh in the circumcision of Christ; and you were buried with Him in baptism." *" The filth which has grown on the soul by the working of a carnal mind is washed away. "Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow." *"

In this respect we differ from the Jews: they wash themselves after each defilement, but we know that the baptism of salvation is received only once, since He died for the world once, and rose from the dead once, and baptism is a figure of His death and resurrection. The Lord who gives us life also gave us the baptismal covenant, which contains an image of both death and life. The image of death is fulfilled in the water, and the Spirit gives us the pledge of life. Therefore it is clear why water is associated with the Spirit: because of baptism's dual purpose. On the one hand, the body of sin is destroyed, that it may never bear fruit for death. On the other hand, we are made to live by the Spirit, and bear fruit in holiness. The water receives our body as a tomb, and so becomes the image of death, while

CM Bay Sieh AIS COols2 i te1D* U6 Ps S*7.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

the Spirit pours in life-giving power, renewing in souls which were dead in sin the life they first possessed. This is what it means to be born again of water and Spirit: the water accomplishes our death, while the Spirit raises us to life. This great sign of baptism is fulfilled in three immersions, with three invocations, so that the image of death might be completely formed, and the newly-baptized might have their souls enlightened with divine knowledge.

If there is any grace in the water, it does not come from the nature of the water, but from the Spirit's presence, since baptism is not a removal of dirt from the body, but an appeal to God for a clear conscience.'" The Lord describes in the Gospel the pattern of life we must be trained to follow after the (baptismal) resurrection: gentleness, endurance, freedom for the defiling love of pleasure, and from covetousness. We must be determined to acquire in this life all the qualities of the life to come. To define the Gospel as a description of what resurrectional life should be like seems to be correct and appropriate, as far as I am concerned. Now let us return to our argument.

36.

Through the Holy Spirit comes our restoration to Paradise, our ascension to the Kingdom of heaven, our adoption as God's sons, our freedom to call God our

Father, our becoming partakers of the grace of Christ, being called children of light, sharing in eternal glory, and in a word, our inheritance of the fullness of blessing, both in this world and the world to come. Even while we wait for the full enjoyment of the good things in store for us, by the Holy Spirit we are able to rejoice through faith in the promise of the graces to come. If the promise itself is so glorious, what must its fulfillment be like? We are also able to distinguish between the grace that comes from the Spirit. and mere baptism in water. John baptized in MEY Pet, 3321.

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water for repentance, but our Lord Jesus Christ baptized in the Holy Spirit. John said, "I baptize you with water, for repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose. sandals I am not worthy to carry;

He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and with fire." * He calls our examination at the judgment a baptism by fire, as when the Apostle says "each men's work will become manifest, for the Day will disclose it, because it will be revealed with fire and the fire will test what sort of work each one has done." *" Before our day there were some who fought for the true faith, and died for Christ's sake, not only symbollically, but in actual fact. They had no need of the outward sign of water to be saved, since they were baptized in their own blood. I mention this not because I wish to belittle baptism by water, but to overthrow the arguments of those who pit themselves against the Spirit, confusing things which are distinct, and comparing things that admit of no comparison.

CHAPTER 16. The Holy Spirit cannot be separated from the Father and the Son in any way, whether it be in the creation of perceptible objects, the ordering of human affairs, or the coming judgment.

37.

Let us return to the point we first raised: that in everything the Holy Spirit is indivisibly and inseparably joined to the Father and the Son. St. Paul writes as follows to the Corinthians concerning the gift of tongues: "But if all prophesy, and an unbeliever or outsider enters, he is wreMtaae lle eel Cor, 32.13%

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

convicted by all, he is called to account by all, the secrets of his heart are disclosed; and so, falling on his face, he will worship God and declare that God is really among you." "° If God is recognized to be present among prophets because their prophesying is a gift of the Spirit, let our opponents determine what place they will give to the Holy Spirit. Will they rank Him with God, or will they push

Him down to a creature's place? Peter said to Sapphira, "How is it that you have agreed together to tempt the Spirit of the Lord? You have not lied to men but to God," ** and this shows that to sin against the Holy Spirit is to sin against God. Understand from this that in every operation, the Holy Spirit is indivisibly united with the Father and the Son. God works in various ways, and the Lord serves in various capacities, but the Holy Spirit is also present of His own will, dispensing gifts to everyone according to each man's worth.

Scripture says, "Now there are varieties of gifts, but the same Spirit; and there are varieties of service, but the same Lord; and there are varieties of working, but it is the same God who inspires them all in every one." *" It also says, "All these are inspired by one and the same Spirit, who apportions to each one individually as He wills." *' Just because the Apostle in the above passage mentions the Spirit first, and the Son second, and God the Father third, do not assume that he has reversed their rank. Notice that he is speaking the same way we do when we receive gifts: first we thank the messenger who brought the gift; next we remember him who sent it, and finally we raise our thoughts to the fountain and source of all gifts.

38.

The communion of the Spirit with the Father and the Son may be understood by considering the creation of 180 T Cor. 14:24-25.

182] Cor. 12:4-6.

181 Acts 5:9,4.

188 T Cor. 12:11.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

the angels. The pure, spiritual, and transcendent powers are called holy, because they have received holiness from the grace of the Holy Spirit. The historian has described for us only the creation of visible things and passes over the creation of the bodiless hosts in silence. But from visible things we are able to construct analogies of invisible things, and so we glorify the Maker in whom all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities,"* or any other reason-endowed nature whose name we do not know. When you consider creation I advise you to first think of Him who is the first cause of everything that exists: namely, the Father, and then of the Son, who is the creator, and then the Holy Spirit, the perfector. So the ministering spirits exist by the will of the Father, are brought into being by the work of the Son, and are perfected by the presence of the Spirit, since angels are perfected by perseverance in holiness. And let no one accuse me of saying that there are three unoriginate persons, or that the work of the Son is imperfect. The Originator of all things is One: He creates through the Son and perfects through the Spirit. The Father's work is in no way imperfect, since He accomplishes all in all, nor is the Son's work deficient if it is not completed by the Spirit. The Father creates through His will alone and does not need the Son, yet chooses to work through the Son. Likewise the Son works as the Father's likeness, and needs no other cooperation, but He chooses to have His work completed through the Spirit. "By the Word of the Lord the heavens were made, and all their host by the Spirit of His mouth." '*

The Word is not merely air set in motion by the organs of speech, nor is the Spirit of His mouth an exhalation of the lungs, but the Word is He who was with God in the beginning, and was God ™ and the Spirit of God's mouth

184 Col. 1:16.

185 Ps, 32:6, (LXX). t06 Tn. 1:21,

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

is the Spirit of truth who proceeds from the Father.*'

Perceive these three: the Lord who commands, the Word who creates, and the Spirit who strengthens. What kind of strengthening is it? Perfection in holiness, which expresses itself in an unyielding, unchangeable commitment to goodness. Such holiness is impossible without the Spirit.

The angelic powers are not by their own nature holy; otherwise there would be no difference between them and the Holy Spirit. Rather, they are sanctified by the Holy

Spirit in proportion to their excellence. When we consider a branding-iron we also immediately remember that fire is required to heat it, yet we would not claim that the iron and the fire are the same substance. The angels are a similar case; they are essentially aerial spirits, composed of immaterial fire, as it is written, "He makes His angels spirits, and His ministers a flaming fire." ** They exist in space, and when they are seen by those who are worthy, they assume an appropriate physical form. Holiness is not part of their essence; it is accomplished in them through communion with the Spirit. They keep their rank by persevering in goodness, by freely choosing to never abandon serving Him, who is good by nature. If we agree that the Spirit is subordinate, then the choirs of angels are destroyed, the ranks of archangels are abolished, and everything is thrown into confusion, since their life loses all law, order, or boundary. How can the angels cry "Glory to God in the highest," * unless the Spirit enables them to do so? "No one speaking by the Spirit of God ever says, 'Jesus be cursed!' and no one can say 'Jesus is Lord' except by the Holy Spirit." *° Evil and hostile spirits might say such a thing as 'Jesus be cursed,' and the existence of fallen spirits proves our statement that the angels have free will. They are free to choose either good

187 Jn. 15:26.

9 LK 2314.

188 Ps, 103:4, (LXX).

WET Cor. 42:3.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

or evil, and for this reason they need the Spirit's help.

Not even Gabriel could have announced events to come, unless the Spirit gave him foreknowledge —since one of the gifts distributed by the Spirit is prophecy. Where did the angel who interpreted the mysterious vision of Daniel, the man of desires," obtain the wisdom enabling him to teach hidden things if not from the Holy Spirit? It is the unique function of the Spirit to reveal mysteries, as it is written, "God has revealed (them) to us through the Spirit." *' How can one explain the blessed life of thrones, dominions, principalities, or powers, if these spirits do not behold the face of the Father who is in heaven? ™

One cannot see the Father without the Spirit! It would be like living in a house at night when the lamps are extinguished; one's eyes would be darkened and could not exercise their function. Unable to distinguish the value of objects, one might very well treat gold as if it were iron.

It is the same in the spiritual world; it is impossible to maintain a life of holiness without the Spirit. It would be easier for an army to continue its maneuvers without a general, or for a choir to sing on key without its director.

How can the Seraphim sing, "Holy, holy, holy," *** without the Spirit teaching them to constantly raise their voices in praise? If all God's angels praise Him, and all His host, they do so by cooperating with the Spirit. Do a thousand thousands of angels serve Him? Do ten thousand times ten thousand stand before Him? They accomplish their proper work by the Spirit's power. All the indescribable harmony of the heavenly realm, whether it be the praise of God or the mutual concord of the bodiless powers, would be impossible without the authority of the Spirit. Therefore the Holy Spirit is present among those created beings which are not gradually perfected, but are immediately perfect pet Lele Li enn 188.1 Cor, 2210.

1 Cf. Mt. 18:10.

#3 Dan, 9:22, 1008,

Colzist6:

10.13.63.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

from the moment of their creation. He gives them His own grace, that their nature might be maintained in perfection.

39.

But when we speak of the plan of salvation for men, accomplished in God's goodness by our great God and Savior Jesus Christ, who would deny that it was all made possible through the grace of the Spirit? Whether you wish to examine the Old Testament — the blessings of the patriarchs, the help given through the law, the types, the prophecies, the victories in battle, the miracles performed through righteous men—or everything that happened since the Lord's coming in the flesh, it all comes to pass through the Spirit. In the first place, the Lord was anointed with the Holy Spirit, who would henceforth be inseparably united to His very flesh, as it is written, "He on whom you see the Spirit descend and remain, this is

He who...is my beloved Son,'*" and "God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit." ** After His baptism, the Holy Spirit was present in every action He performed. He was there when the Lord was tempted by the devil: "Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted." *® The Spirit was united with Jesus when He performed miracles: "But if it is by the Spirit of God that I cast out demons..." *" Nor did the Spirit leave Him after His resurrection from the dead. When the Lord renewed mankind by breathing into His Apostles' faces, (thus restoring the grace which Adam had lost, which God breathed into him in the beginning) what did

He say? "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."*"

Is it not indisputably clear that the Church is set in order by the Holy Spirit? "God has ap197 Jn. 1:33, Mt. 3:17.

199 Mt. 4:1.

201 Jn. 20:22-23.

198 Acts 10:30.

200 Mt. 12:28.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

pointed in the Church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, then healers, helpers, administrators, speakers in various kinds of tongues." "

This order is established according to the different gifts distributed by the Spirit.

40.

Any intelligent man realizes that the work of the Holy Spirit will not cease, as some imagine, when the Lord makes His long-awaited return from heaven. On the contrary, the Holy Spirit will be present with Him on the day of His revelation, when He will judge the universe in righteousness as its only Ruler. Who is so ignorant of the good things which God has prepared for those who are worthy that he does not understand the crown of the righteous man is precisely the grace of the Spirit? On that Day spiritual glory shall be distributed in perfect abundance, as each receives a share proportionate to his uprightness.

In the Father's house are many mansions," meaning that some saints are of greater radiance and dignity than others: "...star differs from star in glory. So it is with the resurrection of the dead." ** Those who were sealed by the Holy Spirit for the day of redemption, and have preserved pure and undiminished the fruits of the Spirit which they received, will hear the words, "Well done, good and faithful servant; you have been faithful over a little,

I will set you over much." * Likewise, those who have grieved the Holy Spirit by their evil ways, or have not increased the talents they were given, will be deprived of what they received, and their share of grace will be given to others, or as one of the Gospels says, they will be completely cut to pieces,"* meaning that they will be separated from the Spirit forever. It does not mean that the body is divided: one part handed over to punishment, and another

Cor, 12328; 204 T Cor. 15:41-42.

203 Jn. 14:2.

205 Mt. 25:21.

206 Mt. 25:51.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

part forgiven. The entire body has sinned, and God's righteous judgment is not like the old myths, where only part of the body is punished. Nor can the soul be cut in two, because sinful resolutions possess the soul completely, and accomplish evil with the body's cooperation. It is as I have said: the cutting to pieces is eternal separation of the soul from the Spirit. At present, before the day of judgment comes, even though the Spirit cannot dwell within those who are unworthy, He nevertheless is present in a limited way with those who have been baptized, hoping that their conversion will result in salvation. On the day of judgment, however, He will be completely cut off from the soul that has defiled His grace. That is why

Scripture says that in hell no one confesses God and in death none can remember Him,™ since the Spirit's help is no longer present. How can anyone imagine that the judgment will be accomplished without the Holy Spirit?

Scripture says that He Himself is the reward of the righteous, on that day when the fulfillment is given instead of the promise, and sinners are deprived of what they once appeared to have. But the greatest proof that the Spirit is one with the Father and the Son is that He is said to have the same relationship to God as the spirit within us has to us: "For what person knows a man's thoughts except the spirit of the man which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God."* Concerning this I have said enough.

207 Pg, 6:6, (LXX). eS Gonads

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CHAPTER 17. Against those who say that the Holy Spirit must not be numbered with the Father and the Son, but under them. A summary of the correct way of numbering them together.

41.

It is by no means easy to understand what our opponents mean by the term subnumeration. Everyone knows that we borrowed this word from the language of worldly wisdom, but now we must consider whether or not it has any place in this discussion. We can learn from experts in grammar that some nouns are common, used to describe a great number of things, while others are more specific, and the force of others is proper to one person or thing. Essence, for example, is a common noun; it can be used to describe all things, whether animate or inanimate. Living is more specific; it describes fewer subjects than essence, but since it includes both rational and irrational life, there are many more specific nouns: human is more specific than living, and man is more specific than human, while the individual names Peter, James, and John are the most specific of all. Do they define subordination as the division of the whole into lesser parts? I am unable to believe that they have gone so utterly mad, treating the God of all like a thing only to be perceived by the human mind, having no real personal existence. They chop Him up into subordinate pieces, and call this process suwbnumeration! Not even raving lunatics could suggest such a notion: blasphemy notwithstanding, they are affirming exactly the reverse of their original argument! Pieces of a whole cannot escape sharing the nature of the whole. This is so obviously ridiculous that I am at a loss for words to answer such nonsense; such depths of folly will spare them any

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

further attack. It would be like using a sword to cut through butter! Why should I exhaust my energy fighting such absurdity? All I want to do is to pass by such blasphemy in silence. But I love the brethren, and our opponents' stubbornness knows no bounds — so how can I possibly keep quiet?

42.

Look at what they say; have you ever seen such arrogance? "We maintain that equal subjects are numbered together, but subordinate subjects should be given a lower ranking." Why do you say this? I cannot fathom your extraordinary wisdom. Do you mean that gold is placed at the head of the list, but because lead is cheaper, it must be placed further down? Is numerical rank such a powerful factor? Could it give lead the value of gold, or make gold cheap? In that case, we must list gold under precious stones, and make sure that smaller or duller stones receive lower numbers than larger or brighter ones. These men

"spend their time in nothing except telling or hearing something new;" *' what else can one expect from them?

Let these champions of impiety be assigned numbers — the same as the Epicurean and Stoic philosophers! How is it possible to express higher and lower degrees of value by naming things in different order? If you have a copper coin and a gold coin, which is number one and which number two? They answer, "We do not claim to have two identical coins, but one of one type and one of another." But in what order will you name them? Each is mentioned at the same time. If you keep them separate, but assign each one the same number, you make them equal in value. On the other hand, if you combine them, they must be one in essence, since you place them in the same category. And what about adding them together? Suppose the person doing the arithmetic chooses the copper coin for his first figure?

209 Acts 17:21.

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Does that mean that the next figure must be smaller? I am tired of refuting their ignorance; again, we must return to the topic.

43.

Do you claim that the Son is numbered under the Father, and the Spirit under the Son, or do you limit your subordination to the Spirit alone? On the one hand, if you consider the Son to be subordinate, you are reviving the same old impiousness: that their essences are not the same, that one is of less dignity than the other, that the Son had a beginning, and by using that word you will again stir up all the blasphemies against the Only-Begotten. I do not have the time to again deny these errors; I have done it elsewhere, and need not repeat it. On the other hand, if you limit subordination to the Spirit alone, you must learn once and for all that the Lord speaks of the Spirit and the Father in exactly the same way: "In the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit." *° The words of baptism are the same, and they declare that the relation of the Spirit to the Son equals that of the Son with the Father.

If the Spirit is ranked with the Son, and the Son with the Father, then the Spirit is obviously ranked with the Father also, Their names are mentioned in one and the same series; how can you speak of numbering with or numbering under? Can numerical ranking ever change the nature of anything? We use numbers to help distinguish various things, but the things we number remain what they are by nature and origin. Some material things we count, some we measure, and others we weigh. Identical things we measure; dissimilar things we count (unless the dissimilarity is so fine that it must be measured). When the scales fall, heavy objects are distinguished from light. These are convenient means to determine various types of quantity, but no amount of weighing, measuring, or counting can ever 10 Mt. 28:19.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

change a thing's nature. We can weigh gold or tin, but we would not claim that the nature of one is subordinate to the other on the basis of weight, and the same holds true for measure. Therefore we will use numbers as practical tools, and not claim that the very nature of a thing can be expressed with higher or lower ones! If such a principle of subordination is foreign to the created order, how dare anyone say the Spirit is subordinate? It is nothing but Greek sophistry to speak of inferior essences, degrees of rank, or subordination expressed with numbers.

CHAPTER 18. How belief in three persons upholds the true doctrine of divine unity.

Against those who subordinate the Spirit.

44.

When the Lord taught us the doctrine of Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, He did not make arithmetic a part of this gift! He did not say, "In the first, the second, and the third," or "In one, two, and three." He blessed us with the knowledge given us by faith, by means of holy

Names. We are saved through faith; numbers have been invented as symbols of quantity. These men bring ruin on themselves through every possible source; they have even turned man's ability to count against the faith! Numbers cannot change the nature of anything, yet these men honor arithmetic more than the divine nature, lest they give the Paraclete more honor than He is due! But the Unapproachable One is beyond numbers, wisest sirs; imitate the reverence shown by the Hebrews of old to the unutterable name of God. Count if you must, but do not malign the truth.

Either honor Him Who cannot be described with your silence, or number holy things in accord with true religion.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

There is one God and Father, one Only-Begotten Son, and one Holy Spirit. We declare each Person to be unique, and if we must use numbers, we will not let a stupid arithmetic lead us astray to the idea of many gods.

45.

If we count, we do not add, increasing from one to many. We do not say, "one, two, three," or "first, second, and third." God says, "I am the first and I am the last." 2" We have never to this present day heard of a second God. We worship God from God, confessing the uniqueness of the persons, while maintaining the unity of the Monarchy. We do not divide divine knowledge and scatter the pieces to the winds; we behold one Form (so to speak) united by the invariableness of the Godhead, present in God the Father and God the Only-Begotten.

The Son is in the Father and the Father in the Son; what the Father is, the Son is likewise and vice-versa — such is the unity. As unique Persons, they are one and one; as sharing a common nature, both are one. How does one and one not equal two Gods? Because we speak of the emperor, and the emperor's image — but not two emperors.

The power is not divided, nor the glory separated. One is the dominion and authority over us; we do not send up glories to God, but glory; the honor given the image passes to the prototype. The image of the emperor is an image by imitation, but the Son is a natural image; in works of art the likeness is dependent on its original form, and since the divine nature is not composed of parts, union of the persons is accomplished by partaking of the whole. The Holy Spirit is one, and we speak of Him as unique, since through the one Son He is joined to the Father. He completes the all-praised and blessed Trinity. He is not ranked with the plurality of creation, but is described in the singular; this is sufficient evidence of His intimacy with the 11 Ts, 44:6.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

Father and the Son. He is not one of many but one only: just as there is one Father and one Son, there is one

Holy Spirit. Reason demands that the singular is separated from the plural or compound; therefore He does not share created nature. He is united to the Father and the Son as unit dwells with unit.

46.

This is not our only proof that the Holy Spirit partakes of the fullness of divinity; the Spirit is described to be of God, not in the sense that all things are of God, but because He proceeds from the mouth of the Father, and is not begotten like the Son. Of course, the "mouth" of the Father is not a physical member, nor is the Spirit a dissipated exhalation, but "mouth" is used to the extent that it is appropriate to God, and the Spirit is the essence of life and divine sanctification. Their intimacy is made clear, while the ineffability of God's existence is safeguarded. He is also called the Spirit of Christ, since He is naturally related to Him. That is why Scripture says,

"Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to Him." *' Only the Spirit can adequately glorify the Lord: "He will glorify me," "* not as a creature, but as the Spirit of truth, since He Himself is truth shining brightly. He is the Spirit of wisdom, revealing Christ, the power of God and the wisdom of God, in His own greatness. As the Paraclete He reflects the goodness of the Paraclete (the Father) who sent Him, and His own dignity reveals the majesty of Him from Whom He proceeded.

So on the one hand, there is a natural glory (as light is the glory of the sun), but on the other hand, there is a glory which chooses to bestow itself on those judged to be worthy. There are two types of the latter glory; the first is servile, offered by a creature to his superior: "A son honors his father, and a servant his master," "* but the 212 Rom. 8:9.

Ben low:

214 Mal. 1:6.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

second is the glory shared by intimates, and it is this which the Spirit fulfills. The Lord said of Himself: "I have glorified Thee on earth, having accomplished the work which Thou gavest me to do," ** and concerning the Spirit He said, "He will glorify me, for He will take what is mine and declare it to you." ** The Son is also glorified by the Father, when the Father says, "I have glorified Thee, and I will glorify Thee again." *' The Spirit is glorified by His communion with the Father and the Son, and by the testimony of the Only-Begotten: "Every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven men: but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven." ""

47.

If we are illumined by divine power, and fix our eyes on the beauty of the image of the invisible God, and through the image are led up to the indescribable beauty of its source, it is because we have been inseparably joined to the Spirit of knowledge. He gives those who love the vision of truth the power which enables them to see the image, and this power is Himself. He does not reveal it to them from outside sources, but leads them to knowledge personally, "No one knows the Father except the Son," *" and "No one can say 'Jesus is Lord' except in the Holy

Spirit." *° Notice that it does not say through the Spirit, but in the Spirit. It also says, "God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth,"™ and "in Thy light do we see light," ** through the illumination of the Holy Spirit, "the true light that enlightens every man that comes into the world." ** He reveals the glory of the Only-Begotten in Himself, and He gives true worshippers the knowledge of God in Himself. The way to divine knowledge ascends from one Spirit through the one

215 Jn. 17:4.

218 Mt. 12:32. i fra es ony 216 Jn. 16:14.

219 Mt. 11:27.

222 Ps, 36:9.

217 Cf, Jn. 12:28.

2297 Cor. 1233) 23Jn. 1:9.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

$5 Son to the one Father. Likewise, natural goodness, inherent holiness and royal dignity reaches from the Father through the Only-Begotten to the Spirit. Thus, we do not lose the true doctrine of one God by confessing the persons. Those who teach subordination, and talk about first, second, and third, ought to realize that they are introducing erroneous Greek polytheism into pure Christian theology.

This evil invention of subordinationism can result in nothing except a first, second, and third God. We will be content with the order established by the Lord. He who confuses this order is as guilty of transgressing the law as an impious blasphemer. Enough has been said to undo their error; subordination cannot be used to describe persons who share the same nature. But we cannot resist one final blow to our contentious and feeble-minded enemy.

Let us assume, for a moment, that anything labeled "number two" is subordinate to "number one." But what do we find written? "The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven." ™ Again, "But it is not the spiritual which is first, but the physical, and then the spiritual." ** If the second is subordinate to the first, and since what is subordinate is always inferior to that to which it is subordinated, according to you, then, the spiritual is inferior to the physical, and the man from heaven is inferior to the man of dust!

CHAPTER 19. Against those who say that the Spirit should not be glorified.

48.

"Even if this is true," they answer, "glory should not be given to the Spirit to such an extreme that we must aT (Cor 5:47.

225 T Cor. 15:46.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

sing Him doxologies." But from where do we obtain testimony of the Spirit's ineffable dignity, if not from His communion with the Father and the Son? Our opponents will not recognize this evidence as trustworthy.

If we ponder the meaning of His name, and the greatness of His deeds, and the multitude of blessings He has showered on us and on all creation, it is possible for us to understand at least partially the greatness of His nature and unapproachable power. He is named Spirit: "God is Spirit," *° and "the Spirit of our nostrils, the Lord's Anointed." ""

He is called holy, as the Father is holy and the Son is holy.

For creatures, holiness comes from without; for the Spirit, holiness fills His very nature. He is not sanctified, but sanctifies. He is called good, as the Father is good; the essence of the Spirit embraces the goodness of the Father. He is called upright — the Lord my God is upright **

— because He is truth and righteousness personified. He does not lean to one side or the other since His nature is changeless.

He shares the name Paraclete with the Only-Begotten, who said, "I will ask the Father, and He will give you another

Paraclete." *® The Spirit shares titles held in common hy the Father and the Son; He receives these titles due to His natural and intimate relationship with them. Where else would they come from? Again He is called the ruling

Spirit, the Spirit of truth, and the Spirit of wisdom. It is written that "the Spirit of God has made me," ** and that "God filled Bezaleel with the divine Spirit of wisdom, understanding, and knowledge." ** Titles like these are great and lofty, but they do not exhaust His glory.

49.

What does the Spirit do? His works are ineffable in majesty, and innumerable in quantity. How can we even

226 Jn. 4:24. een 4 Ge 281 Job 33:4.

227 Lam. 4:20, (LXX).*° Cf. Ps. 50:10, (LXX).*** Ex. 31:3, (LXX).

228 Cf, Ps. 92:15.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

vat ponder what extends beyond the ages? What did He do before creation began? How great are the graces He showered on creation? What power will He wield in the age to come? He existed; He pre-existed; He co-existed with the Father and the Son before the ages. Even if you can imagine anything beyond the ages, you will discover that the Spirit is even further beyond. If you consider creation, remember that the heavenly powers were established by the Spirit; *** this establishment means that they were disinclined to fall away from good. The Spirit enables the heavenly powers to avoid evil, and persevere in goodness. Christ comes, and the Spirit prepares His way. He comes in the flesh, but the Spirit is never separated from Him. Working of miracles and gifts of healing come from the Holy Spirit. Demons are driven out by the Spirit of God. The presence of the Spirit despoils the devil. Remission of sins is given through the gift of the Spirit: "You were washed, you were sanctified...in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ and in the Holy Spirit of our God."

Through the Spirit we become intimate with God: "God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts, crying,

'Abba! Father!'" **° Resurrection from the dead is accomplished by the operation of the Spirit: "Thou sendest forth Thy Spirit, and they are created; and Thou renewest the face of the earth." ** If "creation" means bringing the dead back to life, how great the work of the Spirit is! He gives us risen life, refashioning our souls in the spiritual life. On the other hand, if "creation" means the conversion of sinners to a better way of life (the Scripture often understands it this way; for example, the words of Paul:

"If any one is in Christ, he is a new creation." *'), and the renewal of this earthly life, and changing our earthly, passionate life into heavenly citizenship, then we should

238 Ps, 32:6, (LXX).

7 Gal. 4:6.

ABET Corset de 284 T Cor. 6:11.

236 Ps, 104:30.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

know that our souls attain such a high degree of exaltation through the Spirit. Understanding all this, how can we be afraid of giving the Spirit too much honor? We should instead fear that even though we ascribe to Him the highest titles we can devise or our tongues pronounce, our ideas about Him might still fall short. The Spirit speaks with the authority of the Lord: "The Spirit said to him (Peter)

'Rise and go down, and accompany them without hesitation; for I have sent them.' " ** Are these the words of an abject inferior? "Set apart for me Barnabas and Saul for the work to which I have called them." *® Does a slave give commands like this? Isaiah says, ""The Lord God and His Spirit have sent me," "° and "the Spirit came down from the Lord and led them." Do not try to again convince me that this "leading" by the Spirit is some lowly service. Scripture testifies that it is the work of God: "He led forth His people like sheep," *" it says, and "Thou who leadest Joseph like a flock," ** and "He led them in safety, so that they were not afraid." *"* Therefore, when you hear that "the Comforter will bring to remembrance all that I have said to you, and will guide you into all truth," "* do not quibble over the meaning.

50.

Scripture also says that "the Spirit Himself intercedes for us." "* Our opponents conclude that since an intercessor must always be inferior to a benefactor, the Spirit must therefore be inferior to God. Have you never heard what Scripture says concerning the Only-Begotten?

"He is at the right hand of God, and intercedes for us." *"

Do not deprive Him of the faith and praise He is due.

He has been within you; have you expelled Him? He 338 Acts 10:20. sed eh Op) 246 Rom. 8:26.

389 Acts 13:2.

243 Ps, 80:1.

247 Cf. Rom. 8:34.

40 Ts, 48:16.

744 Ps, 78:53.

41 Ts, 63:14, (LXX). "Jn. 14:26; 16:13.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

teaches us who formerly were blind; He guides us to choose what is good. Do not repay your benefactor's love for man with ingratitude; that would be the height of baseness. Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God." Listen to what Stephen, the first martyr, says when he rebukes the people for their insubordination and disobedience: "You always resist the Holy Spirit." Isaiah says, "they rebelled and grieved

His Holy Spirit; therefore He turned to be their enemy." *° In another place it says, "The house of Jacob angered the Spirit of the Lord." ** Do these passages not demonstrate the authority of His might? I will leave it to my readers to judge how these passages ought to be interpreted. Are we to regard the Spirit as an instrument, a servant to be ranked with other creatures, a fellow slave? Or should even the slightest whisper of this blasphemy grieve pious ears? Do you call the Spirit a slave? But "the slave does not know what his master is doing," ** and, "what person knows a man's thoughts except the spirit of the man which is in him? So also no one comprehends the thoughts of God except the Spirit of God." * CHAPTER 20. Against those who claim that the Spirit should not be ranked as a master or a Slave, but as a freeman.

51.

Some say that the Spirit is neither master nor slave, but like a freeman. What miserable nonsense; what pitiful audacity! Which shall I lament, their ignorance or their blasphemy? They insult the dogmas pertaining to the 248 Eph. 4:30.

2501s, 63:10. sz ny 15215.

249 Acts 7:51.

251 Micah 2:7, (LXX).

**1Cor. 2:11.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

divine nature by confining them within human categories.

They think they see differences of dignity among men, and then apply such variation to the ineffable nature of God.

Do they not realize that even among men, no one is a slave by nature? Men are brought under the yoke of slavery either because they are captured in battle or else they sell themselves into slavery due to poverty, as the Egyptians became the slaves of Pharaoh. Sometimes, by a wise and inscrutable providence, worthless children are commanded by their father to serve their more intelligent brothers and sisters. (Any upright person investigating the circumstances would realize that such situations bring much benefit, and are not a sentence of condemnation for those involved.

It is better for a man who lacks intelligence and selfcontrol to become another's possession. Governed by his master's intelligence, he will become like a chariot driven by a skilled horseman, or a ship with a seasoned sailor at the tiller.) That is why Jacob obtained his father's blessing, and became Esau's lord: ** so that this foolish son, who had no intelligence to properly guide him, might profit from his prudent brother, even against his will. Canaan became "a slave of slaves to his brothers," ** because his father Ham was void of understanding, unable to teach his son any virtue. That is why men become slaves, but those who escape poverty, war, or the need of a guardian, are free. And even though one man is called a master, and another a slave, we are all the possessions of our Creator; we all share the rank of slave. Who is free from bondage in the world beyond? As soon as the angels were created, they began to serve. The heavenly hosts do not greedily desire to rule each other; they all bow before God, fearing

Him as their Master, and glorifying Him as Creator.

"A son honors his father, and a servant his master." *° God demands one or the other from all: "If then I am

34 Cf, Gen. 27:29.

255 Gen. 9:25.

26 Mal. 1:6.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

a father, where is my honor? And if I am a master, where is my fear?" ** Our lives would be most pitiful if they were not under a master's oversight; we would resemble the apostate angels, who stiffened their necks against Almighty God, and refused to serve Him. Their nature was the same as their obedient fellow servants, yet they chose to disobey their Creator. So whom will you call a freeman? Someone who serves no King? Someone who lacks both the strength to rule, or the willingness to be ruled? No such nature exists, and it is blasphemous to think that the Spirit is such a being. Either He is a creature, and therefore a slave, or else He is above creation, and shares the Kingship.

CHAPTER 21. Scriptural testimony that the Spirit is called Lord.

52.

Why fight with such trifling arguments, and win such a shameful victory, when we can indisputably prove the excellence of the Spirit's glory? If we repeat what we have learned from Scripture, every one of these Spirit-fighters (Pneumatomachoi) will raise a loud and vehement outcry, stop their ears, pick up stones or any other weapon at hand, and charge against us. But we must care about truth, not our own safety. We have discovered the meaning of the Apostle's words: "May the Lord direct your hearts to the love of God and to the steadfastness of Christ." **

Who is this Lord who directs us into the love of God, and into the patient endurance of Christ, that we may overcome our tribulations? They want to make the Spirit a slave; let them answer this one: If the subject of this pas7 Tdem.

258 IT Thess. 3:5.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

sage is God the Father, it certainly would have said, "May the Lord direct your hearts to His own love; if it were the Son, it would add "and to His own steadfastness." Who else worthy to be honored with the title "Lord" can they find? Here is another passage similar to the preceding one: "May the Lord make you increase and abound in love to one another and to all men, as we do to you, so that He may establish your hearts unblameable in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord

Jesus with all His saints." ** Which Lord is Paul entreating to establish the hearts of the Thessalonian faithful unblameable in holiness before our God and Father, at the coming of our Lord? Our opponents place the Holy Spirit among the ministering spirits sent forth to serve; can they answer our question? No, they cannot. Let them listen to even more testimony of the Spirit's Lordship: "Now the Lord is the Spirit" and "this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit."

But to leave no room for further doubt, I will quote the Apostle's words in greater detail:

"To this day, when they read the Old Testament, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away... when a man turns to the Lord the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit..."

Why does Paul say this? Because someone who adheres to the bare letter of the law, and busies himself with legal observances, has veiled his own heart with Jewish interpretation of the law. Such a person is ignorant that the bodily observance of the law has been abrogated by the coming of Christ, and the types have been exchanged for the truth.

Lamps are not needed after sunrise, and since the truth has appeared, the job of the law is over, and the prophets become silent. On the other hand, someone given the ability to perceive the depth of the law's meaning, who 9 T Thess. 3:12-13.

7 II Cor. 3:18.

OTT Comonla:

262 TT Cor. 3:14, 16-17.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

passes through the curtain of literal obscurity and arrives at unutterable truths, is like Moses, who removed his veil when he spoke with God. Such a man has turned from the letter to the Spirit. The veil on Moses' face is analogous to the obscurity of the instruction offered by the law, just as spiritual contemplation corresponds to Moses speaking to the Lord with face unveiled. He who throws away the letter and turns to the Lord when reading the law

(and now the Lord is called Spirit) becomes like Moses, whose face shone with the glory of God's manifestation.

Objects placed near something brilliantly colored themselves become tinted through reflected light; likewise he who fixes his gaze on the Spirit is transfigured to greater brightness, his heart illumined by the light of the Spirit's truth. Then the glory of the Spirit is changed into such a person's own glory, not stingily, or dimly, but with the abundance we would expect to find within someone who had been enlightened by the Spirit. Are you not ashamed, my opponent, when you hear the Apostle's words: "You are God's temple and God's Spirit dwells in you"?

Is a slave's house honored with the title of temple? How can someone who calls Scripture "God-inspired" (since it was written under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit) use language that insults and belittles Him?

CHAPTER 22. Like the Father and the Son, the Spirit is incomprehensible, since He partakes of the same nature.

53.

We can learn about the loftiness of the Spirit's nature not only because He shares the same titles and 263 T Cor. 3:16.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

works as the Father and the Son, but also because He, like them, cannot be grasped by our thoughts. The Lord says that the Father is beyond human conception, and that the same is true of Himself, the Son. Concerning the Father He says: "O righteous Father, the world has not known Thee." ** By the world He does not mean the whole complex of heaven and earth, but this life of ours, subject to death and endless troubles. Concerning Himself He says: "Yet a little while, and the world will see me no more, but you will see me."** Again, by "world" He means those who are tied down by a material and carnal life, and restrict truth to what is seen by their eyes. They refuse to believe in the resurrection, and become unable to see the Lord with the eyes of their hearts. So neither the Father nor the Son may be seen by the "world," but notice that He uses the same language concerning the Spirit: "the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; you know

Him, for He dwells with you, and will be in you."

A carnal man's mind is not trained in contemplation, but remains buried in the mud of fleshly lusts, powerless to look up and see the spiritual light of the truth. So the "world" — life enslaved by carnal passions — can no more receive the grace of the Spirit than a weak eye can look at the light of a sunbeam. First the Lord cleansed His disciples' lives through His teaching, and then He gave them the ability to both see and contemplate the Spirit.

He says, "You are already made clean by the word which I have spoken to you." *" Therefore, "the world cannot receive Him, because it neither sees Him nor knows Him; you know Him, for He dwells with you." *® Isaiah says,

"Thus saith the Lord God,... who settled the earth and the things in it; and gives breath to the people on it, and boll rian Wy (Pda yy scene a alae 208°Tn. 14°17; 265 Jn. 14:19.

267 Fn 523;

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

Spirit to those who tread on it;" °° from this we can learn that those who trample earthly things and rise above them become worthy to receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. What should we think about Him? The world cannot receive

Him, and only holy men can contemplate Him through purity of heart. Is there any limit to the honor He deserves?

CHAPTER 23. The Spirit is glorified through the recounting of His unique wonders.

54.

We believe that the Spirit is present everywhere, while the rest of the bodiless powers are circumscribed by place. The angel who came to Cornelius "° was not with Philip at the same time," nor did the angel who spoke with Zechariah from the right side of the altar' simultaneously occupy his place in heaven. But the Spirit is believed to have been inspiring Habakkuk and Daniel in Babylon at the same time, though they were in different places; *" the same is true for Jeremiah in the dungeon ** and Ezekiel by the river Chebar.*"" "The Spirit of the Lord fills the world;" ** "where shall I go from Thy Spirit or where shall I flee from Thy presence?" *"

The prophet says:

"I am with you, says the Lord of hosts...

My Spirit abides among you." *" If wherever God is, the Spirit is present also, what nature shall we presume Him to have? An all-encompassing nature, or a 369Ts, 42:5, (LXX).

7° Cf. Dan. 14:33ff, (LXX).

7 Wis. 1:7.

270 Acts 10:3.

274 Jer, 20:2, (LXX).

277 Ps, 139:7.

271 Acts. 8:26.

HN ties Weil 278 Hag. 2:4-5.

272 Luke 1:11.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

nature confined to particular places, as we have described the nature of the angels? No one would say the latter. He is divine in nature, infinite in greatness, mighty in His works, good in His blessings; shall we not exalt Him; shall we not glorify Him? I reckon that this "glorifying" is nothing else but the recounting of His own wonders. Our opponents' argument would force us to never even mention the blessings which flow from Him to us. Obviously this is absurd, so the opposite is true: to describe His wonders gives Him the fullest glorification possible. The same is true for the God and Father of our Lord Christ and the Only-Begotten Son Himself; we are only able to glorify them by recounting their wonders to the best of our ability.

CHAPTER 24. Considering that many created things are glorified proves the absurdity of refusing to glorify the Spirit.

55.

An ordinary man is said to be crowned with glory and honor; "° it is also promised that glory and honor and peace are in store for everyone who does good."

Israel's glory is unique for to it belongs the sonship, the glory, and the worship.' The Psalmist speaks of his own personal glory: "that my glory may praise Thee;" ** and "awake, my glory!" ** St. Paul says there is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars ** and that the dispensation of death (the law of Moses) was glorious, but the dispensation of the Spirit

2721DSh 8a5e 281 Rom. 9:4, 288 Ps. 56:8, (LXX).

780 Rom. 2:10.

282 Ps, 30:12.

284 T Cor. 15:41.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

is even more glorious.*' So many things are glorified; do you wish the Spirit alone to be deprived of glory? How can He possibly not deserve glorification? The Psalms say that a righteous man's glory will be great; how can you say that the Spirit has no glory at all? Is it not obvious that we will inescapably bring sin upon ourselves by persisting in these arguments? If a man is being saved through righteous works, he glorifies God-fearing men; do you suppose such a man would deprive the Spirit of the glory He deserves?

Now it is true that some of them are willing to glorify the Spirit, but not with the Father and the Son. But the Lord has assigned the Spirit His proper place; why should we forsake it to invent another place? He is always described as united with the Godhead; why should He be deprived of His glory? We hear His name in the creed, at saving baptism, in the working of miracles. He takes up His abode in the saints; He bestows grace on the obedient. No gift can be bestowed on creation unless the Holy Spirit gives it; not even a single word can be spoken in defense of Christ unless the Holy Spirit inspires it — as we have learned in the Gospels from our Lord and Savior."* How could anyone who has partaken of the Holy

Spirit be willing to forget or disregard that He is united to the Father and the Son in every way and try to tear

Him away from them? Where will you take Him to be ranked? Among creatures? But all creation is in bondage and the Spirit frees it; "where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom." *' There are many other arguments why the Holy Spirit cannot be counted as a created nature, but for the moment I will not speak of them. If I were to use all the evidence already available to us in a manner suitable for the loftiness of this discussion, our opponents' objections would be overthrown, but such an enormous treatise would

285° Of) DU Cor, 371i.

286 Mt. 10:19-20.

287 TT Cor. 3:17.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

result that my readers would be exhausted by its length.

I will reserve these arguments for a special book, and concern myself with the following points.

56.

Let us examine these points one by one: The Spirit is good by nature, as the Father and the Son are good, but the creature wishing to share goodness must choose to do so. The Spirit searches even the depths of God," but the creature receives enlightenment concerning ineffable truths through the Spirit. He gives life together with the Father who enlivens all things, and with the lifegiving Son: "If the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through His Spirit which dwells in you." *® Also, "My sheep hear my voice...and I give them eternal life."* But the Spirit gives life in the same way: "the Spirit is life because of righteousness." *' The Lord testifies that "the Spirit gives life; the flesh profits nothing." ** How can we separate the Spirit from His life-giving power and associate Him with things which by nature are lifeless? Who is so perverse; who is so devoid of the heavenly gift, so unnourished by God's good words; who is so empty of sharing eternal hopes, that he would separate the Spirit from the Godhead, and number Him among creatures?

57.

Others say that the Spirit is in us as a gift from God, and a gift is not to be given the same honor as the giver. The Spirit is God's gift, but He is the gift of life

("the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set me free..."**°) and a gift of power ("you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you").2* You ane Core2: 10:

29 Rom. 8:10.

293 Rom. 8:2.

289 Rom. 8:11.

222 Jn. 6:63.

294 Acts 1:8.

290 Jn. 10:27-28.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

hold the Spirit in contempt because He is a gift? Did not God give His Son as a gift to mankind as well? "He who did not spare His own Son but gave Him up for us all, will He not also give us all things with Him?"™ Also,

"we have received ...the Spirit which is from God, that we might understand the gifts bestowed on us by God," gifts meaning here the mystery of the Incarnation. Those who maintain this opinion turn God's immeasurable lovingkindness into an occasion of blasphemy; really, they surpass the ingratitude of the Jews! The Spirit gives us the freedom to call God our Father, and they find fault with Him! "God has sent the Spirit of His Son into our hearts crying, 'Abba! Father!'" *' so that the Spirit's cry might become the same cry of all those who receive Him.

CHAPTER 25. The preposition in or by is used the same way as with; and also has the same force as with.

58.

"How is it," our opponents ask, "that Scripture nowhere describes the Spirit to be glorified together with the Father and the Son?" It carefully avoids the phrase with the Spirit, but always prefers in the Spirit as a more suitable expression to use when ascribing glory to God.

For my own part, I cannot agree that in (or by) and with are used to express degrees of dignity; in may easily express a dignity just as lofty. There are many instances where in is used, but with is actually signified, for instance, it actually says "I will go into thine house in burnt offerings

(év 6dA0KavLT@UaoL)" * but we would say with burnt 295 Rom. 8:32.

97 Gal. 4:6.

298 TiCor, 2712:

298 Ps, 65:13, (LXX).

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

offerings. Similarly it says, "He brought them out in silver and gold," *" and "Thou wilt not go forth in our armies." *"

In both cases in really means with. There are endless examples of this. But I would very much like to know, according to this newly-discovered wisdom, if the Apostle used in to ascribe glory — since that is how our opponents interpret Scripture. I cannot find anywhere the formula

"Glory and honor to Thee, O Father, through Thine OnlyBegotten Son, in (or by) the Holy Spirit," yet our opponents use this formula with the same ease as they breathe air.

You can find each of these clauses separately, but they are not combined in a doxology this way. If our opponents insist on exact conformity to the Scriptures they have better provide references. If they claim that this doxology has become customary, they cannot forbid our doxology on the grounds of custom.

59.

Both doxologies are used by the faithful, and so we use both; we believe that either one ascribes perfect glory to the Spirit. The mouths of these corrupters of the truth may be more easily silenced, however, by Scripture's identical use of the conjunction and and the preposition with. Our opponents have no weapon against this argument, and so they are left wide open for our attack. "Paul, and Silvanus, and Timothy" " means exactly the same as Paul, with Timothy, and Silvanus; either expression preserves the combination of names. The Lord said "... the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit;" *" if I would say

"the Father and the Son with the Holy Spirit," have I changed the meaning of anything? There are many instances of the conjunction and being used to connect a series of names: "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit," * or 299 Ps, 104:37, (LXX).

° I Thess. 1:1.

303 TT Cor. 13:14.

$00 Ps, 43:9, (LXX).

802 Cf, Mt. 28:19.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

"I appeal to you, brethren, by our Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit." ** If we were to substitute with for every and in the above passages, what difference would it make? I cannot see any, unless a pedantic grammarian insists that a coordinate conjunction brings about a stronger union that a preposition. Even if this were so, we would not need a lengthy argument to defend ourselves concerning this point. They are not really concerned with syllables or various usages of words, but with defending a position radically different in authority and truth from our own. It really makes little difference which syllables are used, but they would like to canonize some, and exclude others from the Church! I will explain why our fathers began to use the preposition with in the doxology, although it seems to me that the reason is obvious even to someone hearing it for the first time. With and and would be equally useful in fighting the wickedness of Sabellius, since either one reveals that the Persons are distinct: "I and my Father will come," *" or "I and the Father are one." *" But with is an especially useful word because it testifies to eternal communion and unceasing cooperation. If we say that the Son is with the Father, we mean two things: first, that their persons are distinct, and second, that they are inseparably united in fellowship. We can observe the same thing in human affairs: and indicates that an action is performed by more than one person, but with reveals the fellowship among the persons more explicitly. For instance, if we hear that Paul and Timothy sailed to Macedonia, or Tychicus and Onesimus were sent to the Colossians, we know that each pair accomplished a certain action. But if we were told that they sailed with each other, or that one was sent with the other, we would learn in addition that they accomplished the action in common. So not only does the word with destroy the heresy of Sabellius, as no other

304 Rom. 15:30. se Ciwin., 14:23.

306 Jn. 10:30.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

word can, but it also defeats those who err in the opposite direction. I am referring to those who use intervals of time to separate the Son from the Father, saying there was a time when the Son was not, or the Spirit from the Son, calling the Spirit a created being.

60.

As far as the differences between in and with are concerned, they are as follows: with demonstrates that persons mutually share a common act, for example, sailing with, or living in the same house with, or doing anything else in common. Jn refers to their relationship to the place or thing in which the action is performed. No sooner than we hear the words "they sailed in..." or "they live in..." we immediately picture a boat or a house. This is the normal difference between these two words in ordinary usage; if we wished to be industrious we could discover many more examples, but I have no more time to analyze syllables.

I have demonstrated that union is most clearly signified by the term with; declare a truce and place this word under safe conduct, if you will; stop your savage and incessant war against it. Even though this term is the most precise, if someone wishes to join the names in the doxology with the word and (as the Gospel does and as we do in baptism: Father and Son and Holy Spirit), let him do it; no one will object. If you wish, these could be the terms of the treaty. But our opponents would rather have their tongues cut out than even accept the word and; it is this word that rouses them to war against us. They insist we must give glory to God in the Holy Spirit, but never and to the Holy Spirit, passionately clutching this one word as if it contained power to lower the Spirit. Perhaps it would be best if we speak at greater length concerning this word. When they have heard what we have to say, I will be very much surprised if they do not recognize that this little word has betrayed them, deserting to the side of the Spirit's glory.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

CHAPTER 26. There are many ways in may be suitably used in reference to the Spirit.

61.

Although in is a short and simple word, it seems to me that it is used in a multitude of various ways. We shall discover, however, that all these usages are appropriate when applied to the Spirit. We say, for instance, that form abides in matter, or that power dwells in its recipient, or a certain habit affects a person in whom it makes its home, and so on. Therefore, since the Holy Spirit perfects reason-endowed beings, He is present in them in the same way form is present in matter. Such a person no longer lives according to the flesh, but is led by the Spirit of God.

He is called a son of God, because he is conformed to the image of the Son of God; we call him a spiritual man.

The ability to see is in a healthy eye; likewise the Spirit is working in a purified soul: Paul prays that the Ephesians' eyes might be enlightened by the Spirit of wisdom."

Artistic skill dwells in the artist and the grace of the Spirit is always present in its recipient, even if the grace is not perpetually in operation. The artist's skill exists as potential within him; only if he works is the potential activated. The Spirit is continually present with those who are worthy, but actively works as He is needed, whether in prophecy, or healings, or other wonderful works. There are changeable factors in our bodies, such as health or fever, and the Spirit's presence in our souls is comparable, since He will not stay with those whose wills are unstable. Such people have no perseverance, and drive away the grace they have received. Consider the example of Saul

(from whom the Spirit of the Lord departed), or the 807 Eph. 1:17.

508 Cf. I Sam. 16:14.

ST, BASIL THE GREAT

seventy elders of the children of Israel (with the exception of Eldad and Medad, the only ones with whom the Spirit remained),°" or anyone else similar to these in conduct.

Again, the working of the Holy Spirit is similar to the action of reason within our souls, which sometimes moves

. our hearts to think, and at other times moves our tongues to speak, since the Spirit Himself bears witness with our spirit, and cries in our hearts, "Abba! Father!" *° At other times He speaks on our behalf, as when it says: "it is not you who speak, but the Spirit of the Father speaking through you." ** Again, when we consider the distribution of gifts, we perceive that the Spirit is a whole divided into parts, since we are all members one of another, having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us.*" The eye cannot say to the hand, "I have no need of you," or again the head to the feet, "I have no need of you," ** but all the members complete the body of Christ in the unity of the Spirit, each member assisting the others with aid provided by the unique gifts it has received. God arranged the organs in the body, each one of them, as He chose,"* so that the members may have the same care for one another, since from the beginning they are spiritually united in sympathy. "If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together." **

We live in the Spirit as individual members of a body, because we were all baptized into one Spirit, in one body.**

62.

Although paradoxical, it is nevertheless true that Scripture frequently speaks of the Spirit in terms of place —a place in which people are made holy. We shall demonstrate that even this figure of speech does not downgrade the Spirit; rather, it glorifies Him. Words which $09 Cf, Num. 11:26 ff. 342 Rom. 12:6-7.

#15 T.Cor. 12325, 26.

310 Rom. 8:16, 15.

2ST Cori3°217 US CFoT Core 12213; 311 Mt. 10:20.

61 Coral ange

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

normally have a physical meaning are frequently transposed to a spiritual plane by Scripture, for the sake of clarity. For example, the Psalmist says, "Be to me a protecting God, and a place of strength to save me," *" and in reference to the Spirit God says, "Behold, there is a place by Me: thou shalt stand upon the rock." ** This

"place" is contemplation in the Spirit, and when Moses entered this "place" God revealed Himself to him. Only in this special "place" can true worship be offered. The Law said, "Take heed that you do not offer your burnt offerings at every place that you see, but at the place which the Lord shall choose..." *® But what is a spiritual burnt offering, but the sacrifice of praise? Where can we offer it? Only in the Holy Spirit! Where did we learn this? From the Lord Himself: The true worshippers will worship the Father in Spirit and in truth."° Jacob saw this "place" and said, "The Lord is in this place." *" The Spirit is indeed the dwelling-place of the saints, and the saint is a suitable abode for the Spirit, since he has supplied God with a house, and is called a temple of God. Similarly,

Paul speaks in Christ; he says, "in the sight of God we speak in Christ," *"' and Christ speaks in Paul: "You desire proof that Christ is speaking in me." *' The same

Paul utters mysteries in the Spirit,"* and the Spirit also speaks in Paul.

63.

The Spirit is said to dwell in created things in many and various ways, but as far as His relationship to the Father and the Son is concerned, it is more appropriate to say that He dwells with them, rather than in them. Those who are worthy receive His grace, and He works within them. However, we cannot contemplate His pre-eternal

317 Ps, 70:3, (LXX).

S20,Cf, ns 4:23.

Se TNCor 3715.

318 Rx. 33:21, (LXX).

321 Gen. 28:16.

2TiCom 14:2, 319 Deut. 12:13-14.

S22 Cor72st7:

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

existence and permanent presence with the Son and the Father unless we search for words which suitably express such an everlasting union. Truly precise co-existence can only be predicated of things which. are mutually inseparable. For example, we would say that heat exists in red-hot iron, but co-exists with fire, or that health is present in the body, but life co-exists with the soul. Whenever the union between things is intimate, natural, and inseparable, it is more appropriate to use with since this word suggests an indivisible union. On the other hand, in situations where the grace of the Spirit comes and goes, it is more proper to say that the Spirit exists in someone, even in the case of well-disposed persons with whom He abides continually.

Therefore, when we consider the Spirit's rank, we think of Him as present with the Father and the Son, but when we consider the working of His grace on its recipients, we say that the Spirit is in us. If we say, "Glory to the Father through the Son in the Holy Spirit," we are not describing the Spirit's rank, but confessing our own weakness, since we show that we are not capable of glorifying God on our own; only in the Spirit is this made possible. In Him we are able to thank God for the blessings we have received. To the extent that we are purified from evil, each receives a smaller or a larger portion of the Spirit's help, that each may offer the sacrifice of praise to God. If we offer glory to God in the Spirit, we mean that the Spirit enables us to fulfill the requirements of true religion. According to this usage, then, we say we are in the Spirit, but it is not objectionable for someone to testify, "the Spirit of God is in me, and I offer glory because His grace has given me the wisdom to do so." The words of Paul are appropriate: "I think that I have the Spirit of God," ™ and "guard the truth that has been entrusted to you by the Holy Spirit who dwells within us." ** Likewise it is said,

Cou: 40:

SOT Timea)

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

concerning Daniel: "the Holy Spirit of God is in you." *"

Men of similar virtue may be described in the same way.

64.

We do not deny that something else can be understood from this manner of saying the doxology. We learn that just as the Father is made visible in the Son, so also the Son is recognized in the Spirit. To worship in the Spirit implies that our intelligence has been enlightened.

Consider the words spoken to the Samaritan woman. She was deceived by local custom into believing that worship could only be offered in a specific place, but the Lord, attempting to correct her, said that worship ought to be offered in Spirit and in truth.' By truth He clearly meant

Himself. If we say that worship offered in the Son (the Truth) is worship offered in the Father's Image, we can say the same about worship offered in the Spirit since the Spirit in Himself reveals the divinity of the Lord. The Holy Spirit cannot be divided from the Father and the Son in worship. If you remain outside the Spirit, you cannot worship at all, and if you are in Him you cannot separate

Him from God. Light cannot be separated from what it makes visible, and it is impossible for you to recognize

Christ, the Image of the invisible God, unless the Spirit enlightens you. Once you see the Image, you cannot ignore the light; you see the Light and the Image simultaneously.

It is fitting that when we see Christ, the Brightness of God's glory, it is always through the illumination of the Spirit.

Through Christ the Image, may we be led to the Father, for He bears the seal of the Father's very likeness.

327 Dan. 4:6, (LXX).

328 Cf. Jn. 4:24,

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

CHAPTER 27. How did the word with begin to be used? What is its strength?

Also concerning the unwritten laws of the Church.

65.

Our opponents claim that the word in is the most appropriate for the Spirit, since every thought concerning

Him is sufficiently expressed by its use. They ask why we have introduced this new phrase "with the Spirit" instead of using "in the Holy Spirit;" they claim that such an expression is unnecessary, and cannot be found in any ecclesiastical tradition. But I have already proven earlier in this treatise that the word in is not unique to the Spirit, but is commonly used for the Father and the Son. Furthermore, I believe I have sufficiently demonstrated that the word in detracts nothing from the Spirit's dignity. Not only that; I claim that its use leads everyone to the greatest heights, except those whose minds are poisoned. It remains for me to describe the origin and force of the word

"with" and to show that its usage is in accord with Scripture.

66.

Concerning the teachings of the Church, whether publicly proclaimed (kerygma) or reserved to members of the household of faith (dogmata), we have received some from written sources, while others have been given to us secretly, through apostolic tradition. Both sources have equal force in true religion. No one would deny either source —no one, at any rate, who is even slightly familiar with the ordinances of the Church. If we attacked unwritten customs, claiming them to be of little importance, we would fatally mutilate the Gospel, no matter what our intentions — or rather, we would reduce the Gospel teach-

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

ings to bare words. For instance (to take the first and most common example), where is the written teaching that we should sign with the sign of the Cross those who, trusting in the Name of Our Lord Jesus Christ, are to be enrolled as catechumens? Which book teaches us to pray facing the East? Have any saints left for us in writing the words to be used in the invocation over the Eucharistic bread and the cup of blessing? As everyone knows, we are not content in the liturgy simply to recite the words recorded by St. Paul or the Gospels, but we add other words both before and after, words of great importance for this mystery.

We have received these words from unwritten teaching.

We bless baptismal water and the oil for chrismation as well as the candidate approaching the font. By what written authority do we do this, if not from secret and mystical tradition? Even beyond blessing the oil, what written command do we have to anoint with it? What about baptizing a man with three immersions, or other baptismal rites, such as the renunciation of Satan and his angels? Are not all these things found in unpublished and unwritten teachings, which our fathers guarded in silence, safe from meddling and petty curiosity? They had learned their lesson well; reverence for the mysteries is best encouraged by silence. The uninitiated were not even allowed to be present at the mysteries; how could you expect these teachings to be paraded about in public documents? Why did the great Moses not open every part of the meetingtent to everyone? °° The unclean he placed outside the sacred precincts, while the first court was assigned for the ritually pure. He judged only the Levites worthy to serve

God,*" while sacrifies, burnt-offerings, and other priestly functions were reserved to the priests.' Only one chosen from all the priests was admitted into the innermost sanc329 Cf, Num. 4:20.

330 Num. 18:22ff.

331 Num. 18:7.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

tuary,*" but only on one day each year. Even on this one day he entered for only a short time, so that he would be amazed by the novelty and strangeness of gazing on the Holy of Holies. Moses was wise enough to realize that triteness and familiarity breed contempt, but the unusual and the unfamiliar naturally commands eager interest. In the same way, when the apostles and Fathers established ordinances for the Church, they protected the dignity of the mysteries with silence and secrecy from the beginning, since what is noised abroad to anyone at random is no mystery at all. We have unwritten tradition so that the knowledge of dogma might not become neglected and scorned through familiarity. Dogma is one thing, kerygma another; the first is observed in silence, while the latter is proclaimed to the world. One form of silence is the obscurity found in certain passages of Scripture, which makes the meaning of some dogmas difficult to perceive for the reader's own advantage. For instance, we all pray facing

East, but few realize that we do this because we are seeking Paradise, our old fatherland, which God planted in the East in Eden.** We all stand for prayer on Sunday, but not everyone knows why. We stand for prayer on the day of the Resurrection to remind ourselves of the graces we have been given: not only because we have been raised with Christ and are obliged to seek the things that are above," but also because Sunday seems to be an image of the age to come. Notice that although Sunday is the beginning of days, Moses does not call it the first day, but one day: "And there was evening and there was morning, one day," *" since this day would recur many times. Therefore "one" and "eight" are the same, and the "one" day really refers both to itself and to the "eighth" day. Even the Psalmist follows this usage in certain titles of the 582 Rx. 30:10; Lev. 16:2.

='Col 371.

883 Gen, 2:8.

3385 Gen. 1:5.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

psalms.** This day foreshadows the state which is to follow the present age: a day without sunset, nightfall, or successor, an age which does not grow old or come to an end. It is therefore necessary for the Church to teach her newborn children to stand for prayer on this day, so that they will always be reminded of eternal life, and not neglect preparations for their journey. The entire season of Pentecost is likewise a reminder of the resurrection we expect in the age to come. If we count that one day, the first of days, and then multiply it seven times seven, we will have completed the seven weeks of the holy Pentecost, and the season ends on the same day it began (Sunday) with fifty days having elapsed. Therefore this season is an image of eternity, since it begins and ends at the same point, like a circle. During this time the ordinances of the Church instruct us to pray standing, and by this reminder our minds are made to focus on the future instead of the present. Also, every time we bend our knees for prayer and then rise again, we show by this action that through sin we fell down to earth, but our Creator, the Lover of Mankind, has called us back to heaven.

67.

Time would fail me if I attempted to list all the unwritten mysteries of the Church, so I will not mention any others, except this: in which writings do we find our confession of faith in Father, Son, and Holy

Spirit? If we are obliged to believe in that into which we have been baptized, then we must make our confession of faith in the same terms as our baptism. Since we have received those terms from the baptismal tradition, let our opponents follow the principles of true religion, and allow us to glorify God with the same terms we use to profess our faith. If they refuse to accept our doxology because we have no written authorization for it, let them

836 Cf, Ps, 6 and 12, (LXX).

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

give us written evidence for the profession of faith and the other practices we have enumerated. Since there are so many unwritten traditions, having great importance in the mystery of true religion, how can they refuse to concede to us the use of a single word, which has come to us from the Fathers —a word we discovered to have remained in use in unperverted churches, unintentionally transmitted by custom? Can they not see that the arguments for this word are strong and that its contribution to the power of the mystery is by no means small?

68.

I have explained the force of both expressions.

Now I shall again describe their similarities and differences in usage. They are not antagonistic expressions; it is simply that each has a unique meaning, as far as true religion is concerned. The preposition in expresses the relationship between ourselves and the Spirit, while with proclaims the communion of the Spirit with God. Therefore we use both words: the latter expresses the Spirit's dignity, while the former describes the grace we have been given. We glorify

God both in the Spirit and with the Spirit; we have not invented this word, but we follow the teaching of the Lord as our rule, and transfer this word to things which are logically related, sharing a common mystery: He is numbered with Them in the baptismal formula, and we consider it necessary to combine Their Names in the same way when we profess our faith, and we treat the profession of faith as the origin and mother of the doxology.

What can they do now? Either they must teach us not to baptize in the manner we have been taught, or else not to believe as we were baptized, or not to glorify as we believe. Can anyone deny that the sequence of relationship in these acts must necessarily remain unbroken? Will anyone deny that innovation here will mean disaster everywhere? Still they continue screaming in our ears that to give glory with the Holy Spirit is unauthorized, unscrip-

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

tural, et cetera. We have already said that as far as our understanding is concerned, to say "Glory to the Father and to the Son and to the Holy Spirit" means the same as "Glory to the Father and to the Son with the Holy Spirit."

We have received the word and from the very words of the Lord, and no one would dare to deny or cancel it, so what could possibly hinder our acceptance of its equivalent? We have already shown the similarities and differences between the two words. Our argument is confirmed by the fact that the Apostle uses both words indifferently: he says in one place "in the name of our Lord

Jesus Christ and in the Spirit of our God," *" and in another, "When you are assembled and my Spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus." ** He obviously has no idea that using the conjunction or the preposition affects the combination of names in any way.

CHAPTER 28. Although Scripture describes men as reigning together with Christ, our opponents will not allow this word to be used concerning the Spirit.

69.

Let us see if we can think of any defense for our fathers' use of this word, since those who started the expression are more at fault than we ourselves. Paul says in the Epistle to the Colossians: "And you, who were dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, God made alive together with Christ." *° Did God give to the Church and to an entire race the gift of life with Christ,

387 T Cor. 6:11.

38 T Cor. 524.

#9'Col 2°13.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

if the life with Christ has nothing to do with the Holy Spirit? If it is impious to even think such a thing, is it not reverent to confess our faith in those who are closely united by nature? What a boundless lack of common sense! These men confess that the saints are with Christ

(since Paul most assuredly says that he would rather be away from the body and at home with Christ," and that his desire is to depart and be with Christ,) ** yet they dare refuse the Spirit even the communion that Christ shares with men! Paul calls himself a fellow-laborer with God in the administration of the Gospel; ' will they then indict us for blasphemy if we also call the Spirit a fellowlaborer, since through Him the Gospel bears fruit in every creature under heaven? It seems to me that if the life of those who have trusted in the Lord is hidden with Christ in God, and when Christ, Who is their life appears, then they also will appear with Him in glory,** how then could the Spirit of life, who has set us free from the law of sin " not be with Christ, whether in the secret and hidden life of God, or in the manifestation of the glory which we expect to be revealed in the saints? We are heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ," yet does the Spirit have no inheritance or portion in the fellowship of God and His Christ? "It is the Spirit Himself bearing witness with our spirit that we are children of God;" "* will we deprive the Spirit of His testimony of fellowship with God, which the Lord has taught us? Truly this is the height of folly: if we, through faith in Christ which we can only confess in the Spirit, hope that we shall be raised up and sit together with Christ in the heavenly places,' and that He will change our lowly body from the natural to the spiri40 TT Cor. 5:8.

348 Cf, Col. 3:3-4.

346 Rom. 8:16.

SPA les:

544 Cf. Rom. 8:2.

847 Eph. 2:6.

842 Cf. I Cor. 3:9.

545 Rom. 8:17.

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

tual,* how can we refuse to allow the Spirit any share in this enthronement, or glory, or anything else we have received from Him! We believe ourselves to have been made worthy of many gifts through Christ's sure promise; are we to permit the Holy Spirit to have none of them, as if He was beneath their dignity? It is your privilege to be always with the Lord; you expect to be "caught up in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and to always be with the Lord"; "* how can you deny that the Spirit is with Christ and declare the man who numbers and ranks the Spirit with the Father and the Son as guilty of unbearable impiety?

70.

I am ashamed even to write what follows. You expect to be glorified together with Christ (provided we suffer with Him in order that we may also be glorified with Him),*° yet you refuse to glorify the Spirit of holiness together with Christ, as though He is not even worthy to share the same glory as you. You hope to reign with Christ, but you insult the Spirit of grace, because you assign Him the rank of a slave or a subordinate. I am not saying that the Spirit deserves only the same glory we hope to receive, but I am trying to shame those who are unwilling to give

Him even this, and shrink from the Spirit's communion of glory with Son and Father as if it were blasphemy. Who can speak of there things without sighing? It is not obvious even to someone with a child's intelligence that the present state of affairs is only the beginning of an impending eclipse of the faith? What was once undeniable is now attacked on every side. We profess faith in the Spirit, and then quarrel with our own creed. We are baptized and begin fighting again. We call upon the Spirit as the Prince of Life, and then despise Him as a slave like ourselves.

We received Him with Father and Son, yet we dishonor 348 Cf, Phil. 3:21; I Cor. 15:44. *4°I Thess. 4:17.

™° Rom. 8:17.

ST. BASIL THE GREAT

Him, calling Him a part of creation. We do not know how to pray as we should," and are not capable of uttering a single word worthy of the Spirit, yet these men attempt to cut Him down to their own size with carefully constructed phrases. They should bewail their own wretchedness instead, and realize that we are all powerless to sufficiently express in words the graces with which we have been filled. He passes all understanding, and exposes the natural inability of our speech to even remotely approach His dignity, as it is written in the Book of Wisdom: "Exalt

Him as much as you can, for He is above all praise. When you exalt Him put forth all your strength, and be not weary, for you can never go far enough." *" How fearful will be the account you will have to give for your words to the God who cannot lie, who said that blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will never be forgiven? **

CHAPTER 29. Enumeration of well-known men in the Church who have used the word with in their writings.

71.

The objection is that there is no written authority for the doxology in the form "with the Spirit" but this is valid only if no other unwritten traditions can be found.

However, if many of our mysteries have been handed down from unwritten sources, then let us receive this one with all the rest. It is in the apostolic spirit to follow unwritten traditions, as St. Paul says: "I commend you because you remember me in everything and maintain the traditions even as I have delivered them to you," ** or "stand firm

$51 Rom. 8:26.

88 Tk. 12:10.

52 Sir. 43:33-34.

41 Cor. 1122.

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and hold to the traditions which you were taught by us either by word of mouth or by letter."** One of these traditions is in question now, although those who started it passed it on to their successors, and it has become firmly established in the Churches through long custom. Its use has increased with the passage of time. If I were on trial, with no written evidence for my defense, could you not be persuaded to vote for my acquittal if I produced a crowd of witnesses? I think so, since "by the evidence of two or three witnesses shall a charge be sustained." *° In addition to this, if my witnesses' testimony covered a long period of time, would I not have suitably proven to you that the charge should not have been brought against me?

Likewise, we are compelled to accept old teachings, since their hoary antiquity inspires reverence. Therefore I will list for you those who have supported this word (the span of time covered by these men must certainly be taken into account and will justify our passing by many of them in silence). We were not the first to use this word. How could we be? Compared to the length of time this word has been used, our own span of years, as Job says, is but of yesterday.*" Speaking for myself, I inherited the use of this word from the fathers. It was entrusted to me by a man who had spent many years in God's service;

I was both baptized and ordained to serve the Church by him. As I examined, as far as I was able, whether any of the blessed men of old had used these words which are now contested, I found many who are noteworthy for their early date and also—certainly unlike men today —for the precision of their knowledge. Some of them joined the Names in the doxology with the preposition and others with the conjunction, but none of them are at variance — at least concerning what true religion really has to say about this question.

355 TT Thess. 2:15.

356 Deut. 19:15.

37 Job. 8:9.

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72.

There is Irenaeus and Clement of Rome, and Dionysius of Rome, and Dionysius of Alexandria, who, strangely enough, concludes his second letter to his namesake "On Accusation and Defense" as follows. I will quote his very words for you: "Since we have received a form and a rule from the presbyters who have gone before us, we offer thanksgiving in harmony with them, and following everything they have taught us, we conclude our letter to you. To God the Father, and the Son Our Lord Jesus

Christ, with the Holy Spirit be glory and dominion unto ages of ages. Amen." No one can claim that someone has tampered with this passage: the use of the phrase "in the Spirit" is far more common, yet notice that he uses

"with the Spirit" here, and as his defense he continually insists that he conforms to a form and a rule already received. The same Dionysius writes in the middle of his treatise against the Sabellians: "Though they claim that the idea of three persons divides the Godhead, nevertheless there are three, whether they like it or not. Otherwise they would completely destroy the divine Trinity."

Again he says, "After we recognize the Unity, we must then consider the most divine Trinity." Clement, who wrote much earlier, says: "God lives, and the Lord Jesus

Christ, and the Holy Spirit." ** But now let us hear how Irenaeus, who lived close to apostolic times, wrote concerning the Spirit in his book against heresies:

"The Apostle rightly calls carnal those who are unbridled and are carried away by their own lusts, having no desire for the Holy Spirit." In another passage he says:

"Let us beware that having no share in the divine Spirit, we fail to obtain the heavenly kingdom, since the Apostle said:

'flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God.' " For those who accept the authority of Eusebius of Caesarea on account of his extensive history, allow me to refer to $58 T Clem. 58.

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his discussion of polygamy among the ancients. In his preface to this work he invokes "the holy God of the prophets, the Giver of Light, through our Savior Jesus

Christ, with the Holy Spirit."

73.

We find Origen using the form of the doxology "with the Holy Spirit" in many of his commentaries on the psalms. His notions concerning the Spirit are not always sound, but in many passages he recognizes the force of long-established usage, and his words are consonant with true religion. In the sixth book of his Commentary on the Gospel according to John, if I am not mistaken,*' he clearly declares that the Holy Spirit is to be worshipped, using these words:

"The washing with water is a symbol of spiritual cleansing, when the filth of wickedness is washed away from the soul. Nevertheless, if a man submits himself to the Godhead of the adorable

Trinity, this washing will become the source and the fountain of graces for him, through the power of the invocation

(epiclesis). Again, in his commentary on the Epistle to the Romans, he says:

"The holy powers are able to reflect the Only-Begotten, and the divinity of the Holy

Spirit." See how the powerful force of tradition often compels men to express themselves in terms contrary to their own opinions. This form of the doxology was familiar even to Africanus the historian. In the fifth book of his history he says: "We who are acquainted with the meaning of prophecy, and are not ignorant of the grace of faith, offer thanks to the Father, who gave Jesus Christ, the Savior of all and our Lord, to us, His own creatures. Glory and majesty be to Him, with the Holy Spirit, unto all ages." There are other passages of dubious authenticity but whether they have been altered or not is difficult to tell, since the difference consists of only a single syllable.

859 Actually he is mistaken; it is the eighth book.

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However, my extensive quotes can be verified from the actual texts, and are safe from any dishonest manipulation.

Now some might say that my next piece of evidence is petty, but since I am accused of introducing novelties, I cannot omit it, because of its great antiquity: Our fathers thought that they should welcome the gift of evening light with something better than silence, so they gave thanks as soon as it appeared. We cannot say who composed these words of thanksgiving at the lighting of the lamps, but the people use these ancient words, and no one accuses them of blasphemy for singing "We praise Father, Son, and God's Holy Spirit." If you are familiar with the hymn of Athenogenes,*" which he left as a gift to his disciples as he went to his martyrdom by fire, then you know what the martyrs think concerning the Spirit. But of this I have said enough.

74.

Where shall we rank Gregory the Great and his words? ** Shall we not number with the apostles and prophets a man who walked in the same Spirit? He never strayed from the footsepts of the saints for a day in his life; he strictly fulfilled the duties of the Gospel without wavering. I say this: we sin against the truth if we do not number that soul in the household of God, since he shines as a radiant beacon in the Church of God. He cooperated with the Spirit and was given fearful power over demons; he received such grace for preaching "the obedience of faith among all the nations," *" that although when he arrived in Pontus he found only seventeen Christians, he soon brought all the people, whether in town or country, to the 86 Traditionally the Vesper hymn of the Byzantine rite: ®@c iAapov or "O Gladsome Light."

61 Gregory the Wonderworker, bishop of Neocaesarea, disciple of Origen.

363 Rom, 1:3.

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knowledge of God. By Christ's mighty Name he even commanded rivers to change their courses and once when some brothers were quarreling over a lake, each wishing to possess it for his own, he caused it to dry up. His predictions of future things were no less than those of the other prophets. To describe all his miracles in detail would take too long; by the working of the Spirit he was filled with a superabundance of grace, which manifested itself in such powerful signs and wonders that he was called a second Moses even by the enemies of the Church. A light seemed to shine in everything he accomplished through grace, whether by word or deed, reminding everyone of the invisible heavenly power which accompanied him. To this very day he is a source of great wonder to his countrymen, and his memory has not grown old with time, remaining as fresh in the churches as the green of spring. There has not been added a single practice, word, or sacramental rite to those he established for his church; in fact, they follow such a primitive usage that outsiders often think their services are incomplete. His successors permit no innovations, but administer the Churches in exactly the same way he did. Now one of Gregory's institutions is the doxology in the manner now contested, and his church preserves this usage as a tradition received from him; if you insist on proof, all you need do is make a short journey and hear it yourselves. My own predecessor Firmilian used this doxology; you can find it in his writings, and Meletius' contemporaries say that he most assuredly used it as well.

But why continue quoting ancient sources? Is not this one word a password in our own day, by which those who hold the true religion may be distinguished from those who do not? I once heard a certain Mesopotamian, a man experienced both in language and accurate knowledge, say that in his country it is not possible to say the doxology in any other way, even if one wishes to do so, since the grammatical rules of their language force them to use their

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equivalent of the conjunction "and." Our Cappadocian dialect is similar; perhaps the Spirit foresaw how useful this word would be, when he gave the gift of tongues to the disciples! What about the entire West, almost from Illyricum to the boundaries of the empire? Does it not prefer this word?

75.

How can I be an innovator, or a creator of new words, when I have listed as originators and champions of this word entire peoples and cities, custom older than anyone's memory, men who were pillars of the Church, distinguished in all knowledge, filled with the Spirit's power?

Despite all this, an array of enemies fights against us, and every city and village is full of slanderers, even in the remotest regions. These things cause sadness and pain for hearts that seek after peace, but those who patiently endure suffering for the faith will be greatly rewarded.

Besides all this, then, let the sword flash, let the axe be sharpened, let the fire burn fiercer than the furnace in Babylon, let every instrument of torture be set against us.

For me, nothing is more fearful than failing to fear the Lord's threats against those who blaspheme the Spirit.

Prudent readers will find in my words a satisfactory defense: I accept a word that is familiar and dear to the saints, confirmed by long usage. From the day when the Gospel was first preached even until now, it has been welcomed by the churches, and, most important of all, has been defined in conformity to righteousness and true religion. And what have we prepared for our defense on the great day of judgment? I will say that we were led to glorify the Spirit because the Lord Himself first honored

Him; He associated the Spirit with Himself and the Father when He gave us the baptismal formula. Secondly, it was through this very initiation that we were introduced to the knowledge of God. But most of all, it was the threat of punishment which kept us away from unworthy definitions

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

and demeaning opinions. As for our opponents, what will they have to say? What defense will they have for their blasphemy? They have neither shown reverence to the honor which the Lord paid to the Spirit, nor have they feared His threats. They are responsible for their own actions; they can change their minds if they wish. For my own part, I fervertly pray that the good God will make

His peace to reign in everyone's heart, so that these men who are swollen with pride and who bitterly rage against us may be calmed by the Spirit of gentleness and love.

But if they become utterly wild, may the Lord enable us to at least endure with patience everything we must suffer at their hands. At any rate, suffering for the faith is not painful for those who already bear in themselves the sentence of death; rather, it is our impatience to fight the battle that is difficult. An athlete does not complain much about getting wounded in the contest, but he would be in agony if he were not even admitted into the stadium.

But perhaps this is a time for silence, as wise Solomon wrote in Ecclesiastes. When life is tossed about by so violent a storm that the minds of everyone instructed in the word have been thrown into confusion and filled with the deceit of false reasoning, like an eye blinded by sand, when everyone is stunned by strange and terrible noises, when all the world is shaken and everything tottering to its fall, what use is it to cry to the wind?

CHAPTER 30. Description of the present conditions of the Churches.

76.

To what can I compare our present condition?

It is like a naval battle, kindled by old quarrels, fought by men who love war, who cultivate hatred for one another,

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and have long experience in naval warfare. Look at the fearful picture I am painting for you; see the rival fleets rushing against each other on both sides, and finally they converge in a burst of desperate fury. Imagine, if you will, the ships driven into confusion by a raging tempest, while thick darkness falls from the clouds and blackens the entire scene, so that signals cannot be recognized, and one can no longer distinguish between friend and foe. To add more details to this picture, imagine the sea swollen and whirling up from the deeps, while torrents of rain pour from the clouds and the terrible waves rise higher and higher. All four winds meet together and dash one fleet against the other. Meanwhile some of the combatants are betraying each other; some are deserting in the middle of the battle; while others at the same time are compelled, while the wind drives them on, to urge their boats forward against the enemy. The men become jealous of those in higher authority, and lusting for power among themselves, they split into factions and begin to slaughter each other.

Think of the confused and unintelligible din raging over the entire sea, from the howling winds, the splintering of ships, the boiling surf, the cries of the warriors as they give vent to their passions with every kind of noise, so that not a single word from the admiral or pilot can be heard. The disorder and confusion is beyond description, but the worst evil of all soon raises its head: once men despair for their lives, they claim license for every sort of wickedness. Suppose they are stricken with the incurable sickness of megalomania; then they will not cease their efforts to defeat one another even as their ships sink into the abyss.

77.

Now I ask you to turn from this fanciful description to the evil reality. When the Arian schism was first denounced as a sect opposed to the Church of God, did it not appear then to stand alone? But when the

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

enemy's policy against us was changed from one of long and bitter contention to open warfare, then, as everyone knows, the war was split into a myriad of factions, so that all men succumbed to irreconcilable hatred, either through individual suspicion or party spirit. What storm at sea was ever so savage as this tempest of the Churches?

It has moved every boundary established by the Fathers; every foundation, every established bulwark of doctrine has been shaken.

Everything still remaining afloat is shaken by unsound teaching and thrown back into the abyss. We attack one another; we are overthrown by one another.

If the enemy does not strike us first we are wounded by our comrade; if he is wounded and falls, he is trampled by his fellow soldier. Although we are united in our hatred of common foes, no sooner do they retreat, and we find enemies in each other. Who could even list all the casualties? Some have fallen in battle with the enemy; some have been treacherously betrayed by their allies; others are the victims of their leaders' incompetence.

Entire churches are dashed and shattered on the sunken reefs of subtle heresy, while other enemies of the Spirit of salvation have seized the helm and made shipwreck of the faith. The tumults devised by the princes of this world have brought about the downfall of the people with violence surpassing hurricane or tornado. A darkness full of gloom and misery has descended on the Churches: the lights of the world, established by God to enlighten the souls of the people, have been exiled.** The terror of universal destruction already hangs over us, yet they continue enjoying their rivalries, ignoring any sense of danger.

Private enmities are more important to these men that the struggle of an entire people; they prefer the glory of subduing their opponents to securing the common welfare,

368 St, Basil refers to the many bishops exiled under emperor Valens.

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and they love the immediate delights of worldly honor more than the rewards awaiting us in the age to come.

So all men alike, depending on how much power each one has, rush upon each other with murderous hands. They fight against each other with harsh words; they nearly fill the Church with the meaningless cries and unintelligible shouts of their incessant clamor. They continually pervert the teachings of true religion, sometimes by adding to them, and other times by reducing them. On the one hand are those who confuse the Persons and revert to Judaism; on the other are those who oppose the natures, and are swept away into Greek polytheism. Inspired scripture is powerless to mediate between these two parties, nor can apostolic tradition offer them terms of reconciliation. One honest word and your friendship with them is finished; one disagreement with their opinions is sufficient pretext for a quarrel. No oath is so effective for holding a conspiracy together as common fellowship in error. Every man is a theologian; it does not matter that his soul is covered with more blemishes than can be counted. The result is that these innovators find an abundance of men to join their factions. So ambitious, self-elected men divide the government of the Churches among themselves, and reject the authority of the Holy Spirit. The ordinances of the Gospel have been thrown into confusion everywhere for lack of discipline; the jostling for high positions is incredible, as every ambitious man tries to thrust himself into high office. The result of this lust for power is that wild anarchy prevails among the people; the exhortations of those in authority are rendered utterly void and unprofitable, since every man in his arrogant delusion thinks that it is more his business to give orders to others than to obey anyone himself.

78.

Since no human voice is powerful enough to be heard in such an uproar, I reckon that silence is more

ON THE HOLY SPIRIT

profitable than words. If the words of the Preacher are true: "The words of the wise are heard in quiet," *" then with the present state of affairs, any discussion of them at all is scarcely appropriate. Moreover, I am restrained by the prophet's words: "Therefore he who is prudent will keep silent in such a time; for it is an evil time," *" a time when some trip their neighbors, others kick a man already fallen, others applaud, but no one is sympathetic enough to lend a helping hand to the weary, even though the old law says "if you see the beast of one who hates you lying under its burden, you shall refrain from leaving him with it, but you shall help him to lift it up." ** This is certainly not the case now. Why not? The love of many has grown cold; concord among brothers is no more; the very name of unity is ignored; Christian compassion or sympathetic tears cannot be found anywhere. There is no one to welcome someone weak in faith,*" but mutual hatred blazes so fiercely among brothers that a neighbors' fall brings them more joy than their own household's success.

And just as a contagious disease spreads from the sick to the healthy during an epidemic, in these days we have become like everyone else: imitators of evil, carried away by this wicked rivalry possessing our souls. Those who judge the erring are merciless and bitter, while those judging the upright are unfair and hostile. This evil is so firmly rooted in us that we have become more brutish than the beasts: At least they herd together with their own kindred, but we reserve our most savage warfare for the members of our own household.

79.

These are the reasons I should have kept quiet, but love pulled me in the opposite direction, the love that is not self-seeking,*" but desires to conquer every obstacle

364 Eccl. 9:17.

Sco Bigs 2555:

368 Cf. TCor, 1335.

365 Amos 5:13.

367 Rom. 14:1.

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put in her way by time and circumstance. I learned from the example of the children in Babylon that when there is no one to support the cause of true religion, we must accomplish our duties alone. They sang a hymn to God from the midst of the flames, not thinking of the multitudes who rejected the truth, but content to have each other, though there were only three of them. Therefore the cloud of our enemies does not dismay us, but we place our trust in the Spirit's help, and boldly proclaim the truth. Otherwise, it would be utterly miserable that the Spirit is blasphemed and true religion is wrecked so easily by these men, while we, having such a mighty patron and protector, hesitate to defend a doctrine which has been maintained in unbroken sequence from the days of the fathers until now. The fervor of your sincere love and your quiet, serious disposition, also provided me with powerful encouragement. I know that you will refrain from divulging my words to all the world to see; not that they are not worth hearing, but to avoid casting pearls before swine.

Now my task is finished. If you find that what I have said is satisfactory, let it end our discussion of these matters.

If anything is unclear, do not hesitate to diligently seek an answer; you will add to your knowledge by asking questions while avoiding strife.

Either through me or through others the Lord will provide a full answer for any remaining questions, since He gives knowledge to those

He has chosen, by the Holy Spirit.

St. Basil the Great On the Holy Spirit St. Basil the Great wrote his treatise On the Holy Spirit during the closing phase of the Trinitarian controversies of the fourth century. Earlier the Arians had denied the full divinity of the Son. Now debate had turned to the Holy Spirit. Though without explicitly calling the Spirit

"God," St. Basil demonstrates that He, like the Son, is of one and the same nature with the Father, and that equal honor and worship therefore is due Him.

This classic exposition of trinitarian doctrine eloquently sets forth the distinction yet perpetual communion and conjunction of the divine Persons. At the same time it deals with the nature of theological language and with the theological significance of the Church's tradition of worship and proclamation. Its message, though specifically addressed to the fourth century, speaks to all ages.

Other classic patristic texts from St. Vladimir's Seminary Press include St. Athanasius' On the Incarnation,

St. Cyril of Jerusalem's On the Sacraments, St. John Chrysostom's On the Priesthood, and St. John of Damascus' On the Divine Images. Like St. Basil the Great's On the Holy S pirit, they demonstrate the continuing relevance of the Fathers for the Church's life and thought.

Cover design: June Magaziner St. Vladimir's Seminary PRESS

ISBN 0-913836-74-5

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