Origen Origen’s multiple “hats” What are Origen’s “first principles”? Prolegomena to his theodicy.

Pastor, Preacher, “Man of the Church” “The greatest teacher of the Church after the apostles.” --Jerome, Praef. in Hom. Orig. in Ezech.

Biblical Exegete  Hexapla  Three levels of meaning:  Literal  Moral  allegorical Polimpsest of Origen’s Hexapla.

Heretic  Preexistence & transmigration of souls  Apokatastasis

Speculative Philosopher & Theologian 3 rd c. Christian sarcophagus. Lateran Museum, Rome.

Church Fathers on philosophy:  Tertullian: “the mother of all heresies”  Clement Alex.: “the handmaid of theology” “It is perhaps fortunate for the Church that Clement and Tertullian never met. If they had, or if the view of Clement and Origen had been propagated in Africa and Italy, the schism between East and West might have occurred in the third and not in the eleventh century.” --W. H. C. Frend, Martyrdom and Persecution, pp

What are Origen’s “first principles”?  “Everyone therefore who is desirous of constructing out of the foregoing a connected body of doctrine must use points like these [apostolic teaching enshrined in the proto-creed] as elementary and foundation principles… Thus by clear and cogent arguments he will discover the truth about each particular point and so will produce, as we have said, a single body of doctrine, with the aid of such illustrations and declarations as he shall find in the holy scriptures and of such conclusions as he shall ascertain to follow logically from them when rightly understood.” Princ. I. Praef. 10.

Essential/ accidental goodness distinction  “Essential goodness is found solely in Christ and the Holy Spirit, and of course in the Father also. […] [T]he position of every created being is the result of his own work and his own motives.” Princ. I. v. 3.  “But if any other nature is holy, it is so because it is made holy by the reception or inspiration of the Holy Spirit; the possession of this quality does not arise from its own nature, but is an accidental addition to it, and being an addition it can also become separated and lost.” Princ. I. viii. 3.

Metaphysics of diversity:  Origen: “Since the world is so very varied and comprises so great a diversity of rational beings, what else can we assign as the cause of its existence except the diversity in the fall of those who decline from unity in dissimilar ways?” Princ. (Gr.) II. i. 1.

Compare Athanasius of Alexandria:  “For if, as [the Epicureans] say, everything has had its beginning of itself, and independently of purpose, it would follow that everything had come into being alike and not distinct… On the contrary, we see a distinction of sun, moon, and earth; and again, in the case of human bodies of foot, hand and head. Now, such separate arrangement as this tells us that they did not come into being of themselves, but shows that a cause preceded them; from which cause it is possible to apprehend God also as the Maker and Orderer of all.” Inc