Testimonia

{"author":null,"backreferences":[{"context_html":"<p class=\"c005\">I know that very many of the brethren, induced\r\nby their thirst for a knowledge of the Scriptures,\r\nhave requested some distinguished men, well\r\nversed in Greek learning, to translate Origen into\r\nLatin, and so make him accessible to Roman readers. Among\r\nthese, when our brother and colleague<a id=\"r1\"></a><a class=\"c007 pginternal\" href=\"#f1\"><sup>[1]</sup></a> had, at the earnest\r\nentreaty of Bishop Damasus, translated two of the Homilies\r\non the Song of Songs out of Greek into Latin, he prefixed\r\nso elegant and noble a preface to that work, as to inspire\r\nevery one with a most eager desire to read and study Origen,\r\nsaying that the expression, “The King hath brought me into\r\nhis chamber,”<a id=\"r2\"></a><a class=\"c007 pginternal\" href=\"#f2\"><sup>[2]</sup></a> was appropriate to his feelings, and declaring\r\nthat while Origen in his other works surpassed all writers, he\r\nin the Song of Songs surpassed even himself. He promises,\r\nindeed, in that very preface, that he will present the books\r\non the Song of Songs, and numerous others of the works of\r\nOrigen, in a Latin translation, to Roman readers. But he,\r\nfinding greater pleasure in compositions of his own, pursues an\r\nend that is attended with greater fame, viz. in being the author\r\nrather than the translator of works. Accordingly we enter\r\nupon the undertaking, which was thus begun and approved of\r\nby him, although we cannot compose in a style of elegance\r\n<span class=\"pageno\" id=\"Page_xii\">xii</span>equal to that of a man of such distinguished eloquence;\r\nand therefore I am afraid lest, through my fault, the result\r\nshould follow, that that man, whom he deservedly esteems as\r\nthe second teacher of knowledge and wisdom in the church\r\nafter the apostles, should, through the poverty of my language,\r\nappear far inferior to what he is. And this consideration,\r\nwhich frequently recurred to my mind, kept me silent,\r\nand prevented me from yielding to the numerous entreaties of\r\nmy brethren, until your influence, my very faithful brother\r\nMacarius, which is so great, rendered it impossible for my\r\nunskilfulness any longer to offer resistance. And therefore,\r\nthat I might not find you too grievous an exactor, I gave\r\nway, even contrary to my resolution; on the condition and\r\narrangement, however, that in my translation I should follow\r\nas far as possible the rule observed by my predecessors,\r\nand especially by that distinguished man whom I have mentioned\r\nabove, who, after translating into Latin more than\r\nseventy of those treatises of Origen which are styled <i>Homilies</i>,\r\nand a considerable number also of his writings on the\r\napostles, in which a good many “stumbling-blocks” are found\r\nin the original Greek, so smoothed and corrected them in his\r\ntranslation, that a Latin reader would meet with nothing\r\nwhich could appear discordant with our belief. His example,\r\ntherefore, we follow, to the best of our ability; if not with\r\nequal power of eloquence, yet at least with the same strictness\r\nof rule, taking care not to reproduce those expressions\r\noccurring in the works of Origen which are inconsistent\r\nwith and opposed to each other. The cause of these variations\r\nwe have explained more freely in the <span lang=\"la\"><i>Apologeticus</i></span>,\r\nwhich Pamphilus wrote in defence of the works of Origen,\r\nwhere we added a brief tract, in which we showed, I think,\r\nby unmistakeable proofs, that his books had been corrupted\r\nin numerous places by heretics and malevolent persons, and\r\nespecially those books of which you now require me to undertake\r\nthe translation, <i>i.e.</i> the books which may be entitled\r\n<span lang=\"la\"><i>De Principiis</i></span> or <span lang=\"la\"><i>De Principatibus</i></span>, and which are indeed in\r\nother respects full of obscurities and difficulties. For he\r\nthere discusses those subjects with respect to which philosophers,\r\n<span class=\"pageno\" id=\"Page_xiii\">xiii</span>after spending all their lives upon them, have been\r\nunable to discover anything. But here our author strove, as\r\nmuch as in him lay, to turn to the service of religion the\r\nbelief in a Creator, and the rational nature of created beings,\r\nwhich the latter had degraded to purposes of wickedness.\r\nIf, therefore, we have found anywhere in his writings, any\r\nstatement opposed to that view, which elsewhere in his works\r\nhe had himself piously laid down regarding the Trinity, we\r\nhave either omitted it, as being corrupt, and not the composition\r\nof Origen, or we have brought it forward, agreeably to\r\nthe rule which we frequently find affirmed by himself. If,\r\nindeed, in his desire to pass rapidly on, he has, as speaking\r\nto persons of skill and knowledge, sometimes expressed himself\r\nobscurely, we have, in order that the passage might be\r\nclearer, added what we had read more fully stated on the\r\nsame subject in his other works, keeping explanation in view,\r\nbut adding nothing of our own, but simply restoring to him\r\nwhat was his, although occurring in other portions of his\r\nwritings.</p>","headings":["The Writings of Origen, Vol. 1 of 2","PROLOGUE OF RUFINUS TO THE DE PRINCIPIIS."],"marker_anchor":null,"paragraph_id":"pg70561-paragraph-49"}],"canonical_references":[],"date_end":null,"date_start":null,"deduplication_fingerprint":"e3ef8133363e0797d4dccfe3134994ff36cffb1ef382cec53ad05f625ac78ff9","edition_title":"The writings of Origen, Vol. 1 (of 2)","edition_translators":["Frederick Crombie"],"edition_year":1869,"explicit_reference_candidates":[],"headings":[],"id":"pg70561-f1","license_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/policy/license.html","public_import_allowed":false,"record_kind":"original-editor-translator-note","review_required":["work and recension attribution","original-work chronology","Bible reference numbering and citation kind","English edition rights and attribution"],"review_status":"needs_review","rights_evidence":"Project Gutenberg metadata: Public domain in the USA. Existing 1869 English translation; translator died 1889. Electronic transcription subject to Project Gutenberg reuse terms.","source_anchor":"f1","source_ebook":70561,"source_html":"<div class=\"footnote\" id=\"f1\">\n<p class=\"c006\"><span class=\"label\"><a class=\"pginternal\" href=\"#r1\">1</a>.  </span>Jerome is the person alluded to.</p>\n</div>","source_sha256":"de125e213d16053354f22b34a1c8d477ac23f201e660e4f4841b2ed7e05bb367","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/70561/pg70561-images.html#f1","text_sha256":"ca1445d507abf51fed6313aeb112ec5f1aadf3aaa65f591b2964280f4e05a956","verified":false,"work_id":null}

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