11. The Son draws His life from that Father
Who truly has life; the Only begotten from the Unbegotten, Offspring
from Parent, Living from Living. As the Father hath life in
Himself, even so gave He to the Son also to have life in
Himself St. John v. 26.. The Son is
perfect from Him that is perfect, for He is whole from Him that is
whole. This is no division or severance, for Each is in the
Other, and the fulness of the Godhead is in the Son.
Incomprehensible is begotten of Incomprehensible, for none else knows
Them, but Each knows the Other; Invisible is begotten of Invisible, for
the Son is the Image of the invisible God, and he that has seen the Son
has seen the Father also. There is a distinction, for They are
Father and Son; not that Their Divinity is different in kind, for Both
are One, God of God, One God Only begotten of One God Unbegotten.
They are not two Gods, but One of One; not two Unbegotten, for the Son
is born of the Unborn. There is no diversity, for the life of the
living God is in the living Christ. So much I have resolved to
say concerning the nature of their Divinity; not imagining that I have
succeeded in making a summary of the faith, but recognising that the
theme is inexhaustible. So faith, you object, has no service to
render, since there is nothing that it can comprehend. Not so;
the proper service of faith is to grasp and confess the truth that it
is incompetent to comprehend its Object.