Published: 2024-11-181

Origen’s exegetical method and the Catechetical Schools of Alexandria and Caesarea

Rafał Marcin Leszczyński

https://orcid.org/0000-0002-5936-3506

Abstract

The article presents the relationship between the way the Bible was interpreted by Origen and the schools organization he adopted in Alexandria and Caesarea. Origen believed that in Sacred Scripture there were higher and lower levels of its meanings (senses). For this reason, he grouped Christians in terms of their ability to understand these meanings. The highest rank in the church hierarchy is assigned to Christians who are able to find the Bible’s deepest meaning, i.e. its allegorical and philosophical sense. They play the role of thinkers and philosophers in the Church, explaining the most difficult truths of Christianity. This classification was used by Origen at his school in Alexandria and later in Caesarea. The highest group at Origen’s schools were students studying philosophy and allegorical (philosophical) exegesis of the Bible. Thus, the main goal of Origen’s schools was to educate Christian philosophers.

Keywords:

Origen, Holy Bible, exegesis, allegory, philosophy, school, education

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Leszczyński, R. (2024). Origen’s exegetical method and the Catechetical Schools of Alexandria and Caesarea. Theological Yearbook, 66(2), *69-*90. https://doi.org/10.36124/rt.2024.13

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