Sketch of the Life and Works of Saint Basil the Great

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At the same time Eudoxius withdrew for a while into Armenia, his native province, but ere long was restored to the favour of the fickle Constantius, and was appointed to the see of Constantinople in 359. Eunomius now was for overthrowing Aetius, and removing whatever obstacles stood between him and promotion, and, by the influence of Eudoxius, was nominated to the see of Cyzicus, vacant by the deposition of Eleusius. Here for a while he temporized, but ere long displayed his true sentiments. To answer for this he was summoned to Constantinople by Constantius, and, in his absence, condemned and deposed. Now he became more marked than ever in his assertion of the most extreme Arianism, and the advanced party were henceforward known under his name. The accession of Julian brought him back with the rest of the banished bishops, and he made Constantinople the centre for the dissemination of his views. [309]

Somewhere about this period he wrote the work entitled Apologeticus, in twenty-eight chapters, to which Basil replies. The title was at once a parody on the Apologies of defenders of the Faith, and, at the same time, a suggestion that his utterances were not spontaneous, but forced from him by attack. The work is printed in Fabricius, Bibl. Graec. viii. 262, and in the appendix to Migne's Basil. Pat. Gr. xxx. 837. [310] It is a brief treatise, and occupies only about fifteen columns of Migne's edition. It professes to be a defence of the "simpler creed which is common to all Christians." [311]

This creed is as follows: "We believe in one God, Father Almighty, of Whom are all things: and in one only-begotten Son of God, God the Word, our Lord Jesus Christ, through Whom are all things: and in one Holy Spirit, the Comforter." [312] But it is in reality like the extant Exposition of the Creed, [313] a reading into this "simpler" creed, in itself orthodox and unobjectionable, of explanations which ran distinctly counter to the traditional and instinctive faith of the Church, and inevitably demanded corrective explanations and definitions.

[309] Theod., H.E. ii. 25; and Haer. Fab. iv. 3. Philost., H.E. vi. 1.

[310] cf. also Basnage in Canisii Lectiones antt. i. 172; Fessler, Inst. Pat. 1. 507. Dorner, Christologie, 1. 853, and Boehringer, Kirchengeschichte, vii. 62.

[311] haploustera kai koine panton pistis. S: 5.

[312] The Creed of Eunomius. (Adv. Eunom. i. 4.) Pisteuomen eis hena Theon, Patera pantokratora, ex hou ta panta; kai eis hena Monogene ;;Uion tou Theou, Theon logon, ton Kurion hemon Iesoun Christon, di' hou ta panta; kai eis hen Pneuma hagion, to parakleton. Eunom., Apol. S: 5. The Creed of Arius and Euzoius. (Soc. H.E. i. 26.) Pisteuomen eis hena Theon Patera pantokratora, kai eis Kurion Iesoun Christon, ton ;;Uion autou, ton ex autou pro panton ton ai& 240;non gegennemenon, Theon Logon, di' hou ta panta egeneto ta te en tois ouranois kai ta epi tes ges, ton katelthonta, kai sarkothenta, kai pathonta, kai anastanta, kai anelthonta eis tous ouranous kai palin erchomenon krinai zontas kai nekrous; kai eis to hagion Pneuma; kai eis sarkos anastasin; kai eis zoen tou mellontos ai& 242;nos; kai eis Basileian ouranon; kai eis mian katholiken ekklesian tou theou ten apo peraton he& 241;s peraton.

[313] Ekthesis tes pisteos, published in the notes of Valesius to Soc., Ecc. Hist. v. 12. This was offered to Theodosius after the Council of Constantinople. The Son is prototokon pases ktiseos, and pro pases ktiseos genomenon, but ouk aktiston. The oute to Hui& 254; sunexisoumenon oute men allo tini suntassomenon... proton ergon kai kratiston tou Monogenous. cf. St. Aug., De Haer. liv., "Eunomius asserted that the Son was altogether dissimilar to the Father and the Spirit to the Son," and Philostrius, De Haer. lxviii., who represents the Eunomians as believing in three essences descending in value like gold, silver, and copper. Vide Swete, Doctrine of the Holy Ghost, p. 61.

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