ROMSO Cyprus Knowledge Base

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The first Origenist dispute is one of two controversies in the Christian Church regarding Origen's personality and teachings. In the 390s, parties of supporters and opponents of the teachings of Origen formed, the conflict between which lasted from about 393 to 404. The extensive literary heritage of Origen (c.185-c.254) became a cause of controversy during the life of the Alexandrian theologian, but until the conclusion of the Arian dispute in 381, the main problem of the Orthodox Christian Church was the struggle against Arianism. The conflict took place simultaneously in Egypt, Palestine and in the capitals of the Roman Empire. The initiators of the dispute for various reasons were prominent theologians of their time Bishop Epiphanius of Cyprus and Patriarch Theophilus of Alexandria.

In Egypt, the main issue of disagreement was the question of God as having a human form. Supporters of the literal interpretation of the Bible, of which there were especially many among Egyptian monasticism, referred to the indication of the New Testament that, after the coming of Christ, the Word took the form of a man. Origen considered God-likeness to be the realm of thought. In 399, a council presided over by Theophilus of Alexandria condemned Origen and his disciples and writings. This decision was confirmed by councils in Jerusalem, Rome and Cyprus. At the same time, intense theological polemics, special intensity of which was given by long-standing friendly relations and personal disagreements, were conducted by Jerome of Strydon and Rufin of Aquileia. After the conviction in Cyprus, Epiphanius of Cyprus arrived in Constantinople in order to persuade Archbishop John Chrysostom to the same decision. For Chrysostom, who was sympathetic to the Origenists, this dispute coincided with a personal conflict with Empress Eudoxia, which his opponents used to achieve the expulsion of the Constantinople archbishop.

From about 404, the intensity of the controversy began to diminish, as did interest in Origenism in general. Some directions of Origen’s thought, especially his exegetics, remained relevant for a long time. According to the researcher of this dispute, E. Clark, with the condemnation of Origenism, the last chances for the unification of the traditions of Eastern and Western Christianity disappeared, and the direction of theology triumphed in the West, the central theme of which is human sinfulness, divine determinism and divine unknowability.

Origenists and their opponents in the second half of the fourth century

One of the first works in praise of Origen was the work of Gregory the Wonderworker, Bishop of Neocaesarea “A speech of thanks to Origen”. Jerome Strydonsky in his work “On Famous Men” reports that since the second half of the III century begins literary polemics, a number of authors devoted their works to the works of Origen. Methodius of Olympia wrote two different works with the same title "Against Origen", Eustathius of Antioch wrote a large work with the same title. Pamphilus of Caesarea, while in prison, wrote “Apology of Orige”