From the works of John of Damascus on Dialectic

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From the works of John of Damascus on dialectics the art of logical discourse ... every thing ... the knowledge ... Philosophy is the knowledge of things as they are, that is, the knowledge of the nature of things ... Again, philosophy is the knowledge of divine and human affairs, that is, of visible and invisible things ... Again, philosophy is the study of death ... Death is twofold: one is physical, the other is by choice. The physical death is the separation of the soul from the body, while the death by choice is the separation of the body from the soul ... Again, philosophy is the assimilation to God as much as is possible for a human. We are assimilated to God through wisdom, that is, through the true knowledge of things, and through goodness ... and through justice ... Again, philosophy is the art of arts and the science of sciences; for philosophy is the beginning of every art; through it ... Again, philosophy is the love of wisdom; and wisdom is ... the true God. Therefore, the approach toward God ... this is true philosophy.

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We seek what philosophy is ... We say that every name ... assimilation ...

The manuscript page shows a block of Greek text severely interrupted by a large, vertical, jagged hole through the center-right of the parchment, which has resulted in the loss of significant portions of the text. Below the text area, there is a circular official stamp of the "BIBLIOTECA APOSTOLICA VATICANA" and a modern handwritten number "244".