Arius, NPNF2 Vol. 3, The Ecclesiastical History of Theodoret
Online Source; Fourth Century Christianity Home
Number of quotes: 4
Book ID: 129 Page: 1/2
Section: 3C1
Thus he drives us out of every city like godless men, since we will not agree with his public statements: that there was “always a God, always a Son;” “as soon as the Father, so soon the Son existed;” “with the Father co-exists the Son unbegotten, ever-begotten, begotten without begetting;” “God neither precedes the Son in aspect or in a moment of time;” “always a God, always a Son, the Son being from God himself.”Letter of Arius to Eusebius, Bishop of Nicomedia IV NPNF2 Vol. III p. 41
The Ecclesiastical History of Theodoret, I.iv
Quote ID: 2911
Time Periods: 4
Book ID: 129 Page: 2
Section: 3C1
Before he was begotten, or created, or defined, or established, he did not exist. For he was not unbegotten. But we are persecuted because we have said the Son has a beginning but God has no beginning. We are persecuted because of that and for saying he came from non-being. But we said this since he is not a portion of God nor of anything in existence. That is why we are persecuted; you know the rest.Letter of Arius to Eusebius, Bishop of Nicomedia IV NPNF2 Vol. III p. 41
The Ecclesiastical History of Theodoret, I.iv
Quote ID: 2913
Time Periods: 4
Book ID: 129 Page: 3
Section: 3C1
So much then for the creed which was composed at the council, to which all of us agreed, not without some questioning, but according to a specific sense, brought up before the most pious Emperor himself, and qualified by the considerations mentioned above. As far as the condemnation they attached to the end of the creed, it did not cause us pain, because it forbade the use of words not found in Scripture, from which almost all the confusion and disorder in the Church have come. Since then no divinely inspired Scripture has used the phrases, “out of nothing,” and “once he was not,” and the rest which follow, there appeared no ground for using or teaching them. We think that this was a good decision, since it has never been our custom to use these terms. - DELETE
Quote ID: 2917
Time Periods: 4
Book ID: 129 Page: 3
Section: 3C1
Additionally, it did not seem out of place to condemn the statement “Before he was begotten he did not exist,” because everyone confesses that the Son of God existed before he was begotten according to the flesh. At this point in the discussion, our most pious Emperor maintained that the Son existed before all ages even according to his divinely inspired begetting, since even before the act of begetting was performed, in potentiality he was with the Father, even before he was begotten by him, since the Father is always Father, just as he is always King and always Savior; he has the potentiality to be all things, and remains exactly the same forever. - DELETETranslation from NPNF2 vol. 2, pp. 12-3, adapted by AJW
Other translations in A New Eusebius, no. 292 and NPNF2 vol. 3, p.46-7
Quote ID: 2918
Time Periods: 4
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