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One might keep in mind that the very doctrine of Pre-mortal Existence of souls which christos Anesti mentioned WAS PERFECTLY ORTHODOX IN JUDAO-CHRISTIANITIES OF THE FIRST CENTURY and, as the Roman Church moved away from such doctrines it only BECAME IN LATER CENTURIES, heretical, whereas it was once orthodox.
I think this SPECIFIC mistake by the Roman Church was one of it’s greatest errors of theological history and reminds me of the error the Roman Church made in imprisoning Galileo for teaching that the Earth was not the center of the Universe.
Just as history vindicated Galileo and his discoveries that proved to be true, Historians of early Christianities have similar reason to honor Origen as he became vidicated for the things he got right such as the doctrine of Pre-Mortal existence of Souls.
Pre-mortal existence of Souls was one of several authentic early doctrines whose abandonment has caused endless headaches, confusion and arguments among philosophers and theologians that the early Christians were not subject to before the doctrine was abandoned.
Many, many, many of the earliest Judao-Christian sacred Texts, relate the expansive doctrine of the pre-mortal realm and the nature of spirits there and God’s purposes for creation. The theme of pre-creation and what happened there is written into the early sacred texts, their hymns contain the doctrine; virtually ALL of the ascension literature contains the doctrine, the war in heaven texts certainly contain the doctrine; the earliest liturgies contain the doctrine; the midrashic texts contain the doctrine, the Jewish Haggadah contains the doctrine, the Zohar contains it; the testament literature is full of it. One simply cannot READ the earliest sacred Judao-Christian texts without reference to this early Christian doctrine. This vast early literature is part of the context for early christians and illuminates their understanding of biblical texts that reference this pre-creation time period and what happened there.
For examples :
Enoch, in his vision of pre-creation heaven, relates :
Under this early context, the question God asked Job was NOT rhetorical, but it was a reminder :
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I thought I’d offer a bit of balance to the opinions on Origen since he was correct on many, many things; He was very, very influencial in early Christianity and one of the greatest of the early theologians. When you hear of him being called a Heretic, remember that it was three centuries AFTER Origen’s death that the Emporer-Politician issued his Anathematisms (543 a.d.) which gave him that label of heretic and the reasons for anathematisms had mixed motives.Sunny Seraphim asked : “I am somewhat confused... I have heard Origen called a heretic before, and yet I have heard him called a Saint. What am I to beleive? Was he a heretic in his teachings, or is he really a Doer of the Word of the Lord?”
Christos Anesti replied : Some of his speculations were rejected by the Church ( like the pre-existence of souls for example) and some of his later followers took those speculations to even more extream ends. To protect the faithful from being mislead he was anathmatized by the Church long after his death. Many of his writtings still posses a lot of wisdom though and he was often quoted and praphrased by various Saints and Fathers of the Church . His bibilical commentaries were especially influential. It was mainly his work "On First Principles" that had the most grevious errors. He isn't recognized as a saint and has no feast day in either the Orthodox or Roman Catholic Church.
One might keep in mind that the very doctrine of Pre-mortal Existence of souls which christos Anesti mentioned WAS PERFECTLY ORTHODOX IN JUDAO-CHRISTIANITIES OF THE FIRST CENTURY and, as the Roman Church moved away from such doctrines it only BECAME IN LATER CENTURIES, heretical, whereas it was once orthodox.
I think this SPECIFIC mistake by the Roman Church was one of it’s greatest errors of theological history and reminds me of the error the Roman Church made in imprisoning Galileo for teaching that the Earth was not the center of the Universe.
Just as history vindicated Galileo and his discoveries that proved to be true, Historians of early Christianities have similar reason to honor Origen as he became vidicated for the things he got right such as the doctrine of Pre-Mortal existence of Souls.
Pre-mortal existence of Souls was one of several authentic early doctrines whose abandonment has caused endless headaches, confusion and arguments among philosophers and theologians that the early Christians were not subject to before the doctrine was abandoned.
Many, many, many of the earliest Judao-Christian sacred Texts, relate the expansive doctrine of the pre-mortal realm and the nature of spirits there and God’s purposes for creation. The theme of pre-creation and what happened there is written into the early sacred texts, their hymns contain the doctrine; virtually ALL of the ascension literature contains the doctrine, the war in heaven texts certainly contain the doctrine; the earliest liturgies contain the doctrine; the midrashic texts contain the doctrine, the Jewish Haggadah contains the doctrine, the Zohar contains it; the testament literature is full of it. One simply cannot READ the earliest sacred Judao-Christian texts without reference to this early Christian doctrine. This vast early literature is part of the context for early christians and illuminates their understanding of biblical texts that reference this pre-creation time period and what happened there.
For examples :
Enoch, in his vision of pre-creation heaven, relates :
The great scribe Enoch is commanded by the angel to :”... I saw a hundred thousand times a hundred thousand, ten million times ten million, an innumerable and uncountable (multitude) who stand before the glory of the Lord of the Spirits. (1st Enoch 40:1)
In his vision the angel bids Enoch, “Come and I will show you the souls of the righteous who have already been created and have returned, and the souls of the righteous who have not yet been created.” After seeing various souls, a midrashic explanation is given us by Enoch regarding these many souls“... write all the souls of men, whatever of them are not yet born, and their places, prepared for eternity. 5 For all souls are prepared for eternity, before the composition of the earth.” 2nd Enoch 23:4-5
The vast ascension literature, describes the pre-creation realm of spirits. Abraham, in his ascension Vision describes the unnumbered spirits he sees, many of whom are waiting to come into mortality. The angel says to Abraham :“the spirit shall clothe itself in my presence” refers to the souls of the righteous which have already been created in the storehouse of beings and have returned to the presence of god; and “the souls which I have made” refers to the souls of the righteous which have not yet been created in the storehouse.” 3rd Enoch 43:1-3
The doctrine of pre-mortal existence of the spirits within men permeates the Old Testament biblical text as well. A knowledge of this simple principle explains and underlying so many of the quotes in many other texts as well. In the Old testament it was said : “Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto God who gave it. (ecclesiates 12:7). This principle is mirrored in multiple other early Judao Christian texts as well : When God the Father commands the son to “Go, take the soul of my beloved Sedrach, and put it in Paradise.” The only begotten Son said to Sedrach, “give me that which our Father deposited in the womb of your mother in your holy dwelling place since you were born.” (The Apocalypse of Sedrach 9:1-2 and 5). When the Son finally DOES take the Soul of the Mortal Sedrach, he simply takes it back to God “where it came from”. It is simply a rephrase of Ecclesiates 12:7. And this principle is repeated in many different texts.“Look now beneath your feet at the firmament and understand the creation that was depicted of old (i.e. planned). Among other things Abraham says “I saw there a great crowd of men and women and children, half of them on the right side of the portrayal, and half of them on the left side of the portrayal.”... He asks : “Eternal, Mighty One! What is this picture of creation?” 2 And he said to me, “This is my will with regard to what is in the council and it became good before my face (i.e. according to his plan).. “These who are on the left side are a multitude of tribes who existed previously...and through you. some (who have been) prepared for being put in order (slav” restoration”, others for revenge and perdition at the end of the age....those on the right side of the picture are the people set apart for me of the people with azazel; these are the ones I have prepared to be born of you and to be called my people The Apocalypse of Abraham 21:1-7 and 22:1-5 and 23:1-3;
“Jesus said, “Blessed are the solitary and elect, for you will find the Kingdom. For you are from it, and to it you will return.” (THE GOSPEL OF THOMAS v 49)
The Early Christian usage of Ecclesiates 12:7 was used in this same way by the Apostle Peter as he explained to Clement that "This world was made so that the number of spirits predestined to come here when their number was full could receive their bodies and again be conducted back to the light." (Recognitions)“Therefore, fear not death. For that which is from me, that is the soul, departs for heaven. That which is from the earth, that is the body, departs for the earth from which it was taken.” (The Greek Apocalypse of Ezra 6:26 & 7:1-4)
Under this early context, the question God asked Job was NOT rhetorical, but it was a reminder :
Under the early context, Job KNEW the answer when God asked where Job was when God laid the foundations of the earth “and all the sons of God shouted for joy”. The texts are explicit that the spirits were taught regarding God’s plan to send the spirits of men to earth. They knew they would undergo a fall of Adam and Of the pre-mortal Redeemer. Seth relates this time period when these sons of God shouted for Joy. The redeemer said regarding this time period before creation in a assembly of spirits :"Where wast thou when I laid the foundations of the earth? declare, if thou hast understanding. 5Who hath laid the measures thereof, if thou knowest? or who hath stretched the line upon it? 6Whereupon are the foundations thereof fastened? or who laid the corner stone thereof; 7When the morning stars sang together, and all the sons of God shouted for joy? (Job 38:4-7)
In explaining the relationship of this life to the pre-mortal realm of spirits, the messiah explained“And I said these things to the whole multitude of the multitudinous assembly of the rejoicing Majesty. The whole house of the Father of Truth rejoiced that I am the one who is from them.... And they all had a single mind, since it is out of one. They charged me since I was willing. I came forth to reveal the glory to my kindred and my fellow spirits.” (The second treatise of the Great Seth)
The early doctrine of Pre-mortal existence of the spirits of men took the arbitrariness out of God have created spirits unequally. IN this model, the spirits are partly responsible for their nature upon entering this life. Instead of arbitrarily creating spirits with defects (which spirits may be punished for later), in this early christian context, the Lord creates the body in relationship to certain characteristics the spirit has already obtained (or did not obtain) in it’s heavenly abode over vast periods of time. For example from the testament literature :“After we went forth from our home, and came down to this world, and came into being in the world in bodies, we were hated and persecuted, not only by those who are ignorant, but also by those who think that they are advancing the name of Christ, since they were unknowingly empty, not knowing who they are, like dumb animals. They persecuted those who have been liberated by me, since they hate them...” (The second treatise of the Great Seth)
In the context of the spirit of man existing long before other spirits, Jewish Haggadah relates that“For just as a potter knows the pot, how much it holds, and brings clay for it accordingly, so also the Lord forms the body in correspondence to the spirit,” and, because the Lord knows and has known the spirit over eons, “ the Lord knows the body to what extent it will persist in goodness, and when it will be dominated by evil. For there is no form or conception which the Lord does not know since he created every human being according to his own image.” (Testaments of the Twelve Patriarchs - Napthali 2:2-5)
This it the very same teaching the Apostle Peter taught Clement in the Clementine Recognitions, (remember, Clement was ALSO in the earlier New Testament Canon), the apostle Peter tells the young christian convert Clement about the pre-earth council and man’s place within this plan :“Instead of being the last, man is really the first work of creation...With the soul of Adam the souls of all the generations of men were created. They are stored up in a promptuary, in the seventh of the heavens, whence they are drawn as they are needed for human body after human body.” The Haggadah (The Soul of Man)
This principle (that man’s spirit pre-exists the creation) was one of the FIRST things the Apostle Peter teaches Clement. I believe there is a reason for this. Perhaps, for such theists, the key to understanding what God is doing with mankind is contained inside of the concept that we are eternally spiritual."which (plan) He [God the Father] of his own good pleasure announced in the presence of all the first angels which were assembled before Him. Last of all He made man whose real nature, however, is older and for whose sake all this was created."
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