Tome to the Antiochenes

1The Tome of Athanasius, Archbishop of Alexandria, to the Antiochenes. To our beloved and most longed-for fellow ministers Eusebius, Lucifer, Asterius, Cymatius, and Anatolius: Athanasius and the bishops who happened to be present in Alexandria from Italy and Arabia, Egypt and Libya—Eusebius, Asterius, Gaius, Agathos, Ammonius, Agathodaemon, Dracontius, Adelphius, Hermaeon, Marcus, Theodore, Andreas, Paphnutius, another Marcus, Zoilus, Menas, George, Lucius, Macarius, and the rest—send abundant greetings in Christ.

We are persuaded that, since you are ministers of God and good stewards, you are capable of managing all the affairs of the Church. But since word has reached us that many who were formerly divided from us through love of strife now wish to make peace, and many who have withdrawn from association with the Arians now claim fellowship with us, we considered it necessary to write to your goodness the very things that we and our beloved Eusebius and Asterius have written. We ourselves, beloved and truly most longed-for fellow ministers, rejoice at such news, and we pray that if anyone still remains far from us, and if anyone still appears to be gathering with the Arians, that person may leap away from their madness, so that all people everywhere may at last say, "One Lord, one faith" (Ephesians 4:5). For what is so "good," as the Psalmist said, or what is "pleasant," except "for brothers to dwell together in unity" (Psalm 133:1)? Our house is the Church, and our mind should be the same. For in this way we believe that the Lord will dwell with us, as he says, "I will dwell in them and walk among them" (2 Corinthians 6:16), and, "Here I will dwell, for I have chosen her" (Psalm 132:14). And where is "here," except where one faith and true piety are proclaimed?

We from Egypt truly wished, together with our beloved brothers Eusebius and Asterius, to come for many reasons, but especially for this one: so that we might embrace your disposition and together enjoy such peace and harmony. But since, as we made clear in our other letters—and you can learn this from our fellow ministers themselves—ecclesiastical needs hold us back, we were grieved. Nevertheless, we asked our fellow ministers Eusebius and Asterius to come to you in our place. And thanks be to their piety, because although they could have hurried to their own dioceses, they preferred the journey to you above all things on account of the pressing ecclesiastical need. Since they agreed, we consoled ourselves with this thought: that while they and you are there, we consider all of ourselves to be present with you.

Call to yourselves, then, all who wish to make peace with us—especially those who gather in the Old Church, and also those who are turning away from the Arians. Receive them as fathers receive sons, welcome them as teachers and guardians, and join them to our beloved ones around Paulinus. Require nothing more from them than this: that they condemn the Arian heresy, confess the faith that was confessed by the holy Fathers at Nicaea, and condemn also those who say that the Holy Spirit is a creature and divided from the being of Christ.

2For this is truly to leap away from the abominable heresy of the Arians: not to divide the holy Trinity, and to say that any part of it is a creature. Those who pretend to name the faith confessed at Nicaea but dare to blaspheme against the Holy Spirit do nothing more than deny the Arian heresy in words while holding to it in their minds. Let the impiety of Sabellius and Paul of Samosata be condemned by all, and the madness of Valentinus and Basilides, and the derangement of the Manichaeans. For when these things are done, every evil suspicion will be removed from all, and the faith of the catholic Church alone will be shown to be pure.

We believe that no one, neither you nor anyone else, is ignorant that we and those who have always shared communion with us hold this faith. But since we rejoice with those who wish to be joined to us—with all of them, and especially with those who gather in the Old Church—we glorified the Lord especially, as in all things, and for the good purpose of these people. We urge you to bring about their unity on these terms, and nothing more than these, as we said before: neither require anything more from those who gather in the Old Church, nor let those around Paulinus put forward anything else or anything beyond what was decided at Nicaea.

And as for the document rumored by some to have been composed about the faith at the Council of Sardica, forbid it to be read or produced at all. For the council decreed no such thing. Some did request that a statement about the faith be written, on the grounds that the Council of Nicaea was deficient, and they attempted this rashly. But the holy council that gathered at Sardica was indignant, and it decreed that nothing further should be written about the faith, but that the faith confessed by the Fathers at Nicaea should suffice, because it lacks nothing and is full of piety, and because a second faith should not be set forth, lest the one written at Nicaea be thought incomplete, and a pretext be given to those who wish to write and decree about the faith repeatedly. Therefore, if anyone puts forward this document or another one, stop such people, and rather persuade them to be at peace. For we agreed that there was nothing more in these matters than mere love of contention.

As for those whom some criticized for speaking of three persons, because the terms were unwritten and therefore suspect, we asked that nothing more be required beyond the confession of Nicaea. Nevertheless, because of the contention, we examined them: did they perhaps say, as the Arians say, that the persons are alienated and estranged from one another, foreign in being to each other, and each person divided by itself, as are the other creatures and those born from human beings? Or did they speak of different beings, as gold, silver, or bronze differ? Or, as other heretics speak of three principles and three gods, did these men think that way and speak of three persons? They affirmed that they neither said nor ever thought such things.

When we asked them, 'How then do you say these things? Or why do you use such terms at all?' they answered: 'Because we believe in a holy Trinity, not a Trinity in name only, but one that truly exists and subsists—a Father who truly is and subsists, a Son who truly is same in being and subsists, and a Holy Spirit who subsists and exists; this we know.' They added that they had never spoken of three gods or three principles, nor did they at all tolerate those who say or think such things, but that they knew a holy Trinity, one divinity, and one principle, and that the Son is same in being with the Father, as the Fathers said, and that the Holy Spirit was not a creature, nor foreign, but proper to and inseparable from the being of the Son and of the Father.

3After accepting their explanation of these words and their defense, we examined those whom they had accused of saying one person, to see whether they were thinking as Sabellius does and saying this to do away with the Son and the Holy Spirit, or as though the Son were without being or the Holy Spirit without person. They too affirmed that they had never said this or thought this way. “We say person,” they said, “because we think that saying person and saying being are the same thing. We think one because the Son is from the being of the Father and because of the sameness of nature. For we believe that there is one divinity and one nature of that divinity, and not one nature of the Father and a different, foreign nature of the Son and of the Holy Spirit.” Indeed, those who had been accused of saying three persons also agreed with them, and those who had said one being interpreted and accepted what the others said. Both sides condemned Arius as an enemy of Christ, and Sabellius and Paul of Samosata as impious, and Valentinus and Basilides as strangers to the truth, and Mani as an inventor of evils. By the grace of God, after these explanations, they all agree together that the faith confessed by the Fathers at Nicaea is better and more precise than such words, and that from now on they are content with and use its language.

But since some also seemed to be quarreling with one another about the plan of salvation of the Savior according to the flesh, we examined both groups about this as well, and what the one group confessed, the other also agreed to: that the Word of the Lord did not come to dwell in a holy man at the end of the ages as he came to the prophets, but the Word himself became flesh (John 1:14). And being in the form of God, he took the form of a servant (Philippians 2:6-7), and from Mary he became human according to the flesh for us. In this way the human race is completely and wholly freed from sin in him, made alive from the dead, and brought into the kingdom of heaven. For they also confessed this: that the Savior did not have a body without a soul, without sensation, or without understanding. For it was not possible, when the Lord became human for us, that his body should be without understanding, nor was salvation only of the body, but also of the soul, in the Word himself. Being truly Son of God, he also became son of man; and being the only Son of God, the same one also became firstborn among many brothers. Therefore there was not one Son of God before Abraham and another after Abraham; nor was there one who raised Lazarus and another who asked about him. The same one spoke in human fashion when he said, “Where does Lazarus lie?” (John 11:34), and raised him in divine fashion. The same one spat bodily as a man, and in divine fashion as Son of God opened the eyes of the man blind from birth (John 9:1). And he suffered in the flesh, as Peter said (1 Peter 4:1), and in divine fashion opened the tombs and raised the dead.

4From these things, then, they affirmed that they understand everything in the Gospel in this way, and that they hold the same mind about the incarnation and the Word's becoming human. Since these things have been confessed in this way, we urge you: do not hastily condemn those who confess and interpret the words they use in this manner, and do not reject them, but rather receive them as people making peace and making a defense. But those who are unwilling to confess and explain the words in this way, hinder them and put them to shame, as people suspected of unsound thinking. And not tolerating these, counsel also those who interpret and think rightly to examine one another no further and to quarrel over words for no useful purpose, nor to fight over such words, but to agree in the mind of godliness. For those who do not think in this way, but only contend over such little words and seek beyond what was written at Nicaea, do nothing other than give their neighbor turbid confusion to drink, as people who begrudge peace and love divisions. But you, as good people and faithful servants and stewards of the Lord, stop and hinder the things that cause scandal and astonishment, and prefer above all such peace, since the faith is sound. Perhaps the Lord will have mercy on us and join together what has been divided, and when there is one flock, we will all again have one leader, our Lord Jesus Christ. We, even though nothing more should be sought than the Council of Nicaea, nor should words from contentiousness be tolerated, nevertheless for the sake of peace and so as not to reject those who wish to believe rightly, we examined these things and briefly dictated what they confessed—we who remained in Alexandria, together with our fellow ministers Asterius and Eusebius; for most of us were away in our own districts. But you, again, in common where you are accustomed to gather, read these things, and there deem it right to call everyone. For it is right that the letter be read there first, and that those who wish and claim peace be joined there; and then, when they have been joined, wherever it pleases all the peoples, with your kindness present, let the assemblies be held there, and let the Lord be glorified in common by all. The brothers with me greet you. I pray that you fare well and remember us in the Lord. I, Athanasius; likewise the other bishops who gathered signed. And those sent from Lucifer, bishop of the island of Sardinia, were two deacons, Herennius and Agapetus; and from Paulinus, Maximus and Calemerus, also deacons. There were also present some monks of Apollinarius the bishop, sent by him for this purpose. Each of the aforementioned bishops to whom the letter was written is: Eusebius of the city of Vercelli in Gaul, Lucifer of the island of Sardinia, Asterius of Petra in Arabia, Cymatius of Paltus in Coele Syria, Anatolius of Euboea. Those who sent the letter were Pope Athanasius and those present with him in Alexandria, namely Eusebius and Asterius; and the rest: Gaius of Paratonium in nearby Libya, Agathos of Phragonis and part of Elearchia of Egypt; Ammonius of Pachnemounis and the rest of the part of Elearchia, Agathodaemon of Schedia and Menelaites; Dracontius of lesser Hermopolis, Adelphius of Onouphis of Lychnon, Hermion of Tanis, Marcus of Zygri in nearby Libya, Theodore of Athribis, Andreas of Arsinoites, Paphnutius of Sais, Marcus of Philae, Zoilus of Andros, Menas of Antiphron.

5Eusebius also subscribed to these things in Latin, and this is the translation: “I, Eusebius, bishop, with the precision that is yours, which was agreed upon by both parties as they composed it together concerning the persons, have also myself assented. Moreover, concerning the incarnation of our Savior, I have also given my assurance according to the style of the letter: that the Son of God also became man, taking up all things without sin, such as our old humanity was constituted. And since it is said abroad that the Sardican document, to avoid seeming to set forth anything beyond the faith at Nicaea, should be set aside, I also assent, that the Nicene faith not seem to be excluded by this, and that the document is not to be brought forward. I pray that you may be well in the Lord.”

I, Asterius, concur with what has been written above, and I pray that you may be well in the Lord.

And after this tome was sent from Alexandria, signed in this way by those mentioned above, after these things they themselves also subscribed: “I, Paulinus, think thus, as I received from the Fathers: the Father perfect, being and subsisting; the Son perfect, being and subsisting; and the Holy Spirit perfect, being and subsisting. Therefore I also accept the interpretation written above concerning the three persons and the one person, that is, being, and those who think thus. For it is pious to think and confess the Holy Trinity in one divinity. And concerning the incarnation of the Word of the Father that took place for our sake, I think thus, as it is written: according to John, the Word became flesh (John 1:14). Not according to the most impious ones who say that he underwent change, but that he became man for our sake, born of the holy Virgin Mary and the Holy Spirit. For the Savior did not have a body without soul, without feeling, or without mind. For it was not possible, when the Lord became man for our sake, that his body should be without mind. Therefore I condemn those who reject the faith confessed at Nicaea and do not say that the Son is from the being of the Father and same in being with the Father. I condemn those who say that the Holy Spirit is a creature made through the Son. And further I condemn Sabellius and Photinus and every heresy, standing with the faith of Nicaea and with all those written above. I pray that you may be well in the Lord. I, Carterius.”