ΛΟΓΟΣ ΛΗʹ. Εἰς τὰ Θεοφάνια, εἴτουν Γενέθλια τοῦ Σωτῆρος.

 Αʹ. Χριστὸς γεννᾶται, δοξάσατε: Χριστὸς ἐξ οὐρανῶν, ἀπαντήσατε: Χριστὸς ἐπὶ γῆς, ὑψώθητε. Ἄ|σατε τῷ Κυρίῳ, πᾶσα ἡ γῆ: καὶ, ἵν' ἀμφότερα συνελὼν εἴπω,

 Βʹ. Πάλιν τὸ σκότος λύεται, πάλιν τὸ φῶς ὑφίσταται, πάλιν Αἴγυπτος σκότῳ κολάζεται, πάλιν Ἰσραὴλ στύλῳ φωτίζεται. Ὁ λαὸς, ὁ καθήμενος ἐν σκότει τῆς ἀγ

 Γʹ. Ταῦτα μὲν ὕστερον. Τὰ δὲ νῦν Θεοφάνια, ἡ πανήγυρις, εἴτουν Γενέθλια: λέγεται γὰρ ἀμφότερα, δύο κειμένων προσηγοριῶν ἑνὶ πράγματι. Ἐφάνη γὰρ Θεὸς ἀ

 Δʹ. Τοῦτό ἐστιν ἡμῖν ἡ πανήγυρις, τοῦτο ἑορτάζομεν σήμερον, ἐπιδημίαν Θεοῦ πρὸς ἀνθρώπους, ἵνα πρὸς Θεὸν ἐνδημήσωμεν, ἢ ἐπανέλθωμεν (οὕτω γὰρ εἰπεῖν ο

 Εʹ. Ἔσται δὲ τοῦτο πῶς Μὴ πρόθυρα στεφανώσωμεν, μὴ χοροὺς συστησώμεθα, μὴ κοσμήσωμεν ἀγυιὰς, μὴ ὀφθαλμὸν ἑστιάσωμεν, μὴ ἀκοὴν καταυλήσωμεν, μὴ ὄσφρησ

 #2ʹ. Ἀλλὰ ταῦτα μὲν Ἕλλησι παρῶμεν, καὶ Ἑλληνικοῖς κόμποις, καὶ πανηγύρεσιν: οἳ καὶ θεοὺς ὀνομάζουσι κνίσσαις χαίροντας, καὶ ἀκολούθως τὸ θεῖον τῇ γασ

 Ζʹ. Θεὸς ἦν μὲν ἀεὶ, καὶ ἔστι, καὶ ἔσται: μᾶλλον δὲ ἔστιν ἀεί. Τὸ γὰρ ἦν, καὶ ἔσται, τοῦ καθ' ἡμᾶς χρόνου τμήματα, καὶ τῆς ῥευστῆς φύσεως: ὁ δὲ ὢν ἀεὶ

 Ηʹ. Διχῆ δὲ τοῦ ἀπείρου θεωρουμένου, κατά τε ἀρχὴν καὶ τέλος (τὸ γὰρ ὑπὲρ ταῦτα, καὶ μὴ ἐν τούτοις, ἄπειρον), ὅταν μὲν εἰς τὸν ἄνω βυθὸν ὁ νοῦς ἀποβλέ

 Θʹ. Ἐπεὶ δὲ οὐκ ἤρκει τῇ ἀγαθότητι τοῦτο, τὸ κινεῖσθαι μόνον τῇ ἑαυτῆς θεωρίᾳ, ἀλλ' ἔδει χεθῆναι τὸ ἀγαθὸν καὶ ὁδεῦσαι, ὡς πλείονα εἶναι τὰ εὐεργετούμ

 Ιʹ. Οὕτω μὲν οὖν ὁ νοητὸς αὐτῷ, καὶ διὰ ταῦτα ὑπέστη κόσμος, ὡς ἐμὲ γοῦν περὶ τούτων φιλοσοφῆσαι, μικρῷ λόγῳ τὰ μεγάλα σταθμώμενον. Ἐπεὶ δὲ τὰ πρῶτα κ

 ΙΑʹ. Νοῦς μὲν οὖν ἤδη καὶ αἴσθησις, οὕτως ἀπ' ἀλλήλων διακριθέντα, τῶν ἰδίων ὅρων ἐντὸς εἱστήκεισαν, καὶ τὸ τοῦ δημιουργοῦ Λόγου μεγαλεῖον ἐν ἑαυτοῖς

 ΙΒʹ. Τοῦτον ἔθετο μὲν ἐν τῷ παραδείσῳ, ὅστις ποτὲ ἦν ὁ παράδεισος οὗτος, τῷ αὐτεξουσίῳ τιμήσας, ἵν' ᾖ τοῦ ἑλομένου τὸ ἀγαθὸν οὐχ ἧττον ἢ τοῦ παρασχόντ

 ΙΓʹ. Πολλοῖς δὲ παιδευθεὶς πρότερον, ἀντὶ πολλῶν τῶν ἁμαρτημάτων, ὧν ἡ τῆς κακίας ῥίζα ἐβλάστησε κατὰ διαφόρους αἰτίας καὶ χρόνους, λόγῳ, νόμῳ, προφήτ

 ΙΔʹ. Πρὸς ταῦτα τί φασιν ἡμῖν οἱ συκοφάνται, οἱ πικροὶ τῆς θεότητος λογισταὶ, οἱ κατήγοροι τῶν ἐπαινουμένων, οἱ σκοτεινοὶ περὶ τὸ φῶς, οἱ περὶ τὴν σοφ

 ΙΕʹ. Ἀπεστάλη μὲν, ἀλλ' ὡς ἄνθρωπος: διπλοῦς γὰρ ἦν: ἐπεὶ καὶ ἐκοπίασε, καὶ ἐπείνησε, καὶ ἐδίψησε, καὶ ἠγωνίασε, καὶ ἐδάκρυσε νόμῳ σώματος: εἰ δὲ καὶ

 Ι#2ʹ. Μικρὸν μὲν οὖν ὕστερον ὄψει καὶ καθαιρόμενον Ἰησοῦν ἐν τῷ Ἰορδάνῃ τὴν ἐμὴν κάθαρσιν: μᾶλλον δὲ ἁγνίζοντα τῇ καθάρσει τὰ ὕδατα (οὐ γὰρ δὴ αὐτὸς ἐ

 ΙΖʹ. Νυνὶ δέ μοι δέξαι τὴν κύησιν, καὶ προσκίρτησον: εἰ καὶ μὴ ὡς Ἰωάννης ἀπὸ γαστρὸς, ἀλλ' ὡς Δαβὶδ ἐπὶ τῇ καταπαύσει τῆς κιβωτοῦ. Καὶ τὴν ἀπογραφὴν

 ΙΗʹ. Ἓν μίσησον τῶν περὶ τὴν Χριστοῦ γένναν, τὴν Ἡρώδου παιδοκτονίαν: μᾶλλον δὲ καὶ ταύτην αἰδέσθητι, τὴν ἡλικιῶτιν Χριστοῦ θυσίαν, τοῦ καινοῦ σφαγίου

XI.  Mind, then, and sense, thus distinguished from each other, had remained within their own boundaries, and bore in themselves the magnificence of the Creator-Word, silent praisers24    Ps. xix. 1, 3. and thrilling heralds of His mighty work.  Not yet was there any mingling of both, nor any mixtures of these opposites, tokens of a greater Wisdom and Generosity in the creation of natures; nor as yet were the whole riches of Goodness made known.  Now the Creator-Word, determining to exhibit this, and to produce a single living being out of both—the visible and the invisible creations, I mean—fashions Man; and taking a body from already existing matter, and placing in it a Breath taken from Himself25    Gen. ii. 7. which the Word knew to be an intelligent soul and the Image of God, as a sort of second world.  He placed him, great in littleness26    Sc. a microcosm. on the earth; a new Angel, a mingled worshipper, fully initiated into the visible creation, but only partially into the intellectual; King of all upon earth, but subject to the King above; earthly and heavenly; temporal and yet immortal; visible and yet intellectual; half-way between greatness and lowliness; in one person combining spirit and flesh; spirit, because of the favour bestowed on him; flesh, because of the height to which he had been raised; the one that he might continue to live and praise his Benefactor, the other that he might suffer, and by suffering be put in remembrance, and corrected if he became proud of his greatness.  A living creature trained here, and then moved elsewhere; and, to complete the mystery, deified by its inclination to God.  For to this, I think, tends that Light of Truth which we here possess but in measure, that we should both see and experience the Splendour of God, which is worthy of Him Who made us, and will remake us again after a loftier fashion.

ΙΑʹ. Νοῦς μὲν οὖν ἤδη καὶ αἴσθησις, οὕτως ἀπ' ἀλλήλων διακριθέντα, τῶν ἰδίων ὅρων ἐντὸς εἱστήκεισαν, καὶ τὸ τοῦ δημιουργοῦ Λόγου μεγαλεῖον ἐν ἑαυτοῖς ἔφερον, σιγῶντες ἐπαινέται τῆς μεγαλουργίας, καὶ διαπρύσιοι κήρυκες. Οὔπω δὲ ἦν κρᾶμα ἐξ ἀμφοτέρων, οὐδέ τις μίξις τῶν ἐναντίων, σοφίας μείζονος γνώρισμα, καὶ τῆς περὶ τὰς φύσεις πολυτελείας: οὐδὲ ὁ πᾶς πλοῦτος τῆς ἀγαθότητος γνώριμος. Τοῦτο δὴ βουληθεὶς ὁ τεχνίτης ἐπιδείξασθαι Λόγος, καὶ ζῶον ἓν ἐξ ἀμφοτέρων, ἀοράτου τε λέγω καὶ ὁρατῆς φύσεως, δημιουργεῖ τὸν ἄνθρωπον: καὶ παρὰ μὲν τῆς ὕλης λαβὼν τὸ σῶμα ἤδη προϋποστάσης, παρ' ἑαυτοῦ δὲ πνοὴν ἐνθεὶς (ὃ δὴ νοερὰν ψυχὴν καὶ εἰκόνα Θεοῦ οἶδεν ὁ λόγος), οἷόν τινα κόσμον δεύτερον, ἐν μικρῷ μέγαν, ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς ἵστησιν, ἄγγελον ἄλλον, προσκυνητὴν μικτὸν, ἐπόπτην τῆς ὁρατῆς κτίσεως, μύστην τῆς νοουμένης, βασιλέα τῶν ἐπὶ γῆς, βασιλευόμενον ἄνωθεν, ἐπίγειον καὶ οὐράνιον, πρόσκαιρον καὶ ἀθάνατον, ὁρατὸν καὶ νοούμενον, μέσον μεγέθους καὶ ταπεινότητος: τὸν αὐτὸν, πνεῦμα καὶ σάρκα: πνεῦμα διὰ τὴν χάριν, σάρκα διὰ τὴν ἔπαρσιν: τὸ μὲν, ἵνα μένῃ καὶ δοξάζῃ τὸν εὐεργέτην: τὸ δὲ, ἵνα πάσχῃ, καὶ πάσχων ὑπομιμνήσκηται καὶ παιδεύηται τῷ μεγέθει φιλοτιμούμενος: ζῶον ἐνταῦθα οἰκονομούμενον, καὶ ἀλλαχοῦ μεθιστάμενον, καὶ πέρας τοῦ μυστηρίου τῇ πρὸς Θεὸν νεύσει θεούμενον. Εἰς τοῦτο γὰρ ἐμοὶ φέρει τὸ μέτριον ἐνταῦθα φέγγος τῆς ἀληθείας, λαμπρότητα Θεοῦ καὶ ἰδεῖν καὶ παθεῖν, ἀξίαν τοῦ καὶ συνδήσαντος, καὶ λύσοντος, καὶ αὖθις συνδήσοντος ὑψηλότερον.