Origen—Hao Nao Teaching Bilong Hem Affectim Church?
“Nambawan man for teach long church bihaen long olketa Aposol.” Jerome, man wea transleitim Latin Vulgate Bible, praisem mek-thri century savveman Origen long wei olsem. Bat no evriwan tinghae olsem long Origen. Samfala tingim hem olsem wanfala wicked rut wea olketa false teaching kamaot from. Wanfala man for raet long mek-17 century talem olsem abaotem olketa wea tok spoelem Origen: “Planti long olketa teaching bilong hem stupid and spoelem man, olsem poison bilong snek, wea hem toroaotem long world.” Winim fofala century bihaen hem dae, olketa kolem Origen man wea againstim teaching bilong church.
WHY nao Origen hem kasem praise and heit? Wanem paoa nao hem garem ovarem wei wea church teaching hem kamap?
Strong for Church
Origen hem born long samting olsem 185 C.E. long Alexandria, wanfala taon bilong Egypt. Hem kasem gudfala education long teaching bilong Greece, bat dadi bilong hem Leonides, talem hem for iusim sem strong for studyim Bible. Taem Origen hem 17 year, king bilong Rome mekem wanfala law wea sei hem rong for wanfala man changem religion bilong hem. Dadi bilong Origen go long prison bikos hem bin change for kamap wanfala Christian. From hem fulap witim strong bilong wanfala young man, Origen disaed strong for joinim hem long prison and long dae for diswan. From hem lukim diswan, mami bilong Origen haedem kaleko bilong hem for stopem hem for lusim haos. Thru long leta, Origen begim dadi bilong hem: “Careful for no changem tingting bilong iu bikos long mifala.” Leonides stap strong and olketa killim hem dae, and diswan leavim famili bilong hem witim no eni samting. Bat Origen kasem inaf savve from study bilong hem for teachim olketa Greek teaching for kasem selen, wea diswan nao saportim mami and sixfala smol brata bilong hem.
Idea bilong king hem for stopem Christian teaching for kamap big. From law bilong hem targetim olketa teacher witim olketa student, evri teacher bilong Christian Wei ranawe from Alexandria. Taem samfala wea no Christian lukaotem Bible instruction and askem Origen for help, hem disaed for duim diswan olsem wanfala waka from God. Planti long olketa student bilong hem dae from diswan, samfala bifor olketa finisim study. Nomata hem stap long barava danger, Origen encouragem olketa student bilong hem, front long kot, long prison, or taem olketa klosap for dae. Man for raetem history long mek-foa century, Eusebius talem hao taem olketa leadim olketa hia for dae, Origen, “witim strong, showim honor long olketa witim wanfala kiss.”
Origen mekem staka wea no Christian kros fogud, from olketa sei hem nao garem blame for dae bilong planti fren bilong olketa wea changem religion bilong olketa. Planti taem hem just missim raf sekson and wanfala nogud dae. Nomata hem mas changem haos evritaem for stap haed from pipol wea aftarem hem, Origen no slow daon for duim teaching bilong hem. Kaen wei olsem for no fraet and loyal mekem Demetrius, bishop bilong Alexandria, tinghae long Origen. Dastawe, taem Origen hem 18 year nomoa, Demetrius markem hem olsem hed bilong skul bilong religious instruction long Alexandria.
Gogo, Origen kamap wanfala savveman wea staka savve long hem and man for raetem staka buk. Samfala sei hem raetem 6,000 buk, bat luk olsem diswan hem ova tumas. Planti pipol savve long hem from Hexapla, wanfala bigfala, 50-volume Hebrew Bible. Origen arrangem Hexapla long sixfala laen tugeta, wea insaed hem garem: (1) Hebrew and Aramaic text, (2) wanfala Greek transliteration long datfala text, (3) Greek version bilong Aquila, (4) Greek version bilong Symmachus, (5) Greek Septuagint, wea Origen changem lelebet for stret witim Hebrew text, and (6) Greek version bilong Theodotion. Man for studyim Bible John Hort sei: “Thru long wei for putim olketa verse olsem, Origen hope for mekem moa klia mining bilong staka verse wea wanfala man wea iusim Greek languis bae konfius sapos hem garem Septuagint nomoa front long hem.”
‘Hem Go Aotsaed Long Samting wea Olketa Raetem Finis’
Nomata olsem, wei wea pipol konfius saed long religion long mek-thri century affectim hao Origen hem teachim Bible. Nomata Christendom hem just start nomoa, hem kamap dirty finis witim olketa biliv wea no followim Bible, and olketa church wea no stap klosap tugeta teachim olketa difren biliv.
Origen acceptim samfala long olketa biliv hia wea no kam from Bible, and hem kolem olketa, teaching bilong olketa aposol. Bat hem feel free for talem tingting bilong hem abaotem olketa nara kwestin. Planti long olketa student bilong hem stragol witim teaching bilong olketa savveman bilong datfala taem. For trae helpem olketa, Origen lukluk gud long olketa difren teaching bilong man wea sheipim tingting bilong olketa student bilong hem. Hem trae for provaedem olketa gudfala ansa for olketa kwestin wea olketa student bilong hem garem saed long olketa teaching bilong olketa man hia.
Long wei for trae stretem Bible witim olketa teaching bilong man, Origen depend long tokpiksa mining bilong Bible. Hem disaed hao Bible evritaem garem spiritual mining bat maet no minim really samting. Olsem wanfala savveman talem, diswan provaedem Origen witim “wei for minim Bible long wei wea fitim eni idea wea no kam from Bible wea semsem witim samting wea hemseleva laek bilivim, bat long semtaem hem sei (and iumi sure hem bilivim) hao hem wanfala man wea interest tumas and faithful for transleitim tingting bilong Bible.”
Wanfala leta wea Origen raetem long wanfala student bilong hem helpem iumi for minim lelebet tingting bilong hem. Origen raetem hao olketa Israelite wakem olketa samting olsem spoon and pot long haos bilong Jehovah from gold bilong Egypt. Long diswan hem faendem saport for iusim olketa teaching bilong Greek for teachim Christian Wei. Hem raet: “Olketa samting wea olketa pikinini bilong Israel tekaot from Egypt hem gud tumas, wea olketa bilong Egypt no iusim long gudfala wei, bat wea olketa Hebrew, wea wisdom bilong God nao leadim olketa, iusim for service bilong God.” Long wei olsem Origen encouragem olketa student bilong hem for “tekaot from teaching bilong olketa Greek eni samting wea maet fitim man for studyim for redy for Christian Wei.”
Diskaen wei for minim Bible mekem hem hard for luksavve long wanem nao difren midolwan Christian biliv and Greek teaching. Olsem example, long buk bilong hem wea garem title On First Principles, Origen storyim Jesus olsem ‘only-born Son, wea hem born, bat no garem start.’ Hem sei moa: ‘Start bilong hem from olowe and for olowe. Hem no long wei wea hem wantaem kasem wind bilong laef wea mekem hem kamap wanfala Son, from samting from aotsaed, bat from God seleva.’
Origen no faendem disfala idea long Bible, from olketa Scripture teachim hao only-born Son bilong Jehovah hem “firstborn bilong evri creation” and “start bilong creation bilong God.” (Colossians 1:15; Revelation 3:14) Fitim wanem man bilong history bilong religion Augustus Neander talem, Origen kasem idea bilong “start from olowe” thru long education bilong hem long “teaching bilong man wea followim tingting bilong Plato.” Long wei olsem, Origen brekem disfala Bible principle: “No go aotsaed long samting wea olketa raetem finis.”—1 Corinthians 4:6.
Judgem Hem Olsem Man wea Againstim Teaching Bilong Church
Insaed long olketa first year bilong hem olsem teacher, wanfala Alexandrine Synod aotem from Origen mark bilong hem olsem priest. Luk olsem diswan hem from Bishop Demetrius jealous from staka pipol start for savve long Origen. Origen hem muv go long Palestine, wea pipol luk go long hem olsem man wea saedem Christian biliv, and long there nao hem go ahed olsem wanfala priest. For tok stret, taem “olketa false teaching” kamap big long east, olketa askem hem for kam and story long samfala bishop wea gogo difren, for kam bak long olketa teaching bilong church. Bihaen long dae bilong hem long 254 C.E., olketa story nogud abaotem Origen. Why nao olsem?
Bihaen olketa hafhaf Christian kamap wanfala strong religion, olketa teaching bilong church start for change. Dastawe, samfala savveman wea kamap bihaen no acceptim planti long olketa idea bilong Origen wea planti taem hem no stret and followim teaching bilong man. Olketa teaching bilong hem startim samfala raoa insaed long church. For trae finisim olketa raoa hia and keepim wan mind, church hem talemaot stret hao olketa judgem hem olsem false teacher.
No Origen nomoa mekem mistek. Bible hem talem finis hao wanfala taem bae kam wea staka bae lusim stretfala teaching bilong Christ. Disfala apostate wei hem start for kamap big long end bilong first century, bihaen olketa aposol bilong Jesus dae finis. (2 Thessalonians 2:6, 7) Gogo, samfala wea sei olketa nao Christian markem olketa seleva olsem “only tru church,” and talemaot hao olketa narawan nao “false teacher.” Bat really, Christendom lusim long bigfala wei trufala Christian Wei.
“Rong for Kolem ‘Savve’”
Nomata Origen garem staka idea, planti waka wea hem duim garem gudfala saed. Olsem example, disfala Hexapla keepim nem bilong God long Hebrew raeting, fofala leta, wea olketa kolem Tetragrammaton. Diswan givim strongfala pruv hao olketa firstfala Christian savve long and iusim nem bilong God—Jehovah. Nomata olsem, wanfala bigman bilong church long mek-faev century Theophilus givim warning olsem: “Olketa waka bilong Origen hem olsem wanfala grass area wea garem olketa difren flaoa. Sapos mi lukim wanfala naes flaoa, mi holem, bat sapos mi lukim eni samting wea luk olsem nila grass mi stap klia mekem hem no kasem mi.”
Wei wea hem mixim teaching bilong Bible witim teaching bilong olketa Greek, mekem teaching bilong Origen fulap witim olketa mistek, and samting wea kamaot from diswan hem nogud tumas for Christendom. Olsem example, nomata pipol rejectim planti long olketa tingting bilong Origen bihaen, disfala tingting bilong Origen abaotem “start from olowe” bilong Jesus help for mekem faondeson for Trinity teaching wea no kam from Bible. Wanfala buk The Church of the First Three Centuries hem sei: “Future bilong teaching bilong man [wea Origen nao startim] luk olsem hem no for finis kwiktaem nomoa.” Wanem nao kamaot from diswan? “Simpol wei bilong Christian faith hem spoel nao, and haomas mistek wea iu no savve kaontem kam insaed long Church.”
For part bilong hem, Origen shud followim kaonsel bilong aposol Paul and missim wei for helpem disfala apostate wei long wei for “tanawe from olketa rabis toktok wea spoelem holy samting and from olketa toktok wea againstim narawan wea pipol giaman for kolem olsem “savve.’” Bat, long wei wea hem iusim kaen “savve” olsem for faondeson bilong planti teaching bilong hem, Origen “lusim faith nao.”—1 Timothy 6:20, 21; Colossians 2:8.
[Piksa long page 31]
“Hexapla” bilong Origen showim hao olketa Christian Greek Scripture bifor iusim nem bilong God
[Credit Line]
Olketa pablisim from permission bilong Syndics of Cambridge University Library, T-S 12.182
[Piksa Credit Line long page 29]
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