Clement of Alexandria’s characteristic rhetoric about one Church vs. heresies appears primarily in Stromateis 7.17 (the passage given). There he declares that “there has come to be one true Church (μίαν εἶναι τὴν ἀληθῆ ἐκκλησίαν) which is in reality ancient” and then notes that heretical sects “violently cut it into many parts” (ἐκκλησία ἡ μία … ἣν εἰς πολλὰς κατατέμνειν βιάζονται αἱρέσεις). No other extant Clement text in Protrepticus, Paedagogus, Quis dives salvetur, or elsewhere uses exactly these formulas; this wording seems largely unique to Stromateis 7.17. In particular, Clement does not elsewhere repeatedly use the exact phrases “μία ἐκκλησία” in opposition to “αἱρέσεις.” Thus the unity-vs-heresy rhetoric is thematic in this context rather than a stock formula found throughout his works.
By contrast, neither Origen nor Eusebius employs the identical language. Origen often affirms one Church or one faith (e.g. in cursory mentions like “one holy Catholic Church”), but he does not use Clement’s exact phrasing about one church being split by heresies. Eusebius likewise lauds the Church’s unity and antiquity, but again without the same Greek formulas. In short, Clement’s “μίαν εἶναι τὴν ἀληθῆ ἐκκλησίαν” lines are distinctive to his Stromateis, and no exact parallels were found in Origen or Eusebius.
| Phrase (Greek) | English Gloss | Work/Section | Context (interpretation) | Formulaic? (unique/use) | Source (critical ed./trans) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| μίαν εἶναι τὴν ἀληθῆ ἐκκλησίαν … ἑνὸς γὰρ ὄντος τοῦ θεοῦ … ἐκκλησία ἡ μία… βιάζονται αἱρέσεις | “there has come to be one true Church… one God… the Church is one… which heresies violently cut into many parts.” | Clement, Stromata 7.17.107–108 (PG 8:634–635) | Clement contrasts the single apostolic Church with later sects; since there is one God and one Lord, the Church is one and ancient, while heresies forcibly divide it. | Unique to this passage | Greek: PG 8:634–635; Eng.: Harnack, History of Dogma 2:615–20 |
