Origen's Revenge

: The Greek and Hebrew Roots of Christian Thinking on Male and Female

Abstract

This thesis will contrast the influence of the two main contributors to Christian thinking on human sexuality in the first seven centuries of the Christian era: First, the generally negative view of male and female in Greek philosophy, limiting sexual distinction to the body, holding the body in low regard, disdaining sexual relations as irrational and degrading, and tending to see hostility as inherent in male-female relations; second, the more positive view of the man and the woman in Hebrew Scripture, in which sexual distinction and reproduction are both deemed naturally good and necessary for human existence. These two views account for much of the controversy in early Christianity concerning marriage and monasticism. They also still contribute to current controversies over sex roles, gender identity, and sexual ethics. The plainest and most problematic patristic endorsement of the Greek view of male and female came in the seventh century from Maximus the Confessor, though Maximus’s view clearly derives directly or indirectly from Origen, Gregory of Nyssa, and others of the Alexandrian tradition. Maximus’s contention that the ‘division’ of male and female must be ‘completely shaken off’ before heaven and earth can be united has been offered as an alternative to traditional binary thinking. This thesis will show that the ‘Greek’ understanding of male and female deriving from Origen is difficult if not impossible to reconcile with much else in Christian tradition that obliges men and women to live as either men or women, whether married or celibate. Finally, the thesis will show that the key assumption of the ‘Greek’ Christian view, excluding male and female from the image of God, is unnecessary and inconsistent with the early Christian understanding, supported by Scripture and Tradition, that the image of God is a matter of personal relation in imitation of the Trinity and not solely a matter of virtue, excellence, intellect, or autonomy.

Date of Award	28 Apr 2020
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Winchester
Supervisor	Andreas Andreopoulos (Supervisor) & Neil Messer (Supervisor)