An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith.
In reply to those who ask if Christ's subsistence is create or uncreate.
Chapter V.—In reply to those who ask if Christ’s subsistence is create or uncreate.
The subsistence of God the Word before the Incarnation was simple and uncompound, and incorporeal and uncreate: but after it became flesh, it became also the subsistence of the flesh, and became compounded of divinity which it always possessed, and of flesh which it had assumed: and it bears the properties of the two natures, being made known in two natures: so that the one same subsistence is both uncreate in divinity and create in humanity, visible and invisible. For otherwise we are compelled either to divide the one Christ and speak of two subsistences, or to deny the distinction between the natures and thus introduce change and confusion.
Edition and rights
NPNF2-09. Hilary of Poitiers, John of Damascus. Historical English edition; series volume first published 1899.
S. D. F. Salmond, translator of John of Damascus
Ancient work and historical English translation: public domain in the United States (published before 1931). Copyright rules vary by country. This is a historical source transcription, not an official Church edition. Modern website material is not reproduced.
Historical footnotes and publisher introductions are omitted. Author-written openings are retained. Paragraph whitespace is normalized. Transcriptions can contain errors; this is not a critical edition. Attribution follows the historical edition, not universal scholarly agreement.
Digitization provenance (not an external reading link): https://www.ccel.org/ccel/s/schaff/npnf209.xml
Source section: iii.iv.iv.v · Text SHA-256: 9de392574bda4e87e455d9743d55fd47bc6b1045a20a37c6e49d0d997fb2eee1