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Translated by P. E. Pusey
St Cyril of Alexandria Resources Online and in Print
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This Part: 115 Pages
Page 109
But thou sayest (I suppose) this, Being God Almighty the Same hath become High-Priest. He hath been emptied[ 7 ]therefore and hath abased Himself by descent into the inferior. How therefore did He yet advance unto dignity when made an High Priest? Remember again thine own words, for thus thou saidst a little above, "If the Godhead be High Priest, who is He who is served by the ministry of the High Priesthood? if He Who offereth be God, there is none to whom the offering is made, for what is there worthy of Godhead that as inferior It should make offering to a greater?" Stand now at least to your own words; but this you cannot do, for you will be borne about (so to say) by every wind, and perceive not that you are being driven about, one while springing off from those into these, other while again from these into those, and in no wise are you afraid of what Paul saith, For if what I destroyed this I build again, I make myself a transgressor.
But you will perhaps say, Affirming that the Word out of God the Father is everywhere One Christ and Son and Lord, with His own Flesh, how sayest thou now that He has been set forth as an High Priest and Apostle? dost thou not in so saying insult the Supreme Dignity of His Divine Glory?
Because, good Sir, (shall I say) the Only Begotten Word of God has been made man and in the measures of the human nature, the fact of Priesthood will not unbefit Him, and moreover the saying that He has been sent, for He despised the shame, as the Divine-uttering Paul writes, and endured yet lower and worser things for our sakes: for He gave His bach to the scourges, His Face He turned not away from the shame of spittings, and endurant He bore the contumelies of the Jews. But thou deemest not meet to call Him Priest, as being God? admit the words pertaining to the Economy, consider the emptying, the descent unto the servant's form. For we say not that the Word of God advanced and hastened unto dignity, if He have been styled our High Priest, but rather that He descended herein too unto emptiness. Since how has He been emptied and is He said to have been abased, albeit He possesseth unchangeableness and is in Form and Equality in everything with His Father? how too advanced He by little and little and this (as thyself sayest) unto the dignity of the High Priesthood? what sort of growth received He hereunto? If then it were a bodily one, I will ask again, Doth bodily growth lead up to the glory of the Priesthood: be then this common [to all] and let this method of reasoning of yours belong to every one who advanceth bodily, But of a truth the Priesthood beseemeth not all those who customably advance unto bodily growth; how therefore blushest thou not in putting forth unto us for demonstration of those things which thou saidst, what was spoken by the Divine-uttering Luke, But Jesus was advancing in stature and wisdom and grace?
7. [g] So too against the Arians who affirmed that the Son was exalted because man, S. Cyril, following S. Athanasius, says, "And what accession of honour has there been to Him Who is in the form of God, yet has put on the servant's form? how will H e not rather with reason seem to have been minished Who left the greater and took up the less? Being God He hath been made man in order to find----what reward? or how was He glorified Who hath descended from glory to dishonour? how hath He been made high Who disregarding the Dignity of Godhead came down even unto manhood? how hath He Who came down, been made above ? what advance hath abasement? what betterment He Who from what is better hath come into the inferior? If, God Most High, and dwelling in high places, He is said to he exalted, whither (I pray) after the Nature of God will that yet mount up which is exalted? how was He low which is in the Bosom of the Most High Father? what accession did God need? if He have therefore come down in order to be exalted, what was the need of the coming down? if He therefore abased Himself in order to be exalted, what was the need of the abasement? how is not he unwise who seeks with toil what he could have without toil ? how received He the Name which is above every name, Who was ever worshipped in it?" Thes. cap. 20 init. pp. 194,195, see S. Ath. against Ar. i. § 40. p. 237 O.T.
Reference address : https://www.elpenor.org/cyril-alexandria/against-nestorius.asp?pg=109
