(From the letter of Justinian to Menas: "For this reason man also became Christ, having attained it (by his) virtues, as the prophet testifies; saying, "Thou hast loved righteousness, and hast hated iniquity; therefore have I anointed Thee, O God, Thy God with the oil of joy more than Thy fellow-partakers" (Psalm 44:8). It was fitting that He Who is in no way separable from the Only-begotten should (always) abide with the Only-begotten and be glorified together with Him").

The perfection of love and the sincerity of the acquired affection made this unity with God inseparable, so that the reception of this soul (the Son of God) was not accidental or illusory, but was granted to it dignity because of its virtues. That this is so, listen to the prophet who says of this soul: "Thou hast loved righteousness, and hast hated iniquity; therefore have I anointed Thee, O God, Thy God with the oil of joy more than Thy fellow-partakers" (Psalm 44:8). Thus, He is anointed with the oil of joy, i.e. the soul of Christ, together with the Word of God, becomes Christ – as a reward for love. Anointing with the oil of joy means nothing else than being filled with the Holy Spirit; but the words "more partakers" show that the grace of the Spirit was not given to her, as the prophets did, but that the substantial fullness of the very word of God was present in her, as the Apostle said: "In Him dwelleth all the fullness of the Godhead bodily" (Col. 2:9). Finally, for the same reason, the prophet not only said: "Thou didst love righteousness," but also added: "and hated iniquity," since to hate iniquity means what the Scriptures say about Him: "He did not sin, and there was no deceit in His mouth" (Isaiah 53:9) and again: "He was tempted like us in all things, except sin" (Hebrews 4:15). And the Lord Himself says: "Who of you shall clothe Me for sin?" (John 8:46, old, ed.). And again He Himself says of Himself: "The prince of this world is coming, and in Me he has nothing" (John 14:30). All this shows that there was no sinful feeling in Him. Wishing to make this clearer, namely that the sinful feeling never entered Him, the prophet says: "Before a child is able to say, 'My father, my mother, reject evil' (Isaiah 8:4; Isaiah 7:16).

The following difficulty may arise to some: we have shown above that in Christ there is a rational soul; but in all our arguments we have often proved that the nature of souls is capable of good and evil. This difficulty is explained as follows. There can be no doubt that the nature of that soul was the same as that of all souls; otherwise, if it were not truly a soul, it could not be called a soul. But since the power of choice between good and evil is inherent in all (souls), this soul, which belongs to Christ, has so loved righteousness, that in consequence of the greatness of love it has adhered to it invariably and inseparably, so that the strength of the disposition, the immeasurable power of feeling, the inextinguishable fervor of love have cut off (from it) all thought of seduction and change, and that which was formerly free, as a result of prolonged exercise, turned into nature. Thus, it must be believed that in Christ there was a human and rational soul, and at the same time it must be thought that this soul had no disposition or opportunity for sin.

But for the fullest explanation of the matter, it seems not superfluous to make use of some semblance, although in so lofty and so difficult a question it is impossible to find many suitable examples. However, without any prejudice, we will present the following example. Iron metal can perceive both cold and heat. Suppose, then, that a quantity of iron always lies in the fire, and that with all its pores and all its sinews it receives fire, everything has become fire. If fire is never separated from this iron, and it is not separated from fire, shall we say that this piece of iron, which by nature is certainly iron, being in fire and constantly burning, can ever receive cold? On the contrary, we say, and this is more true, that the whole (of this piece of iron) has become fire, because in it there is nothing but fire, as we often observe with (our) eyes in furnaces, and if anyone tries to touch or feel (it), he will feel the power of fire, and not of iron. In the same way, that soul is like iron in fire, always in the Word, always in Wisdom, always in God, and therefore everything it does, feels, thinks, is God. That is why this soul cannot be called seducing and changeable: it has received immutability as a result of a continuous and ardent union with the Word of God. Of course, a certain warmth of the Word of God descends on all the saints, too: but in this soul the Divine fire itself has essentially rested, from which a certain warmth emanates on the others. For the words "Thy God has anointed Thee, O God, with the oil of joy more than Thy fellow-partakers" show that that soul is anointed differently with the oil of joy, i.e., with the Word of God and Wisdom, and that its partakers, i.e., the holy prophets and apostles, are anointed differently. These, as they say, walked only in the fragrance of the fragrance of God, and the soul of Christ was the vessel of the fragrance itself, from the fragrance of which, through participation in it, worthy people became prophets and apostles. The substance of incense is one thing, and its smell is another; in the same way, Christ is one thing, and His partakers are another. And just as the very vessel that contains the substance of the incense can in no way receive any stench, while those who partake of its smell, if they are more or less removed from its fragrance, can receive the stench: so Christ, being the very vessel in which the substance of the incense was, could not receive the foul smell; but His partners will be the more capable of perceiving the smell, the closer they are to the vessel.

I think that Jeremiah the prophet, understanding exactly what the nature of the Wisdom of God is in Him and what is the nature that He took on for the salvation of the world, said: "The breath of our life, the anointed of the Lord, is caught in their pits, the one of whom we spoke: under His shadow we will dwell among the nations" (Lamentations 4:20). The shadow of our body is inseparable from the body and unswervingly reproduces all the movements and actions of the body. In this sense, I think, the prophet, wishing to show the work and movement of the soul of Christ, which was inseparably inherent in it and carried out everything in accordance with the movement and will of Christ, called this soul a shadow of Christ the Lord, in which we can live among the nations, because in the mystery of this reception (of the Word of God by the soul) there live nations who attain salvation by imitating this soul through faith. The same, I think, is shown by David, saying: "Remember, O Lord, the reproach (of mine), which reproached (me) for the change of Thy Christ" (Psalm 88:51-52 Old Ed.). Does not Paul mean the same when he says: "Your life is hidden with Christ in God" (Col. 3:3). And in another place he says: "You seek proof of whether Christ speaks in me" (2 Corinthians 13:3). This means that Christ, according to him, is now hidden in God. In this saying we can point out the same meaning that, as we said above, is contained in the words of the prophet about the shadow of Christ; or perhaps it transcends the understanding of the human mind. In the Holy Scriptures we find many other sayings about the meaning of the shadow. Such, for example, are the words of Gabriel to Mary in the Gospel of Luke: "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you" (Luke 1:35). Likewise, the Apostle speaks of the law that those who are circumcised in the flesh serve "the image and shadow of the things of heaven" (Hebrews 8:5). And in another place it says: "Our days are a shadow on earth" (Job 8:9). If, then, the law, which is a shadow on earth, and we live among the nations in the shadow of Christ, then we must consider whether the truth of all these shadows is not known in that revelation, when all the saints are vouchsafed to behold the glory of God, and also the causes and truth of things, no longer through a mirror, nor divination, but face to face. Having already received the pledge of this truth through the Holy Spirit, the Apostle said: "If we knew Christ according to the flesh, we now know him no more" (2 Corinthians 5:16). And so, this is what we could imagine when we discuss at the present time such difficult subjects, i.e., the Incarnation and the Divinity of Christ. If anyone can find anything better and confirm his words with more obvious proofs from the Holy Scriptures, then surely he must accept these latter rather than ours.

Chapter Seven

About the Holy Spirit

After those first discourses on the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit, which were offered at the request of the work, at the beginning of the work, it seemed necessary for us to repeat again and show that one and the same God is both the Creator of the world and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, that is, that one and the same God of the law and the prophets, as well as of the Gospels. Then it was necessary to show with regard to Christ that it was he who was represented above by the Word and Wisdom of God who became man. It remains, as briefly as possible, to repeat also about the Holy Spirit. And so, now is the time, to the best of our ability, to say a little about the Holy Spirit, Whom our Lord and Savior in the Gospel of John called the Comforter (2 Corinthians 14:26). As God Himself is one and the same, and Christ is one and the same, so is the Holy Spirit, Who was in both the prophets and the apostles, i.e. both in those people who believed in God even before the coming of Christ, and in those who ran to God through Christ. We have heard that heretics have dared to speak of two gods and two Christs, but we do not know that anyone ever preached about two Holy Spirits. And indeed, how could they confirm this by the Holy Scriptures, or what difference could they point out between one Holy Spirit and another, if any definition or description of the Holy Spirit can be found at all? In fact, let us assume with Marcion or Valentinus that it is possible to introduce differences in the Godhead and to depict the nature of the good in a different way, and the nature of the just in a different way: but what (both heretics) will invent and what basis will he find to prove the difference between the Holy Spirit? I think they can find nothing to prove any difference.

For our part, we think that in the Holy Spirit, as well as in the Wisdom of God and in the Word of God, every rational creature participates, without any distinction. However, I see that the predominant descent of the Holy Spirit to people is revealed after Christ's ascension into heaven more than before His coming. In the past, the gift of the Holy Spirit was given only to the prophets and to a few of the people, if anyone deserved it. After the coming of the Saviour, as it is written, what was said in the book of the prophet Joel was fulfilled, which would happen in the last days: "I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh, and they will prophesy" (Joel 2:28), and this, of course, is equivalent to the following words: "All nations shall serve Him" (Psalm 71:11). Thus, together with many others, through the grace of the Holy Spirit, the majestic (gift) is also revealed, that before Christ only a few, i.e. the prophets themselves, and hardly one of the whole people, could rise above the bodily understanding of the prophetic writings or the law of Moses, and comprehend in the law or the prophets something more, namely, a certain spiritual meaning; but now there is an innumerable multitude of believers, who, although not all are able to reveal the spiritual meaning in order and clearly, nevertheless all have the conviction that they should not understand in the bodily sense either circumcision, or the Sabbath rest, or the shedding of the blood of cattle, or the story that God gave instructions to Moses regarding all these things. And this understanding is given to everyone without a doubt, by the power of the Holy Spirit.

There are many concepts about Christ. He is, of course, Wisdom, but He does not really produce and sustain wisdom in all, but only in those who take care of wisdom themselves, just as a physician does not act as a physician towards all, but only towards those who, conscious of their illness, have recourse to His mercy in order to gain health. In the same way, I think of the Holy Spirit, in whom are all kinds of gifts. In fact, to some the Holy Spirit gives the word of wisdom, to others the word of knowledge, to others faith (1 Cor. 12:8), and so for everyone who is able to receive the Holy Spirit, He himself becomes what He is or is known in the respect of what and in what relation the person who deserves to participate in Him needs. Some, however, hearing that the Holy Spirit is called the Comforter in the Gospel, but not paying attention to these divisions or differences, and not judging for what deed or action He is called the Comforter, equated Him, I don't even know what base spirits, and tried to stir up the churches of Christ, so that they caused no small disagreements between the brethren. Meanwhile, the Gospel ascribes to Him such greatness and authority that it says that the apostles could not accept what the Savior wanted to teach them except after the coming of the Holy Spirit, Who, pouring into their souls, could enlighten them regarding the knowledge and faith in the Trinity. They, on account of the inexperience of their minds, are not only unable to expound consistently what constitutes the truth, but they cannot even confine their attention to what we say; therefore, thinking unworthy things about His Divinity, they gave themselves over to errors and deceptions, rather deceived by the seducer spirit than taught by the instructions of the Holy Spirit, as the Apostle says: "heeding seducing spirits and doctrines of demons," "forbidding to marry," to the destruction and fall of many, and needlessly "to depart from the brashen (Old. Ed.)" in order to seduce the souls of the innocent with the vanity of the strictest abstinence (1 Tim. 4:1-3).