36. “The Holy Church; The Forgiveness of Sin, the Resurrection of This
Flesh.” It is not said, “In the holy
Church,” nor “In the forgiveness of sins,” nor
“In the resurrection of the flesh.” For if the
preposition “in” had been added, it would have had the same
force as in the preceding articles. But now in those clauses in which
the faith concerning the Godhead is declared, we say “In
God the Father,” and “In Jesus Christ His
Son,” and “In the Holy Ghost,” but in the
rest, where we speak not of the Godhead but of creatures and mysteries,
the preposition “in ” is not added. We do not say
“We believe in the holy Church,” but “We
believe the holy Church,” not as God, but as the Church gathered
together to God: and we believe that there is “forgiveness of
sins;” we do not say “We believe in the forgiveness
of sins;” and we believe that there will be a “Resurrection
of the flesh;” we do not say “We believe in the
resurrection of the flesh.” By this monosyllabic preposition,
therefore, the Creator is distinguished from the creatures, and things
divine are separated from things human.
This then is the Holy Ghost, who
in the Old Testament inspired the Law and the Prophets, in the New the
Gospels and the Epistles. Whence also the Apostle says, “All
Scripture given by inspiration of God is profitable for
instruction.”34043404 And therefore it
seems proper in this place to enumerate, as we have learnt from the
tradition of the Fathers, the books of the New and of the Old
Testament, which, according to the tradition of our forefathers, are
believed to have been inspired by the Holy Ghost, and have been handed
down to the Churches of Christ.