Against Celsus 4.65
Summary: Against Celsus's claim that philosophers can explain evil, Origen says its origin can be known only by God's revelation, including the fall of the devil and his angels.
Greek text · Koetschau 1:335–336
Μετὰ ταῦτά φησιν ὁ Κέλσος· τίς ἡ τῶν κακῶν γένεσις, οὐ ῥᾴδιον μὲν γνῶναι τῷ μὴ φιλοσοφήσαντι, ἐξαρκεῖ δʼ εἰς πλῆθος εἰρῆσθαι ὡς ἐκ θεοῦ μὲν οὐκ ἔστι κακὰ, ὕλῃ δὲ πρόσκειται καὶ τοῖς θνητοῖς ἐμπολιτεύεται· ὁμοία δʼ ἀπʼ ἀρχῆς εἰς τέλος ἡ τῶν θνητῶν περίοδος, καὶ κατὰ τὰς τεταγμένας ἀνακυκλήσεις ἀνάγκη τὰ αὐτὰ ἀεὶ καὶ γεγονέναι καὶ εἶναι καὶ ἔσεσθαι. καὶ ὁ μὲν Κέλσος φησὶ τὴν τῶν κακῶν γένεσιν οὐ ῥᾴδιον εἶναι γνῶναι τῷ μὴ φιλοσοφήσαντι, ὡς τοῦ μὲν φιλοσοφοῦντος γνῶναι τὴν γένεσιν αὐτῶν δυναμένου ῥᾳδίως, τοῦ δὲ μὴ φιλοσοφοῦντος οὐ ῥᾳδίως μὲν οἵου τε ὄντος θεωρεῖν τὴν γένεσιν τῶν κακῶν, πλὴν εἰ καὶ μετὰ καμάτου ἀλλά γε δυνατοῦ ὄντος γνῶναι. ἡμεῖς δὲ καὶ πρὸς τοῦτό φαμεν ὅτι τὴν τῶν κακῶν γένεσιν οὐδὲ τῷ φιλοσοφήσαντι γνῶναι ῥᾴδιον, τάχα δὲ οὐδὲ τούτοις καθαρῶς αὐτὴν γνῶναι δυνατὸν, ἐὰν μὴ θεοῦ ἐπιπνοίᾳ καὶ τίνα τὰ κακὰ τρανωθῇ καὶ πῶς ὑπέστη δηλωθῇ καὶ τίνα τρόπον ἀφανισθήσεται νοηθῇ. ἐν κακοῖς γοῦν οὔσης καὶ τῆς περὶ θεοῦ ἀγνοίας, ὄντος δὲ μεγίστου κακοῦ καὶ τοῦ μὴ εἰδέναι τὸν τρόπον τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ θεραπείας καὶ τῆς εἰς αὐτὸν εὐσεβείας, πάντως μὲν καὶ κατὰ Κέλσον τινὲς τῶν φιλοσοφησάντων οὐκ ἔγνωσαν, ὅπερ δῆλόν ἐστιν ἐκ τῶν διαφόρων ἐν φιλοσοφίᾳ αἱρέσεων· καθʼ ἡμᾶς δὲ οὐδεὶς μὴ ἐγνωκὼς κακὸν εἶναι τὸ νομίζειν εὐσέβειαν σῴζεσθαι ἐν τοῖς καθεστηκόσι κατὰ τὰς κοινότερον νοουμένας πολιτείας νόμοις οἷός τε ἔσται τὴν γένεσιν γνῶναι τῶν κακῶν. καὶ οὐδεὶς μὴ διαλαβὼν τὰ περὶ τοῦ καλουμένου διαβόλου καὶ τῶν ἀγγέλων αὐτοῦ, τίς τε πρὸ τοῦ διάβολος γεγενῆσθαι οὗτος ἦν καὶ πῶς γεγένηται διάβολος καὶ τίς ἡ αἰτία τοῦ συναποστῆναι αὐτῷ τοὺς καλουμένους αὐτοῦ ἀγγέλους, οἷός τε ἔσται γνῶναι τὴν γένεσιν τῶν κακῶν. δεῖ δὲ τὸν μέλλοντα ταύτην εἰδέναι καὶ περὶ δαιμόνων ἀκριβέστερον διειληφέναι ὅτι τε μή εἰσι, καθὸ δαίμονές εἰσι, δημιουργήματα τοῦ θεοῦ, ἀλλὰ μόνον καθὸ λογικοί τινες, καὶ πόθεν ἐληλύθασιν ἐπὶ τὸ τοιοῦτοι γενέσθαι, ὡς ἐν καταστάσει δαιμόνων αὐτῶν ὑποστῆναι τὸ ἡγεμονικόν. εἴπερ οὖν ἄλλος τις τόπος τῶν ἐν ἀνθρώποις ἐξετάσεως δεόμενος δυσθήρατός ἐστι τῇ φύσει ἡμῶν, ἐν τούτοις καὶ ἡ τῶν κακῶν ταχθείη ἂν γένεσις.
English · Claude translation
After this Celsus says: "What the origin of evils is, is not easy for one who has not studied philosophy to know; but it is enough to say to the multitude that evils do not come from God, but cleave to matter and dwell among mortals; and the cycle of mortal things is alike from beginning to end, and according to the appointed revolutions the same things must always have happened, be happening, and be going to happen." Celsus says that the origin of evils is not easy to know for one who has not studied philosophy, as though the philosopher could know their origin easily, while the non-philosopher cannot easily discern the origin of evils, though he can know it, if only with toil. But we say in reply to this too that the origin of evils is not easy to know even for one who has studied philosophy, and perhaps even for such people it is not possible to know it purely, unless by God's inspiration it is made clear what evils are, and shown how they came into being, and understood in what way they will be done away with. At any rate, since ignorance about God is among evils, and not to know the manner of worshipping God and of piety toward him is the greatest evil, certainly, even according to Celsus, some of those who studied philosophy did not know it, as is clear from the different schools in philosophy. But in our view no one who has not come to know that it is an evil to think piety is preserved in the laws established according to the commonly understood constitutions of states will be able to know the origin of evils. And no one who has not grasped the facts about the one called the devil and his angels (who this one was before he became the devil, how he became the devil, and what the cause was of those called his angels revolting along with him) will be able to know the origin of evils. And one who is to know it must also have understood more exactly about demons, that, insofar as they are demons, they are not God's creations, but only insofar as they are rational beings, and whence they came to be such that their ruling faculty took on the condition of demons. If, then, any other subject among those in human life that need examination is hard for our nature to track down, the origin of evils would be counted among them.
About this passage
Notes
Translation notes
- On αἱρέσεις here: the "schools" of philosophy (neutral sense).
Cite this passage
Origen, Cels. 4.65 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/origen-celsum/4/65/).
Plain text
Origen, Cels. 4.65 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/origen-celsum/4/65/).
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