The Ancient Witnesses

46 • The Ancient Witnesses: A Journey to Discover Our Sacred Roots

were Christian, and his father—who trained his son thoroughly in Greek and Biblical studies—was martyred during the persecution under the Roman Emperor Septimus Severus. 8 The family’s possessions were taken over by the empire, so Origen opened an elementary school to support his mother and six younger brothers. Origen’s gift for teaching became widely known, and the Bishop of Alexandria appointed him as his lead catechist, or teacher, for new believers in the Church. In time, Origen became famous both as a brilliant thinker and deeply spiritual man, causing his bishop to be suspicious and envious. Origen traveled widely in order to teach and to debate with heretics. Bishops in other cities heaped praise and honors on Origen. When one of them—the Bishop of Caesarea—ordained Origen as a priest, the Bishop of Alexandria angrily declared Origen’s ordination invalid, and banned him from his home church. Origen remained in Caesarea to teach, study, and publish his writings. When persecution again broke out, this time under the Emperor Decius, Origen was imprisoned and tortured. As the most famous Christian of his day, his persecutors wanted him to deny Christ, but he did not. Origen was eventually freed, but died from the trauma of his torture a short time later at the age of 69. Origen’s character is best conveyed by the idea of fearless passion for the truth. He was the first Christian scholar to collect and compare manuscripts of the Bible. He authored brilliant commentaries on every book of scripture, and was quoted by admirers and enemies alike. His ground-breaking theology set the agenda for the doctrine of the Trinity for centuries. But his legacy was

8

Roman Emperor from AD 193 to 211.