*General Introduction . : : : ° A
General Introduction
HE MAIN FACTS
OF ORIGEN'S
LIFE ARE WELL
known to students of the history of the early Church, and a critical examination of them in detail is not called for here, in a context which is concerned rather with one of his writings. Inasmuch, however, as this is a devotional work, it may be appropriate, in a rapid sketch of his career, to dwell upon those facts in it which testify to that rich inner experience of which the treatise On Prayer is a notable expression. Origen was born about the year 186, and most probably in Alexandria, although we are never told so in so many words. The name
"Origen" has been derived by some from the name of the Egyptian god Horus, the suggestion being that he was born on the anniversary day of that god; and, if this be correct, it would go far to show that at the time of his birth, his parents, or at least his father, were pagans. 'That this was probably so, other facts serve to suggest. When in 202 a persecution against Jews and Christians suddenly burst out at Alexandria, Leonides, Origen's father, was arrested. Now this persecution, 'under Septimius
Severus, was not aimed at extirpating Judaism or Christianity, but rather at propaganda at these religions making converts.
Spartian! says that under a grave penalty Severus forbade Jews to make proselytes, and also issued a similar order against Christians. If then Leonides was a convert to Christianity of only a few years standing (for Origen was little more than a boy when the persecution broke out), we can understand how sucha decree might, retrospectively, fall harshly upon such as he. In any case we may detect in the picture that Eusebius draws of Leonides?2 the fervent zeal of one who had come to embrace a 1 Severus, 16 f.
2 VI, 1:2, 1-13.
ORIGEN new faith. He was at great pains not only to instruct the boy in the Scriptures, but also to give them a primary place in his studies. The boy's early proficiency in sacred learning filled the father with a delight which was none the less sincere because he felt it prudent to conceal it. Like many a parent, before and after him, he recognized with wonderment and yet with humble thankfulness that God had chosen him to be the father of a saint.3 It is not difficult, in any case, to see in Leonides the primary, human, source from which Origen drew that fervent devotion to God to which the pages of On Prayer bear so eloquent a testimony.
Of Origen's mother, and the part she played in his Christian upbringing, we know nothing. It can scarcely be urged against the sincerity of her faith that she strove to prevent her son from achieving his desire for martyrdom by the effective, if somewhat crude, method of hiding his clothes so that he could not leave the house by day. For indeed, at that early age—he was not yet seventeen when his father suffered martyrdom—Origen was filled, as Eusebius says, with '"'a zeal intense beyond his years.''4
This manifested itself in various ways: in his refusal to have anything to do with heretics or heresies, even at the risk of offending a generous benefactress of his; in his open espousal of the cause of martyrs, on trial or in prison; and especially in his asceticism.
De Faye, indeed, affirms that this was not derived from Christianity, but from philosophy. Asceticism was "'in the air," he says, an element in that religious syncretism which was so marked a feature of the Egypt of that time: and Origen in this followed the example of his day.5 It is true that in describing
Origen's asceticism Eusebius speaks of him as "'living like a philosopher.''¢ But he also expressly states that certain elements, at any rate, in his manner of life at that time found their express sanction in the gospel—those sayings which exhort us not to provide two coats nor to use shoes, nor indeed to be worn out with thoughts of the future.7 It was not, as we shall see, the only occasion on which a literal following of an evangelical command guided his conduct.
Origen's gifts, and the need for their use at that time, decided at once what his career should be. The origins of the Catechetical
School at Alexandria are obscure, but they seem to have been fortuitous. All we know is that a person named Pantaenus gathered round him a number of young men for the study and 3 See the passage quoted on p. 186.
4S VI, 2:6.
SiT 23.
6 H.E., V1,.3:9.
7 Ibid., VI, 2:10: cf. Matt, 10:10, 6:34.
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
exposition of the Scriptures. Among them was Clement, who had arrived at Alexandria on his travels in search of knowledge, and having discovered Pantaenus had attached himself to this group of students. On the death of Pantaenus, Clement undertook the direction of the "'School."' Such a voluntary association of learners was not novel in the world of that day. We are not to think of it as a university or theological college in the modern sense of the term. All was free and unofficial. The authority exercised by the Head was auctoritas rather than fotestas: the authority of the expert, of the teacher whose reputation, learning and skill in teaching were sufficient to create his clientele. Clement had chosen Pantaenus as his teacher for that reason. And when Clement fled from Alexandria on the persecution of Severus (202-203), Origen was selected as his successor. It may be that the circumstances of the time created a limited choice.
But in any case Origen was known to be Clement's most brilliant pupil, although apparently only his pupil for a short time. He was then under eighteen years of age; but all accounts speak of his precocity. His competence as a teacher was already recognized. His zeal was undaunted by the dangers that confronted an open profession of the Christian way of life. And so this boy succeeded to the "'chair'' of a venerable and learned teacher of over fifty years of age.
From the first Origen appears to have been successful as Head of the School; and as time went on his reputation increased and more and more pupils came to him. Had the state of the Church at Alexandria been normal, the free and independent position that Pantaenus and Clement had enjoyed might have been his too. But persecution had driven from the city those to whom the instruction of catechumens would naturally have been entrusted; and in their absence Demetrius, the Bishop of Alexandria, committed to Origen alone that task. Even then, all went happily at first, and none could have foreseen that the direct link with ecclesiastical authority would have had such tragic consequences. The School attracted pupils of greater proficiency and learning, so much so that whereas Origen had previously eschewed the teaching of pagan letters, and indeed | is said to have sold off his "'classical'' books, he was now com- | pelled to resume the study of Greek philosophy, place it upon — his curriculum, and assign the teaching of the less mature pupils
— to an assistant named Heraclas.
It would appear to be during this period of expansion, 8 Eusebius, H.£., VI, 3:8.
9 Ibid., ch. 15, 18, 19.
ORIGEN probably before 210, that Origen performed the act which was to be used by his subsequent detractors to his lasting disadvantage.
Finding that pupils of both sexes were coming to his classes, "he took the saying There are eunuchs which made themselves eunuchs for the kingdom of heaven's sake in too literal and extreme a sense."'1®
It has been frequently remarked how strange it was that Origen, the allegorizer par excellence of the Scriptures, should in this instance have fallen into the opposite error. We have seen, however, that previously he had based ascetic practices upon a literal interpretation of sayings in the Gospel; and few are absolutely consistent when it comes to applying Biblical principles to their own case. The truth probably is that by nature and disposition Origen was inclined towards "severity to the body," and this tendency was reinforced by his Platonic idealism. Nor have we reason to believe that in the Alexandria of his day, or at any rate in the circle in which he moved, his action would necessarily be censured. Eusebius indeed says that ""'Demetrius got to know of it later .
. and while he marvelled exceedingly at him for his rash act, he approved the zeal and sincerity of his faith, bade him be of good cheer, and urged him to attach himself now all the more to the work of instruction."!1 — ~
The story of the worsening in relations between Demetrius and Origen cannot be told in detail, for sufficient materials are lacking, and we can only put forward probable reasons. Clearly the bishop had a right to supervise Origen's movements, since preparation of the catechumens (apart from the other teaching of the School) was a matter for which the Church authorities were ultimately responsible. But Origen's fame was now becoming world-wide. He was invited to pay visits to other parts of the world, for example, to Arabia and Palestine; and when at GALE IES 5 din es eee Caesarea, although still a layman, was requested to discourse and expound the Scriptures publicly in the church there. We are left in no doubt of the fact that Demetrius resented this permission being given. He wrote that "'such a thing had never been heard of, nor taken place hitherto, that laymen should preach in the presence of bishops." In defence of their action,
Alexander, Bishop of Jerusalem, and Theoctistus, Bishop of Caesarea, point out that Demetrius's statement was incorrect, and from their own knowledge cite other instances of laymen being allowed by bishops to preach.
This "incident," which took place about 215, passed off.
Demetrius recalled Origen by letter, sending messengers to urge 10 Eusebius, H.E., VI, 8:2.
11 [bid., 8:3.
12 [bid., 19:17, 18.
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
his speedy return: and he resumed the work of the School as diligently as before. Clearly, however, Demetrius felt that his | authority was being challenged; and it may be also that he was © jealous of Origen's fame. A further reason for the bishop's action
— may have lain in the development of church order at that time at Alexandria. According to the famous, if much disputed, statement of Jerome,!3 down to the episcopates of Heraclas (the successor of Demetrius) and Dionysius the presbyters at Alexandria always chose one of their number and styled him
"bishop," apparently without consecration. If this be so, it may | well be that during the long term of office of Demetrius (190- |
233), things at Alexandria were already moving towards such a system of monarchical episcopacy as encouraged Demetrius to. emphasize his authority.
The order of incidents connected with Origen's final departure from Alexandria is uncertain, since the evidence of Eusebius and Photius and others does not tally at every point; but of the main facts, and their permanent result, we are left in little doubt.
It is clear that even before he left Alexandria for good, considerable tension prevailed. The year was 231-232. Origen had then got as far as the fifth "tome" of his Commentary on John, and though, as he says,!4 "'the storm at Alexandria'? seemingly hindered his work, he succeeded in dictating what was given him to say, "for Jesus rebuked the winds and the waves of the sea." When he had proceeded some way upon the sixth tome, he "was rescued from Egypt, God who had brought out his people thence, delivering'? him. It seems on the whole most probable that this deliverance came to him through a call to important work in Greece, to which he travelled by way of Palestine.15 But while at Caesarea a momentous thing hap- | pened. He was ordained presbyter by the bishops there; and if | we are to follow at this point the translation, or paraphrase, of | the Church History of Eusebius made by Rufinus, they were about _ to raise him to the episcopate,16 when Demetrius, hearing of | what was afoot, spread the information about his act of selfmutilation when a young man, for the purpose not only of stopping Origen's consecration but also of censuring even those who had raised him to the presbyterate. The action taken by ©
Demetrius in Alexandria itself is obscure in its details, but it would appear that he summoned one or two synods of bishops, i '
13 Ep., CXLVI, 1.
14 In Foh., VI, 2.
15 Eusebius H.E., VI, 23:4: Lawlor and Oulton, II, 218.
16 "summo eum sacerdotio iam iamque dignum probarent." Jbid., VI, 8:4. a
, ORIGEN the upshot of which was that Origen _was_not.only excluded _ from Alexandria but also deprived of the priesthood. His degradation was communicated to all bishops, and Jerome is our authority for stating that all endorsed it, with the exception of the Bishops of Palestine, Arabia, Phoenicia, and Achaia.17
This was the greatest spiritual crisis in Origen's life; and it is worthy of note that he met it like a true Christian philosopher.
Though "'the enemy" (i.e., Demetrius) "made war most bitterly against us by means of his new letters which were truly at enmity with the gospel, and though he stirred up against us all the winds of wickedness, reason!8 called me to stand firm for the contest and to preserve the inner self,!9 lest haply evil thoughts should have power to bring the storm against my soul also, rather than to compose the rest of the book out of season before my mind had recovered its calm.''2° In other words, Origen's chief concern, in this situation, was to preserve his spiritual forces unbroken. De Faye has expressed this with sympathy and insight. ""What appears to have caused him the most anxiety was not so much the consequences that might result from the furious campaign of Demetrius, as the effect that might be produced in his own thoughts by so bitter and odious a conflict.
Origen trembled, as he says, for his own soul. It might founder in the tempest. Elsewhere, he expresses himself more directly.
He was afraid of being embittered, of getting into a passion, of replying by the same methods to the malicious insinuations and calumnies. Nevertheless, he emerged from the tempest intact.
What was it that preserved him? He tells us with a clarity which leaves no room for any doubt. It was his mystical faith in Jesus.
That, he is fully aware, lifted him above sentiments and passions which an injustice of this kind might easily have engendered in him,''21
That Origen was successful in achieving this spiritual conquest is also evident not only from his resumption of literary work generally but also from the treatise On Prayer in particular, which, as we shall see,22 was composed in 233 or 234, that is, within a year or so of '"'the storm" at Alexandria which caused him to leave it and its old associations for ever and to settle down eventually at Caesarea. As he says himself,23 the fiery darts of 17 Ep., 33:5; 84:10; but see p. 432 and the arguments there put forward for holding another view of the reasons for Origen's condemnation.
18 Or "the Word."
19 Lit., "the guiding principle."
20 In Foh., VI, 2.
21 Origéne, I, 38, 39.
22 P, 181,
23 In Foh., VI, 2.
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
the wicked had been quenched by God, his soul had become accustomed to what had happened, he had learned to bear with equanimity the attacks of his enemies, and, as it were, a period of calm weather had set in. And, as we shall also see, one of the features of the treatise is its insistence upon the right disposition of him who engages in prayer: he must come to it without distraction, without anger, without malice.
The remainder of Origen's life can be summarized briefly here. Eventually he settled at Caesarea in Palestine and made it his home, certainly before 240. The intervening years were marked by much travelling, in the course of which he visited
Athens, Ephesus, Antioch, Caesarea in Cappadocia, and also Tyre, with which he appears to have been associated more definitely. His reputation in general does not seem to have suffered as a result of "'the storm" at Alexandria. Demetrius died soon afterwards, in 233, and he was succeeded by Origen's old assistant in the School, Heraclas. Origen established another
School at Caesarea, to which he attracted some of the most brilliant Christian pupils of that day, who were afterwards destined as bishops to mould the theology of succeeding centuries—
Gregory Thaumaturgus, Bishop of Neocaesarea in Pontus, who has left us a panegyric of his master,?4 his brother Athenodorus,
Firmilian of Caesarea in Cappadocia, and others.'He was also sought after as a consultant theologian on many occasions. We hear of him being called in to refute the errors of Beryllus,
Bishop of Bostra, in Arabia, concerning the Person of Jesus Christ; and again, also in Arabia, about the soul and the resurrection.25 Within recent years the record?® has been discovered of a discussion also held by Origen with a bishop named Heracleides and other bishops associated with him, coram populo, on the Father, the Son, and the soul. The editor27 supposes that this also took place in Arabia. In all these it seems to have been assumed that Origen was the right person to give the correct and orthodox answers on the points in dispute} (Whether those answers would satisfy the Church today is another matter.) At the same time it would appear that Origen's soundness in the faith was not everywhere unchallenged. According to Eusebius,
"he wrote to Fabian, and to very many other rulers of Churches, with reference to his orthodoxy.''28 It is scarcely sufficient to 24 See below, p. 179.
_ 25 Eusebius, H.Z., VI, ch. 33, 37.
26 A translation, with introduction and notes, by the Rev. Henry Chadwick, is included in this volume.
27 J. Scherer, Cairo, 1949.
28 HLE., VI, 36:4.
A.0.—I2
ORIGEN suppose, as de Faye does, 9 that this was merely to repudiate falsifications of what he had actually said in public discussions. That he was sometimes misrepresented is undoubtedly true. But the phrase "'very many other rulers of Churches''}° suggests, on the evidence of his warm admirer, that Origen's teaching had, even in his own lifetime, given rise to widespread questioning.
We need not seek to give a detailed account of Origen's life after his departure from Alexandria. Indeed the evidence upon which such an account could be based is lacking. It was, however, the period of his most prolific literary activity. He had begun to write in 218, and even before 231 portions of two important works, the De Principiis and the Commentary on John, had been completed. But after 231 not only were these works finished, but a great number of other commentaries were written, and, in addition, special works such as the treatise On Prayer, the treatise On Martyrdom and the long and important book Contra Celsum. Moreover, Origen had always been a fluent viva voce expounder of Scripture; but it was not until he was sixty years of age (c. 246) that he allowed his Homilies, as he called them, to be taken down in shorthand and published.
These were of a simpler, more popular character, and were intended for those who could not follow the more difficult commentaries, from which, however, they differed in presentation rather than in fundamental ideas or doctrine. It is certain that only a fraction, perhaps one-third, of his enormous literary output is extant.
The treatise On Martyrdom, written in 235, makes it clear that Origen, now a man of fifty, had not changed in his ideas since a boy as concerning the highest form of Christian witness.
Martyrdom was in his opinion the supreme achievement of the _ Christian life. There can be little doubt that he would have desired this end for himself. But if martyrdom, in the commonly accepted sense of the term, was denied him, he may certainly be ranked high among the confessors. The persecution of Decius broke out in 249, and under it Origen suffered all but the extreme penalty. Eusebius speaks}! of what he endured for the word of Christ, chains and tortures, punishments inflicted on his body, punishments as he lay in irons and in the recesses of his dungeon, and cruel stretching of his legs for many days on end in the stocks. But he survived all this, and so was enabled to encourage others, and especially the faint-hearted, by his ex-
29 T, 43.
30 De Faye omits to take in consideration these words.
31 ALE., VI, 39:4.
GENERAL INTRODUCTION
ample and his helpful words. No doubt his sufferings hastened his end, which took place, probably at Tyre, in 255, when he was sixty-nine years of age.
De Faye says, of the treatise On Martyrdom, * 'veut-on con- | naitre le chrétien qu'était Origéne, c'est 1a qu'il faut le cher- | cher."'32 The same might be said of the De Oratione, which reveals
Origen as a man of prayer, who was not content simply to deal with the matter of prayer in general (as he might have done in the circumstances), but was also anxious to speak of Christian prayer as taught by the Saviour, his words and his example, and what it involves for us who engage in it, both in the inner life and in the life of action. This, we hope, will be made plain in the Introduction and in the Treatise itself. But it may be well to illustrate this aspect of Origen from another source; and for this we may select the panegyric on Origen by Gregory Thaumaturgus, to which we have already referred. There is much in this composition which is artificial, rhetorical, and even fulsome. We cannot read it aright unless we relate it to similar compositions of the schools. Nevertheless, it is impossible not to recognize, under its exuberant verbiage, the genuine love of the writer for Origen as a teacher and a man. Here it will be sufficient to quote the closing section,33 which has a special appropriateness when we consider that it is addressed to the author of the De Oratione. Gregory and his brother, after many years of instruction under Origen, are about to leave for their own country; and Gregory bids his master farewell in these words:
"Do thou, dear heart, arise and when thou hast prayed send us on our way. Having kept us safely when we were with thee by thy holy teaching, so continue to keep us safely when we are away from thee by thy prayers. Do thou commit and commend us continually; or rather commit us to him who led us to thee, even God, giving him thanks for all that has been granted us in the past, and imploring him still to lead us by his hand, to watch over us always in the days to come, to instil into our minds his precepts, and to fill us with that godly fear which will be the best guide of our steps in the future. For when we are gone from thee our service of him will lack that freedom which it had in thy company. Implore him to vouchsafe us some encouragement when we lose thy presence, to send us an angel to be our good conductor upon the way. And entreat him also to turn our steps and bring us back to thee; for that is the one thing above all else which should prove our consolation."
32 I, 45.
33 In Origenem Oratio Panegyrica, ch. xix (P.G., X, 1101).