Climbing the Peak of Perfection: A Historical, Literary and Theological Analysis of Moral and Spiritual Perfection in the Homilies of Origen

Origen was a third-century Christian theologian who believed that the Christian life was aimed at perfection and that everyone had the capacity to become perfect. Although his works are replete with references to the idea of perfection, to date, no thorough, in-depth analysis of Origen’s understanding of perfection exists. Besides being a theologian, Origen was also an active pastor in the church of Caesarea, who took it upon himself to remind the faithful of their divine calling, and suggested practical measures to attain the summit of perfection through his sermons. However, the pastoral theology of his homilies and the references to perfection that they contain have also received little scholarly attention. My research aims to fill this gap by examining the presence and treatment of the theme of perfection in Origen’s homilies. I will do this by conducting a historical, literary and theological analysis of the Alexandrian’s homilies, focusing on his theoretical ideas and practical exhortations on perfection. In addition, I will analyse Origen’s use of Scripture and literary techniques in the homilies and investigate their contribution to the idea of perfection. The theological analysis of the content of the homilies will result in a clear picture of the place of perfection in Origen’s wider theology.