# From the Sayings of St. Basil the Great on the One God in Three Persons

> For we do not count by way of addition, one plus one, and so make increase from unity to multitude; nor do we say one, two and three, nor first, second and third.

*2018-04-12T08:47:00Z*

![“For we do not count by way of addition, one plus one, and so make increase from unity to multitude; nor do we say one, two and three, nor first, second and third. For it is written, “I, God, am the first, and I am the last.” And to this day we have never heard of a second God; but worshipping God of God, we confess the distinction of the Persons and at the same time abide by the Monarchy. We do not fritter away the Godhead by dividing it into many parts, but one undivided essence is beheld in God the Father and in God the Only-Begotten. …” — St. Basil the Great, On the Holy Spirit, 18 (45)](/uploads/sites/1274e232-e31c-46f4-a48b-27b854406479/media/evidence-90a781b9-bcc1-489f-bfb1-9d8a34949662-en-square.png?w=1080&h=1080)

### St. Basil the Great says in “On the Holy Spirit 18 (45)”[^1]:

For we do not count by way of addition, one plus one, and so make increase from unity to multitude; nor do we say one, two and three, nor first, second and third. For it is written, “I, God, am the first, and I am the last.” And to this day we have never heard of a second God; but worshipping God of God, we confess the distinction of the Persons and at the same time abide by the Monarchy. We do not fritter away the Godhead by dividing it into many parts, but one undivided essence is beheld in God the Father and in God the Only-Begotten. And it is a unity without division, for the Son is in the Father and the Father in the Son, which rules out any difference between them and makes them one essence. By the distinction of Persons the two are Hypostasis and Hypostasis, and by sharing in the one divine nature they are one.

### Who is St. Basil the Great (author of the Liturgy of St. Basil)?

Born 329 AD and reposed 379 AD. He was named after his father Basil, which in the Greek language means the Kingdom. Basil was the eldest of the sons in a family of ten children, five sons and five daughters, among them three bishops: Basil, bishop of Caesarea of Cappadocia; Gregory, bishop of Nyssa; and Peter, bishop of Sebaste. Basil was distinguished in eloquence, rhetoric, philosophy, astronomy, geometry and medicine, without abandoning the flame of faith, so he later became the best example of using human sciences in the service of the divine Word.

[^1]: The original post cites “the fifth homily on the Holy Spirit, 45”. The text is from St. Basil’s On the Holy Spirit, chapter 18, section 45.

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*Originally published on the Orthodox Heritage Initiative (مبادرة التراث الأرثوذكسي), 12 April 2018.*

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Source: https://abba.fadymondy.com/en/blog/st-basil-the-great-on-the-monarchy