Mitre hyacinth = heavenly kingdom; linen war-gear of priesthood
Cyril: …sending, yet unto kingdom and glory. For thus he perfects Aaron, setting the golden plate upon the forehead. And Lord of the wholes and king is Christ, both naturally together and by participation. For being God by nature he has emptied himself, having come down in a slave’s form. And he receives kingdom, according at least to what is fitting for the human shape, though from above and from beginning sitting-with God and Father, and co-ruling the wholes and co-master. And understand how from hyacinth his mitre has come to be, having the bright signal of the kingdom—I mean the golden leaf. And hyacinth is a sign of heaven; and remember Christ saying, ‘My kingdom is not from this world.’ (Exodus 28:38) For not an earthly king, but heavenly is Christ, having all the creation under feet. And having added, that ‘And Aaron will take away the sins of the holy things, as many as they should sanctify, of every gift of their holy things,’ (Philippians 2:7) that every approach and perfection is in Christ, he has made clear… And Christ ‘in a hidden hand,’ (Psalm 7:12–13) according to what has been written, and ‘His bow he has stretched, and prepared it, his arrows for those being burned he has worked out,’ (John 18:36) and he has taken down rulers, has triumphed over powers, has shaken lordships, and has rescued those upon the earth being captives. And that the war has not become visible or thick for him, nor such as toward blood and flesh, the warlike gear having come to be from linen alone the very (Ephesians 6:12) (Colossians 2:15)
Greek
ἀποστολὴ, πλὴν εἰς βασιλείαν καὶ δόξαν. Τελειοῖ γὰρ οὕτως τὸν Ἀαρὼν, χρυσοῦν ἐπὶ τῷ μετώπῳ τὸ ψαλίον τιθείς. Κύριος δὲ τῶν ὅλων καὶ βασιλεὺς, ὁ Χριστὸς, φυσικῶς τε ἅμα καὶ μεθεκτῶς. Θεὸς γὰρ ὢν φύσει κεκένωκεν ἑαυτὸν, καθεὶς ἐν δούλου μορφῇ. Καὶ δέχεται βασιλείαν, κατά γε τὸ πρέπον τῷ ἀνθρωπίνῳ σχήματι, καίτοι σύνεδρος ὢν ἄνωθέν τε καὶ ἀπ' ἀρχῆς τῷ Θεῷ καὶ Πατρὶ, καὶ συγκατάρχων τῶν ὅλων καὶ συνδεσπότης. Σύνες δὲ ὅπως ἐξ ὑακίνθου γέγονεν ἡ μίτρα αὐτοῦ, τὸ λαμπρὸν τῆς βασιλείας ἔχουσα σύνθημα, φημὶ δὴ τὸ πέταλον τὸ χρυσοῦν. Ὑάκινθος δὲ οὐρανοῦ σημεῖον· καὶ διαμέμνησο λέγοντος τοῦ Χριστοῦ, «Ἡ βασιλεία ἡ ἐμὴ οὐκ ἔστιν ἐκ τοῦ κόσμου τούτου.» Οὐ γὰρ ἐπίγειος βασιλεὺς, ἀλλ' οὐράνιος ὁ Χριστὸς, ὅλην ὑπὸ πόδας ἔχων τὴν κτίσιν. Προσεπενεγκὼν δὲ, ὅτι «Καὶ ἐξαρεῖ Ἀαρὼν τὰ ἁμαρτήματα τῶν ἁγίων ὅσα ἂν ἁγιάσωσι, παντὸς δόματος τῶν ἁγίων αὐτῶν,» ὅτι πᾶσά τε προσαγωγὴ καὶ τελείωσις ἐν Χριστῷ, διαμεμήνυκεν ἐναργῶς, καὶ μὴν ὅτι πᾶσα δικαίωσις ἐν αὐτῷ τε καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ, καὶ ἡ τῶν πάλαι πλημμελημάτων ἀπόθεσις. Αὐτὸς γὰρ ἡμῶν αἴρει τὰς ἁμαρτίας, καὶ δι' αὐτοῦ γεγόναμεν δεκτοὶ, τὰς ἐν πνεύματι δωροφορίας προσκομίζοντες τῷ Θεῷ καὶ Πατρί.
{ΠΑΛΛ.} Εὖ ἔφης.
{ΚΥΡ.} Ἀναπόθετον δὲ καὶ διηνεκῆ καὶ εἰς ἀπεράντους αἰῶνας ἐκτεινομένην τὴν τοῦ Σωτῆρος ἡμῶν βασιλείαν εὖ μάλα καταδεικνὺς, περί τε τῆς μίτρας τοῦ πετάλου φησί· «Καὶ ἔσται ἐπὶ τοῦ μετώπου Ἀαρὼν διὰ παντός.» Εἶτα ποῖ ποτ' ἂν ἡμῖν ὁ θρασὺς καὶ ἀπόπληκτος τῶν ἀνοσίων αἱρετικῶν οἰχήσεται λόγος, πεφλυαρηκότων ὅτι καταλήξει ποτὲ τὸ Χριστοῦ κράτος, καὶ παραδώσει τὴν βασιλείαν τῷ Θεῷ καὶ Πατρὶ, τῶν τῆς θεότητος ἀποφοιτήσας θώκων ὁ Ἐμμανουήλ; Ἐπισεμνύνονται γὰρ τοῖς ὧδε δεινοῖς καὶ ἐξιτήλοις δόγμασιν, οἷς ἀκόλουθον εἰπεῖν· «Πλανᾶσθε, μὴ εἰδότες τὰς Γραφάς.» Ἰδοὺ γὰρ, ἰδοὺ σαφῶς τε καὶ ἐναργῶς τοῦ Θεοῦ καὶ Πατρὸς δόξῃ καὶ τιμῇ διηνεκεῖ, καὶ τοῖς τῆς βασιλείας συνθήμασι ταινιοῦντος τὸν Ἀαρὼν, ἀποστεφανοῦσιν αὐτοὶ, καὶ μονονουχὶ τοῖς μετώποις ἐμπρέπουσαν τὴν ἱερὰν ἁρπάζουσι μίτραν.
{ΠΑΛΛ.} Ἀληθές.
{ΚΥΡ.} «Κίδαρίν τε καὶ ζώνην ἐκ βύσσου ποιήσεις,» φησί. Στρατιωτικὸν δὲ τῷ Ἀαρὼν τὸ σχῆμα, ζωστήρ τε καὶ κράνος· ἐν εἴδει γάρ πως ἡ κίδαρις τῷ τοιῷδέ ἐστι. Πεπολέμηκε γὰρ ὑπὲρ ἡμῶν ὁ Χριστὸς «ἐν χειρὶ κρυφαίᾳ,» κατὰ τὸ γεγραμμένον, καὶ «Τὸ τόξον αὐτοῦ ἐνέτεινε, καὶ ἡτοίμασεν αὐτὸ, τὰ βέλη αὐτοῦ τοῖς καιομένοις ἐξειργάσατο,» καὶ καθεῖλεν ἀρχὰς, τεθριάμβευκε δυνάμεις, κατέσεισε κυριότητας, καὶ αἰχμαλώτους ὄντας ἐῤῥύσατο τοὺς ἐπὶ τῆς γῆς. Ὅτι δὲ οὐχ ὁρατὸς ἢ παχὺς ὁ πόλεμος, οὐδὲ οἷον πρὸς αἷμα καὶ σάρκα, γέγονεν αὐτῷ, ὑποφαίνειν ἔοικεν αἰνιγματωδῶς τὸ ἐκ βύσσου μόνης τῆς ἄγαν
About this text
Cyril continues the dialogue with Palladius. Book 11 of a seventeen-book dialogue — not the whole work.
English follows Migne PG 68 (Aubert reprint). The PDF and a cleaned text of the same print were checked against each other. This page is Book 11 of seventeen. This is a reading translation for study, not a new critical edition of the Greek.
Witnesses
- Copy-text Migne PG 68 De adoratione Book 11 (Aubert reprint) (Greek · Book 11)
- Checked print PDF of PG 68 De adoratione (Greek · Book 11)
English is newly prepared for study from the stated edition. Open Greek on each section for the source text. This is not a complete critical edition.