Homily II — Hymns to the God who emptied himself
There were words inspired by God and spoken by God; there were hymns worthy of God, songs for her departure. For on this occasion too it was fitting to sing of the goodness that is more than infinite, the greatness beyond all greatness, the power of boundless might, and his condescension to us, which lies beyond all height and greatness; the more than abundant wealth of his incomprehensible kindness, the bottomless depth of his love: how, without leaving his own majesty, he came down to the self-emptying that exalts (Philippians 2:7), the Father and the Spirit consenting together; how he who is beyond being took being from a woman's womb in a way beyond being; how he is God and has become man, and remains both at once; how he did not depart from the essence of the Godhead, and yet shared in flesh and blood as we do (Hebrews 2:14); how he who fills all things and upholds the universe by the word of his own mouth (Hebrews 1:3) dwelt in a narrow space; how the body of this woman, so worthy of song, a body of matter, like grass, received the consuming fire of the Godhead (Hebrews 12:29) and, like unalloyed gold, was not consumed. These things came to pass because God willed them; for when God wills, all things are possible, and when he does not will, they cannot be done. And on this a contest of words began, not so that each might outdo the other, for that belongs to a vainglorious mind and is far from what pleases God, but so that they might fall short in nothing of zeal and strength as they sang of God and honoured the Mother of God.
Greek
Ἐνταῦθα λόγοι θεόπνευστοι καὶ θεόφθεγκτοι. Ἐνταῦθα τινὲς ὕμνοι θεοπρεπεῖς καὶ ἐξόδιοι. Ὑμνῆσαι γὰρ ἐχρῆν, κἀπὶ τούτῳ τὴν ὑπεράπειρον ἀγαθότητα, καὶ τὸ ὑπερμέγεθες μέγεθος, καὶ τὴν ἀπειροδύναμον δύναμιν, καὶ τὴν παντὸς ὕψους καὶ μεγέθους ἐπέκεινα πρὸς ἡμᾶς αὐτοῦ μετριότητα, τὸν ὑπέρπλουτον πλοῦτον τῆς ἀκαταλήπτου χρηστότητος, τὴν ἄπληστον τῆς ἀγάπης ἄβυσσον· ὅπως τῆς οἰκείας οὐκ ἐκφοιτήσας μεγαλειότητος, πρὸς τὴν ὑψοποιὸν καταβέβηκε κένωσιν, Πατρὸς συνευδοκοῦντος καὶ Πνεύματος· ὅπως ὁ ὑπερούσιος ἐκ γυναικείας νηδύος ὑπερουσίως οὐσίωται· ὅπως Θεός τέ ἐστιν, καὶ ἄνθρωπος γέγονε, καὶ μένει κατὰ ταὐτὸν ὑπάρχων ἀμφότερα· ὅπως οὔτε τῆς οὐσίας ἐκβέβηκε τῆς θεότητος, καὶ παραπλησίως ἡμῖν κεκοινώνηκε σαρκός τε καὶ αἵματος· ὅπως ὁ πάντα πληρῶν, καὶ φέρων τὰ σύμπαντα τῷ ῥήματι τοῦ οἰκείου στόματος, στενὸν χωρίον κατῴκησεν· ὅπως τὸ ὑλικὸν καὶ χορτῶδες σῶμα τῆς ἀοιδίμου ταύτης, τὸ καταναλίσκον πῦρ ἐδέξατο τῆς θεότητος, καὶ χρυσὸς ὥσπερ ἀκίβδηλος, ἀνάλωτον ἐχρημάτισε. Θεοῦ βουλομένου ταῦτα γεγένηται· ἐπεὶ Θεοῦ θέλοντος, δυνατὰ μὲν ἅπαντα, ἀμήχανα δὲ μὴ θέλοντος. Ἐπὶ δὲ τούτῳ καὶ λόγων κεκίνητο ἅμιλλα, οὐχ ὅπως ὑπεραίροιεν ἀλλήλους ἑκάτερος· κενοδόξου γὰρ τοῦτο φρενὸς, καὶ πόρρω θείας εὐαρεστήσεως· ἀλλ' ὡς ἂν προθυμίας μηδὲν ἐλλίπωσι καὶ δυνάμεως, Θεὸν ὑμνοῦντες, καὶ Θεοῦ μητέρα γεραίροντες.