o Although Origen was careful to observe traditional teaching,
his bold vision, pushed to an extreme by later disciples, led to
the eventual condemnation of “Origenism.”• Origen wrote a massive apologetic work, Against Celsus, that
demonstrated not only his loyalty to the faith but his enormous
learning and sophistication as a thinker. Celsus was a philosopher
and author of the True Word (178), an attack on Christianity
as ignorant, superstitious, and impious. Origen’s response is a
masterpiece of apologetic, securely locating Christianity within the
world of ancient learning.The Future of Christian Philosophy
• The development of this strand of philosophically colored
Christianity was of considerable importance for the future.
• The ancient philosophical conviction that right morals derived from
right opinion (“orthodoxy”) reinforced the emphasis on doctrine
within the Christian tradition.• Equally, the heritage of philosophy as a “way of being religious as
moral transformation” found expression in later forms of monasticism.Daniélou (Mitchell, trans.), Origen.
Lilla, Clement of Alexandria.
- Discuss the analysis of Greco-Roman and Christian religion in terms
of “ways of being religious.” What are the benefits and deficits of such
an analysis? - Consider the distinctive insistence in religion on linking “right thinking”
and “right behavior.”
Suggested Reading
Questions to Consider