CHAPTER V.

[Origen's Scholars and Cotemporaries.]

I. With the account of Origen naturally belongs a view of the extent to which Universalism prevailed in his time, together with some notice of the more eminent of its believers among his cotemporaries. But here, the clear light of history forsakes us. In the destructive lapse of ten or fifteen .centuries, every document, if such there was, which might have pointed out the state of the doctrine, has perished; and we are left to the uncertainty of conjecture, guided only by a circumstantial evidence, scanty and perplexed.

In attempting to gather some general opinion out of this obscurity, we must place no great reliance on any supposed effect which the plain testimonies of scripture ought to have had upon the common belief of that time; for ecclesiastical history shows that in every age christians have taken their sentiments from other sources than immediately from the Bible. Nor must we adopt the convenient axiom of some enthusiasts, that every essential christian truth, or what we deem such, has found an uninterrupted succession of adherents, from Christ to the present time; for when we assume this ground, we forsake, at once, the region of history, for that of mere hypothesis. We must, in the present case, judge what is probable, only from what is known;

and remember, the meanwhile, that, after all, we may err in our conclusions.

It certainly is not reasonable to suppose that the great authority of Clemens Alexandrinus, and the vast influence of Origen, could have failed to secure many believers in all their prominent tenets. Were we to take into our account all their disciples, patrons and admiring friends, or even those of the latter alone, we should have the main body of the bishops and churches throughout all the East. Those of Arabia regarded him as the great and successful champion of the faith; in Palestine and Phoenicia, his authority in doctrine was absolute; in Cappadocia, his instructions were eagerly sought and followed; and in the remote province of Pontus, his scholars stood first among the bishops; Greece had long esteemed and revered him; and even in Egypt, notwithstanding the quarrel of Demetrius, it is evident that the churches, together with the presbyters in general, and many of their bishops, were warmly attached to Origen. But to reckon all these, simply on this account, as Universalists, would certainly be extravagant: Many of his advocates probably regarded him only for his astonishing genius, his universal erudition, his illustrious virtue, or the services he had rendered the church; some, perhaps, considered him merely as a persecuted man, and overlooking his harmless peculiarities, felt it their duty to defend him against injustice. It must also be remarked, that as his Universalism was not made a matter of complaint, we can draw but little evidence of an agreement in that particular, from mere friendship and adherence to him;

but this circumstance, at the same time, leads us strongly to suspect that a doctrine so momentous and yet unimpeached, prevailed among his adversaries as well as among his followers.

Without attempting, then, the impracticable task of exploring the real extent of the doctrine at this period, I shall only select from the Eastern or Greek churches, which were the principal sphere of Origen's influence, some eminent individuals, whose intimacy with him, veneration for his opinions, and peculiar regard for his expositions of scripture, can hardly be taken into view without producing a conviction that they were Universalists.

II. Among these, the venerable Alexander, bishop of Jerusalem, holds a distinguished place. Somewhat older, probably, than Origen, he had already studied with Pantænus, when the former became his schoolfellow under Clemens Alexandrinus. In this situation, the two scholars formed a friendship which was to endure through life. After the interruption of their studies by the persecution under Severus, we find Alexander in prison at Jerusalem, in A. D. 205; at which time, his faithful sufferings were cheered, for a while, by a visit from his late master Clemens, whom he always regarded with great respect. The exact period of his release is not known; but within a few years he was chosen bishop of some place in Cappadocia, perhaps of the metropolis. He returned, however to Jerusalem, about A. D. 212; and on his arrival was unanimously elected colleague with Narcissus, the superannuated bishop of this city. From this time, we

hear nothing of him till Origen visited Palestine, about A. D. 216; and the affectionate deference he then paid his early friend, together with the faithful support he afterwards gave him, has been already mentioned. He and Theoctistus appear to have taken the lead in the promotion and defence of their illustrious guest; and regarding him as their own master, they resigned to him, in their respective churches, the authority of publicly expounding the scriptures, and instructing the people in religion.

To Alexander belongs the honor of having established, at Jerusalem, the first ecclesiastical library of which there is any account. Though a bishop of some eminence, he seems to have written nothing, himself, except common-place letters; a few sentences only of which are extant. In the general persecution under Decius, he was arraigned at Cesarea, and again cast into prison, where he soon died, A. D. 250a.

Of Theoctistus, we have only to add, that after presiding with reputation for many years, in the metropolitan bishopric of Cesarea in Palestine, he died not far from A. D. 260b. It does not appear that he left any writings whatever.

III. Perhaps we ought here to mention Heraclas, the successor of Demetrius, in the bishopric of Alexandria. He was one of those heathens who were converted to christianity in the year 203, by Origen's instructions;

a Cave's Lives of the Fathers, Chap. Clem. Alexand. § 4 and 5; and Chap. Origen, § 22; and Chronol. Table, Ann. 212. Also Euseb. Hist. Eccl. Lib. vi. cap. 14. I have omitted, in this account, a vision or two. b Euseb. Hist. Eccl. Lib. vi. cap. 46. and Lib.

vii. cap. 14.

and who then entered the great Catechetical School under his care. Heraclas was soon called to witness the sacrifice of his own brother, a fellow-convert and disciple, among the early martyrs with which this seminary was honored. Pursuing his studies, he seems to have become the favorite of his master, since he was at length selected as his assistant when Origen found the increasing duties of the school too numerous for his sole management. On the flight of the latter from Alexandria, in A. D. 231, Heraclas succeeded him in the Presidency; and about a year afterwards, on the death of Demetrius, he was promoted to the Alexandrian bishopric, the second for dignity and influence, in all christendom. Here he continued to govern the churches till his death, which happened in A. D. 247, or 248; when Dionysius the Great, another disciple and friend of Origen, succeeded him.

Heraclas seems to have been of a quiet and philosophic disposition. He had the reputation of extensive learning, particularly in secular literature, for which he, perhaps, entertained a decided partiality; as on his elevation to the bishopric, he adopted, and ever afterwards wore, the philosopher's robe as his distinguishing habit. He has left no writings.

IV. Ambrosius, the convert, patron, and familiar friend of Origen, can hardly be refused, by the most skeptical, a place among the believers in Universalism. It was at his request, and by his pecuniary aid, that Origen composed several of those works in which that doc

c Euseb. Hist. Eccl. Lib. vi, cap. 3, 15, 20, 26, 31, 35.