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was becoming, and in deserts also continually were Elisha and John and all who showed this great characteristic of the imitation of the angels, rightly, according to the gospel ordinance of the Lord, made themselves eunuchs for the sake of the kingdom of heaven. And so, though having many things to say about these matters and being able to refute their mindset, which is mocked by the devil, from many proofs of the divine scripture, we are content with these few things; for since it is clear to everyone that their work is not of understanding nor is such knowledge from God, but from the activity of demons comes the mockery and their fall into this lawless deed. And having thrust this aside, like the terrible serpent called the viper, which is small in body but by its venomous sting inspires dreadful gasping and breathes ruin upon those who approach, having crushed it, let us proceed to the next things, calling upon God as our helper for the promise of our entire treatise in God. 2.403 Against Origen, also called Adamantius, 44, but in the sequence 64. 1. Origen, also called Adamantius, follows these in order. This man was the son of Leonides, the holy and blessed martyr, and he himself was mostly persecuted in his youth, being a man learned in Greek education and raised in the church; in the times of Decius the emperor he was known in Alexandria. For he was by race an Egyptian, and had his dwelling and upbringing in Alexandria, and perhaps for a time he also studied in the schools in Athens. And he is said to have suffered many things for the sake of the holy word of faith and the name of Christ, being frequently dragged through the city, reviled, and subjected to incurable torments. For indeed at one time, as the story goes, the Greeks, having shaved him, sat him down by the ascent of the temple of their idol called the Serapeum and ordered him to hand out palm branches to those going up to commit their impious rites and worship the idol; for such is the office held by the priests of their idols. But he, taking them, with a great voice and a bold mind, without fear or hesitation, cried out, saying, “Come, take not the branch of the idol, but the branch of Christ.” And there are many heroic deeds concerning him that the ancients report by tradition. 2.404 2. But the prize did not remain his to the end. For on account of his most excellent learning and preliminary education he was slandered with great envy, and this especially provoked those who at that time administered the ruling authority. For by a diabolical machination the workers of wickedness devised to inflict a disgrace upon the man and ordained such a punishment, procuring an Ethiopian for him for the misuse of his own body. But he, unable to bear so great a contrivance of diabolical activity, let out a cry, choosing rather to sacrifice, of the two things set before him. However, he did not perform this with a willing mind, as the story is widely told; but since he had agreed to do this at all, they put frankincense on his hands and cast it into the fire of the altar. And so he was then cast out from martyrdom by the confessors and martyrs who were his judges, and was expelled from the church. Having endured this in Alexandria and being unable to bear the mockery of those who reviled him, he withdrew and chose to inhabit the land of the Palestinians, that is, of Judaea. At any rate, having gone up to Jerusalem, as such an interpreter and learned man he was urged by the clergy to speak in the church; for they say that he had even been deemed worthy of the presbyterate before, prior to his sacrificing. Therefore, as I said, when those who at that time administered the priesthood of the holy church in Jerusalem urged him to speak in the church and strongly compelled him, rising to his feet the

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ἐγίνετο, ἐν δὲ ἐρημίαις διατελῶν ὑπῆρχε καὶ Ἐλισσαῖος καὶ Ἰωάννης καὶ πάντες οἱ τὸν μέγαν τουτονὶ χαρακτῆρα τῆς τῶν ἀγγέλων μιμήσεως ἐνδείξαντες καλῶς κατὰ τὴν εὐαγγελικὴν διάταξιν τοῦ κυρίου ἑαυτοὺς διὰ βασιλείαν οὐρανῶν εὐνούχισαν. Καὶ πολλὰ μὲν οὖν ἔχοντες περὶ τούτων λέγειν καὶ ἐκ πολλῶν συστάσεων τῆς θείας γραφῆς τὴν αὐτῶν δυνάμενοι διελέγξαι διάνοιαν ὑπὸ διαβόλου ἐμπαιζομένην, ἀρκούμεθα τοῖς ὀλίγοις τούτοις· ἐπειδὴ γὰρ παντὶ σαφές ἐστιν ὅτι οὐ συνέσεως παρ' αὐτοῖς ἡ ἐργασία οὐδὲ ἐκ θεοῦ ἡ τοιαύτη γνῶσις, ἀλλὰ ἐκ δαιμόνων ἐνεργείας ἡ χλεύη καὶ ἡ πτῶσις αὐτῶν τῆς ἀθεμίτου ἐργασίας γίνεται. καὶ αὐτὴν δὲ παρωσάμενοι, ὥσπερ τὴν δεινὴν σκυτάλην τὴν ἔχιδναν καλουμένην, οὖσαν μὲν τῷ σώματι βραχεῖαν, τῇ δὲ ἰοβολίᾳ δεινὸν ἆσθμα ἐμπνέουσαν καὶ εἰς τοὺς πλησιάζοντας τὴν λύμην ἐμφυσῶσαν, ταύτην συντρίψαντες ἐπὶ τὰς ἑξῆς ἴωμεν, θεὸν ἀρωγὸν ἐπικαλεσάμενοι εἰς τὴν τῆς πάσης πραγματείας ἡμῶν ἐν θεῷ ἐπαγγελίαν. 2.403 Κατὰ Ὠριγένους τοῦ καὶ Ἀδαμαντίου ˉμˉδ, τῆς δὲ ἀκολουθίας ˉξˉδ. 1. Ὠριγένης, ὁ καὶ Ἀδαμάντιος ἐπικληθείς, καθεξῆς τούτοις ἀκολουθεῖ. οὗτος παῖς μὲν ἦν Λεωνίδου τοῦ ἁγίου καὶ μακαρίτου μάρτυρος, καὶ αὐτὸς δὲ τὰ πλεῖστα διωχθεὶς ἐν τῇ νέᾳ αὐτοῦ ἡλικίᾳ, ἀνὴρ ὢν κατὰ τὴν τῶν Ἑλλήνων παιδείαν λόγιος καὶ ἐν ἐκκλησίᾳ ἀνατεθραμμένος, ἐν χρόνοις ∆εκίου τοῦ βασιλέως ἐγνωρίζετο ἐπὶ τῆς Ἀλεξανδρέων. ἦν γὰρ τῷ γένει μὲν Αἰγύπτιος, ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ δὲ ἐσχηκὼς τὴν οἴκησιν καὶ ἀνατροφήν, τάχα δὲ καὶ ἐν Ἀθήναις φοιτήσας ἐν τοῖς παιδευτηρίοις χρόνῳ τινί. πολλὰ δὲ λέγεται πεπονθέναι ὑπὲρ τοῦ ἁγίου λόγου τῆς πίστεως καὶ ὀνόματος Χριστοῦ, τοῦτο μὲν ἐν τῇ πόλει πολλάκις συρόμενος, ὀνειδιζόμενος, βασάνοις ἀνηκέστοις ὑποβαλλόμενος. καὶ γὰρ καὶ καιρῷ ποτε, ὡς λόγος, ξυρήσαντες αὐτὸν οἱ Ἕλληνες πρὸς τῇ ἀναβάσει τοῦ Σαραπείου καλουμένου τεμένους τοῦ αὐτῶν εἰδώλου καθίσαντες αὐτὸν προσέταξαν θαλλοὺς φοινίκων ἐπιδιδόναι τοῖς ἐπὶ τὸ ἀθεμιτουργεῖν καὶ προσκυνεῖν τῷ εἰδώλῳ ἀνιοῦσι· τοιοῦτον γὰρ σχῆμα ἐπέχουσιν οἱ τῶν εἰδώλων αὐτῶν ἱερεῖς. ὁ δὲ λαβὼν μεγάλῃ τῇ φωνῇ καὶ πεπαρρησιασμένῃ τῇ διανοίᾳ, οὐ δείσας οὐδὲ διστάσας ἐβόα λέγων «δεῦτε λάβετε οὐ τὸν θαλλὸν τοῦ εἰδώλου, ἀλλὰ τὸν θαλλὸν Χριστοῦ». καὶ πολλὰ ἔστιν ἃ περὶ αὐτὸν ἀνδραγαθήματα ἀναφέρουσιν οἱ παλαιοὶ κατὰ παράδοσιν. 2.404 2. Ἀλλ' οὐκ ἔμεινεν αὐτῷ τὰ τοῦ βραβείου εἰς τέλος. διὰ γὰρ τὸ ἐξοχώτατον τῆς λογιότητος αὐτοῦ καὶ τῆς προπαιδείας ἐπὶ πλείστῳ φθόνῳ διεβέβλητο καὶ μᾶλλον τοῦτο παρώξυνε τοὺς κατὰ καιρὸν τότε τὴν ἐξουσιαστικὴν ἀρχὴν διέποντας. κακομηχανίᾳ γὰρ διαβολικῇ ἐπενόησαν οἱ τῆς κακίας ἐργάται αἰσχρότητα τῷ ἀνδρὶ ἐμποιῆσαι καὶ τιμωρίαν τοιαύτην ὁρίσαι, εἰς παράχρησιν δὴ τοῦ αὐτοῦ σώματος Αἰθίοπα αὐτῷ παρασκευάσαντες. ὁ δὲ μὴ φέρων τὴν τοσαύτην τῆς διαβολικῆς ἐνεργείας ἐπίνοιαν ἔρρηξε φωνήν, τῶν ἀμφοτέρων προτεθέντων αὐτῷ πραγμάτων θῦσαι μᾶλλον ἑλόμενος. οὐ μὴν δὲ ἑκουσίᾳ γνώμῃ πάλιν τοῦτο ἐπετέλεσεν, ὡς πολὺς ᾄδεται λόγος· ἀλλ' ἐπειδὴ ὅλως καθωμολόγησε τοῦτο πρᾶξαι, βαλόντες ἐπὶ χεῖρας αὐτοῦ λίβανον εἰς τὴν τοῦ βωμοῦ πυρὰν καθῆκαν. καὶ οὕτως τοῦ μαρτυρίου ἀπὸ τῶν κρινάντων ὁμολογητῶν τε καὶ μαρτύρων ἀπεβλήθη τότε καὶ ἀπὸ τῆς ἐκκλησίας ἐξεώθη. ἐν Ἀλεξανδρείᾳ δὲ τοῦτο ὑποστὰς καὶ μὴ δυνάμενος τὴν τῶν ὀνειδιζόντων χλεύην φέρειν ἀνεχώρησε καὶ τὴν Παλαιστινῶν, τούτεστι τῆς Ἰουδαίας κατ2.405 οικεῖν γῆν εἵλατο. ἀνελθὼν γοῦν εἰς τὰ Ἱεροσόλυμα καὶ ὡς τοιοῦτος ἐξηγητὴς καὶ λόγιος προετρέπετο ἀπὸ τοῦ ἱερατείου ἐπὶ τῆς ἐκκλησίας εἰπεῖν· φασὶ γὰρ αὐτὸν καὶ πρεσβυτερίου κατηξιῶσθαι τὸ πρίν, πρὶν ἢ τοῦ θῦσαι. προτρεπομένων οὖν, ὡς ἔφην, αὐτὸν ἐπὶ τῆς ἐκκλησίας εἰπεῖν καὶ πολλὰ καταναγκασάντων τῶν τὸ τηνικαῦτα ἐν Ἱεροσολύμοις τὴν ἱερωσύνην τῆς ἁγίας ἐκκλησίας διεπόντων, ἀναστὰς ἐπὶ πόδας τὸ