wherein all the reason and philosophy of atheism is confuted, and

Chap. IV. really one Divinity. 589duced or created by one of thofe three ; nor yet can it be conceived, howthere could be three really diftind creations of one and the fame thing.Wherefore the world havii-g but one creation, and being created by thofethree divine hypoftafes ; it follows, that they are all three really but oneCreator and one God. Thus when, both in Plato and Plotinns^ the lives andfouls of all animals, (as fbars, demons and men) are attributed to the thirdhypoftafis, the firft ami great Pfyche, as their fountain and caufe after a fpecialmanner ; accordingly as in our Creed, the Holy Ghoft is fly led theLord and giver of life ; this is not fo to be underftood, as if therefore thefirft and fecond hypoflafes were to be excluded from having any caufalitytherein. For the iirft is flyled by Plato alfo, aiVioi; aVaurKv tud x.aAuu, Thgcaufe of all good things ; and therefore doubtlefs ehiefly of fouls : and the fecondis called by him and others too, alViov and ^r.^j-i^toyoc^ the caufe and artificerof the whole ivorld. We conclude therefore, that fouls being createdby the joint concurrence and influence of thefe three hypoftafes fubordinate,they are all really but one and the fame God. And thus it is exprefly affirmedby Porphyrins in St. Cyril ', a;)^^* rpicoi/ \,iror d^stuiiv iw ^tU z!^o=.\'ji7]i iaixv uvctiSi Tov fji.iv dvj'Tj'.Ta] S'^oi/ TO ayoi^ov, jusr ai/TOv Si Hj Jeuteoc.', tov JVifxissj-ov" TciTflii SIx) T-« T» xsVjUB ij/ux.'''-'" '^PCf J/Ap x}/!-;^?;? Tvj ^fsTUTa zrpoiK^eTv That the ejferice ofthe divinity proceeds or propagates it felf {by way of defcent downwards) untothree hypoftafes or fubftflences. The higheft God is ihe Tagathon, or fupremeGood ; the fecond next after him is the Demiurgus fo called, the architeSi ora>-tificer of the world ; and the Soul of the world, that is the third: for the divinityextendeth fo far as ta this foul. Here we plainly fee, that though Porphyriuscalls the three divine hypoftafes three Gods; yet does he at thevery fame time declare, that >' biin itrlx, and -S-.-ot^c, the effence of the Godheadand the Divinity extends it felf to all thefe three hypoftafes, includinothethird and laft alfo, (which they call the 7>iundane foul) within the compafsof it. And therefore that even according to the Porphyrian theologyit felf, which could not be fufpefted to affeCt any compliance with Chriftianity)the three hypoftafes in the Platonick trinity are owokVioi, co-effential,both as being each of them God, and as being all one God. St. Cyril himfelfalfoacknowledging as much; where he writeth thus of the Platonifts %0foj t£rpo-)-')c£ii/ jj^'jpi(r«'/xr.or That fuppojing three hypoftafes, which have the natureof principles {in the univerfe,) they extend the eftence of God to all thefe threehypoftafes.Indeed many conceive, that the Platonifts making the three hypoftafes oftheir tiinity to be thus gradually fubordinate one to another, could not, forthat very reafon, acknowledge them to be one divinity : but the Platoniftsthemfelves do upon this very account, and no other, declare all thefe threeto be one divinity, becaufe they have an effentia! dependence and gradualfubordination in them; the fecond being but the image of the firft, and thethird the image both of the firft and fecund. Whereas, were thefe three fuppofedto be perfectly co-equal, and to have no clTential dependence one uponanother,* Contra Julian. lib. VIII. p. 271. » Ibid. p. 2 c.