Fragments · §17

Letter to Julius regarding false accusations

He is having sat down at the right hand of the Father. He says that he has made this by composing one single treatise for the purpose of knowing God. Greetings to the most blessed co-celebrant Julius from Marcellus in Christ.

Because certain ones, having been previously convicted of not believing correctly—whom I refuted at the Council of Nicaea—dared to write to your piety against me, striving to transfer their own guilt onto me as if I were not thinking correctly even ecclesiastically, I deemed it necessary to respond by reminding you, so that you might send those who wrote against me to be refuted by me on both sides, since also what they have written against me turns out to be false, and that even now they persist in their former plan and have dared to be terrible both against the churches of God and against us who preside over them.

Since, therefore, they were not willing to respond, having sent your presbyters to them, and since I have completed this in Rome for a total of three years and one month, I deemed it necessary, as I am about to depart from here, to write my faith to you with all truth, having written it with my own hand, to hand it over to you, which I learned both from the divine Scriptures and from the bad things said by them, and to remind you, so that you may know those who wish to use the truth to hide it for the purpose of deceiving those who listen to the words.

For they say that the word of the Pantokrator God is not one's own and true...

Greek

ἀναδησάμενον ἐν δεξιᾷ τοῦ πατρὸς καθέζεσθαι. 128 (ἕν τι ... σύγγραμμα συντάξας τοῦτό φησιν πεποιηκέναι) διὰ τὸ ἕνα γνωρίζειν θεόν. 129 Τῷ μακαριωτάτῳ συλλειτουργῷ Ἰουλίῳ Μάρκελλος ἐν Χριστῷ χαίρειν. Ἐπειδή τινες τῶν καταγνωσθέντων πρότερον ἐπὶ τῷ μὴ ὀρθῶς πιστεύειν, οὓς ἐγὼ ἐν τῇ κατὰ Νίκαιαν συνόδῳ διήλεγξα, κατ' ἐμοῦ γράψαι τῇ θεοσεβείᾳ σου ἐτόλμησαν ὡς ἂν ἐμοῦ μὴ ὀρθῶς μηδὲ ἐκκλησιαστικῶς φρονοῦντος, τὸ ἑαυτῶν ἔγκλημα εἰς ἐμὲ μετατεθῆναι σπουδάζοντες, τούτου ἕνεκεν ἀναγκαῖον ἡγησάμην ἀπαντήσας εἰς τὴν Ῥώμην ὑπομνῆσαί σε, ἵνα τοὺς κατ' ἐμοῦ γράψαντας μεταστείλῃ ὑπὲρ τοῦ ἀπαντήσαντας αὐτοὺς ἐπ' ἀμφοτέροις ἐλεγχθῆναι ὑπ' ἐμοῦ, ὅτι τε καὶ ἃ γεγράφασι κατ' ἐμοῦ ψευδῆ ὄντα τυγχάνει, καὶ ὅτι ἔτι καὶ νῦν ἐπιμένουσι τῇ ἑαυτῶν προτέρᾳ πλάνῃ καὶ δεινὰ κατά τε τῶν τοῦ θεοῦ ἐκκλησιῶν καὶ ἡμῶν τῶν προεστώτων αὐτῶν τετολμήκασιν. ἐπεὶ τοίνυν ἀπαντῆσαι οὐκ ἠβουλήθησαν ἀποστείλαντός σου πρεσβυτέρους πρὸς αὐτούς, καὶ ταῦτα ἐμοῦ ἐνιαυτὸν καὶ τρεῖς ὅλους μῆνας ἐν τῇ Ῥώμῃ πεποιηκότος, ἀναγκαῖον ἡγησάμην, μέλλων ἐντεῦθεν ἐξιέναι, ἔγγραφόν σοι τὴν ἐμαυτοῦ πίστιν μετὰ πάσης ἀληθείας τῇ ἐμαυτοῦ χειρὶ γράψας ἐπιδοῦναι ἣν ἔμαθον ἔκ τε τῶν θείων γραφῶν ἐδιδάχθην, καὶ τῶν κακῶς ὑπ' αὐτῶν λεγομένων ὑπομνῆσαί σε, ἵνα γνῷς οἷς χρώμενοι πρὸς ἀπάτην τῶν ἀκουόντων λόγοις τὴν ἀλήθειαν κρύπτειν βούλονται. φασὶ γὰρ μὴ ἴδιον καὶ ἀληθινὸν λόγον εἶναι τοῦ παντοκράτορος θεοῦ

About this text

Deposed in the East, cleared in Rome: fragments of the bishop who fought Arianism hardest.

Original English Translation — new OET from PG Greek.

Catalogue & scope

Khazarzar scan

Witnesses

  • Copy-text PG (Khazarzar) (Greek)

This is an AI-assisted study translation. Source fidelity and completeness have not been independently certified. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.