Scripture and Self in Origen of Alexandria's Exegetical Practice

269 Pages·2015·1.31 MB·English

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Electronic Theses and Dissertations Graduate Studies
1-1-2014
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Micah David Saxton
University of Denver
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SCRIPTURE AND SELF IN ORIGEN OF ALEXANDRIA’S EXEGETICAL
PRACTICE

__________

A Dissertation
Presented to
the Faculty of the University of Denver
and the Iliff School of Theology Joint PhD Program
University of Denver

__________

In Partial Fulfillment
of the Requirements for the Degree
Doctor of Philosophy

__________

by
Micah David Saxton
June 2014
Advisor: Gregory Robbins PhD
©Copyright by Micah David Saxton 2014
All Rights Reserved
Author: Micah David Saxton
Title: SCRIPTURE AND SELF IN ORIGEN OF ALEXANDRIA’S EXEGETICAL
PRACTICE
Advisor: Gregory Robbins PhD
Degree Date: June 2014
ABSTRACT

In this dissertation I examine the nature of scripture and the self as presented by
Origen of Alexandria. I argue that Christian scripture and the Christian self are
constructed by exegetical practice; furthermore, in the case of Origen, I will demonstrate
that Christian scripture and the Christian self are so closely related that it is best to speak
of a scripture-self complex emerging out of his exegetical practice. I use a theory of
structure as developed by William Sewell as a means to discuss both scripture and the
self. As “structures,” scripture and the self are composed of “resources” and “schemas”
that are paired together into meaningful wholes. That whole is a structure, which in turn
structures other aspects of culture. However, resources and schemas are not automatically
paired together. Rather, they are paired together by practices of historical agents who
both shape structures and are shaped by them.
With this framework in mind, I discuss the ways in which exegetical practices
pair resources and schemas together into meaningful wholes. There are two initial
processes, the becoming scripture of biblical texts and the becoming the self of a human
person, which I trace in Heracleon, Irenaeus, and Origen. I then argue that in the case of
Origen, scripture and self mutually structure one another. I call these processes “the
anthropomorphizing of scripture” and “the scripturalizing of the self.” These processes
result in what I call a scripture-self complex, by this term I mean that scripture cannot be
what scripture is without the self being what the self is and the self cannot be what the
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self is without scripture being what scripture is. Key texts for my study of Origen’s
exegetical practices are his Commentary on the Gospel according to John, On First
Principles, Homilies on Jeremiah, and finally, Commentary on the Song of Songs.
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ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

There is a hackneyed proverb that claims, “It takes a village to raise a child.” I
have never raised a child, but I have now completed a dissertation and I know that it takes
a village to complete a dissertation. I would like to acknowledge that village. First and
foremost I am grateful to my dissertation advisor Gregory Robbins who will always
know more about this topic than I will. I am also grateful to Pamela Eisenbaum and Sarah
Pessin who served on my dissertation committee. I could not have asked for better
committee members, they each pushed me to think through many issues from angles I
would not have anticipated. Katherine Turpin has graciously volunteered her time to
chair my dissertation defense; I am pleased that my defense was in such capable hands.
There are others who were also a part of my dissertation’s village. Notably, my
intrepid writing group: Eric Smith and Erica Ferg Muhaisen. My early chapters benefited
greatly from Erica’s input and Eric’s keen eye has saved me from many embarrassing
errors; to say nothing of his intellectual contributions. Finally, I would also like to
acknowledge Mark George and Michael Hemeneway, both of whom have helped me to
be a more careful thinker. I am grateful to this village for helping raise my dissertation.
Any errors contained herein are, however, my own and for them I am responsible.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION.................................................................................1

Introduction and Thesis...................................................................................................1

Questioning Scripture and the Self.................................................................................3

Scripture......................................................................................................................3

The Self.......................................................................................................................9

Methodological Tools: Structure, Discourse, and Practice...........................................15

Structure....................................................................................................................15

Discourse...................................................................................................................23

Practice......................................................................................................................28

Method..........................................................................................................................30

Sources..........................................................................................................................31

Key Studies...................................................................................................................34

Outline of Chapters.......................................................................................................36

CHAPTER TWO: SCRIPTURE AND SELF BEFORE ORIGEN..................................38

Heracleon......................................................................................................................40

The Structure of Scripture in Heracleon...................................................................45

The Structure of the Self in Heracleon.....................................................................53

Irenaeus.........................................................................................................................62

The Structure of Scripture in Irenaeus’s Against Heresies.......................................64

The Structure of the Self in Irenaeus’s Against Heresies.........................................78

Conclusion....................................................................................................................89

CHAPTER THREE: STRUCTURING SCRIPTURE IN ORIGEN...............................92

Scriptural Resources.................................................................................................93

Scriptural Schemas....................................................................................................99

Exegetical Practices that Construct Scripture.............................................................102

The Greco-Roman School.......................................................................................103

The Use of Books....................................................................................................107

Commentary as a Practice.......................................................................................114

The Practice of Grammar........................................................................................121

Conclusion..................................................................................................................137

CHAPTER FOUR: STRUCTURING THE SELF IN ORIGEN....................................140

Origen’s Structure of the Self.....................................................................................141

Resources of the Self..............................................................................................142

The Schema of the Self...........................................................................................152

Liturgical Practices that Construct the Self................................................................155

Baptism...................................................................................................................159

Eucharist.................................................................................................................164

Prayer......................................................................................................................169

Homiletical Practices that Construct the Self.............................................................172

Homiletical Situation..............................................................................................172

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Addressing the Text to the Hearer..........................................................................180

Constructing the Other............................................................................................183

Conclusion..................................................................................................................192

CHAPTER FIVE: THE SELF STRUCTURES SCRIPTURE AND SCRIPTURE
STRUCTURES THE SELF: ORIGEN’S SCRIPTURE-SELF COMPLEX..................194

Self Structures Scripture: Anthropomorphizing of Scripture.....................................196

Allegorical Reading: Terms and Historical Background........................................198

Allegorical Reading in Origen................................................................................205

Scripture Structures Self: The Scripturalizing of the Self..........................................220

Christian Παιδεία....................................................................................................223

A CONCLUDING REFLECTION.................................................................................242

Synthesis.....................................................................................................................242

Moving Forward.........................................................................................................246

BIBLIOGRAPHY...........................................................................................................250

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CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
Introduction and Thesis
Origen of Alexandria (c. 185-254) was the most influential thinker in the
Christian tradition between Paul and Augustine. During his lifetime Origen was called
upon to settle significant theological debates, he traveled internationally to combat
various heresies, and, for better or worse, Origen’s theological legacy was to have
significant influence on all sides of the theological debates of the fourth and fifth
centuries.1 It would be difficult to overestimate his theological influence on the early
church. Yet, for all that, Origen is best known as the most prolific exegete in the early
Christian tradition. Indeed, most of modern scholarship that focuses its attention on
Origen does so in order to say something about his exegetical practice, this dissertation is
no exception. It is no surprise that the most commonly quoted lines from Origen’s extant

1 For Origen’s general influence see Joseph W. Trigg, Origen: The Bible and Philosophy
in the Third-Century Church (London: SCM, 1985). For his theological legacy in the
major debates of the fourth and fifth centuries see Elizabeth A. Clark, The Origenist
Controversy: The Cultural Construction of an Early Christain Debate (Princeton, N.J.:
Princeton University Press, 1992). Origen’s influence was felt soon after his death; even
authors hostile to Christianity were aware of his influences. Eusebius records a fragment
from Porphyry who says of Origen “But this kind of absurdity [allegorical interpretation
of the Bible] must be traced to a man whom I met when I was still quite young, who had
a great reputation, and still holds it, because of the writings he has left behind him, I
mean Origen whose fame has been widespread among the teachers of this kind of
learning.” ὁ δὲ τρόπος τῆς ἀτοπίας ἐξ ἀνδρὸς ᾧ κἀγὼ κοµιδῇ νέος ὢν ἔτι ἐντετύχηκα,
σφόδρα εὐδοκιµήσαντος καὶ ἔτι δι’ ὧν καταλέλοιπεν συγγραµµάτων εὐδοκιµοῦντος,
παρειλήφθω, Ὠριγένους, οὗ κλέος παρὰ τοῖς διδασκάλοις τούτων τῶν λόγων µέγα
διαδέδοται. (Eusebius, Hist. eccl. 6.19.5 [Oulton, LCL]).

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corpus come from On First Principles where he discusses the theoretical background of
his exegetical practice: “For just as man consists of body, soul, and spirit, so in the same
way does the scripture, which has been prepared by God to be given for man’s
salvation.”2 Origen speaks of scripture in terms of a human person. Scripture is
conceptualized anthropologically.
In a less-cited passage from a homily on Genesis, Origen likens a person’s heart
to a library; in other words he conceptualizes a person bibliographically.3 There is a close
connection between scripture and the human person, or better, the self in the theoretical
background of Origen’s exegetical practice that is directly related to his understanding of
salvation.4 However, Christian scripture and the Christian self are not “natural
categories.” In this dissertation I will argue that Christian scripture and the Christian self
are constructed by exegetical practice; furthermore, in the case of Origen, I will
demonstrate that Christian scripture and the Christian self are so closely related that it is

2 ὥσπερ γὰρ ὁ ἄνθρωπος συνέστηκεν ἐκ σώµατος καὶ ψυχῆς καὶ πνεύµατος, τὸν αὐτὸν
τρόπον καὶ ἡ οἰκονοµηθεῖσα ὑπὸ θεοῦ εἰς ἀνθρώπων σωτηρίαν δοθῆναι γραφή. (Princ.
4.2.4 [SC 268:312]) ET G. W. Butterworth, Origen: On First Principles (Gloucester,
Mass.: Peter Smith, 1973), 276. The entirety of this dissertation could be construed as a
commentary on this passage in so far as I am concerned with what it means to say that a
self consists of body soul and spirit and what sort of thing is scripture that it can also
consist of the same elements.

3 Si quis est...conuertere se potest a rebus fluxis ac pereuntibus et caducis et audire
uerbum Dei ac praecepta caelestia, hic intra cor suum arcam alutis aedificat et
bibliothecam, ut ita dicam, intra se diuini consercrat uerbi. (Hom. Gen. 2.6 [SC 7:108])
ET Ronald E. Heine, Origen: Homilies on Genesis and Exodus, The Fathers of the
Church, vol. 71 (Washington, D.C.: The Catholic University of America Press, 1982), 86.

4 I prefer the term “self” over the term “person” because the former seems to me to be
more general and therefore constrains interpretation less. Furthermore, “self” is widely
used in secondary literature, which allows my project to be put in conversation with
others.

2