A Source Book for Ancient Church History - Mirrors

218 A Source Book for Ancient Church HistoryOn which account the Creator will neither appear to be unjustin distributing (for the causes already mentioned) to every oneaccording to his merits; nor will the happiness or unhappinessof each one's birth, or whatever be the condition that falls to hislot, be deemed accidental; nor will different creators, or souls ofdifferent natures, be believed to exist.(g) Origen, Homil. in Exod., VI, 9. (MSG, 12:338.)In the following passage from Origen's Commentary on Exodusand the four following passages are stated the essentialpoints of Origen's theory of redemption. In this theory thereare two elements which have been famous in the history ofChristian thought: the relation of the death of Christ to thedevil, and the ultimate salvation of every soul. The theory thatChrist's death was a ransom paid to the devil was developedby Gregory of Nyssa and Gregory the Great, and reappearedconstantly in theology down to the scholastic period, when itwas overthrown by Anselm and the greater scholastics. Universalredemption or salvation, especially when it includedSatan himself, was never taken up by Church theologiansto any extent, and was one of the positions condemned asOrigenism. See § 93.[197]It is certain, they say, that one does not buy that which is hisown. But the Apostle says: “Ye are bought with a price.” Buthear what the prophet says: “You have been sold as slaves toyour sins, and for your iniquities I have put away your mother.”Thou seest, therefore, that we are the creatures of God, but eachone has been sold to his sins, and has fallen from his Creator.Therefore we belong to God, inasmuch as we have been createdby Him, but we have become the servants of the devil, inasmuchas we have been sold to our sins. But Christ came to redeemus when we were servants to that master to whom we had soldourselves by sinning.