Against Celsus 3.72
Summary: True wisdom, defined as knowledge of divine and human things or as the radiance of God's glory, never leads people away from Christ; only sophistry falsely called wisdom does.
Greek text · Koetschau 1:263–264
Εἶτα ὡς ἐκ προσώπου τοῦ διδάσκοντος τὸν ἡμέτερον λόγον τοιαῦτά φησιν· οἱ σοφοὶ γὰρ ἀποτρέπονται τὰ ὑφʼ ἡμῶν λεγόμενα. ὑπὸ τῆς σοφίας πλανώμενοι καὶ παραποδιζόμενοι. φήσομεν οὖν καὶ πρὸς τοῦτο ὅτι, εἴπερ ἡ σοφία ἐπιστήμη „θείων“ ἐστὶ „καὶ ἀνθρωπίνων“ πραγμάτων καὶ τῶν τούτων αἰτίων ἢ. ὡς ὁ θεῖος λόγος ὁρίζεται, „ἀτμὶς“ „τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ δυνάμεως καὶ ἀπόῤῥοια τῆς τοῦ παντοκράτορος δόξης εἰλικρινὴς“ καὶ „ἀπαύγασμα“ „φωτὸς ἀϊδίου καὶ ἔσοπτρον ἀκηλίδωτον τῆς τοῦ θεοῦ ἐνεργείας καὶ εἰκὼν τῆς ἀγαθότητος αὐτοῦ, “ οὐκ ἄν τις ὢν σοφὸς ἀποτρέποιτο τὰ ὑπὸ Χριστιανοῦ ἐπιστήμονος τοῦ χριστιανισμοῦ λεγόμενα οὐδὲ πλανηθείη ἂν ἢ παραποδίζοιτο ὑπʼ αὐτῆς. ἡ γὰρ ἀληθὴς σοφία οὐ πλανᾷ ἀλλʼ ἡ ἀμαθία, καὶ μόνον τῶν ὄντων βέβαιον ἐπιστήμη, καὶ ἀλήθεια ἅπερ ἐκ σοφίας παραγίνεται. ἐὰν δὲ παρὰ τὸν τῆς σοφίας ὅρον τὸν ὅ τι ποτʼ οὖν δογματίζοντα μετά τινων σοφισμάτων λέγῃς σοφὸν, φήσομεν ὅτι ἀληθῶς ὁ κατὰ τὴν ὑπὸ σοῦ λεγομένην σοφίαν ποιὸς ἀποτρέπεται τοὺς λόγους τοῦ θεοῦ, πλανώμενος ὑπὸ τῶν πιθανοτήτων καὶ σοφισμάτων καὶ παραποδιζόμενος ὑπʼ αὐτῶν. καὶ ἐπεὶ κατὰ τὸν ἡμέτερον λόγον „οὐκ ἔστι σοφία πονηρίας ἐπιστήμη, “ „πονηρίας“ δὲ. ἵνʼ οὕτως ὀνομάσω, „ἐπιστήμη“ ἐστὶν ἐν τοῖς ψευδοδοξοῦσι καὶ ὑπὸ σοφισματίων ἠπατημένοις, διὰ τοῦτο ἀμαθίαν εἴποιμι μᾶλλον ἢ σοφίαν ἐν τοῖς τοιούτοις.
English · Claude translation
Then, as if in the person of one who teaches our doctrine, he says something like this: “For the wise turn away from what we say, being led astray and hindered by their wisdom.” To this too we shall say that if wisdom is knowledge of “divine and human” things and their causes, or, as the divine word defines it, “a vapor of the power of God and a pure emanation of the glory of the Almighty” and “a radiance of eternal light, a spotless mirror of the working of God and an image of his goodness,” no one who is wise would turn away from what is said by a Christian who understands Christianity, nor would he be led astray or hindered by wisdom. For it is not true wisdom that leads astray, but ignorance; and of all things only knowledge is firm, and truth, which come from wisdom. But if, contrary to the definition of wisdom, you call wise one who lays down any doctrine whatever with some sophistries, we shall say that indeed one who is wise according to the wisdom you speak of turns away from the words of God, led astray by plausibilities and sophistries and hindered by them. And since according to our teaching “the knowledge of wickedness is not wisdom,” and a “knowledge of wickedness,” if I may so name it, is in those who hold false opinions and are deceived by petty sophistries, I would call it ignorance rather than wisdom in such people.
About this passage
Notes
Translation notes
- The first definition of wisdom is the Stoic one; the quotations are Wis 7:25–26 and Sir 19:22.
Cite this passage
Origen, Cels. 3.72 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/origen-celsum/3/72/).
Plain text
Origen, Cels. 3.72 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/origen-celsum/3/72/).
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