Origen

Origen, one of the greatest of the Christian fathers, was born in 185 or 186. Hewas educated by his father Leonidas, a Christian who suffered under the persecution of Septimius Severus. In 203 he was placed at the head of the celebrated catechetical school of Alexandria, where he lived for nearly thirty years. He earned his living by copying MSS.. and lived a highly ascetic life, even carrying out literally the precept suggested by Matthew xix. 12. He learned Hebrew, and made a special study of Plato and the Stoic writings in order to realise the heathen point of view. In these years he also made journeys to Palestine and Arabia, but was recalled by Demetrius, Bishop of Alexandria, who was displeased at a layman having pleached. He refused to ordain him, and when this had been done by another bishop about 230 Origen. was deposed and banished. He now settled at Caesarea, in Palestine, where he set up a celebrated school, Gregory Thaumiiturgus being one of his pupils. Thence he made journeys to Cappadocia, Nicomedia, Arabia, and Athens. During the Decian persecution he was imprisoned and tor.i tured at Tyre, where ,he died probably in 254, Fragments only exist of the Hexapla, a gigantic piece of textual criticism, in which the Hebrew and all existing Greek versions of the Old Testament were placed side by side. The chief apolo getic work, an answer to an 'attack by a certair Celsus on Christianity, is extant in the original, and is invaluable.