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| The Doctrine of the Truth.
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Chapter
XXVIII.—The Doctrine of the Truth.
The first and only (one God),1074
| 1074
The margin of the ms. has the words
“Origen and Origen’s opinion.” This seemed to
confirm the criticism which ascribes The Refutation to
Origin. But even supposing Origen not the author, the copyer of
the ms. might have written Origen’s name
on the margin, as indicating the transcriber’s opinion concerning
the coincidence of creed between Origen and the author of The
Refutation. The fact, however, is that the doctrine of
eternal punishment, asserted in the concluding chapter of The
Refutation, was actually controverted by Origen. See
translator’s Introductory Notice. [See also Wordsworth (a
lucid exposition), p. 20, etc., and infra, cap. xxix. note
5.] | both Creator and Lord of all, had nothing
coeval with Himself; not infinite chaos, nor measureless water,
nor solid earth, nor dense air, not warm fire, nor refined spirit, nor
the azure canopy1075
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ὀροφήν (Scott). The
ms. has μορφήν. | of the
stupendous firmament. But He was One, alone in Himself. By
an exercise of His will He created things that are, which antecedently
had no existence, except that He willed to make them. For He is
fully acquainted with whatever is about to take place, for
foreknowledge also is present to Him. The different principles,
however, of what will come into existence, He first fabricated, viz.,
fire and spirit, water and earth, from which diverse elements He
proceeded to form His own creation. And some objects He formed of
one essence, but others He compounded from two, and others from three,
and others from four. And those formed of one
substance were immortal, for in their case dissolution
does not follow, for what is one will never be dissolved. Those,
on the other hand, which are formed out of two, or three, or four
substances, are dissoluble; wherefore also are they named
mortal. For this has been denominated death; namely, the
dissolution of substances connected. I now therefore think
that I have sufficiently answered those endued with a sound mind, who,
if they are desirous of additional instruction, and are disposed
accurately to investigate the substances of these things, and the
causes of the entire creation, will become acquainted with these points
should they peruse a work of ours comprised (under the title),
Concerning the Substance of the Universe.1076
| 1076
Here we have another reference intimately bearing on the
authorship of The Refutation. What follows corresponds
with a fragment having a similar title to that stated above, first
published by Le Moyne, and inserted in Fabricius (i. pp. 220–222)
as the work of Hippolytus. Photius mentions this work, and gives
an extract from it corresponding with what is furnished by
Hippolytus. Photius, however, mentions that the book On the
Substance of the Universe was said to be written by Josephus, but
discovers in marginal notes the ascription of it to Caius. But
Caius cannot be the writer, since Photius states that the author of
The Labyrinth affirmed that he had written On the Substance
of the Universe. Now Hippolytus informs us that he is author
of The Labyrinth. Hippolytus thus refers to three of his
works in The Refutation: (1) ἕτεραι
βίβλοι, i.e., on
Chronology; (2) Concerning the Substance of the Universe; (3)
Little Labyrinth. Except Hippolytus and Photius refer to
different works in speaking of The Labyrinth, the foregoing
settles the question of the authorship of The Refutation.
[See the case of Caius stated, Wordsworth, cap. iv. p. 27,
etc.] | I consider, however, that at present
it is enough to elucidate those causes of which the Greeks, not being
aware, glorified, in pompous phraseology, the parts of creation, while
they remained ignorant of the Creator. And from these the
heresiarchs have taken occasion, and have transformed the statements
previously made by those Greeks into similar doctrines, and thus
have framed ridiculous heresies.E.C.F. INDEX & SEARCH
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