Homilies and Songs, Volume 1

...but things exhibit, with the New Testament mostly borrowing from the Old as a type. As far as the evangelical parables specifically concern us, they are held as mere fictions, accommodated to nature and human uses, to instill truth regarding faith or morals, without any historical truth underlying them; which are well extracted from the few homilies of the Author that survive, regarding certain facts of the Old Testament and some evangelical parables (1).

II THEOLOGY:

The Nestorian opinions of Narsai, concerning the Dogma of the Incarnation, appear clearly from his writings. Therefore, one should read his homilies, from which we have gathered the following:

1°: The natures are distinct in their persons unconfusedly, in one will, in one parsopa person/external manifestation of the unique filiation... Our Lord is in Two natures, two persons, in one parsopa of Divinity and humanity; This the entire Orthodox Church teaches and thus the most illustrious doctors of the Church taught: Diodorus, Theodorus and Mar Nestorius (2) (Regarding this homily, see below).

2°: Christ is complete regarding his humanity, having a mortal soul and body... The two, the Word and the man, adhered to each other, having a single love and a single Will. (From the homily: Concerning two words against them).

3°: It is impossible for God (invisible) to be united to a body except through love; nor for man (visible) to be united to God except nominally. It is permissible to say they are one in essence only nominally, and the reader should beware not to mix up or overlook the differences of Each. Therefore, both...

(1) This is a sermon about the parable of the ten Virgins: "Then the Kingdom of Heaven is like ten virgins who took their lamps as that which is described. Not as the Savior placed it as a story; but that we may set straight how we sons might be instructed as is fitting. Not two persons and two natures in one person of the Godhead; but rather for their sakes who fear, how our Savior is. For man is in that middle state that he might be a likeness of the connection."
(2) "Our person in this mediation, without confusion: by means of the will in one person of one [being]. Like that Word of the Godhead is his person: for Narsai knows the person and is moved. And like a heart in this mediation: how, Mar, by means of the person of the Godhead is his person: this is the confession in one person of the Godhead: and that of the man also a teacher of the sons of one: of Diodore and Theodorus and Mar Nestorius." (from the homily: Concerning two words against the Romans). In the same homily he also said: By means of the person in one: in one personhood.