Origen and his theological contributions to early Christianity

Origen and Prayer

Origen was a Christian theologian associated with the early Greek Church who is credited with developing the first systematic description of Christian theology (Origen). His work and thought were to have a significant impact on the theological trajectory of early Christianity. It should also be borne in mind that the origins of much of his thought on prayer and other aspects was influenced by Platonic philosophy and particularly Gnostic texts and dualistic views of spiritual reality.

Furthermore, it is also noted that much of his thinking was considered to be controversial in his time and was later challenged by many Christian Church leaders and fell into neglect in the 5th Century (Origen). Origen is also known for certain central theological views. These include his emphasis on Christ as Logos or the Word Incarnate and the concept of a pre-existing soul, as well as his views on prayer. (Origen)

Origen's view on prayer.

On Prayer by Origen was written as a response to a request from Ambrosius and from a lady, Tatiana, to write a treatise on how and why we should pray (Trigg). A cardinal aspect of this treatise was Origen's arguments against views that objected to prayer which saw it as being essentially useless. This treatise and the views that the author propounded concerning prayer resulted in Origen being considered not only as a profound thinker but also as an interpreter of Scripture, as well as an advocate of orthodox Christian doctrine.

The preface to the treatise sets the tone and prepares us for an understanding of what Origen means by prayer in the first instance. It becomes clear that prayer for Origen is a very different in conception to the view that understands prayer as a means of asking God for personal advantages or favours. A central thematic strand that runs throughout the treatise is that true prayer transcends personal and egotistical needs and desires and can only be considered as being genuine and valid if it takes the form of intense and devotional mediation and communion with God. A true understanding therefore of prayer for Origen means that it is a mode of spiritual interaction through which one can achieve inner peace through overcoming of the ego and personal desires.

The above view is a vital component in understanding the kernel of the treatise. The meaning and significance of prayer as a form in intense communication with God which goes beyond the mundane world is stressed throughout the treatise. This following extract is cited at length at it underlies the subsequent development of Origen's views on prayer.

There are realities that are so great that they find a rank superior to humanity and our mortal nature; they are impossible for our rational and mortal race to understand. Yet by the grace of God poured forth with measureless abundance from Him to men through that minister of unsurpassed grace to us, Jesus Christ, and through that fellow worker with the will of God, the Spirit, these realities have become possible for us

( Greer, 1979, p.81).

This is an essential starting point for an understanding of Origen's thesis on prayer. In essence what Origen states that it only through the intensive type of meditative activity that he understands as prayer that we can understand and communicate with those realities that "….are so great…" and "…superior to humanity and our mortal nature." As will be discussed, this view can also be related to the intense dualism of the Gnostic view of spiritual reality.

However, what Origen points out in much of his treatise is that it crucial to know how to pray and what to pray for. In this regard he refers to the 'aught' of prayer. He makes the point that it is not sufficient merely to pray but that we should pray "…as we aught" (Greer, 1979, p. 82). Furthermore, we should also only pray for that what we aught. In essence this means that prayer to be effective, efficacious and true it must be directed towards the correct aims and goals and conducted in the right spirit.

Origen elaborates on the ideal of 'correct' prayer and goes on to state that prayer should not be directed at aspects such as personal and worldly gain or anything of a mundane nature that is related to common or earthly life. He states that we should rather seek "…the great things and the little things will be added for you; seek the heavenly things and the earthly things will be added for you" (Greer, 1979, p. 83). In other words, the emphasis throughout is on prayer that is in the first instance an alignment with the will of God and not, as some might interpret it, as a request for personal assistance.

Origen goes on to discuss the various objections to prayer. One of the most obvious of these is that if God is omnipotent and all-knowing, then there is no need for prayer as God would already know our needs and desires. Origen also addresses the assertion that "…if everything happens according to God's will and if what He wills is fixed and no one of the things He wills can be changed, then prayer is vain…"( Greer 1979, p. 92)

He counters these and other critiques with a dissertation on human freedom or free will. Free will is an essential aspect of Origen's philosophy. The concept of free will is also linked to the positive value and use of human rationality. Origen states that through free will and rationality, poor choices are often made by human beings; which was the cause of the first Fall from Grace. The element that is essential in the exercise of human free will is the adoration of God. "The main error of rational beings was to neglect to adore God" (Origen).

In terms of the view that we have freedom of choice, prayer therefore functions and has the purpose of bringing the will and human choice into line with the Will of God. The treatise also argues against who do not accept the concept and reality of human freedom. Origen argues that if we deny human freedom then we must also deny that "…we are not living beings and, second, that we are not rational beings" ( Greer 1979, p. 92).

However, as one critic notes, the primary aim of this treatise on prayer is not so much to defend prayer against detractors but rather to "redefine" payer (Trigg, 1998, p. 42). The essential aspect that is repeated in various forms throughout the treatise is that, "we should look on prayer not as a way to obtain benefits, especially earthly benefits, from God, but as a means of becoming more like God. The very act of prayer, bringing with it the benefit of a settled condition, prevents sins and promotes good deeds

(Trigg, 1998, p. 42).

In the light of the above discussion of some of the central aspects of Origen's view of prayer, it is perhaps important to refer briefly to the religious and philosophical context in which these views were developed. Both the Platonic and Gnostic view of spiritual reality stressed a strong sense of duality or division between earthly existence and heavenly ideals. As one critic notes, "Origen developed a detailed extra-Biblical account on how the world came into being, how man was created. Little of this is derived from the Bible, most of it displays Platonic and Gnostic influence" ( Origen).

In Platonism we find this in the difference between the ideal forms of reality and the mundane particulars of ordinary life and existence. The Gnostic view, which was prevalent a the time that Origen wrote, envisages reality in terms of a sharp and distinct division between the mundane world, which was associated with the 'demiurge ' or false creator god and the Pleroma or true reality and God. The Pleroma in Greek means "fullness" and in Gnostic theory, "….the Pleroma is the dwelling place of spirit, the non-material reality that permeates all existence…" (Pleroma). This dualism may be a factor that influenced Origen's view of prayer and his strict on prayer that is selfless and non-egotistical.

It is also important to note that, in terms of the wider background to this treatise, Origen takes a stand against the anthropomorphic notions of God that was prevalent at the time (Chadwick, 1984, p. 82). In other words, the view of God in terms of human and anthropomorphic characteristics is replaced in Origen's philosophy with a vision of God as 'other 'and essentially alien to humanity. This view has also been mentioned in relation to the preamble to the treatise referred to above. This leads to the view that prayer must be intensive and non-egotistical in order to apprehend and interact with a reality that is "…superior to our mortal nature." In this sense, God is the "… immaterial ground of being, the cause of all that is & #8230;He is alone underived, the Monad, transcending all multiplicity, self-sufficient, and beyond the power of the human mind unaided by special grace (Chadwick, 1984, p. 82). Therefore, Orgien suggest that, "To be is to participate in him who is" and this participation is facilitated through prayer.

In terms of the benefits of prayer Origen refers to aspects such as inner peace, the prevention of sins and the promotion of good deeds. The theme of the distinction between the body, the world of nature and the mundane world of human activity and the Godly dimension is also related to the benefits of prayer. Origen therefore refers to the soul as being "elevated above earthly matter" in the process of prayer in order to contemplate God. "The inward mind is the correlate of God, and it is in the mind, not in the body, that we are to find the image of God in man, which is the 'affinity' to God of which the Platonists speak" (Chadwick, 1984, p.113)

In the first part of the treatise on prayer, Origen stresses that prayer is not intended to ask for the earthly things but rather is intended to derive supernatural or transcendent result or rewards. This view is reiterated in his analysis of the Lord's Prayer and in the reference to 'daily bread'. The daily bread that we receive does not refer in Origen's analysis to any material or earthly sustenance but rather to the Father of life, who is the Logos or the 'the Bread of life' (Prayer). Therefore this again repeats the view that the central aim of prayer is not for material needs but rather to align oneself with the will and intentions of God.

In his intriguing analysis of the Lord's Prayer, Origen expands on many of the above themes; this includes the advantages of prayer and the highest ideals of prayer that extends beyond the material world. He also deals with an exposition of the methods that should be used in prayer. This intensive view of prayer can also be related to his view of "Our Father, who art in heaven." He focuses on the meaning of 'Father' and refers to the issue of true adoption. Only those who "…received this spirit of adoption and prove that they are children and images of God by their actions can recite the prayer rightly" ( Prayer). In other words, the efficacy of the Lord's Prayer depends in the first instance on the understanding of the correct relationship between God and man. Without this deeper understanding prayer can have no real effect. To add to this view Origen refers to the Greek term epiousios as the substance of things, which is incorporeal in itself. The bread we request in the Lord's Prayer can therefore be understood be the bread of the Word of God, which is Wisdom and Truth ( Prayer).