Origen of Alexandria, Against Celsus

We are careful not to oppose fair arguments even if they proceed from those who are not of our faith; we strive not to be captious, or to seek to overthrow any sound reasonings. But here we have to reply to those who slander the character of persons wishing to do their best in the service of God, who accepts the faith which the meanest place in Him, as well as the more refined and intelligent piety of the learned; seeing that both alike address to the Creator of the world their prayers and thanksgivings through the High Priest who has set before men the nature of pure religion. We say, then, that those who are stigmatized as “lamed and mutilated in spirit,” as “living only for the sake of the body which is dead,” are persons whose endeavour it is to say with sincerity: “For though we live1713 2 Cor. x. 3, 4. The received text has “walk” instead of “live.” in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh; for the weapons of our warfare are not fleshly, but mighty through God.” It is for those who throw out such vile accusations against men who desire to be God’s servants, to beware lest, by the calumnies which they cast upon others who strive to live well, they “lame” their own souls, and “mutilate” the inner man, by severing from it that justice and moderation of mind which the Creator has planted in the nature of all His rational creatures. As for those, however, who, along with other lessons given by the Divine Word, have learned and practised this, “when reviled to bless, when persecuted to endure, when defamed to entreat,”1714 1 Cor. iv. 12, 13. they may be said to be walking in spirit in the ways of uprightness, to be purifying and setting in order the whole soul. They distinguish—and to them the distinction is not one of words merely—between “substance,” or that which is, and that which is “becoming;” between things apprehended by reason, and things apprehended by sense; and they connect truth with the one, and avoid the errors arising out of the other; looking, as they have been taught, not at the things “becoming” or phenomenal, which are seen, and therefore temporary, but at better things than these, whether we call them “substance,” or “spiritual” things, as being apprehended by reason, or “invisible,” because they lie out of the reach of the senses. The disciples of Jesus regard these phenomenal things only that they may use them as steps to ascend to the knowledge of the things of reason. For “the invisible things of God,” that is, the objects of the reason, “from the creation of the world are clearly seen” by the reason, “being understood by the things that are made.” And when they have risen from the created things of this world to the invisible things of God, they do not stay there; but after they have sufficiently exercised their minds upon these, and have understood their nature, they ascend to “the eternal power of God,” in a word, to His divinity. For they know that God, in His love to men, has “manifested” His truth, and “that which is known of Him,” not only to those who devote themselves to His service, but also to some who are far removed from the purity of worship and service which He requires; and that some of those who by the providence of God had attained a knowledge of these truths, were yet doing things unworthy of that knowledge, and “holding the truth in unrighteousness,” and who are unable to find any excuse before God after the knowledge of such great truths which He has given them.

Πρὸς ταῦτα δ' ἡμεῖς φήσομεν, οἱ μελετήσαντες μηδενὶ ἀπεχθάνεσθαι τῶν καλῶς λεγομένων, κἂν οἱ ἔξω τῆς πίστεως λέγωσι καλῶς, μὴ προσφιλονεικεῖν αὐτοῖς μηδὲ ζητεῖν ἀνατρέπειν τὰ ὑγιῶς ἔχοντα, ὅτι οἱ μὲν διαλοιδορούμενοι τοῖς κατὰ δύναμιν εἰς τὸν τῶν ὅλων θεὸν εὐσεβεῖν θέλουσιν, ἀποδεχόμενον ἰδιωτῶν τὴν εἰς αὐτὸν πίστιν καὶ συνετωτέρων τὴν μετὰ λόγου εἰς αὐτὸν εὐσέβειαν, μετ' εὐχαριστίας ἐναπεμπόντων εὐχὰς τῷ δημιουργῷ τοῦ παντὸς καὶ ἀναπεμ πόντων αὐτὰς ὡς δι' ἀρχιερέως τοῦ τὴν εἰλικρινῆ θεοσέβειαν ἀνθρώποις παραστήσαντος, καὶ καλοῦντες αὐτοὺς κεχωλευ μένους τὰς ψυχὰς καὶ ἠκρωτηριασμένους λέγοντες δὲ καὶ σώματι ζῶντας τῷ νεκρῷ τοὺς μελετῶντας ἀπὸ διαθέσεως λέγειν τό· "Ἐν σαρκὶ γὰρ ζῶντες οὐ κατὰ σάρκα στρα τευόμεθα, τὰ γὰρ ὅπλα τῆς στρατείας ἡμῶν οὐ σαρκικὰ ἀλλὰ δυνατὰ τῷ θεῷ" ὁράτωσαν μὴ κατ' αὐτὸ τοῦτο [τὸ] λέγειν κακῶς ἀνθρώπους, εὐχομένους εἶναι θεοῦ, τὰς ψυχὰς ἑαυτῶν χωλὰς κατασκευάζωσι [καὶ] "τὸν ἔσω" ἑαυτῶν "ἄνθρωπον" ἀκρωτηριάζωσιν, ἀποκόπτοντες αὐτοῦ διὰ τῶν εἰς ἑτέρους δυσφημιῶν, τοὺς καλῶς βιοῦν ἐθέλοντας, τὸ ἐπιεικὲς καὶ τὸ εὐσταθές, ἐνεσπαρμένα φυσικῶς ὑπὸ τοῦ δημιουργοῦ τῇ λογικῇ φύσει. Οἱ δὲ πρὸς ἑτέροις μαθόντες ἀπὸ τοῦ θείου λόγου καὶ ποιοῦντες καὶ τὸ "λοιδορού μενοι" εὐλογεῖν, "διωκόμενοι" ἀνέχεσθαι, "δυσφημούμε νοι" παρακαλεῖν, οὗτοι ἂν εἶεν οἱ τὰς τῆς ψυχῆς βάσεις ὀρθώσαντες καὶ ὅλην τὴν ψυχὴν καθαίροντες καὶ εὐτρεπί ζοντες· οὐχ ἵνα λέξεσι μόναις οὐσίαν ἀπὸ γενέσεως χωρίζωσι καὶ νοητὸν ἀπὸ ὁρατοῦ, καὶ τὴν μὲν ἀλήθειαν τῇ οὐσίᾳ συνάπτωσι τὴν δὲ μετὰ γενέσεως πλάνην παντὶ τρόπῳ φεύγωσι, σκοποῦντες, ὡς ἔμαθον, οὐ τὰ γενέσεως, ἅπερ ἐστὶ "βλεπόμενα" καὶ διὰ τοῦτο "πρόσκαιρα", ἀλλὰ τὰ κρείττονα, εἴτ' οὐσίαν αὐτά τις βούλεται καλεῖν εἴτε διὰ τὸ νοητὰ τυγχάνειν "ἀόρατα" εἴτε διὰ τὸ ἔξω αἰσθήσεως εἶναι αὐτῶν τὴν φύσιν "μὴ βλεπόμενα". Οὕτω δὲ καὶ τοῖς γενέσεως ἐνορῶσιν οἱ τοῦ Ἰησοῦ μαθηταί, ὥστε οἱονεὶ ἐπιβάθρᾳ χρῆσθαι αὐτοῖς πρὸς τὴν κατανόησιν τῆς τῶν νοητῶν φύσεως· "Τὰ γὰρ ἀόρατα" τοῦ θεοῦ "ἀπὸ κτίσεως κόσμου", τουτέστι τὰ νοητά, "τοῖς ποιήμασι νοούμενα" ἐν τῷ νοεῖσθαι "καθορᾶται". Καὶ οὐχ ἵστανταί γε ἀναβάντες ἀπὸ τῶν τοῦ κόσμου κτισμά των ἐν τοῖς ἀοράτοις τοῦ θεοῦ· ἀλλὰ γὰρ ἱκανῶς ἐκείνοις ἐγγυμνασάμενοι καὶ συνιέντες αὐτὰ ἀναβαίνουσιν ἐπὶ τὴν ἀΐδιον δύναμιν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ ἁπαξαπλῶς τὴν θεότητα αὐτοῦ, ἐπιστάμενοι ὅτι ὁ μὲν φιλάνθρωπος θεὸς "τὴν ἀλήθειαν" καὶ "τὸ" ἑαυτοῦ "γνωστὸν" "ἐφανέρωσεν" οὐ μόνον τοῖς ἀνακειμένοις αὐτῷ ἀλλὰ καί τισι τῶν ἔξω τῆς εἰλικρινοῦς θεοσεβείας καὶ εἰς αὐτὸν εὐσεβείας· τινὲς δὲ τῶν θεοῦ προνοίᾳ ἀναβεβηκότων ἐπὶ τὴν τῶν τηλικούτων γνῶσιν οὐκ ἄξια τῆς γνώσεως δρῶντες ἀσεβοῦσι καὶ "τὴν ἀλήθειαν ἐν ἀδικίᾳ" κατέχουσιν, οὐδ' ἀπολογίας ἔτι χώραν ἐπὶ τῇ γνώσει τῶν τηλικούτων ἔχειν δυνάμενοι παρὰ τῷ θεῷ.