On the First Principles (c. 225)
On the First Principles (c. 225)
Translated by Frederick Crombie, 1885
This treatise is now regarded as the first systematic exposition of Christian theology. Origen was a young man when he wrote it, between the years 220 and 230, while still living in Alexandria. Fragments from Books 3.1 and 4.1-3 of Origen’s Greek original are preserved in Origen’s Philokalia. A few smaller quotations of the original Greek are preserved in Justinian’s Letter to Mennas. However, the majority of the text has only survived in a heavily abridged Latin translation produced by Tyrannius Rufinus in 397. Rufinus was convinced that Origen’s original treatise had been interpolated by heretics and that these interpolations were the source of the heterodox teachings found in it. Therefore, he heavily modified Origen’s text, omitting and altering any parts that disagreed with contemporary Christian orthodoxy.
Indeed, Jerome was so appalled by Rufinus’ lack of fidelity to the original Greek that he resolved to produce his own Latin translation of On the First Principles, in which he would translate every word exactly as it was written, revealing Origen’s heresies to the world. Jerome’s translation, however, has been lost in its entirety.
The treatise opens with an essay explaining the nature of theology. Book I concerns the heavenly world, with descriptions of the oneness of God, the relationship between the three persons of the Trinity, the nature of the divine spirit, reason and angels. Book II explains the world of man, including the incarnation of the Logos, the soul, free will and eschatology. Book III principally deals with cosmology, sin and redemption. The final book deals with teleology and an interpretation of the scriptures.