become incarnate of the Holy Spirit and Mary, the Virgin and Mother of God, is one and not two; for we affirm that both His miracles, and the sufferings which He voluntarily endured in the flesh, are those of a single Person; for we do in no degree admit those who either make a division or a confusion, or introduce a phantom; inasmuch as His truly sinless incarnation from the Mother of God did not produce an addition of a Son, because the Holy Trinity continued a Trinity even when one member of the Trinity, God the Word, became incarnate. Knowing then that neither the holy orthodox churches in all parts, nor the priests highly beloved of God who are at their head, nor our own sovereignty, have allowed, or do allow, any other symbol or definition of faith than the before-mentioned holy lesson, we have united ourselves thereto without hesitation. And these things we write not as setting forth a new form of faith, but for your assurance; and every one who has held or holds any other opinion, either at the present or another time, whether at Chalcedon or in any synod whatever, we anathematize; and specially the before-mentioned Nestorius and Eutyches, and those who maintain their doctrines. Link yourselves, therefore, to the spiritual mother the Church, and in her enjoy the same communion with us, according to the aforesaid one and only definition of the faith, namely, that of the three hundred and eighteen holy Fathers. For your all-holy Mother, the Church, waits to embrace you as true children, and longs to hear your loved voice, so long withheld. Speed yourselves, therefore; for, by so doing, you will both draw towards yourselves the favour of our Master and Saviour and God, Jesus Christ, and be commended by our sovereignty.-The Greek Ecclesiastical Historians, vi. 136-9.

No. 236. The Creed of the Church in Persia,

February 486

From the Synod of Acacius, Patriarch of the East, 485-†96; ap. J B. Chabot, Synodicon Orientale, 302.

The faith of us all should be in one confession of one divine Nature in three perfect Qnumi; one true and eternal Trinity of Father, Son and Holy Spirit: the confession by

which heathenism is conquered and Judaism is rebuked. Further, concerning the Incarnation [lit. dispensation] of Christ, our faith ought to be in the confession of two Natures of Godhead and Manhood; and let no one of us venture to introduce mixture, confusion or commixture into the diversities of these two Natures, seeing that the Godhead remains unchanged in its own characteristics, and the Humanity in its own; and we join the diversities of the two natures in one majesty and adoration, because of the perfect and inseparable conjoining that existed between the Godhead and the Manhood.

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If any one thinks, or teaches others, that suffering or change can attach themselves to the Godhead of the Lord, or if he does not keep to the confession of perfect God and perfect Man in the unity of the Person (Parsopa) of our Redeemer, let him be anathema.-W. A. Wigram, The Assyrian Church, 269.

No. 237.-The Charity of Deogratias, Arch-
bishop of Carthage, 454-77

From Victor, Bishop of Vita, Historia persecutionis Africana provinciæ [486], i. §§ 24–6 (C.S.E.L. vii. 11 sq.).

[§ 24] After this it came to pass that, at the request of the Emperor Valentinian [III.], after a long and silent interval, a bishop of the name of Deogratias was ordained for the church of Carthage. If any one were to try bit by bit to enumerate the things that the Lord did by him, words would fail him before he could tell anything. No sooner had he been made bishop than, since our sins demanded it, Gaiseric, in the fifteenth year of his reign, captured Rome, that once noble and famous city; and, at the same time, brought captive from thence the riches of many kings, with their peoples.

[§ 25] When the multitude of captives reached the shores of Africa, the Vandals and Moors divided up the vast crowds of people; and, as is the way with barbarians, separated husbands from wives and children from parents. Immediately that man, so full of God and so dear to Him, set about to sell all the gold and silver vessels of service, and συναφεία.

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set them free from enslavement to the barbarians: in order that marriage might remain undefiled and children be restored to their parents. And since there were no places big enough to accommodate so large a multitude, he assigned two famous churches, the Basilica Fausti and the Basilica Novarum, furnishing them with beds and bedding, and arranging day by day how much each person should receive in proportion to his need.

[§ 26] And since many were in distress owing to their inexperience of a voyage by sea and to the cruelty of captivity, there was no small number of sick people among them. Like a devoted nurse, that sainted bishop went the round of them, every moment, with doctors and food; so that the condition of each was looked into, and every man's need supplied, in his presence. Not even at night did he take a rest from this work of mercy; but he kept on going from bed to bed, in his anxiety to know how each was doing. In fact, he gave himself up to the task so entirely as to spare neither his wearied limbs nor his poor old age.-K.

No. 238.--The Catholic Doctrine of Grace, 529 From the Council of Orange, July 3, 529 (Mansi, viii. 711-9).

(1) Whoever says that by the offence of the disobedience of Adam not the entire man, that is, in body and soul, was changed for the worse, but that the freedom of his soul remained uninjured, and his body only was subject to corruption, has been deceived by the error of Pelagius and opposes Scripture [Ezek. xviii. 20; Rom. vi. 16; 2 Pet. ii. 19].

(2) Whoever asserts that the transgression of Adam injured himself only, and not his offspring, or that death only of the body, which is the penalty of sin, but not also sin, which is the death of the soul passed by one man to the entire human race, wrongs God and contradicts the Apostle [Rom. v. 12].

(3) Whoever says that the grace of God can be bestowed in reply to human petition, but not that the grace brings it about so that it is asked for by us, contradicts Isaiah the prophet and the Apostle [Isa. lxv. 1; Rom. x. 20].

(4) Whoever contends that our will, to be set free from sin, may anticipate God's action, and shall not confess that it is brought about by the infusion of the Holy Spirit and His operation in us that we wish to be set free, resists that same Holy Spirit speaking through Solomon: "The will is prepared by the Lord" [Prov. viii. 35, LXX.] and the Apostle [Phil. ii. 13].

(5) Whoever says the increase, as also the beginning, of faith and the desire of believing by which we believe in Him who justifies the impious and we come to the birth of holy Baptism, is not by the free gift of grace, that is, by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit turning our will from unbelief to belief, from impiety to piety, but belongs naturally to us, is declared an adversary of the Apostolic preaching [Phil. i. 6; Ephes. ii. 8]. For they say that faith by which we believe in God is natural, and they declare that all those who are strangers to the Church of Christ in some way are believing.

(6) Whoever says that to us who, without the grace of God, believe, will, desire, attempt, struggle for, watch, strive for, demand, ask, knock, mercy is divinely bestowed, and does not rather confess that it is brought about by the infusion and inspiration of the Holy Spirit in us that believe, will, and do all these things as we ought, and annexes the help of grace to human humility and obedience, and does not admit that it is the gift of that same grace that we are obedient and humble, opposes the Apostle [1 Cor. iv. 7].

(7) Whoever asserts that by the force of nature we can rightly think or choose anything good which pertains to eternal life, or be saved, that is, assent to the evangelical preaching, without the illumination of the Holy Spirit who gives to all grace to assent to and believe the truth, is deceived by an heretical spirit, not understanding the voice. of the Lord [John xv. 5] and of the Apostle [2 Cor. iii. 5].

(8) Whoever asserts that some by mercy, others by freewill, which in all who have been born since the transgression of the first man, is evidently corrupt, is proved an alien from the faith. For he asserts that the free-will of all has not been weakened by the sin of the first man, or he evidently thinks that it has been so injured that some, however, are able without the revelation of God to attain

by their own power to the mystery of eternal salvation. Because the Lord Himself shows how false this is, who declares that not some but no one was able to come to Him unless the Father drew him [John vi. 4], and said so to Peter [Matt. xvi. 17] and the Apostle [1 Cor. xii. 13].1

And so according to the above sentences of the Holy Scriptures and definitions of ancient Fathers, by God's aid, we believe that we ought to believe and teach :

That by the sin of the first man, free-will was so turned aside and weakened that afterward no one is able to love God as he ought, or believe in God, or do anything for God, which is good, except the grace of the divine mercy comes first to [præveniret] him [Phil. i. 6, 29; Ephes. ii. 8 ; 1 Cor. iv. 7, vii. 25; James i. 17; John iii. 27].

We also believe this to be according to the Catholic Faith that grace having been received in Baptism, all who have been baptized can and ought, by the aid and support of Christ, to perform those things which belong to the salvation of the soul, if they labour faithfully.

But not only do we not believe that some have been predestinated to evil by the divine power, but also, if there are any who wish to believe so evil a thing, we say to them, with all detestation, anathema.

Also this we profitably confess and believe, that in every good we do not begin and afterward are assisted by the mercy of God, but without any good desert preceding, He first inspires in us faith and love in Him, so that we both faithfully seek the sacrament of Baptism, and after Baptism with His help are able to perform those things which are pleasing to Him. Whence it is most certainly to be believed that in the case of that thief, whom the Lord called to the fatherland of paradise, and Cornelius the Centurion, to

1 Here follow seventeen [9-25] "articles in less formal style, designed to exhibit the chief aspects of the one great idea, that man's spiritual activity depends throughout on grace, as originating, assisting and sustaining it to the end."-W. Bright, Anti-Pelagian Treatises of St. Augustine, lxv.

Of these the best known is No. 12: "God loves us the way to become by His gift, not for what we From Aug., De Trinitate, I. x. § 21 (Op. viii.

for what we are on are by our merit." 763 F.).