Guilty of Genius : Origen and the Theory of Transmigration

"This is an important new contribution to our understanding of Origen and of early Christian theology in general. Casting both forwards and backwards in time, Guilty of Genius: Origen and the Theory of Transmigration illustrates Origen's debt to earlier Christian authors and Greek philosophers, as well as his enormous influence on later Christian theologians such as the Cappadocians and Maximus Confessor. Building on his earlier books, which have overturned erroneous but long-established assertions about Origen, the author plots a new trajectory, bringing together threads from earlier works into a coherent and focused treatment, and rebutting the myth that Origen maintained theories such as pre-existence and the transmigration of souls. This is a seminal and significant contribution to the scholarship of early Christianity and the Greek intellectual world of the second and third century"-- Provided by publisher This is an important new contribution to our understanding of Origen, and of early Christian theology and Greek philosophy in general. Casting both forwards and backwards in time, Guilty of Genius: Origen and the Theory of Transmigration illustrates Origen's fruitful engagement with earlier Greek philosophy, as well as his enormous influence on both later philosophers (Porphyry, Proclus) and Christian theologians, including the Cappadocians, Maximus Confessor, and the authors of the Nicene Creed. Building on his earlier books, which overturned erroneous but long-established assertions about Origen, the author brings together various strands to form a detailed and coherently focused treatment, demolishing the myth that Origen upheld theories such as the preexistence and transmigration of souls. This is a seminal and ground-breaking contribution to the scholarship of both early Christianity and Greek philosophy as it was inherited during the second and third centuries. Cover Contents Preface Abbreviations Introduction 1 What is a ‘soul’? 2 The Concept of ‘incorporeal’: Revisiting a Disregarded Obviousness 3 Human Identity as an Individual Quality (ἰδίως ποιός) 4 The Prime Body, the Notion of Infinite, and the ‘encompassing’ (τὸ περιέχον) 5 Antecedent Causes and Universal Sympathy 6 Transmigration and Embodiment 7 Soul as ‘priest’ of the Mind 8 ‘Nous from without’ Pre-Existing? Conclusion Bibliography Index of Ancient Names Index of Modern Names