CHAPTER 3. How technical discussion of prepositions
ON THE HOLY SPIRIT
the Father as if this expression was His one special allotment; for God the Son they select the phrase "through whom," and for the Holy Spirit "in which," and they say that this assignment of prepositions must never be interchanged, in order that, as I have already said, one prepositional phrase is always made to indicate a corresponding nature. It is obvious that by quibbling over prepositions they try to maintain the force of their impious argument. By the expression "from whom" they wish to indicate the Creator; by "through whom" they mean an instrument of service, and "in which" they use to refer to time or place.
The holy Creator of all things is thus made into a mere instrument, and the Holy Spirit appears to furnish creation with nothing except time and place.
CHAPTER 3. How technical discussion of prepositions originated in pagan philosophy.
They have been led into this error, however, by their study of pagan writers, who apply the expressions
"from whom" and "through whom" to things which are by nature distinct.
These writers suppose that "from whom" refers to the matter from which something is made,' and "through whom" to the instrument which assists in its making. In addition to this (for a moment let us consider their entire argument, in order to expose its incompatibility with the truth and its inconsistency with their own teaching) those who study this vain philosophy, while they discuss
8St. Basil here refers to the four Aristotelian causes: formal, material, efficient, and final. (See the Posterior Analytics, Book 2,
Chi):
ST. BASIL THE GREAT
the many aspects of causality and attempt to appropriately categorize them, say that some causes are initial, some are co-operative or contributory, while others are indispensable. For each of these they use a separate preposition, so that the maker is referred to in one way, and the instrument in another. They say that the expression most suitable for the maker is "by whom;" for example, the chair is always produced by the carpenter. The instrument is described as the thing "through which" something is made; e.g. the chair is made "through" or "by means of" certain tools: the axe, the drill, etc. "From which" refers to the material used, which, in this case, is wood, while "according to which" is understood to mean the pattern followed by the workman, since he either predetermines a mental sketch and then uses his imagination, or else guides his work with a visible pattern already provided for him.
"Because of which," or "for the sake of which" they want to mean purpose or reason for existence; thus the chair exists for the sake of men.
"Jn which" indicates time and place. When was it made? In this age. Where? In this place. Time and place might seem to contribute nothing to what is being produced, but outside them it would be impossible to make anything, since things are caused within the framework of place and time. Our opponents have first studied and admired these vain and empty distinctions, and then transferred them to the simple and uncluttered doctrine of the Spirit, using them to belittle God the Word and to deny the divine Spirit. Pagan philosophers reserved the phrase "through or by means of which" to refer to lifeless tools or the most abject work, but now Christians bind the Master of all with prepositions, and are not ashamed to describe the Creator of the universe with language fit for a hammer or a saw.