ORIGEN ('Opeybnis= born of Or, i. e., Hones), surnamed the Adamantine, the most learned and one of the most influential of the Christian Fathers, was born probably at Alexandria, A. D. 185. His father, Leonidas,was a Christian, and suffered mar tyrdom for his attachment to the cause of Christ, A. D. 202. It is probable he was a Christian be fore his son's birth ; for though the name borne by the latter may have bad a heathen origin, it does not follow that his parents, in giving it him, were heathens ; it may have been a name which, for family reasons, they wished to retain ; and there are instances besides this of Christian parents giving their children names of heathen origin. Being a man of culture as well as piety, Leonidas sought to imbue the mind of his son with the love of let ters as well as with sacred knowledge drawn from the Scriptures. After his father's death, Origen was enabled, by the liberality of a Christian lady, to continue his studies ; and such was his progress in these, that when scarcely eighteen years of age, he was called by Demetrius, bishop of Alexan dria, to fill the office of catechete. In this he faith fully laboured for many years, devoting himself also to the study of Scripture and to sacred literature generally. His reputation was widely extended by his teaching and his writings; but for some reason, probably the freedom of some of his opinions, he did not win the favour of the Christian community at Alexandria. On his way to Greece, he was, in the year 227, ordained a presbyter in Palestine by the bishop of Caesarea, a distinction which was the source to him of much trouble and vexation to the end of his life. His sufferings in the Decian per secution hastened his decease, which took place in Origen was a man of great natural ability, of indefatigable assiduity in the pursuit of knowledge, of an independent cast of mind, of vast learning, and of great honesty of purpose. On some points of doctrine he departed from the standard of ortho doxy, for which he still rests under the censure of the Roman Catholic Church ; but the services he rendered to the cause of Christianity generally, and especially to that of Biblical literature, must ever command for him a place of high honour and esteem among the worthies of the church. His collected works (some of which exist only in a Latin translation), in the best edition, that of De la Rue, occupy 4 vols. fol., Par. 1740-59, in that of Lommatzsch, 25 vols. 121110, 1/0101. 1832-48.
Besides Commentaries or Homilies on the principal books of Scripture (of which a separate edition was issued by Huet under the title Origenis in SS. Commentarii gmrcunque grace reperiri potuernnt, 2 vols. fol., Rothom. 1668, Par. 1679, col. 1685), Origen wrote a reply to the attack of Celsus on Christianity (Contra Celsum, ed. Spencer, 4to, Cantab. t658) ; a compend of theology (De PH:z ap:Yr, ed. Redepenning, Lips. 1836), a treatise on prayer (De Oratione, 12mo, Oxon. 1685 ; 410 ed., Reading, Lond. 1728), etc. A selection of remarks on difficult passages of Scripture was made from his commentaries by Basil the Great and Gregory of Nazianzum, under the title of Philocalia (ed. Tari nus, 4to, Par. 1619 ; ed. Spencer, Cantab. 1658). Origen's most important contribution to Biblical literature was his elaborate attempt to rectify the text of the Septuagint by collating it with the Hebrew original and other Greek versions. On this he spent twenty-eight years, during which he travelled through the East collecting materials. The form in which he first issued the result of his labours was that of the Tetrapla, which presented in four columns the texts of the LXX., Aquila, Symmachus, and Theodotion. He next issued the Hexapla, in which the Hebrew text was given, first in Hebrew and then in Greek letters. Of some books he gave two additional Greek versions, whence the title Oetapla ; and there was even a seventh Greek version added for some books. The arrange ment was in columns, in the following order :— Hebrew in its proper characters ; Heb. in Greek characters ; Aquila ; Symmachus ; LXX. ; Theo dotion ; 5th version ; 6th ; 7th. Unhappily this great work, which extended to nearly 5o volumes, was never transcribed, and so perished. Extracts from it, however, were made, and of these some have been preserved. They were collected by Montfaucon, and issued in two vols. fol., Par. 1713. An edition by Bahrdt, in 2 vols. 8vo, appeared at Leipzig 1769-70. A few additions have been made to this collection since by various editors. Had this great work been preserved, it would have done more for the criticism of the Bible than Origen's exegetical works have done for its interpretation ; for though at first he followed the grammatico historical method of interpretation, he soon aban doned it for the allegorical, in which he indulged to a pernicious extent.—W. L. A.