One God; no limping both ways; no second baptism after apostasy

ship, and him alone you will serve.’ And since there is one God the Father, and one Lord the Son, and one Holy Spirit proceeding, we will neither carry out the one God from true lordship; nor indeed will we send out the one who is truly and by nature Lord from being God; for lordship will altogether follow the Godhead according to nature; and again to lordship according to truth, the glory of the Godhead.

Palladius: Most rightly and most wisely you have spoken.

Cyril: One God therefore, Palladius, we will know, and upon him we will count no one at all, making the unholy and profane double-souledness, as boastful and truly insolent, farthest from our own soul, in order that a sacred word may not also cry out upon us ourselves: ‘How long will you limp upon both hams? either Baal Baal, or God God.’ For we must be seen single-turned, not other-minded and shaken, falling most ready into what is not fitting; as for limping upon both and loving to be tossed, I would say it is of the most godless things. And indeed the ancient law also honors with death the one not secure, for it says: ‘The one sacrificing to gods will be wiped out, except to the Lord alone.’ Therefore to lift oneself against the divine glory, and to distribute the things fitting it and it alone to whomever someone might choose, and to favor with them those not gods by nature, would be a most shameful of sicknesses, or rather an accusation and indictment of the last impiety. It is necessary therefore to have been freed from such things, the one at least who is truly genuine and God-loving, and not only cleansing the heart, but not even so much as to say ever sending through the tongue the idol name. For it has been written that ‘And you will not remember a name of other gods, nor will it be heard from your mouth.’ For what it is shameful to know, it is not without penalty to speak. And having chosen to honor the genuine in faith everywhere, it is fitting to remember blessed Paul writing thus: ‘For it is impossible that those once enlightened, and having tasted a good utterance of God, and powers of a coming age, and having fallen aside, be renewed again unto repentance.’ For those once brought unto partaking of the heavenly and divine grace through the holy baptism, and having received the true and life-giving word concerning resurrection and Christ’s kingdom, if they should choose to run back toward what was at the beginnings, and to run under the first sickness, they will not be renewed toward cleansing through a second baptism; ‘For their unbelief will not abolish God’s faith,’ as divine Paul says. Nor because some have despised going backward the divine grace will we write down the insecure; yet rather the Judge of all will subject to penalties those not declining to slide down unto this impiety, as having trampled the Son of God and counted the blood of the covenant common, and having insulted the Spirit of grace, in whom