Origen is by far the most thought-provoking and somewhat controversial character we have dealt with yet. He was born during a period of intense persecution of the church. His father Leonides was beheaded as a martyr for the faith and then had his fortune confiscated, leaving the family poor and dependent on Origen to take care of his mother and six siblings. Origen wanted to die a martyr but his mother prevented him from this by hiding his clothes.
Some interesting facts concerning Origen.
· Believed that because there are 2 creation accounts in Genesis, there was 2 literal creations – First – “spiritual;” Second – “material," instead, of there being two separate accounts of the same creation event.
· Attempted to combine Christian faith with philosophical Platonism.
· Believed that in the end even Satan would be saved and creation would return to its original state.
· He wrote several commentaries on the Bible.
· It is estimated he wrote 6,000 separate writings.
Origen was considered by some to be a heretic because his views and writings sometimes were contrary to the standards held by the church at that time. In particular, was his view on the Trinity. Origen described the Trinity as a hierarchy instead of an equality between Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Some found difficulty with him because of his "self-mutilation" which he deemed was in accordance with Matthew 19:12 - "12 Some are born as eunuchs, some have been made eunuchs by others, and some choose not to marry for the sake of the Kingdom of Heaven.” -- Matthew 19:12 (NLT)
In 553 the Council of Constantinople pronounced him a heretic, three centuries after his death. Much of what he wrote quite possibly lost due to his condemnation.
You could write-off an individual such as this, because of his views, which may lie contrary to your own. Let me be frank, that was the direction I was taking at first. Then I spoke with one of my Graduate School Professors who reminded me that historically the early church had many individuals who were influential in the construction of the early church, who at the same time, dabbled in views and teachings that today might be deemed heretical.
What I find so fascinating about Origen was his willingness to stand for the essentials of the faith. The scriptures as the inspired word of God was never to be forsaken. He states - “Since scripture is from God, it ought to have the distinctive characteristics of the Divine works: truth, unity and fullness. The Word of God cannot possibly be untrue; hence no errors or contradictions can be admitted in Scripture.” Origen worked for 20 years on the Hexapla, his analysis of the Old Testament to answer Jewish and Gnostic Critics of Christianity - six parallel columns: one in Hebrew and five in Greek. It became an important part to the development of, what today we call, our Bible.
My point then, is the care we take in making sure, when it comes to the Early Church Fathers and to those very influential in the development of the church, that we don't "throw out the baby with the bathwater." Yes, many of our Early Church Fathers dabbled in what today we would deem heresy, but at the same time they became a formative part in the development of our belief systems that carry us today, and because of that I am thankful, while being careful at the same time.
Randy
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