Origen: On First Principles, Reader's Edition (Oxford Early Christian Texts)

Behr, John

ISBN 10: 0199684022 ISBN 13: 9780199684021

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2018

Synopsis

On First Principles by Origen of Alexandria, written around 220-230 AD, is one of the most important and contentious works of early Christianity. It provoked controversy when written, provoked further debate when translated into Latin by Rufinus in the fourth century, and was the subject, together with its author, of condemnation in the sixth century. As a result, the work no longer survives intact in the original Greek. We only have the complete work in the Latin translation of Rufinus, and a few extensive passages preserved in Greek by being excerpted into the Philokalia of Basil of Caesarea and Gregory of Nazianzus.

John Behr provides a new edition and translation of one of the most important texts from early Christianity. He includes an invaluable introduction, which provides a clear structure of the work with significant implications for how the text is to be read and for understanding the character of theology in the early Christian tradition.

About this title

About the Author

John Behr is the Dean of St Vladimir's Orthodox Theological Seminary and Professor of Patristics and Metropolitan Kallistos Chair in Orthodox Theology at Vrije Universiteit. His previous publications include Asceticism and Anthropology in Irenaeus and Clement (2000), The Case Against Diodore and Theodore: Texts and Their Contexts (2011), and Irenaeus of Lyons: Identifying Christianity (OUP, 2013). He is also the co-editor of The Role of Life in Death: A Multidisciplinary Examination of Issues pertaining to Life and Death (Wipf and Stock, 2015; with C. Cunningham).

Review

"[A] precious resource for scholarship ... it presents both a clear account and a seductive resolution of the difficulties which occlude our understanding of the most thoughtful and fecund thinker of the ante-Nicene church.'" -- Mark Edwards, The Journal of Theological Studies

"[A] magisterial edition...Thanks to Behr's unique blend of diligence and free-spiritedness, these volumes bring to life one of the most fearsomely inventive works of theology ever written."--Benjamin Myers, Christian Century

"Behr has proven himself to be an able commentator and analyst of early Christian theology in both its Latin and Greek varieties. Here he shows himself also to be a splendid translator of one of the most acclaimed and yet too often unread works of early Christian theology. . . . [T]his new edition should prove to be a constant reference point for students of early Christian theology and exegesis andone might hopean instigating force for further research upon Origen's contribution to theological developments in the third century Christian church."--Michael Allen, Reading Religion

"Behr has surpassed other laborers in this field and has now also surpassed his previous work with a magisterial edition of Origen's On First Principles. ... Thanks to Behr's unique blend of diligence and free-spiritedness, these volumes bring to life one of the most fearsomely inventive works of theology ever written."--Benjamin Myers, The Christian Century

Edition details

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2018
• ISBN 10: 0199684022
• ISBN 13: 9780199684021
• Binding: Product Bundle
• Language: English
• Number of pages: 784