6. What clearer evidence can there be of my faith,
than that I was brought up by my grandmother, blessed woman, who came
from you? I mean the celebrated Macrina who taught me the words
of the blessed Gregory; which, as far as memory had preserved down to
her day, she cherished herself, while she fashioned and formed me,
while yet a child, upon the doctrines of piety. And when I gained
the capacity of thought, my reason being matured by full age, I
travelled over much sea and land, and whomsoever I found walking in the
rule of godliness delivered, those I set down as fathers,] and made
them my soul’s guides in my journey to God. And up to this
day, by the grace of Him who has called me in His holy calling to the
knowledge of Himself, I know of no doctrine opposed to the sound
teaching having sunk into my heart; nor was my soul ever polluted by
the ill-famed blasphemy of Arius. If I have ever received into
communion any who have come from that teacher, hiding their unsoundness
deep within them, or speaking words of piety, or, at any rate, not
opposing what has been said by me, it is on these terms that I have
admitted them; and I have not allowed my judgment concerning them to
rest wholly with myself, but have followed the decisions given about
them by our Fathers. For after receiving the letter of the very
blessed Father Athanasius, bishop of Alexandria, which I hold in my
hand, and shew to any one who asks, wherein he has distinctly declared
that any one expressing a wish to come over from the heresy of the
Arians and accepting the Nicene Creed, is to be received without
hesitation and difficulty, citing in support of his opinion the
unanimous assent of the bishops of Macedonia and of Asia; I,
considering myself bound to follow the high authority of such a man and
of those who made the rule, and with every desire on my own part to win
the reward promised to peacemakers, did enroll in the lists of
communicants all who accepted that creed.