Ready for death; Demetrius on immortality
Origen went on: He goes away to the fathers. Which fathers? About whom Paul says: For this reason I bend my knees to the Father, from whom every family. Thus according to us Aaron was released. For it is also written in Ecclesiastes about the righteous man who has contested well, who has gone out from the bodily bond, that He shall come out of the house of prisoners to reign.
Thus I am persuaded to die for the truth; thus I despise the so-called death, ready; thus — bring beasts, bring crosses, bring fire, bring tortures. I know that at the moment of being released I go out of the body; I rest with Christ. For this reason let us contest, for this reason let us wrestle, let us groan being in the body — not as about to be in the tombs again at once, in the body, but as about to be released, and as changing the body toward the more spiritual. And being about to depart and be with Christ, how do we groan, we who are in the body?
When bishop Philip had entered, Demetrius, another bishop, said: Brother Origen teaches that the soul is immortal.
Origen said: Bishop Demetrius's word has given us the beginning of another problem. He said we had said that the soul is immortal. To this word I will say that the soul is both immortal and the soul is not immortal.
Greek
πατέρας; Περὶ ὧν λέγει ὁ Παῦλος· «Τούτου χάριν κάμπτω μου τὰ γόνατα πρὸς τὸν Πατέρα ἐξ οὗ πᾶσα πατριά.». Οὕτω καθ' ἡμᾶς «ἀπελύθη Ἀαρών»· καὶ γὰρ ἐν τῷ Ἐκκλησιαστῇ γέγραπται περὶ τοῦ δικαίου τοῦ καλῶς ἀγωνισαμένου, τοῦ ἐξελθόντος ἀπὸ τοῦ σωματικοῦ δεσμοῦ ὅτι «Ἐξ οἴκου τῶν δεσμίων ἐξελεύσεται τοῦ βασιλεῦσαι». Οὕτω πείθομαι ἀποθνῄσκειν ὑπὲρ ἀληθείας, οὕτως ἑτοίμου τοῦ λεγομένου θανάτου καταφρονῶ, οὕτως φέρε θηρία, φέρε σταυρούς, φέρε πῦρ, φέρε βασάνους.
Οἶδα ὅτι ἅμα τῷ ἀπαλλαγῆναι ἐξέρχομαι τοῦ σώματος, μετὰ Χριστοῦ ἀναπαύομαι. ∆ιὰ τοῦτο ἀγωνισώμεθα, διὰ τοῦτο παλαίσωμεν, στενάζωμεν ὄντες ἐν τῷ σώματι, οὐχ ὡς πάλιν ἐσόμενοι ἄρτι ἐν τοῖς μνημείοις ἐν τῷ σώματι, ἀλλ' ἀπολυθησόμενοι μέν, μεταβαλοῦντες δὲ τὸ σῶμα ἐπὶ τὸ πνευματικώτερον· ἀναλύσοντες δὲ καὶ σὺν Χριστῷ ἐσόμενοι, πῶς στενάζομεν οἱ ὄντες ἐν τῷ σώματι;»
Εἰσελθόντος Φιλίππου ἐπισκόπου,
∆ημήτριος, ἄλλος ἐπίσκοπος, εἶπεν· «∆ιδάσκει ὁ ἀδελφὸς Ὠριγένης ὅτι ἡ ψυχὴ ἀθάνατός ἐστιν.».
Ὠριγένης εἶπεν· «Ὁ λόγος τοῦ πάπα ∆ημητρίου ἄλλου προβλήματος δέδωκεν ἡμῖν ἀρχήν. Ἔφασκεν ἡμᾶς εἰρηκέναι ὅτι ἀθάνατος ἡ ψυχή. Πρὸς τοῦτον τὸν