Traduction
Masquer
Against Heresies
6.
Having first of all distinguished these three--God, the Beginning, and the Word --he again unites them, that he may exhibit the production of each of them, that is, of the Son and of the Word, and may at the same time show their union with one another, and with the Father. For "the beginning" is in the Father, and of the Father, while "the Word" is in the beginning, and of the beginning. Very properly, then, did he say, "In the beginning was the Word," for He was in the Son; "and the Word was with God," for He was the beginning; "and the Word was God," of course, for that which is begotten of God is God. "The same was in the beginning with God"--this clause discloses the order of production. "All things were made by Him, and without Him was nothing made;" 1 for the Word was the author of form and beginning to all the Aeons that came into existence after Him. But "what was made in Him," says John, "is life." 2 Here again he indicated conjunction; for all things, he said, were made by Him, but in Him was life. This, then, which is in Him, is more closely connected with Him than those things which were simply made by Him, for it exists along with Him, and is developed by Him. When, again, he adds, "And the life was the light of men," while thus mentioning Anthropos, he indicated also Ecclesia by that one expression, in order that, by using only one name, he might disclose their fellowship with one another, in virtue of their conjunction. For Anthropos and Ecclesia spring from Logos and Zoe. Moreover, he styled life (Zoe) the light of men, because they are enlightened by her, that is, formed and made manifest. This also Paul declares in these words: "For whatsoever doth make manifest is light." 3 Since, therefore, Zoe manifested and begat both Anthropos and Ecclesia, she is termed their light. Thus, then, did John by these words reveal both other things and the second Tetrad, Logos and Zoe, Anthropos and Ecclesia. And still further, he also indicated the first Tetrad. For, in discoursing of the Saviour and declaring that all things beyond the Pleroma received form from Him, he says that He is the fruit of the entire Pleroma. For he styles Him a "light which shineth in darkness, and which was not comprehended" 4 by it, inasmuch as, when He imparted form to all those things which had their origin from passion, He was not known by it. 5 He also styles Him Son, and Aletheia, and Zoe, and the "Word made flesh, whose glory," he says, "we beheld; and His glory was as that of the Only-begotten (given to Him by the Father), full of grace and truth." 6 (But what John really does say is this: "And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us; and we beheld His glory, the glory as of the only-begotten of the Father, full of grace and truth." 7 ) Thus, then, does he [according to them] distinctly set forth the first Tetrad, when he speaks of the Father, and Charis, and Monogenes, and Aletheia. In this way, too, does John tell of the first Ogdoad, and that which is the mother of all the Aeons. For he mentions the Father, and Charis, and Monogenes, and Aletheia, and Logos, and Zoe, and Anthropos, and Ecclesia. Such are the views of Ptolemaeus. 8
-
John i. 3. ↩
-
John i. 3, 4. The punctuation here followed is different from that commonly adopted, but is found in many of the Fathers, and in some of the most ancient mss. ↩
-
Eph. v. 13. ↩
-
John i. 5. ↩
-
hup' autes, occurring twice, is rendered both times in the old Latin version, "ab eis." The reference is to skotia, darkness, i.e., all those not belonging to the spiritual seed. ↩
-
Comp. John i. 14. ↩
-
This is parenthetically inserted by the author, to show the misquotation of Scripture by these heretics. ↩
-
These words are wanting in the Greek, but are inserted in the old Latin version. ↩
Traduction
Masquer
Gegen die Häresien (BKV)
6.
Da nun die Zoe den Menschen und die Kirche offenbarte und gebar, so wird sie mit Recht ihr Licht genannt. Dies alles hat der Apostel deutlich angezeigt und auch die zweite Vierheit, die da aus dem Logos und der Zoe, dem Menschen und der Kirche besteht. Aber auch die erste Vierheit tat er kund. Indem er nämlich von dem Heiland spricht und sagt, daß alles außerhalb des Pleroma von ihm gestaltet wurde, lehrt er, der Heiland sei eine Frucht des gesamten Pleroma. Er nannte ihn auch das Licht, das in der Finsternis leuchtete und von ihr nicht begriffen wurde, weil er ja von ihr nicht als der Ordner aller aus dem Leid entstandenen Dinge erkannt wurde. Sohn und Wahrheit und Leben und Fleisch gewordenes Wort nennt er ihn. „Wir haben seine Herrlichkeit gesehen, und es war seine Herrlichkeit, wie die des Eingebornen, die ihm vom Vater verliehen wurde, voll der Gnade und Wahrheit.“ In Wirklichkeit aber heißt es: „Und das Wort ist Fleisch geworden und hat unter uns gewohnt, und wir sahen seine Herrlichkeit als die des Eingebornen vom Vater, voll der Gnade und Wahrheit“1 . Genau also offenbarte er die erste Vierheit: den Vater und die Gnade2 , den Eingebornen und die Wahrheit3 . Ebenso hat Johannes von der ersten Achtheit und Mutter aller Äonen gesprochen, denn er nannte den Vater und die Charis, den Eingebornen und die Wahrheit, den Logos und das Leben, den Menschen und die Kirche.