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Against Hermogenes

Tertullian

Chapter 28

About this work

Author: Tertullian

Chapter XXVIII.—A Curious Inconsistency in Hermogenes Exposed. Certain Expressions in The History of Creation Vindicated in The True Sense.

But we shall show not only that this condition agreed with

‹ Chapter 27 Chapter 29 ›

this

earth

of

ours

,

but

that

it

did

not

agree

with

that

other

(

insisted

on

by

Hermogenes

)

.

For

,

inasmuch

as

pure

Matter

was

thus

subsistent

with

God

,

without

the

interposition

indeed

of

any

element

at

all

(

because

as

yet

there

existed

nothing

but

itself

and

God

)

,

it

could

not

of

course

have

been

invisible

.

Because

,

although

Hermogenes

contends

that

darkness

was

inherent

in

the

substance

of

Matter

,

a

position

which

we

shall

have

to

meet

in

its

proper

place

,

yet

darkness

is

visible

even

to

a

human

being

(

for

the

very

fact

that

there

is

the

darkness

is

an

evident

one

)

,

much

more

is

it

so

to

God

.

If

indeed

it

had

been

invisible

,

its

quality

would

not

have

been

by

any

means

discoverable

.

How

,

then

,

did

Hermogenes

find

out

that

substance

was

“

without

form

,

”

and

confused

and

disordered

,

which

,

as

being

invisible

,

was

not

palpable

to

his

senses

?

If

this

mystery

was

revealed

to

him

by

God

,

he

ought

to

give

us

his

proof

.

I

want

to

know

also

,

whether

(

the

substance

in

question

)

could

have

been

described

as

“

void

.

”

That

certainly

is

“

void

”

which

is

imperfect

.

Equally

certain

is

it

,

that

nothing

can

be

imperfect

but

that

which

is

made

;

it

is

imperfect

when

it

is

not

fully

made

.

Certainly

,

you

admit

.

Matter

,

therefore

,

which

was

not

made

at

all

,

could

not

have

been

imperfect

;

and

what

was

not

imperfect

was

not

“

void

.

”

Having

no

beginning

,

because

it

was

not

made

,

it

was

also

unsusceptible

of

any

void

-

condition

.

For

this

void

-

condition

is

an

accident

of

beginning

.

The

earth

,

on

the

contrary

,

which

was

made

,

was

deservedly

called

“

void

.

”

For

as

soon

as

it

was

made

,

it

had

the

condition

of

being

imperfect

,

its

completion

.

Notes

1
Habitum.
2
Deo subjacebat.
3
See below, ch. xxx. p. 494.
4
Matter.
5
“Compertus est” is here a deponent verb.
6
Minus factum.
7
Rudimento. Tertullian uses the word “rudis” (unformed) for the scriptural term (“void”); of this word “rudimentum” is the abstract.