74. The next
objection is this: “If the Son has not those properties
which all sons have, He is no Son.” May Father, Son, and
Holy Spirit pardon me, for I would propound the question in all
devoutness. Surely the Father is, and abides for ever:
created things, too, are as God hath ordained them. Is there any
one, then, amongst these creatures which is not subject to the
limitations of place, time, or the fact of having been created, or to
some originating cause or creator. St. Ambrose
here uses causa in the sense of causa
efficiens—ἀρχὴ
τῆς
κινήσεως.
Surely, none. What, then? Is there any one of them whereof
the Father stands in need? So to say were blasphemy. Cease,
then, to apply to the Godhead what is proper only to created
existences, or, if you insist upon forcing the comparison, bethink you
whither your wickedness leads. God forbid that we should even
behold the end thereof.