Against Celsus 6.79
Summary: One Christ rising from Judaea was enough to enlighten the world, and those who teach his word faithfully are themselves “anointed ones” sharing in his anointing, as the oil runs down from Aaron's head.
Greek text · Koetschau 2:150–151
Διὸ καὶ χρεία οὐκ ἦν πολλὰ γενέσθαι πανταχοῦ σώματα καὶ πολλὰ ἀνάλογον τῷ Ἰησοῦ πνεύματα, ἵνʼ ἡ πᾶσα τῶν ἀνθρώπων οἰκουμένη φωτισθῇ τῷ λόγῳ τοῦ θεοῦ. ἤρκει γὰρ ὁ εἷς λόγος, ὡς „δικαιοσύνης ἥλιος“ ἀνατείλας, ἀπὸ τῆς Ἰουδαίας ἐκπέμψαι τὰς ἐπὶ τὴν ψυχὴν τῶν βουλομένων αὐτὸν παραδέξασθαι φθανούσας αὐγάς. εἰ δὲ καὶ πολλά τις ποθεῖ σώματα πεπληρωμένα θείου πνεύματος ἰδεῖν, ἀνάλογον ἐκείνῳ τῷ ἑνὶ Χριστῷ διακονούμενα τῇ πανταχοῦ τῶν ἀνθρώπων σωτηρίᾳ, κατανοείτω τοὺς πανταχοῦ ὑγιῶς καὶ μετὰ βίου ὀρθοῦ διδάσκοντας τὸν Ἰησοῦ λόγον, Χριστοὺς καὶ αὐτοὺς ὑπὸ τῶν θείων γραφῶν καλουμένους ἐν τῷ „μὴ ἅπτεσθε τῶν Χριστῶν μου, καὶ ἐν τοῖς προφήταις μου μὴ πονηρεύεσθε.“ καὶ γὰρ ὥσπερ ἠκούσαμεν „ὅτι ἀντίχριστος ἔρχεται, “ καὶ οὐδὲν ἧττον μεμαθήκαμεν ὅτι „ἀντίχριστοι πολλοί“ εἰσιν ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ· τὸν αὐτὸν τρόπον ὅτι Χριστὸς ἐπιδεδήμηκε γνόντες θεωροῦμεν ὅτι διʼ αὐτὸν πολλοὶ Χριστοὶ γεγόνασιν ἐν τῷ κόσμῳ, οἵτινες ἀνάλογον ἐκείνῳ ἠγάπησαν „δικαιοσύνην καὶ“ ἐμίσησαν „ἀδικίαν· καὶ διὰ τοῦτο ἔχρισε“ καὶ αὐτοὺς „ὁ θεὸς, ὁ θεὸς“ τοῦ Χριστοῦ, „ἐλαίῳ ἀγαλλιάσεως.“ ἀλλʼ ἐκεῖνος μὲν οὖν ὑπὲρ „τοὺς μετόχους“ αὐτοῦ ἀγαπήσας „δικαιοσύνην καὶ“ μισήσας „ἀνομίαν“ καὶ τὴν ἀπαρχὴν εἴληφε τοῦ χρίσματος καὶ, εἰ χρὴ οὕτως ὀνομάσαι, ὅλον τὸ χρῖσμα τοῦ τῆς „ἀγαλλιάσεως“ ἐλαίου· οἱ δὲ μέτοχοι αὐτοῦ, ἕκαστος ὡς κεχώρηκε, μετέσχον καὶ τοῦ χρίσματος αὐτοῦ. διόπερ, ἐπεὶ Χριστὸς „κεφαλή“ ἐστι „τῆς ἐκκλησίας, “ ὡς εἶναι ἓν σῶμα Χριστὸν καὶ τὴν ἐκκλησίαν, τὸ „μύρον ἐπὶ κεφαλῆς“ καταβέβηκεν „ἐπὶ τὸν πώγωνα, “ τὰ σύμβολα τοῦ τελείου ἀνδρὸς „Ἀαρὼν, “ καὶ ἔφθασε „καταβαῖνον“ τοῦτο τὸ „μύρον“ „ἐπὶ τὴν ὤαν τοῦ ἐνδύματος αὐτοῦ.“ καὶ ταῦτα δέ μοι λέλεκται πρὸς τὸν ἄσεμνον τοῦ Κέλσου λόγον εἰπόντος· δέον πολλὰ ὁμοίως διαφυσῆσαι σώματα καὶ κατὰ πᾶσαν ἀποστεῖλαι τὴν οἰκουμένην. ὁ μὲν οὖν κωμῳδὸς γελωτοποιῶν τὸν Δία κοιμώμενον πεποίηκέ τε καὶ διϋπνιζόμενον καὶ πέμποντα πρὸς τοὺς Ἕλληνας τὸν Ἑρμῆν· ὁ δὲ λόγος, ἄϋπνον ἐπιστάμενος φύσιν τὴν τοῦ θεοῦ, διδασκέτω ἡμᾶς ὅτι κατὰ καιροὺς οἰκονομεῖ τὰ τοῦ κόσμου πράγματα ὁ θεὸς, ὡς ἀπαιτεῖ τὸ εὔλογον. οὐ θαυμαστὸν δὲ εἰ διὰ τὸ μεγάλας εἶναι καὶ δυσδιηγήτους τὰς κρίσεις τοῦ θεοῦ αἱ „ἀπαίδευτοι“ πλανῶνται „ψυχαὶ, “ καὶ Κέλσος σὺν αὐταῖς. οὐδὲν οὖν καταγέλαστόν ἐστιν ἐν τῷ Ἰουδαίοις, παρʼ οἷς γεγόνασιν οἱ προφῆται, πεπέμφθαι τὸν υἱὸν τοῦ θεοῦ· ἵνʼ ἐκεῖθεν ἀρξάμενος σωματικῶς δυνάμει καὶ πνεύματι ἀνατείλῃ τῇ μηκέτι βουλομένῃ ἐρήμῳ θεοῦ τυγχάνειν οἰκουμένῃ ψυχῶν.
English · Claude translation
So there was no need for many bodies to come into being everywhere, and many spirits like Jesus, for the whole inhabited world of men to be enlightened by the Word of God. The one Word, rising as “the sun of righteousness,” was enough to send out from Judaea the rays that reach the souls of those who wish to receive him. And if anyone longs to see many bodies filled with the divine Spirit, serving, like that one Christ, the salvation of men everywhere, let him consider those who everywhere teach the word of Jesus soundly and with an upright life, who are themselves also called Christs by the divine Scriptures in the words, “Do not touch my anointed ones (Christs), and do my prophets no harm.” For just as we have heard “that Antichrist is coming,” and have learned no less that there are “many antichrists” in the world, in the same way, knowing that Christ has come, we see that because of him many Christs have come to be in the world, who, like him, have loved “righteousness and” hated “iniquity; therefore God, the God” of Christ, has anointed them too “with the oil of gladness.” But he, having loved “righteousness and” hated “lawlessness” above “his companions,” received the first-fruits of the anointing and, if one may so put it, the whole anointing of the oil “of gladness,” while his companions, each according to his capacity, have shared in his anointing too. Therefore, since Christ is “the head of the Church,” so that Christ and the Church are one body, the “ointment on the head” has come down “upon the beard,” the symbol of the mature man, “Aaron,” and this “ointment,” “coming down,” has reached “to the hem of his garment.” I have said this in answer to Celsus's irreverent words: He ought to have breathed similarly into many bodies and sent them out over the whole world. The comic poet, raising a laugh, made Zeus sleep and wake up and send Hermes to the Greeks; but let the Word, which knows that God's nature is sleepless, teach us that God governs the affairs of the world at the proper times, as reason requires. It is not surprising if, because the judgments of God are great and hard to describe, “uninstructed souls” go astray, and Celsus with them. There is nothing ridiculous, then, in the Son of God having been sent to the Jews, among whom the prophets had arisen, so that, beginning there bodily, he might rise in power and spirit upon the world of souls that no longer wished to be deserted by God.
About this passage
Notes
Translation notes
- The passages are Mal 4:2 (3:20 LXX), Ps 105:15 (104:15 LXX; “anointed ones” is literally “Christs”), 1 John 2:18, Ps 45:7 (44:8 LXX), Eph 5:23, Ps 133:2 (132:2 LXX), and Wis 17:1.
Notes on the original text
- Digital text corrected (missing space in the digital text): τοὺςἝλληνας → τοὺς Ἕλληνας.
Cite this passage
Origen, Cels. 6.79 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/origen-celsum/6/79/).
Plain text
Origen, Cels. 6.79 (trans. Sophia Scriptura, https://sophiascriptura.com/fathers/origen-celsum/6/79/).
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