5. Now, if our having shown above that Christ possessed a rational soul should cause a difficulty to any one, seeing we have frequently proved throughout all our discussions that the nature of souls is capable both of good and evil, the difficulty will be explained in the following way. That the nature, indeed, of His soul was the same as that of all others cannot be doubted, otherwise it could not be called a soul were it not truly one. But since the power of choosing good and evil is within the reach of all, this soul which belonged to Christ elected to love righteousness, so that in proportion to the immensity of its love it clung to it unchangeably and inseparably, so that firmness of purpose, and immensity of affection, and an inextinguishable warmth of love, destroyed all susceptibility (sensum) for alteration and change; and that which formerly depended upon the will was changed by the power of long custom into nature; and so we must believe 1 Col. ii. 9. 2 Tsa. liii. 9. 3 Heb. iv. 15.
4 John viii. 46. § John xiv. 30.
© This quotation is made up of two different parts of Isaiah: chap. vill. 4, ** Before the child shall have knowledge to cry, My father and my mother;” and chap. vii. 16, ** Before the child shall know to rcfuse the evil, and choose the good.”
Cuap. vi. | ORIGEN DE PRINCIPIS, 111 that there existed in Christ a human and rational soul, with- out supposing that it had any feeling or possibility of sin.
(6. To explain the matter more fully, it will not appear absurd to make use of an illustration, although on a subject of so much difficulty it is not easy to obtain suitable illustra- tions. However, if we may speak without offence, the metal iron is capable of cold and heat. If, then, a mass of iron be kept constantly in the fire, receiving the heat through all its pores and veins, and the fire being continuous and the iron never removed from it, it become wholly converted into the latter; could we at all say of this, which is by nature a mass of iron, that when placed in the fire, and incessantly burning, it was at any time capable of admitting cold? On the con- trary, because it is more consistent with truth, do we not rather say, what we often see happening in furnaces, that it has become wholly fire, seeing nothing but fire is visible in it? And if any one were to attempt to touch or handle it, he would experience the action not of iron, but of fire. In this way, then, that soul which, like an iron in the fire, has been perpetually placed in the Word, and perpetually in the Wisdom, and perpetually in God,’ is God in all that it does, feels, and understands, and therefore can be called neither con- vertible nor mutable, inasmuch as, being incessantly heated, it possessed immutability from its union with the Word of God. To all the saints, finally, some warmth from the Word of God must be supposed to have passed; and in this soul the divine fire itself must be believed to have rested, from which some warmth may have passed to others. Lastly, the expres- sion, “ God, thy God, anointed thee with the oil of gladness above thy fellows,”? shows that that soul is anointed in one way with the oil of gladness, te. with the word of God and wisdom; and his fellows, i.e. the holy prophets and apostles, in another. For they are said to have “run in the odour of his ointments;’’* and that soul was the vessel which con- 1 Semper in verbo, semper in sapicntia, semper in Deo.
3 Tli enim in odore unguentorum ejus circumire dicuntur; perhaps an allusion to Song of Sol. i. 3 or to Ps. xlv. 8.
112 ORIGEN DE PRINCIPHS. [ Book 11.
tained that very ointment of whose fragrance all the worthy prophets and apostles were made partakers. As, then, the substance of an ointment is one thing.and its odour another, so also Christ is one thing and His fellows another. And as the vessel itself, which contains the substance of the ointment, _ can by no means admit any foul smell; whereas it is possible that those who enjoy its odour may, if they remove a little way from its fragrance, receive any foul odour which comes upon them: 50, in the same way, was it impossible that Christ, being as it were the vessel itself, in which was the substance of the ointment, should receive an odour of an opposite kind, ‘while they who are His “fellows” will be partakers and receivers of His odour, in proportion to their nearness to the vessel.
7. I think, indeed, that Jeremiah the prophet, also, under- standing what was the nature of the wisdom of God in him, which was the same also which he had assumed for the salvation of the world, said, “ ‘The breath of our countenance is Christ the Lord, to whom we said, that under His shadow we shall live among the nations.”* And inasmuch as the shadow of our body is inseparable from the body, and un- avoidably performs and repeats its movements and gestures, I think that he, wishing to point out the work of Christ’s soul, and the movements inseparably belonging to it, and which accomplished everything according to His movements and will, called this the shadow of Christ the Lord, under which shadow we were to live among the nations. For in the mystery of this assumption the nations live, who, imitating it through faith, come to salvation. David also, when saying, “Be mindful of my reproach, O Lord, with which they reproached me in exchange for Thy Christ,”? seems to me to indicate the same. And what else does Paul mean when he says, “ Your life is hid with Christ in God;”* and again in another passage, “ Do you seek a proof of Christ, who speaketh in me?”* And now he says that Christ was hid in God. The meaning of which expression, unless it be shown to be something such as we have pointed out above as intended by 1 Lam.iv.20.? Ps. Ixxxix. 50, 51. 5 Col. iii. 3. 42 Cor. xiii. 3.
Crap. vil. | ORIGEN DE PRINCIPIIS. 118 the prophet in the words “ shadow of Christ,” exceeds, per- haps, the apprehension of the human mind. But we see also very many other statements in holy Scripture respecting the meaning of the word “ shadow,” as that well-known one in the Gospel according to Luke, where Gabriel says to Mary, “The Spirit of the Lord shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee.”* And the apostle says with reference to the law, that they who have circum- cision in the flesh, “serve for the similitude and shadow of heavenly things.”? And elsewhere, “Is not our life upon the earth a shadow?”? If, then, not only the law which is upon the earth is a shadow, but also all our life which is upon the earth is the same, and we live among the nations under the shadow of Christ, we must sce whether the truth of all these shadows may not come to be known in that revelation, when no longer through a glass, and darkly, but face to face, all the saints shall deserve to behold the glory of God, and the causes and truth of things. And the pledge of this truth being already received through the Holy Spirit, the apostle said, “ Yea, though we have known Christ after the flesh, yet now henceforth know we Tim no more.’ ’ The above, meanwhile, are the thoughts which have occurred to us, when treating of subjects of such difficulty as the in- carnation and deity of Christ. If there be any one, indeed, who can discover something better, and who can establish his assertions by clearer proofs from holy Scriptures, let his opinion be received in preference to mine.
CHAPTER VII. ON THE HOLY SPIRIT.
1. As, then, after those first discussions which, according to the requirements of the case, we held at the beginning regarding the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, it seemed right ORIG. H 114 — ORIGIN DE PRINCIPIIS. [ Book 11.
that we should retrace our steps, and show that the same God was the creator and founder of the world, and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, z.e. that the God of the law and of the prophets and of the gospel was one and the same; and that, in the next place, it ought to be shown, with respect to Christ, in what manner He who had formerly been demon- strated to be the Word and Wisdom of God became man; it remains that we now return with all possible brevity to the subject of the Holy Spirit.
It is time, then, that we say a few words to the best of _ our ability regarding the Holy Spirit, whom our Lord and Saviour in the Gospel according to John has named the Paraclete. For as it is the same God Himself, and the same Christ, so also is it the same Holy Spirit who was in the prophets and apostles, z.e. either in those who believed in God before the advent of Christ, or in those who by means of Christ have sought refuge in God. We have heard, indeed, that certain heretics have dared to say that there are two Gods and two Christs, but we have never known of the doctrine of two Holy Spirits being preached by any one.* For how could they maintain this out of Scripture, or what distinction could they lay down between Holy Spirit and Holy Spirit, if indeed any definition or description of Holy Spirit can be discovered? For although we should concede to Marcion or to Valentinus that it is possible to draw dis- tinctions in the question of Deity, and to describe the nature of the good God as one, and that of the just God as another, what will he devise, or what will he discover, to enable him to introduce a distinction in the Holy Spirit? I consider, then, that they are able to discover nothing which may indi- cate a distinction of any kind whatever.
2. Now we are of opinion that every rational creature, without any distinction, receives a share of Him in the same According to Pamphilus in his Apology, Origen, in a note on Tit. iii. 10, has made a statement the opposite of this. His words are: ‘‘ But there are some also who say, that it was one Holy Spirit who was in the prophets, and another who was in the apostles of our Lord Jesus Christ.” —Rv-rvs.
Cusp. vi.] © ORIGEN DE PRINCIPIS. 115 way as of the Wisdom and of the Word of God. I observe, however, that the chief advent of the Holy Spirit is declared to men, after the ascension of Christ to heaven, rather than aw a ee a OE, before His com coming into the world. For, before that, it was upon the prophets malene: and upon a few iadividuala-=it there happened to be any among the people deserving of it—that the vift of the Holy Spirit was conferred; but after the advent of the Saviour, it is written that the prediction of the prophet Joc) was fulfilled, “In the last days it shall come to pass, and I will pour_out my Spirit upon all. flesh, and_they shall pro- phesy,”* which is similar to the well-known statement, “ All nations shall serve Him.”? By the grace, then, of the Holy Spirit, along with numerous other results, this most glorious consequence is clearly demonstrated, that with regard to those things which were written in the prophets or in the law of Moses, it was only a few persons at that time, viz. the pro- phets themselves, and scarcely another individual out of the whole nation, who were able to look beyond the mere corporeal meaning and discover something greater, t.e. some- thing spiritual, in the law or in the proplhicts; but now there are countless multitudes of believers who, although unable to unfold mea and clearly the results of their spiritual understanding,’ are nevertheless most firmly persuaded that neither ought circumcision to be understood literally, nor the rest of the Sabbath, nor the pouring out of the blood of an animal, nor that answers were given by God to Moses on these points. And this method of apprehension is undoubtedly suggested to the minds of all by the power of the Holy Spirit. 3. And as there are many ways of apprehending Christ, who, although He is wisdom, does not act the part or possess the power of wisdom in all men, but only in those who give themselves to the study of wisdom in Him; and who, although called a physician, does not act as one towards all, but only towards those who understand their feeble and sickly condi- tion, and flee to Ilis compassion that they may obtain health; 1 Joel i. 28. 2 Ps. Ixxit. 11. % Qui licet non omnes possint per ordinem atque ad liquidum spiritualis intelligentiz explanare consequentiam.
116 ORIGEN DE PRINCIPIIS. [Book 1.
so also I think is it with the ITloly Spirit, in whom is contained every kind of gifts. For on some is bestowed by the Spirit the word of wisdom, on others the word of knowledve, on others faith; and so to each individual of those w io are capable of receiving Him, is the Spirit Himself made to be that quality, or understood to be that which is needed by the individual who has deserved to participate.’ These divisions and differences not being perceived by those who hear Him called Paraclete in the Gospel, and not duly considering in consequence of what work or act Ile is named the Paraclete, they have compared Him to some common spirits or other, and by this means have tried to disturb the churches of Christ, and so excite dissensions of no small extent among brethren; whereas the Gospel shows Him to be of such power and majesty, that it says the apostles could not yet receive those things which the Saviour wished to teach them until the advent of the Holy Spirit, who, pouring Himself into their souls, might enlighten them regarding the nature and faith of the Trinity. But these persons, because of the ignorance of their understandings, are not only unable themselves locically to state the truth, bat cannot even give their attention to what is advaneed by us; and entertaining unworthy ideas of His divinity, have delivered themselves over to errors and deccits, being depraved by a spirit of error, rather than instructed by the teaching of the Holy Spirit, according to the declaration of the apostle, “ Following the doctrine of devils, forbidding to marry, to the destruction and ruin of many, and to abstain from meats, that by an ostentatious exhibition of stricter observance they may seduce the souls of the innocent.” * 4. We must therefore know that the Paraclete is the Ioly Spirit, who teaches truths which cannot be uttered in words, and which are, so to speak, unutterable, and “ which it is not lawful for a man to utter,”® te. which cannot be indicated + Ita per singulos, qui eum capcre. possunt, hoe efficitur, vel hoc intel- ligitur ipse Spiritus, quo indiget ille, qui cum participare meruerict. Schnitzer renders, ‘* And so, in every one who is susceptible of them, the Spirit is exactly that which the receiver chiefly needs.”
Cuap. VI. | ORIGEN DE PRINCIPIIS.. 117 by human language. The phrase “it is not lawful” is, we think, used by the apostle instead of “it is not possible;” as also is the case in the passage where he says, “ All things are lawful for me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but all things edify not.”’ For those things which are in our power because we may have them, he says are lawful for us. But the Paraclete, who is called the Holy Spirit, is so called from His work of consolation, paraclesis being termed in Latin consolatio. For if any one has deserved to participate in the Holy Spirit by the know- ledge of His ineffable mysteries, he undoubtedly obtains comfort and joy of heart. For since he comes by the teaching of the Spirit to the knowledge cf the reasons of all things which happen—how or why they occur—his soul can in no respect be troubled, or admit any fecling of sorrow; nor is he alarmed by anything, since, clinging to the Word of God and His wisdom, he through the Holy Spirit calls Jesus Lord. And since we have made mention of the Paraclete, and have explained as we were able what sentiments ought to be entertained regarding Him; and since our Saviour also is called the Paraclete in the Epistle of John, when he says, “Ir any of us sin, we have a Paraclete with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous, and Ie is the propitiation for our sins;”” let us consider whether this term Paraclete should happen to have one meaning when applied to the saviour, and another when applied to the Toly Spirit. Now Paraclete, when spoken of the Saviour, seems to mean inter- cessor. Lor in Greck, Paraclete has both significations— that of intercessor and comforter. On account, then, of the phrase which follows, when he says, “ And Ile is the propitiation for our sins,” the name Paraclete seems to be understood in the case of our Saviour as meaning intercessor; for Ie is said to intercede with the Father because of our sins. In the case of the Holy Spirit, the Paraclete must be understood in the sense of comforter, inasmuch as IIe bestows consolation upon the souls to whom Ile openly reveals the apprehension of spiritual knowledge.
118 ORIGEN DE PRINCIPIIS. [Book un.
CHAPTER VIII. ON THE SOUL (ANIMA).
1. THE order of our arrangement now requires us, after the discussion of the preceding subjects, to institute a general inquiry regarding the soul;* and, beginning with points of inferior importance, to ascend to those that are of greater. Now, that there are souls’ in all living things, even in those which live in the waters, is, I suppose, doubted by no one. For the general opinion of all men maintains this; and con- firmation from the authority of holy Scripture is added, when it is said that “God made great whales, and every living creature® that moveth which the waters brought forth after their kind.”* It is confirmed also from the common intelli- gence of reason, by those who lay down in certain words a definition of soul. For soul is defined as follows: a substance davraotixy and opynt-«7, which may be rendered into Latin, although not so appropriately, sensibilis et mobilis.° This certainly may be said appropriately of all living beings, even of those which abide in the waters; and of winged creatures too, this same definition of anima may be shown to hold good. Scripture also has added its authority to a second opinion, when it says, “ Ye shall not eat the blood, because the life ° of all flesh is its blood; and ye shall not eat the life with the flesh;”‘ in which it intimates most clearly that the blood of every animal is its life. And if any one now were to ask how it can be said with respect to bees, wasps, and ants, and those other things which are in the waters, oysters and cockles, and all others which are without blood, and are most 1 Anima. 2 Anime. 3 Animam animantium.
4 Gen. i. 21: xacav Puxyy Cowv, Sept.
5 Erasmus remarks, that Qav»treorixy may be rendered imaginitica, which is the understanding: épeerixg, impulsiva, which refers to the affections (Schnitzer).
6 Animam.
7 Lev. xvii. 14: Yuxg cracns caoxcs clue evrop rors, Sept.
Cuap, vilt. | ORIGEN DE PRINCIPIIS. 119 clearly shown to be living things, that the “life of all flesh is the blood,” we must answer, that in living things of that sort the force which is exerted in other animals by the power of red blood is exerted in them by that liquid which is within them, although it be of a different colour; for colour is a thing of no importance, provided the substance be endowed with life.’ That beasts of burden or cattle of smaller size are endowed with souls,’ there is, by general assent, no doubt whatever. The opinion of holy Scripture, however, is mani- fest, when God says, “ Let the earth bring forth the living creature after its kind, four-footed beasts, and creeping things, and beasts of the earth after their kind.”* And now with respect to man, although no one entertains any doubt, or needs to inquire, yet holy Scripture declares that “God breathed into his countenance the breath of life, and man be- came a living soul.”* It remains that we inquire respecting the angelic order whether they also have souls, or are souls; and also respecting the other divine and celestial powers, as well as those of an opposite kind. We nowhere, indeed, find any authority in holy Scripture for asserting that either the angels, or any other divine spirits that are ministers of God, either possess souls or are called soyls, and yet they are felt - by very many persons to be endowed with life. But with regard to God, we find it written as follows: “ And I will put my soul upon that soul which has eaten blood, and I will root him out from among his people;”° and also in another passage, “Your new moons, and sabbaths, and great days, I will not accept; your fasts, and holidays, and festal days, my soul hateth.”® And in the twenty-second Psalm, regard- ing Christ—for it is certain, as the Gospel bears witness, that this Psalm is spoken of Him—the following words 1 Vitalis. 2 Animantia.
3 Gen. 1. 24, living creature, animain.
4 Gen. ii. 7, animam viventem.
5 Lev. xvii. 10. It is clear that in the text which Oricen or his trans- lator had before him he must have read Wuyxy instead of zpcowrov: other- wise the quotation would be inappropriate (Schnitzer), 120 ORIGEN DE PRINCIPIIS. [ Boox 1.
occur: “QO Lord, be not far from helping me; look to my defence: O God, deliver my soul from the sword, and my beloved one from the hand of the dog;”* although there are also many other testimonies respecting the soul of Christ when He tabernacled in the flesh.
2. But the nature of the incarnation will render unnecessary any inquiry into the soul of Christ. For as He truly pos- sessed flesh, so also He truly possessed a soul. It is difficult indeed both to feel and to state how that which is called in Scripture the soul of God is to be understood; for we acknowledge that nature to be simple, and without any inter- mixture or addition. In whatver way, however, it is to be understood, it seems, meanwhile, to be named the soul of God; whereas regarding Christ there is no doubt. And therefore there seems to me no absurdity in either under- standing or asserting some such thing regarding the holy angels and the other heavenly powers, since that definition of soul appears applicable also to them. For who can rationally deny that they are “sensible and moveable?” But if that definition appear to be correct, according to which a soul is said to be a substance rationally “ sensible and moveable,” the same definition would seem also to apply to angels. For what else is in them than rational feeling and motion? Now those beings who are comprehended under the same definition have undoubtedly the same substance. Paul indeed intimates that there is a kind of animal-man* who, he says, cannot receive the things of the Spirit of God, but declares that the doctrine of the Holy Spirit seems to him foolish, and that he cannot understand what is to be spiritually discerned. In another passage he says it is sown an animal body, and arises a spiritual body, pointing out that in the resurrection of the Just there will be nothing of an animal nature. And there- fore we inquire whether there happen to be any substance which, in respect of its being anima, is imperfect. But whether it be imperfect because it falls away from perfection, or because it was so created by God, will form the subject of inquiry when each individual topic shall begin to be discussed 1 Ps, xxi. 20, 21, unicam meam, poveysy% wou. 2 Animalem.
Cuap. vil. | ORIGEN DE PRINCIPIIS. 121 in order. For if the animal man receive not the things of the Spirit of God, and because he is animal, is unable to admit the understanding of a better, i.e. of a divine nature, it is for this reason perhaps that Paul, wishing to teach us more plainly what that is by means of which we are able to comprehend those things which are of the Spirit, z.e. spiritual things, conjoins and associates with the Holy Spirit an under- standing’ rather than a soul.’ For this, I think, he indicates when he says, “I will pray with the spirit, I will pray with the understanding also; I will sing with the spirit, I will sing with the understanding also.”* And he does not say that “T will pray with the soul,” but with the spirit and the understanding. Nor does he say, “TI will sing with the soul,” but with the spirit and the understanding.
3. But perhaps this question is asked, [f it be the under- same whic receives beth perfection and salvation, how is it that Peter says, “ Receiving the end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls?”* If the soul neither prays nor sings with the spirit, how shall it hope for salvation? or when it attains to blessedness, shall it be no longer called a soul?? Let us sce if perhaps an answer may be given in this way, that as the Saviour came to save what was lost, that which formerly was said to be lost is not lost when it is saved; so also, perhaps, this which is saved is called a soul, and when it has been placed in a state of salvation will 1 Mens. 2 Anima. 2 bICOre Vs LY: 41 Pet, 1.9.
> These words are found in Jerome's Fpistle to Avitus, and, literally translated, are as follow: ‘ Whence infinite caution is to be employed, lest’ perchance, after souls have obtaine:} salvation and come to the blessed life, they should cease to be souls. Foras our Lord and Saviour came to sevk and to save what was lost, that it might cease to be lost: so the soul which was lost, and for whose salvation the Lord came, shail, when it has been saved, cease to be a soul. This point in like manner must be examined, whe‘her, as that which has been lost was at one time not lost, and a time will come when it will be no Joneer lost; so also at some time a soul may not have been a soul, and a time may be when it will by no means continue to be a soul.” A portion of the above is also found, in the orizinal Greek, in the Emperor Justinian’s letter to Menas, Patriarch of Ccnstautinople.
122 ORIGEN DE PRINCIPIIS. [Book 1.
receive a name from the Word that denotes its more perfect condition. But it appears to some that this also may be added, that as the thing which was lost undoubtedly existed before it was lost, at which time it was something else than destroyed, so also will be the case when it is no longer in a ruined condition. In like manner also, the soul which is said to have perished will appear to have been something at one time, when as yet it had not perished, and on that account would be termed soul, and being again freed from destruction, it may become a second time what it was before it perished, and be called a soul. But from the very signification of the name soul which the Greek word conveys, it has appeared to a few curious inquirers that a meaning of no small import- ance may be suggested. For in sacred language God is called a fire, as when Scripture says, “ Our God is a con- suming fire.”’ Respecting the substance of the angels also it speaks as follows: “ Who maketh His angels spirits, and His ministers 4 burning fire;”? and in another place, “ The angel of the Lord appeared in a flame of fire in the bush.” ® We have, moreover, received a commandment to be “ fervent in spirit;”* by which expression undoubtedly the Word of God is shown to be hot and fiery. The prophet Jeremiah also hears from Him, who gave him his answers, “ Behold, I have given my words into thy mouth a fire.”’ As God, then, is a fire, and the angels a flame of fire, and all the