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An Exact Exposition of the Orthodox Faith

St John of Damascus · trans. S. D. F. Salmond (NPNF, 1899)

This work is presented in 4 parts. Start reading

Contents

Book I
That the Deity is incomprehensible, and that we ought not to pry into and meddle with the things which…
Concerning things utterable and things unutterable, and things knowable and thing unknowable.
Proof that there is a God.
Concerning the nature of Deity: that it is incomprehensible.
Proof that God is one and not many.
Concerning the Word and the Son of God: a reasoned proof.
Concerning the Holy Spirit, a reasoned proof.
Concerning the Holy Trinity.
Concerning what is affirmed about God.
Concerning divine union and separation.
Concerning what is affirmed about God as though He had body.
Concerning the Same.
Concerning the place of God: and that the Deity alone is uncircumscribed.
The properties of the divine nature.
Book II
Concerning æon or age.
Concerning the creation.
Concerning angels.
Concerning the devil and demons.
Concerning the visible creation.
Concerning the Heaven.
Concerning light, fire, the luminaries, sun, moon and stars.
Concerning air and winds.
Concerning the waters.
Concerning earth and its products.
Concerning Paradise.
Concerning Man.
Concerning Pleasures.
Concerning Pain.
Concerning Fear.
Concerning Anger.
Concerning Imagination.
Concerning Sensation.
Concerning Thought.
Concerning Memory.
Concerning Conception and Articulation.
Concerning Passion and Energy.
Concerning Energy.
Concerning what is Voluntary and what is Involuntary.
Concerning what is in our own power, that is, concerning Free-will.
Concerning Events.
Concerning the reason of our endowment with Free-will.
Concerning what is not in our hands.
Concerning Providence.
Concerning Prescience and Predestination.
Book III
Concerning the Divine Œconomy and God's care over us, and concerning our salvation.
Concerning the manner in which the Word was conceived, and concerning His divine incarnation.
Concerning Christ's two natures, in opposition to those who hold that He has only one.
Concerning the manner of the Mutual Communication.
Concerning the number of the Natures.
That in one of its subsistences the divine nature is united in its entirety to the human nature, in its…
Concerning the one compound subsistence of God the Word.
In reply to those who ask whether the natures of the Lord are brought under a continuous or a…
In reply to the question whether there is Nature that has no Subsistence.
Concerning the Trisagium (“the Thrice Holy”).
Concerning the Nature as viewed in Species and in Individual, and concerning the difference between…
That the holy Virgin is the Mother of God: an argument directed against the Nestorians.
Concerning the properties of the two Natures.
Concerning the volitions and free-will of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Concerning the energies in our Lord Jesus Christ.
In reply to those who say “If man has two natures and two energies, Christ must be held to have three…
Concerning the deification of the nature of our Lord's flesh and of His will.
Further concerning volitions and free-wills: minds, too, and knowledges and wisdoms.
Concerning the theandric energy.
Concerning the natural and innocent passions.
Concerning ignorance and servitude.
Concerning His growth.
Concerning His Fear.
Concerning our Lord's Praying.
Concerning the Appropriation.
Concerning the Passion of our Lord's body, and the Impassibility of His divinity.
Concerning the fact that the divinity of the Word remained inseparable from the soul and the body, even…
Concerning Corruption and Destruction.
Concerning the Descent to Hades.
Book IV
Concerning what followed the Resurrection.
Concerning the sitting at the right hand of the Father.
In reply to those who say “If Christ has two natures, either ye do service to the creature in…
Why it was the Son of God, and not the Father or the Spirit, that became man: and what having became…
In reply to those who ask if Christ's subsistence is create or uncreate.
Concerning the question, when Christ was called.
In answer to those who enquire whether the holy Mother of God bore two natures, and whether two natures…
How the Only-begotten Son of God is called first-born.
Concerning Faith and Baptism.
Concerning Faith.
Concerning the Cross and here further concerning Faith.
Concerning Worship towards the East.
Concerning the holy and immaculate Mysteries of the Lord.
Concerning our Lord's genealogy and concerning the holy Mother of God.
Concerning the honour due to the Saints and their remains.
Concerning Images.
Concerning Scripture.
Regarding the things said concerning Christ.
That God is not the cause of evils.
That there are not two Kingdoms.
The purpose for which God in His foreknowledge created persons who would sin and not repent.
Concerning the law of God and the law of sin.
Against the Jews on the question of the Sabbath.
Concerning Virginity.
Concerning the Circumcision.
Concerning the Antichrist.
Concerning the Resurrection.

Source & edition

Nicene and Post-Nicene Fathers, 2nd series, vol. 9, ed. Philip Schaff & Henry Wace (Christian Literature Publishing Co., 1899). Public domain (published before 1931).

Digital text: CCEL. Footnotes and editorial index markers from the print edition are omitted for readability.

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