Preface

 Chapters

 THE PHILOCALIA OF ORIGEN

 CHAP. II. ----That the Divine Scripture is closed up and sealed. From the Commentary on the 1st Psalm.

 CHAP. III. ---- Why the inspired books are twenty-two in number. From the same volume on the 1st Psalm.

 CHAP. IV. ----Of the solecisms and poor style of Scripture. From Volume IV. of the Commentaries on the Gospel according to John, three or four pages f

 CHAP. V. ---- What is much speaking, and what are the many books? The whole inspired Scripture is one book. From the Introduction to Volume V. of

 CHAP. VI. ----The whole Divine Scripture is one instrument of God, perfect and fitted for its work. From Volume II. of the Commentaries on the Gospel

 CHAP. VII. ----Of the special character of the persons of Divine Scripture. From the small volume on the Song of Songs, which Origen wrote in his yout

 CHAP. VIII. ----That we need not attempt to correct the solecistic phrases of Scripture, and those which are unintelligible according to the letter, s

 CHAP. IX. ---- Why it is that the Divine Scripture often uses the same term in different significations, even in the same place. From the Epistle to t

 CHAP. X. ----Of things in the Divine Scripture which seem to come near to being a stumbling-block and rock of offence. From the 39th Homily on Jeremia

 CHAP. XI. ----That we must seek the nourishment supplied by all inspired Scripture, and not turn from the passages troubled by heretics with ill-advis

 CHAP. XII. ----That a man ought not to faint in reading the Divine Scripture if he cannot comprehend the dark riddles and parables therein. From the 2

 CHAP. XIII. ---- When and to whom the lessons of philosophy may be profitable, in the explanation of the sacred Scriptures, with Scripture proof. The

 CHAP. XIV. ----They who wish to rightly understand the Divine Scriptures must of necessity be acquainted with the logical principles adapted to their

 CHAP. XV. ----A reply to the Greek philosophers who disparage the poverty of style of the Divine Scriptures, and allege that the noble truths of Chris

 CHAP. XVI. ----Concerning those who slander Christianity on account of the heresies in the Church. Book III. against Celsus.

 CHAP. XVII. ----A reply to certain philosophers who say that it makes no difference whether we call Him Who is God over All by the name Zeus, current

 CHAP. XVIII. ----A reply to those Greek philosophers who profess to know everything, and blame the simple faith of the man of Christians and complain

 CHAP. XIX. ----And again, earlier in the same book, Origen says, That our faith in our Lord has nothing in common with the irrational superstitious fa

 CHAP. XX. ----A reply to those who say that the whole world, including man, was made not for man, but for the irrational creatures for the irrational

 CHAP. XXI. ----Of Free Will, with an explanation and interpretation of those sayings of Scripture which seem to destroy it such as the following:----

 CHAP. XXII. ---- What is the dispersion on earth of rational, that is, human souls, indicated under a veil in the building of the tower, and the confu

 CHAP. XXIII. ----Of Fate, and how though God foreknows the conduct of every one, human responsibility remains the same. Further, how the stars are not

 CHAP. XXIV. ----Matter is not uncreated, or the cause of evil. From Book VII. of the Praeparatio Evangelica of Eusebius of Palestine.

 CHAP. XXV. ----That the separation which arises from foreknowledge does not do away with Free Will. From Book I. of the Commentary on the Epistle to

 CHAP. XXVI. ----Of the question of things goodand evil that they partly depend on our own efforts and partly do not and (that) according to the

 CHAP. XXVII. ----The meaning of the Lord's hardening Pharaoh's heart.

CHAP. X. ----Of things in the Divine Scripture which seem to come near to being a stumbling-block and rock of offence. From the 39th Homily on Jeremiah: "The Lord could not bear because of the evil of your doings"

1. If at anytime in reading the Scripture you stumble at something which is a fair stone of stumbling, and rock of offence,213 blame yourself; for you must not despair of finding in this stone of stumbling and rock of offence thoughts to justify the saying, "He that believeth shall not be ashamed." 214 First believe, and thou shalt find beneath what is deemed a stumbling-stone much gain in godliness. For if we really received a commandment to speak no idle word, because we shall give account of it in the day of judgment;215 and if we must with all our might endeavour to make every word proceeding out of our mouths a working word both in ourselves who speak and in those who hear, must we not conclude that every word spoken through the Prophets was fit for work? and it is no wonder if every word spoken by the Prophets had a work adapted to it. Nay, I suppose that every letter, no matter how strange, which is written in the oracles of God, does its work. And there is not one jot or tittle 216 written in the Scripture, which, when men know how to extract the virtue does not work its own work.

2. As every herb has its own virtue whether for the healing of the body, or some other purpose, and it is not given to everybody to know the use of every herb, but certain persons have acquired the knowledge by the systematic study of botany, so that they may understand when a particular herb is to be used, and to what part it is to be applied, and how it is to be prepared, if it is to do the patient good; just so it is in things spiritual; the saint is a sort of spiritual herbalist, who culls from the sacred Scriptures every jot and every common letter, discovers the value of what is written and its use, and finds that there is nothing in the Scriptures superfluous. If you would like another illustration, every member of our body has been designed by God to do some work. But it is not for everybody to know the power and use of all the members, even the meanest, but those physicians who are expert anatomists can tell for what use every part, even the least, was intended by Providence. Just so, you may regard the Scriptures as a collection of herbs, or as one perfect body of reason; but if you are neither a scriptural botanist, nor can dissect the words of the Prophets, you must not suppose that anything written is superfluous, but blame yourself and not the sacred Scriptures when you fail to find the point of what is written. All this by way of general preface, though it may be applied to the whole of Scripture; so that they who will give heed to their reading may beware of passing over a single letter without examination and inquiry.  

[1] Περὶ τῶν ἐν τῇ θείᾳ γραφῇ δοκούντων ἔχειν τι λίθου προσκόμματος, ἢ πέτρας σκανδάλου. ἐν τῇ λθʹ ὁμιλίᾳ τῶν εἰς τὸν Ἱερεμίαν, εἰς τό: Οὐκ ἠδύνατο κύριος φέρειν ἀπὸ προσώπου πονηρίας ὑμῶν. Ἐάν ποτε ἀναγινώσκων τὴν γραφὴν προσκόψῃς νοήματι ὄντι καλῷ λίθῳ προσκόμματος καὶ πέτρᾳ σκανδάλου, αἰτιῶ σαυτόν: μὴ ἀπελπίσῃς γὰρ τὸν λίθον τοῦτον τοῦ προσκόμματος καὶ τὴν πέτραν τοῦ σκανδάλου ἔχειν νοήματα, ὥστ' ἂν γενέσθαι τὸ εἰρημένον: Καὶ ὁ πιστεύων οὐ καταισχυνθήσεται. πίστευσον πρῶτον, καὶ εὑρήσεις ὑπὸ τὸ νομιζόμενον σκάνδαλον πολλὴν ὠφέλειαν ἁγίαν. εἰ γὰρ ἡμεῖς ἐντολὴν ἐλάβομεν μὴ λέγειν ῥῆμα ἀργὸν, ὡς δώσοντες περὶ αὐτοῦ λόγον ἐν ἡμέρᾳ κρίσεως, καὶ ὅση δύναμις φιλοτιμούμεθα πᾶν ῥῆμα τὸ ἐξιὸν ἐκ τοῦ στόματος ἡμῶν ποιεῖν ἐργάζεσθαι καὶ ἐν ἡμῖν τοῖς λέγουσι καὶ ἐν τοῖς ἀκούουσι: τί χρὴ νοεῖν περὶ τῶν προφητῶν, ἢ ὅτι πᾶν ῥῆμα λαληθὲν διὰ τοῦ στόματος αὐτῶν ἐργατικὸν ἦν; καὶ οὐ θαυμαστὸν εἰ πᾶν τὸ ῥῆμα τὸ λαλούμενον ὑπὸ τῶν προφητῶν εἰργάζετο ἔργον τὸ πρέπον ῥήματι. ἀλλὰ γὰρ οἶμαι ὅτι καὶ πᾶν θαυμάσιον γράμμα τὸ γεγραμμένον ἐν τοῖς λογίοις τοῦ θεοῦ ἐργάζεται. καὶ οὐκ ἔστιν ἰῶτα ἓν ἢ μία κεραία γεγραμμένη ἐν τῇ γραφῇ ἥτις τοῖς ἐπισταμένοις χρῆσθαι τῇ δυνάμει τῶν γραμμάτων οὐκ ἐργάζεται τὸ ἑαυτῆς ἔργον.
[2] Ὥσπερ δὲ ἐπὶ τῶν βοτανῶν ἑκάστη μὲν ἔχει δύναμιν εἴτε εἰς τὴν ὑγίειαν τῶν σωμάτων εἴτε εἰς ὅτι δήποτε, οὐ πάντων δέ ἐστιν ἐπίστασθαι εἰς ὃ ἑκάστη τῶν βοτανῶν ἐστὶ χρήσιμος, ἀλλ' εἴ τινες ἐπιστήμην εἰλήφασιν, οὗτοι οἱ περὶ τὰς βοτάνας διατρίβοντες ἵνα εἴδωσι καὶ πότε παραλαμβανομένη καὶ ποῦ τῶν σωμάτων ἐπιτιθεμένη καὶ τίνα τρόπον σκευαζομένη ὀνίνησι τὸν χρώμενον: οὕτως οἱονεὶ βοτανικός τις πνευματικός ἐστιν ὁ ἅγιος, ἀναλεγόμενος ἀπὸ τῶν ἱερῶν γραμμάτων ἕκαστον ἰῶτα καὶ ἕκαστον τὸ τυχὸν στοιχεῖον, καὶ εὑρίσκων τὴν δύναμιν τοῦ γράμματος, καὶ εἰς ὅτι ἐστὶ χρήσιμον, καὶ ὅτι οὐδὲν παρέλκει τῶν γεγραμμένων. εἰ δὲ βούλει καὶ δευτέρου ἀκοῦσαι εἰς τοῦτο παραδείγματος, ἕκαστον μέλος τοῦ σώματος ἡμῶν ἐπί τινι ἔργῳ ὑπὸ τοῦ τεχνίτου θεοῦ γεγένηται: ἀλλ' οὐ πάντων ἐστὶν εἰδέναι τίς ἡ ἑκάστου τῶν μελῶν μέχρι τῶν τυχόντων δύναμις καὶ χρεία. οἱ γὰρ περὶ τὰς ἀνατομὰς πραγματευσάμενοι τῶν ἰατρῶν δύνανται λέγειν ἕκαστον καὶ τὸ ἐλάχιστον μόριον εἰς τί χρήσιμον ὑπὸ τῆς προνοίας γεγένηται. νόει μοι τοίνυν καὶ τὰς γραφὰς τοῦτον τὸν τρόπον πάσας βοτάνας, ἢ ἓν τέλειον λόγου σῶμα: εἰ δὲ σὺ μήτε βοτανικὸς εἶ τῶν γραφῶν μήτε ἀνατομεὺς εἶ τῶν προφητικῶν λόγων, μὴ νόμιζε παρέλκειν τι τῶν γεγραμμένων, ἀλλὰ σαυτὸν μᾶλλον ἢ τὰ ἱερὰ γράμματα αἰτιῶ, ὅτε μὴ εὑρίσκεις τὸν λόγον τῶν γεγραμμένων. τοῦτό μοι τὸ προοίμιον εἴρηται καθολικῶς χρήσιμον εἶναι δυνάμενον εἰς ὅλην τὴν γραφήν, ἵνα προτραπῶσιν οἱ θέλοντες προσέχειν τῇ ἀναγνώσει μηδὲν παραπέμπεσθαι ἀνεξέταστον καὶ ἀνεξερεύνητον γράμμα.