Attributed to Nestor the Chronicler · Complete work
988, Part 1: Vladimir at Korsun and His Baptism
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И минувшу лѣту, в лѣто 6496, иде Володимеръ с вои на Корсунь, град грѣчкый, и затворишася корсуняни въ градѣ. И ста Володимѣръ об онъ полъ града в лимени, вьдале града стрѣлище едино. И боряхуся крѣпко горожанѣ с ними. Володимеръ обьстоя град. И изнемогаху людие въ градѣ, и рече Володимеръ к гражаномъ: «Аще ся не вдасте, имамъ стояти за три лѣта». Они же не послушаша того. Володимеръ же изряди воя своя и повелѣ приспу сыпати к граду. Сим же спущимъ, корсуняне, подкопавше стѣну градьскую, крадяху сыплемую перьсть и ношаху к собѣ в град, сыплюще посредѣ града. Вои же присыпаху боле, и Володимеръ стояше. И се мужь именемь Анастасъ корсунянинъ стрѣли, написавъ на стрѣлѣ: «Кладези, яже суть за тобою от вьстока, ис того вода идеть по трубѣ, копавше, преимете воду». Володимеръ же, се слыша, възрѣвъ на небо, и рече: «Аще ся сбудеть, се имамъ креститися». И ту абье повелѣ копати прекы трубамъ, и переяша воду. И людье изнемогаху жажею водною и предашася.
И вниде Володимеръ въ град и дружина его, и посла Володимиръ къ цесареви, Василию и Костянтину, глаголя сице: «Се град ваю славный взях; слышю же се, яко сестру имаете дѣвою, да аще ея не вдасте за мя, то створю граду вашему, яко и сему створихъ». И се слышавша цесаря, быста печална, посласта вѣсть, сице глаголюще: «Не достоить крестьяномъ за поганыя посягати и даяти. Аще ли ся крестиши, то приимеши се и получиши царство небесное, и с нами единовѣрникъ будеши. Аще ли сего не хощеши створити, не можевѣ дати сестры своей за тя». И сѣ слышавъ Володимѣръ и рече посланымъ от цесарю: «Глаголите цесарема тако, яко азъ кресщюся, яко испытахъ преже сихъ дний законъ вашь, и есть ми любъ, и вѣра ваша и служение, иже ми исповѣдаша послании нами мужи». И се слышавша цесаря и рада быста, и умолиста сестру свою, именемь Анну, и посласта к Володимеру, глаголющи: «Крестися, тогда послевѣ сестру свою к тобѣ». И рече Володимиръ: «Да пришедше съ сестрою вашею крестять мя». И послушаста цесаря и посласта сестру свою и сановникы нѣкыя и прозвутеры. Она же не хотяше ити яко в поганыя, и рече им: «Луче бы ми сде умрети».
И рѣста ей брата: «Еда како обратить Богъ Рускую землю в покаяние, а Грѣчкую землю избавиши от лютыя рати. Видиши ли колико зло створиша русь грѣкомъ? Нынѣ же, аще не идеши, то же имуть творити намъ». И одва принудиста. Она же, всѣдши в кубару, цѣловавши ужикы своѣ с плачемь, поиде чресъ море. Яко приде ко Корсуню, и излѣзоша корсуняни с поклономъ, и введоша ю въ градъ, и посадиша ю в полатѣ. По Божью же строенью въ се время разболѣлся Володимиръ очима и не видяше ничтоже, и тужаше велми, и не домышляше, что створити. И посла къ нему цесариця, рекуще: «Аще хощеши болезни сея избыти, то вьскорѣ крестися, аще ли ни, то не имаеши избыти сего». И си слышавъ, Володимеръ рече: «Аще се истина будет, поистѣнѣ великъ Богъ крестьянескь». И повелѣ крестити ся. И епископъ же корсуньскый с попы цесарицины, огласивъ ̀и, и крести Володимѣра. И яко возложи руку на нь, и абье прозрѣ. Видив же се Володимеръ напрасное исцѣление и прослави Бога, рекъ: «То первое увидѣхъ Бога истиньнаго». Си же увидивше дружина его, мнози крестишася.
Крести же ся въ церкви святое Софьи, и есть церкви та стояще в Корсуни градѣ, на мѣстѣ посредѣ града, идеже торгъ дѣють корсунянѣ; полата Володимѣря воскрай церкви стоить и до сего дни, а цесарицина полата за олътаремь. По кресщении же приведе цесарицю на обручение.
Се же не свѣдуще право, глаголють, яко крестился есть в Кыевѣ, инии же рѣша — в Василевѣ, друзии же рѣша инако сказающе.
И кресщену же Володимеру в Корсуни, предаша ему вѣру крестьяньскую, рекуще сице: «Да не прельстять тебе нѣции от еретикъ, но вѣруй, сице глаголя: «Вѣрую въ единого Бога Отца, вседержителя, творца небу и землѣ» и до конца вѣру сию. И пакы: «Вѣрую въ единого Бога-Отца нерожена, и въ единого Сына рожена, и въ единъ Святый Духъ исходящь: три собьства свѣршена, мысльна, раздѣляема числомъ и собьствомь, а не божествомъ, раздѣляеть бо ся не раздѣлно, и совокупляеться неразмѣсно. Отець бо, Богъ-Отець, присно сый пребываеть въ отечьствѣ, нероженъ, безначаленъ, начало, вина всимь, единемь нерожениемь старѣй сы Сыну и Духови. От него же ражаеться Сынъ преже всих вѣкъ, исходить же Духъ Святый и безъ времене и бес тѣла; вкупѣ Отець, вкупѣ Сынъ, вкупѣ Духъ Святый есть. Сынъ подобосущенъ и безначаленъ […], рожениемь точию разнествуя Отцю и Духу. Духъ есть пресвятый, Отцю и Сыну подобосущенъ и присносущенъ. Отцю бо отечьство, Сыну же сыновьство, Святому Духу исхожение. Ни Отець бо въ Сынъ или въ Духъ преступаеть, ни Сынъ въ Отца и Духа, ни Духъ въ Сынъ или въ Отець, неподвижна бо свойствия. Не трие бози — единъ Богъ, понеже едино божество въ трехъ лицих. Хотѣньем же Отца же и Духа свою спасти тварь, отечьскых ядръ, иже не отступи, сшед и въ дѣвичьское ложе пречистое, акы Божье сѣмя вшед и плоть съдушьвну, и словесну же, и умну, не преже бывшю, приимъ, изииде Богъ воплощенъ, родивыся неизрѣченьнѣ и дѣвство матери схрани нетлѣньно, не смятение, ни размѣшение, ни измѣнения пострадавъ, но пребывь еже бѣ, прием рабий зракъ истиною, а не мечтаниемь, всячьскы, развѣ грѣха, намъ подобенъ бывъ. Волею родися, волею бо взалка, волею вжада, волею трудися, волею устрашися, волею умре, истиною, а не мечтаниемь, вся свѣршена, не оклеветаньныи страсти человѣчества. Распятъ же ся, смерти вкуси безъгрѣшный и въскресъ въ своей плоти, и, не вѣдѣвши истлѣния, на небеса вьзыиде и седе одесную Отца. И придеть же пакы съ славою судити живымъ и мертвымъ, якоже взииде сь своею плотью, тако и снидеть.
К сим едино кресщение исповѣдаю водою и духомъ, приступаю кь пречистымъ тайнамъ, вѣрую въ истину тѣло и кровь, и приемлю церковьная предания, и кланяюся честнымъ иконамъ, кланяюся древу честному и кресту, и всякому кресту и святымъ мощемь и святымь сьсудомъ. Вѣруй же семи сборъ святыхъ отець, иже есть первый в Никии 300 и 18, иже прокляша Арья и проповѣдаша вѣру непорочну и праву. Вторый же сборь в Костянтинѣградѣ святыхъ отець 100 и 50, иже прокляша Македонья духоборца и проповѣдаша Троицю единосущную. 3-й же сборъ въ Ефесѣ святыхъ отець 200 на Несторья, егоже прокленше, проповѣдаша святую Богородицю. 4-й сборъ в Халкидонѣ святыхъ отець 600 и 30 на Евтуха и Диоскора, еюже прокленше святии отци, изъгласивше свершена Бога и свѣршена человѣка Господа нашего Исуса Христа. 5 сборъ въ Цесарѣградѣ святыхъ отець 100 и 60 и 5 на Ерегенова предания и на Евагрия, ихже прокляша святии отци. 6-й сборъ Цесарѣградѣ святыхъ отець 100 и 70 на Сергиа и Кура, ихже прокляша святии отци. 7-й сборъ в Никеи святыхъ отець 300 и 50, прокляша, иже не поклоняються иконам.
Не приимай же от латынѣ учения, их же учение развращено: влѣзъше бо въ церковь, не покланяються иконамъ, но стоя поклониться […] и, поклонився, напишеть кресть на земли и цѣлуеть, и вьстанеть простъ ногама на немь, да, легъ, цѣлуеть, а вьставь попираеть. Сего бо апостоли не предаша: предали суть апостоли крестъ поставленъ цѣловати, иконы предаша..Лука бо еуангелистъ, первое написавъ, посла въ Римъ. «Якоже глаголеть Василѣй, икона на первый образъ приходить». Пакы же землю глаголють матерью. Да аще имъ есть земля мати, то отець имъ есть небо, искони створи Богъ небо и такоже землю. Тако глаголють: «Отче нашь, иже еси на небеси». Аще ли по сихъ разуму земля есть мати, почто плюете на матерь свою? Да сѣмо ю лобызаете, а семо ю сквѣрните? Сего же римлянѣ не творяху, но исправляху на всих сборѣх, сходящеся от Рима и от всихъ престолъ. На первомъ сборѣ, иже на Арья, иже в Никеи, от Рима преже Селивестръ посла епископы и прозвутеры, а от Александрия Афанасия, от Цесаряграда Митрофанъ посла епископы от себе, и тако исправляху вѣру.
На вторемь же сборѣ от Рима Дамасъ, а от Александрѣа Тимофѣй, от Антиохия Мелетий, Курилъ Ерусалимскый, Григорѣй Богословець. На третьемь же сборѣ Келестинъ Римьский, Курилъ Александрийский. На 4 же сборѣ Леонтий Римьскый, Анатолѣй Цесаряграда, Увеналий Ерусалимскый. На пятомъ сборѣ Римьский Вилигий, Евьтухий Цесаряграда, Аполинарий Александрийский, Домнинь Антиохийскый. На шестом сборѣ от Рима Агафонь, Георгий Цесаряграда, Феофанъ Антиохийскый, от Александрия Петръ мнихъ. На 7-мь сборѣ Андрианъ от Рима, Тарасий Цесаряграда, Политьянь Александрѣйскый, Феодоръ Антиохийскый, Илья Ерусалимскый. Сии вси съ своими епископы и, сходящеся, и правяху вѣру. По семемь же сборѣ Петръ Гугнивый сь иними шедъ в Римъ и прѣстолъ вьсхытивъ, развративъ вѣру, отвѣргься престола Ерусалимьскаго, и Александрѣйскаго, и Цесаряграда и Антиохийскаго. И возмутиша Италию всю, сѣюще учение свое раздно, тѣм же держать не в одино съглашение вѣру, но раздно: овии бо поповѣ, одиною женою оженився, служать, а друзии до семи женъ поимающе служать, ина же многа раздно держать, ихже блюдися учения.
Пращають же грѣхы на дару, еже есть злѣе всего. Богъ да хранить ть, княже, от сего».
Musean translation
Mouseia’s complete machine-assisted Musean translation, made directly from the Old East Slavic text of the Hypatian Codex (O. V. Tvorogov’s 1997 edition, pinned Russian Wikisource revision), covering the undated introduction and every annal from 6360 to 6625 (852–1117 CE). Worker drafts were checked against the source paragraph by paragraph before publication. Years keep the chronicle’s own reckoning from the creation of the world; subtract 5508 for the approximate year CE, as the chapter titles do.
And when a year had passed, in the year 6496, Vladimir marched with his troops against Korsun, a Greek city, and the people of Korsun shut themselves up in the city. Vladimir took his stand on the far side of the city, in the harbor, at a bowshot from its walls, and the townsfolk fought them fiercely, while Vladimir besieged the city. The people within began to weaken, and Vladimir said to them: “If you do not surrender, I mean to stand here for three years.” They would not heed him. Vladimir then arrayed his troops and ordered an earthen ramp heaped up against the city. While it was being heaped, the people of Korsun tunneled beneath the city wall and secretly carried off the earth of the ramp, bearing it into the city and piling it up in the midst of the town. But the troops heaped up still more, and Vladimir stood fast. Then a man of Korsun named Anastas shot an arrow, writing on it: “There are wells behind you on the east, and from them the water comes through a pipe; dig across it, and you will take the water.” When Vladimir heard this, he looked up to heaven and said: “If this comes true, I will be baptized.” And at once he ordered them to dig across the pipes, and they cut off the water. The people, overcome by the thirst for water, gave themselves up.
Then Vladimir entered the city with his retinue, and he sent word to the emperors Basil and Constantine, saying: “Behold, I have taken your glorious city; and I hear that you have an unmarried sister. If you will not give her to me, I will deal with your city as I have dealt with this one.” When the emperors heard this, they were grieved, and sent back word, saying: “It is not right for Christians to give a sister in marriage to pagans. If you are baptized, then you shall have her, and gain the kingdom of heaven, and be one in faith with us; but if you will not do this, we cannot give our sister to you.” When Vladimir heard this, he said to the envoys of the emperors: “Tell the emperors this: I am ready to be baptized, for I tested your law in days gone by, and it is dear to me, and your faith and your worship, which the men we sent described to me.” The emperors rejoiced at this and prevailed upon their sister, whose name was Anna, and sent her to Vladimir, saying: “Be baptized, and then we will send our sister to you.” But Vladimir said: “Let them come with your sister and baptize me.” The emperors consented, and sent their sister with certain dignitaries and priests. She did not wish to go among pagans, and said to them: “It would be better for me to die here.”
But her brothers said to her: “Perhaps God will turn the land of Rus' to repentance through you, and you will deliver the Greek land from cruel war. Do you not see how much evil Rus' has done to the Greeks? If you do not go, then they will do the same to us.” Only with difficulty did they persuade her. She boarded a ship, kissed her kinsmen weeping, and set out across the sea. When she came to Korsun, the people came out to meet her with reverence, led her into the city, and seated her in the palace. But by God's ordinance Vladimir fell ill of his eyes at that time and could see nothing, and he grieved greatly, at a loss for what to do. The princess sent him word: “If you wish to be freed of this sickness, be baptized quickly; if not, you will not be freed of it.” Hearing this, Vladimir said: “If this proves true, then truly the God of the Christians is great.” And he gave command that he be baptized. The bishop of Korsun, with the priests of the princess, catechized him and baptized Vladimir; and when the bishop laid his hand upon him, he received his sight at once. Vladimir, seeing this sudden healing, glorified God and said: “Now at last I have seen the true God.” When his retinue saw this, many of them were baptized.
He was baptized in the church of St. Sophia, and that church stands in the city of Korsun, in the middle of the town where the people of Korsun hold their market; Vladimir's palace stands beside the church to this day, and the princess's palace is behind the altar. After the baptism he brought the princess forth for the betrothal.
Those who do not know the truth say that he was baptized in Kyiv. Others say it was in Vasyliv, and still others tell it otherwise.
After Vladimir was baptized in Korsun, they delivered to him the Christian faith, saying: “Let no heretic lead you astray, but believe, saying thus: ‘I believe in one God the Father, almighty, maker of heaven and earth,’ and so on to the end of this creed. And again: ‘I believe in one God the Father unbegotten, and in one Son begotten, and in one Holy Spirit proceeding: three hypostases made perfect, known to thought, distinguished in number and in hypostasis but not in divinity—for they divide without division, and are joined without confusion. The Father, God the Father, abides ever in his fatherhood, unbegotten, without beginning, the beginning and the cause of all, older than the Son and the Spirit by his unbegottenness alone. From him the Son is begotten before all the ages, and the Holy Spirit proceeds, likewise outside time and without body: together the Father, together the Son, together the Holy Spirit. The Son is of one essence and without beginning […], differing from the Father and the Spirit only in his begetting. The Spirit is most holy, of one essence with the Father and the Son and coeternal with them. To the Father belongs fatherhood, to the Son sonship, to the Holy Spirit procession. The Father does not pass into the Son or into the Spirit, nor the Son into the Father and the Spirit, nor the Spirit into the Son or the Father, for their properties are unchangeable. Not three gods—one God, for the divinity is one in three persons. By the will of the Father and of the Spirit, to save his creation, not departing from the Father's bosom, he came down and entered the most pure maiden's womb like a divine seed, and, taking flesh endowed with soul, with reason and with mind, which had not existed before, God came forth incarnate, born ineffably, preserving his mother's virginity incorrupt, suffering no disturbance, no mingling, no change, but remaining what he was; he took the form of a servant in truth and not in seeming, and was made in every way like us, except for sin. By his will he was born; by his will he hungered, by his will he thirsted, by his will he labored, by his will he feared, by his will he died—all in truth and not in seeming, everything brought to pass, without slandering the passions of our humanity. And the sinless one tasted death on the cross and rose in his own flesh, and, knowing no corruption, ascended into the heavens and sat at the right hand of the Father. And he shall come again with glory to judge the living and the dead; as he ascended with his own flesh, so shall he descend.’
To this belongs the one baptism I confess, in water and the Spirit; I draw near to the most pure mysteries; I believe the body and blood to be true; I accept the traditions of the church; I bow before the venerable icons, before the venerable wood of the cross and every cross, before the holy relics and the holy vessels. Believe also in these seven councils of the holy fathers. The first was at Nicaea, of 318 fathers, who anathematized Arius and preached the faith uncorrupt and true. The second, at Constantinople, of 150 holy fathers, who anathematized Macedonius the Spirit-fighter and preached the Trinity of one essence. The third, at Ephesus, of 200 holy fathers, against Nestorius, whom, when they had anathematized him, they proclaimed the holy Mother of God. The fourth, at Chalcedon, of 630 holy fathers, against Eutyches and Dioscorus, whom the holy fathers anathematized, declaring our Lord Jesus Christ perfect God and perfect man. The fifth, at Constantinople, of 165 holy fathers, against the teachings of Origen and against Evagrius, whom the holy fathers anathematized. The sixth, at Constantinople, of 170 holy fathers, against Sergius and Cyrus, whom the holy fathers anathematized. The seventh, at Nicaea, of 350 holy fathers, who anathematized those who do not bow before the icons.
Do not accept the teaching of the Latins, for their teaching is corrupted. When they enter a church, they do not bow before the icons; they worship standing only […] and, having bowed, trace a cross upon the ground and kiss it, then rise and stand upon it with both feet, so that, lying down, they kiss it, and rising, they trample it. This the apostles did not hand down: the apostles handed down that the cross should be kissed standing upright, and they handed down the icons. For Luke the evangelist painted the first one and sent it to Rome: ‘As Basil says, the icon comes after the first image.’ Again, they call the earth their mother. But if the earth is their mother, then heaven is their father, for God from the beginning made heaven, and likewise the earth. Yet they pray: ‘Our Father in heaven.’ And if, by their reasoning, the earth is mother, why do they spit upon their mother? Why do they kiss her here and defile her there? This the Romans did not do, but they set the faith in order at all the councils, gathering from Rome and from all the thrones. At the first council, the one against Arius, held at Nicaea, Rome in the days of Sylvester sent bishops and priests, Alexandria sent Athanasius, and Constantinople, Metrophanes, sent bishops of its own, and so they kept the faith sound.
At the second council: from Rome Damasus, from Alexandria Timothy, from Antioch Meletius, Cyril of Jerusalem, Gregory the Theologian. At the third council: Celestine of Rome, Cyril of Alexandria. At the fourth council: Leo of Rome, Anatolius of Constantinople, Juvenal of Jerusalem. At the fifth council: Vigilius of Rome, Eutychius of Constantinople, Apollinarius of Alexandria, Domnus of Antioch. At the sixth council: from Rome Agatho, George of Constantinople, Theophanes of Antioch, and from Alexandria Peter the monk. At the seventh council: Hadrian from Rome, Tarasius of Constantinople, Politian of Alexandria, Theodore of Antioch, Elias of Jerusalem. All these, with their bishops, came together and set the faith in order. After these councils Peter the Stammerer, with others, went to Rome, seized the throne, corrupted the faith, and renounced the thrones of Jerusalem and Alexandria and Constantinople and Antioch. And they threw all Italy into turmoil, sowing their teaching abroad; that is why they do not hold the faith in one accord but in division: some priests serve who have married one wife, while others serve who have taken up to seven wives, and they hold many other divisions besides—guard yourselves against their teaching.
And they sell the forgiveness of sins for money, and that is worse than everything. May God keep you, prince, from this.”
Plain English translation
Mouseia’s complete Plain English edition, made independently and directly from the same Old East Slavic text of the Hypatian Codex, paragraph for paragraph, and checked against the source before publication.
When a year had passed, in the year 6496, Vladimir marched with his troops against Korsun, a Greek city, and the people of Korsun shut themselves up inside the city. Vladimir took up his position on the far side of the town, at the harbor, an arrow's flight from the walls. The townspeople fought them hard. Vladimir pressed the siege. The people inside grew weak, and Vladimir said to the townspeople: “If you do not give yourselves up, I will stand here for three years.” They would not listen. Vladimir sent his troops out and ordered them to heap earth up against the city. While they did this, the Korsunians dug under the city wall, stole the earth that was being heaped up, and carried it into their own city, piling it up in the middle of the town. The troops heaped up still more, and Vladimir kept up the siege. Then a man named Anastas, a Korsunian, shot an arrow, with writing on the arrow: “There are wells behind you, to the east. The water flows from them through a pipe. Dig across it, and you will cut off the water.” When Vladimir heard this, he looked up to heaven and said: “If this comes true, then I will be baptized.” At once he ordered men to dig across the pipe, and they cut off the water. The people were overcome by thirst for water and gave themselves up.
Vladimir entered the city with his retinue, and he sent to the emperors Basil and Constantine, saying: “I have taken your glorious city. I also hear that you have a sister who is a maiden. If you do not give her to me in marriage, I will do to your city what I did to this one.” When the emperors heard this, they were distressed, and they sent back this message: “It is not right for Christians to be given in marriage to pagans. If you are baptized, then you will have her and receive the kingdom of heaven, and you will be of one faith with us. If you do not wish to do this, we cannot give our sister to you.” When Vladimir heard this, he said to the emperors' messengers: “Tell the emperors this: I will be baptized, for I tested your law before these days, and I love it, and your faith and your worship, which the men I sent explained to me.” When the emperors heard this, they rejoiced and pressed their sister, named Anna, and they sent to Vladimir, saying: “Be baptized, and then we will send our sister to you.” And Vladimir said: “Let those who come with your sister baptize me.” The emperors consented, and sent their sister and certain officials and priests. But she did not want to go among the pagans, and said to them: “It would be better for me to die here.”
Her brothers said to her: “Perhaps God will turn the Rus' land to repentance through you, and you will save the Greek land from a cruel war. Do you see how much evil the Rus' have done to the Greeks? Now, if you do not go, they will do the same to us.” They could barely force her. She boarded a ship, kissed her kinsmen with weeping, and set out across the sea. When she came to Korsun, the Korsunians came out to meet her with reverence, led her into the city, and seated her in the palace hall. By God's design, at that time Vladimir fell ill with his eyes and could see nothing at all. He grieved deeply and could not think what to do. The empress sent word to him: “If you want to be rid of this sickness, be baptized quickly. If not, you will not get rid of it.” When Vladimir heard this, he said: “If this proves true, then truly the Christian God is great.” And he ordered that he be baptized. The bishop of Korsun, with the empress's priests, instructed him and baptized Vladimir. When the bishop laid his hand on him, Vladimir could see at once. Vladimir, seeing this sudden healing, glorified God and said: “Now for the first time I have seen the true God.” When his retinue saw this, many of them were baptized.
He was baptized in the church of Holy Sophia, and that church stands in the city of Korsun, in the middle of the town, where the Korsunians hold their market. Vladimir's palace hall stands beside that church to this day, and the empress's hall is behind the altar. After the baptism he brought the empress to the betrothal.
Some who do not know the truth say that he was baptized in Kyiv. Others say in Vasyliv, and others tell it in yet another way.
When Vladimir was baptized in Korsun, they handed on to him the Christian faith, saying: “Let no one of the heretics deceive you, but believe, saying this: ‘I believe in one God, the Father almighty, maker of heaven and earth,’ and so on to the end of this faith. And again: ‘I believe in one God the Father, unbegotten, and in the one Son, begotten, and in the one Holy Spirit, proceeding: three persons complete, grasped by thought, divided by number and person but not by divinity, for it divides without dividing and unites without mixing. The Father, God the Father, ever being, abides in fatherhood — unbegotten, without beginning, the beginning and cause of all things, older than the Son and the Spirit by his one unbegottenness. From him the Son is born before all ages, and the Holy Spirit proceeds, outside time and without body. At once there is the Father, at once the Son, at once the Holy Spirit. The Son is of one essence and without beginning […], differing from the Father and the Spirit only by his birth. The Spirit is all-holy, of one essence with the Father and the Son and co-eternal with them. To the Father belongs fatherhood, to the Son sonship, to the Holy Spirit procession. The Father does not pass over into the Son or the Spirit, nor the Son into the Father and the Spirit, nor the Spirit into the Son or the Father, for their properties cannot be moved. Not three gods — one God, for there is one divinity in three persons.’ By the will of the Father and the Spirit, to save his creation, without leaving the Father's bosom, he came down into the most pure virginal womb, entering it like divine seed and taking flesh with a soul, and reason, and mind, which did not exist before; God came forth incarnate, born beyond telling, and kept his mother's maidenhood unbroken, suffering no confusion, no mixing, no change, but remaining what he was, taking the form of a slave in truth and not in show, made like us in every way except sin. By his will he was born; by his will he hungered, by his will he thirsted, by his will he labored, by his will he was afraid, by his will he died — in truth and not in show, everything made real, not making his human sufferings a pretense. Crucified, he who was without sin tasted death and rose again in his own flesh, and, knowing no decay, went up into heaven and sat at the right hand of the Father. And he will come again with glory to judge the living and the dead. As he went up with his own flesh, so he will come down.
To this I confess one baptism in water and the Spirit. I approach the most pure mysteries. I believe in the true body and blood. I accept the church's traditions. I bow before the honored icons. I bow to the honored tree of the cross, and to every cross, and to the holy relics and the holy vessels. Believe in the seven councils of the holy fathers: the first council, in Nicaea, of 318 fathers, who condemned Arius and proclaimed the faith pure and right. The second council, in Constantinople, of 150 holy fathers, who condemned Macedonius, the fighter against the Spirit, and proclaimed the Trinity of one essence. The third council, in Ephesus, of 200 holy fathers, against Nestorius: having condemned him, they proclaimed the holy Mother of God. The fourth council, in Chalcedon, of 630 holy fathers, against Eutyches and Dioscorus: the holy fathers condemned them and declared our Lord Jesus Christ perfect God and perfect man. The fifth council, in Constantinople, of 165 holy fathers, against the teachings of Origen and of Evagrius, whom the holy fathers condemned. The sixth council, in Constantinople, of 170 holy fathers, against Sergius and Cyrus, whom the holy fathers condemned. The seventh council, in Nicaea, of 350 fathers, who condemned those who do not bow to icons.
Do not accept teaching from the Latins, for their teaching is corrupt. When they enter a church, they do not bow to the icons; they bow only as they stand […], and having bowed, they draw a cross on the ground and kiss it, and then stand with their feet spread over it, so that they kiss it lying down and trample it standing up. This the apostles did not hand down. The apostles handed down the standing cross to be kissed, and they handed down the icons. Luke the evangelist painted the first icon and sent it to Rome. As Basil says: ‘The icon comes to the first image.’ Again, they call the earth mother. But if the earth is their mother, then heaven is their father, for God made heaven from the beginning, and the earth likewise. They themselves pray: ‘Our Father, who is in heaven.’ If, by this reasoning, the earth is a mother, why do they spit on their own mother? Here they kiss it, and there they foul it? The Romans did not do this, but set the faith right at every council, coming together from Rome and from all the thrones. At the first council, the one against Arius, in Nicaea, Rome first of all sent bishops and priests under Sylvester, and from Alexandria came Athanasius, and Metrophanes of Constantinople sent bishops from his see; and so they set the faith right.
At the second council: from Rome Damasus, from Alexandria Timothy, from Antioch Meletius, Cyril of Jerusalem, and Gregory the Theologian. At the third council: Celestine of Rome and Cyril of Alexandria. At the fourth council: Leo of Rome, Anatolius of Constantinople, and Juvenal of Jerusalem. At the fifth council: Vigilius of Rome, Eutychius of Constantinople, Apollinarius of Alexandria, and Domnus of Antioch. At the sixth council: Agatho from Rome, George of Constantinople, Theophanes of Antioch, and Peter the monk from Alexandria. At the seventh council: Hadrian from Rome, Tarasius of Constantinople, Politian of Alexandria, Theodore of Antioch, and Elias of Jerusalem. All these, with their bishops, came together and set the faith right. After that council, Peter the Stammerer went to Rome with others and seized the throne; he corrupted the faith and rejected the thrones of Jerusalem, and of Alexandria, and of Constantinople and of Antioch. They stirred up all of Italy, sowing their teaching in different forms, and so they do not hold the faith in one agreement but in different ones: some priests, having married one wife, serve; others, taking as many as seven wives, serve; and they hold many other differences. Beware of their teaching.
They forgive sins in return for gifts, and that is the worst thing of all. God keep you, prince, from this.“