ISSN: 0860-9411 V O X PAT R U M 9 1 ( 2 0 2 4 ) 4 6 7 - 4 9 8

eISSN: 2719-3586 DOI: 10.31743/vp.17293

The Influence of Origen on Augustine:

The Question of the Infinity of God
Damian Mrugalski OP1

Abstract: There is a belief among scholars of Augustine’s philosophy that he derived

the notion of the positively understood infinity of God from Plotinus. Another opinio
communis holds that Origen inherited a negative understanding of infinity from the an-
cient philosophers and therefore considered God’s power to be finite. This paper aims
to demonstrate that both opinions are erroneous. Although Augustine was familiar
with Plotinus’ thought, his reflections on the infinity of God have more in common
with the theses put forward by Origen than with Neoplatonism. In both authors, the is-
sue arises when they are commenting on the same biblical passages, and both authors
wrestle with the same aporia caused by accepting the doctrine of God’s infinite power
and knowledge. If, according to Aristotle’s logic, infinity cannot be encompassed by
anything, can the divine intellect encompass infinite ideas? Both authors answer this
question in the affirmative. The article posits that Augustine may have adopted the doc-
trine of the infinity of God directly from Origen, since he had access to many of his
works translated into Latin, or through Novatian and Hilary of Poitiers, as they were
both influenced by Origen’s thought.
Keywords: Augustine; Origen; Plotinus; Novatian; Hilary of Poitiers; infinity of God;
knowledge of God; actual infinity; negative theology; Neoplatonism; philosophy
of God; patristic philosophy

Origen’s influence on Augustine’s thought is still an open question.

There is no doubt that Augustine was familiar with some of Origen’s
writings. This is evidenced by statements made in the late writings by
the Bishop of Hippo, where the Alexandrian is mentioned by name, and
his controversial claims are criticised2. Meanwhile, Augustine’s corre-
spondence with Jerome indicates that Augustine was initially interested in
Origen’s thought. For this reason, he urged the translator to make the hith-

1
Damian Mrugalski OP PhD, Assistant Professor, The Catholic Academy in War-
saw – Collegium Bobolanum, Warsaw, Poland; e-mail: [email protected]; ORCID:
0000-0002-8689-9832.
2
Cf. Augustinus, De civitate Dei XI 23; XXI 17; Augustinus, Retractiones I 7, 6;
Augustinus, De Haeresibus 43; Augustinus, Contra Iulianum opus imperfectum V 47.
468 Damian Mrugalski OP

erto untranslated works available to Latin-speaking readers3. In the 20th

century, scholars researching the question believed that Augustine did not
have access to any of Origen’s works before 390, due to his insufficient
command of Greek. This opinio communis was challenged by G. Heidl
who proved in his monograph on the influence of Origen’s thought on
the young Augustine that it was the reading of Origen’s writings that led
Augustine to conversion4. The Libri pleni, mentioned in his early works,
are precisely the Homilies on the Song of Songs and the Commentary
on the Song of Songs, translated by Jerome in 383, three years before
Augustine’s conversion5. Heidl’s monograph inspired scholars to re-ex-
amine the question of Origen’s influence on Augustine. Thus, I. Ramelli
addressed the question of apokatastasis and proved that Augustine’s early
writings contain the same claims on universal salvation which can be
found in the works of Origen6. However, following the dispute with Pela-
gius, the Bishop of Hippo abandoned the faith of his youth and criticised
the concept of apokatastasis in his late works. Meanwhile, D. Keech, who
studied the reception of Origen’s exegesis of the Epistle to the Romans
by the Bishop of Hippo, concluded that “Augustine fought the heresy of
Pelagius with the orthodox exegesis of Origen”7. Thus, the influence of
Origen’s thought and exegesis is evident both in Augustine’s early and
late works. However, due to the Origenist controversy, which broke out
in 393 in Palestine and reached the Latin West around 397, the Bishop of
Hippo, being “politically correct”, was no longer willing to mention Ori-
gen by name8. If he ever did that, it was only when he criticised Origen’s
controversial claims9. In this study, I will seek to expand the scope of

3
Cf. Augustinus, Ep. 28 = Hieronymus, Ep. 56. Cf. also Augustinus, Ep. 40, 6, 9,
where Augustine asks Jerome to explain to him clearly the actual doctrinal errors that
caused Origen to deviate from legitimate faith.
4
Cf. G. Heidl, The Influence of Origen on the Young Augustine: A Chapter of
the History of Origenism, Piscataway 2009.
5
Cf. Heidl, The Influence of Origen on the Young Augustine, p. 7-17.
6
Cf. I.L.E. Ramelli, Origen in Augustine: A Paradoxical Reception, “Numen” 60
(2013) p. 280-307.
7
D. Keech, The Anti-Pelagian Christology of Augustine of Hippo, 396-430, Oxford
2012, p. 141.
8
For this reason, in his Confessions, written at the time of the fierce controversies
over Origen, Augustine makes no mention of his encounter with the thought. Cf. Heidl,
The Influence of Origen on the Young Augustine, p. 65.
9
Cf. V. Grossi, L’origenismo latino negli scritti agostiniani: dagli origenisti agli
origeniani, “Augustinianum” 46/1 (2006) p. 51-88, where the author points to several
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 469

previous research on Origen’s influence on Augustine, focusing solely on

the question of the infinity of God. This question is extremely important,
both to the “young” and to the “old” Augustine; as he mentioned in his
Confessions, before his conversion, he shared the Manichaean belief that
God is infinite in the material sense. After his conversion, however, he
began to believe that God is infinite in the sense of being entirely incor-
poreal.
Yet, the problem of the infinity of God in Augustine’s thought did
not attract much attention among scholars of the last century. The issue
was raised in just a few articles and was mentioned in some monographs
on Augustine’s thought. The latest and fairly comprehensive discussion
of this topic is to be found in the article Infinity in Augustine’s Theology
by A. Drozdek10. However, like other scholars, this author suggests that
Augustine adopted this doctrine from Plotinus11. In this article, I intend
to demonstrate that the biblical texts cited by the Bishop of Hippo, which
pointed to the infinity of God and the difficulties related to this concept,
which he pondered, show more affinity with the claims found in Origen’s
texts than with Neoplatonic philosophy. So far, none of the contemporary
scholars have undertaken to examine the question of Origen’s potential
influence on the concept of the infinity of God in Augustine’s thought.
This is probably because many monographs, handbooks, and encyclopae-
dias of philosophy and theology express the belief that Gregory of Nyssa
was the first among Christian theologians who began to think of God in
terms of infinity. Meanwhile, Origen still operated within the framework

stages of Augustine’s relation to Origen. The first of these would be curiosity, followed
by admiration, and, finally, by hostility. The latter surfaced only after Pelagianism was
condemned.
10
Cf. A. Drozdek, Infinity in Augustine’s Theology, in: The Infinity of God: New
Perspectives in Theology and Philosophy, ed. B.P. Göcke – C. Tapp, Notre Dame 2019,
p. 37‑53. As far as the previous research on the question of the infinity of God in Au-
gustine’s thought is concerned, it is neither extensive nor exhaustive, although it must
be noted that Augustine himself would not address this topic frequently or extensively.
Cf. É. Gilson, L’infinité divine chez saint Augustin, in: Augustinus Magister: Congrès
international augustinien, v. 1, Paris 1954, p. 569-574; P. Hadot, La notion d’infini chez
saint Augustin, “Philosophie” 26 (1990) p. 58-72; L. Sweeney, Divine Infinity in Greek
and Medieval Thought, New York 1992, p. 365-383; A. Drozdek, Beyond Infinity: Augus-
tine and Cantor, “Laval théologique et philosophique” 51 (1995) p. 127-140.
11
Cf. Drozdek, Infinity in Augustine’s Theology, p. 38-40 and 46-47; R.J. Teske, To
Know God and the Soul: Essays on the Thought of Saint Augustine, Washington 2008,
p. 148-151.
470 Damian Mrugalski OP

of Aristotle’s ideas and understood infinity in negative terms12. What-

ever is infinite is unfinished, and therefore imperfect. Therefore, God,
being perfect, cannot be infinite. This frequently repeated view is erro-
neous, which I have proved in some of my earlier studies13. In reality,
though, Origen frequently speaks of the infinity of God, the infinity of
His power and wisdom. Before Origen, similar claims were made by Phi-
lo and Clement of Alexandria, while, after Origen, arguments in favour of
the infinity of God were formulated by Novatian and Hilary of Poitiers,
who were influenced by Origen. Even if Augustine did not have access
to all Latin translations of Origen’s works, he was certainly familiar with
the works of Latin authors such as Novatian and Hilary of Poitiers. He
even cited the latter a few times by name.

12
See É. Gilson, History of Christian Philosophy in the Middle Ages, New York 1955,
p. 38; H. Crouzel – M. Simonetti, note 2, in: Origène, Traité des principes, v. 2: Commen-
taire et fragments, SCh 253, Paris 1978, p. 213; M. Simonetti, Dio (Padre), in: Origene.
Dizionario. La cultura, il pensiero, le opere, ed. A. Monaci Castagno, Roma 2000, p. 120;
A.W. Moore, The Infinite, London – New York 2001, p. 43-47; C. Moreschini, Storia della
filosofia patristica, Brescia 2005, p. 136; L. Neidhart, Unendlichkeit im Schnittpunkt von
Mathematik und Theologie, v. 2: Historischer und theologischer Teil, Göttingen 2008, p. 534;
W. Achtner, Infinity as a Transformative Concept in Science and Theology, in: Infinity: New
Research Frontiers, ed. M. Heller – W. Hugh Woodin, Cambridge 2011, p. 27‑28; D.B. Hart,
Notes on the Concept of the Infinite in the History of Western Metaphysics, in: Infinity:
New Research Frontiers, ed. M. Heller – W. Hugh Woodin, Cambridge 2011, p. 266-267;
S. Lilla, Aristotelianism, in: Encyclopedia of Ancient Christianity, v. 1, ed. A. Di Berardino,
Downers Grove 2014, p. 231. It is worth adding that in some contemporary monographs
on the infinity of God in ancient and medieval thought, though the question of the infinity
of God in Origen’s work is omitted, the prevailing view is that it was only Plotinus who
introduced the positive understanding of the infinity of God into the philosophical discourse
and that Christianity addressed the question after him. See Sweeney, Divine Infinity, p. 6-9
and 546‑547; F. Krainer, The Concept of the Infinity of God in Ancient Greek Thought,
in: The Infinity of God: New Perspectives in Theology and Philosophy, ed. B.P. Göcke –
C. Tapp, Notre Dame 2019, p. 21-36.
13
Cf. D. Mrugalski, Nieskończoność Boga u Orygenesa: Przyczyna wielkiego
nieporozumienia, VoxP 67 (2017) p. 437-475; D. Mrugalski, Potentia Dei absoluta et po-
tentia Dei ordinata u Orygenesa? Nowa próba wyjaśnienia kontrowersyjnych fragmentów
De principiis, VoxP 69 (2018) p. 493-526; D. Mrugalski, Agnostos Theos: Relacja między
nieskończonością a niepoznawalnością Boga w doktrynach medioplatoników, “Roczniki
Filozoficzne” 3 (2019) p. 25-51; D. Mrugalski, The Notion of Divine Infinity and Unknow-
ability: Philo, Clement, and Origen of Alexandria in a Polemic with Greek Philosophy,
in: Hellenism, Early Judaism, and Early Christianity: Transmission and Transformation
of Ideas, ed. R. Fialovà – J. Hoblik – P. Kitzler, Berlin – Boston 2022, p. 69-84.
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 471

1. The infinity of God in Origen’s thought

In this paragraph, I will not address the question of the erroneous opin-
ions of some scholars, who maintain that Origen shared a negative un-
derstanding of the concept of infinity, which was characteristic of Greek
philosophy before Plotinus. As mentioned above, this problem was exhaus-
tively discussed in my other publications14. I will only remark that these
scholars have based their view on two passages preserved in the Letter to
Manes by Emperor Justinian15, which, as they admitted, are not very reli-
able. To understand Origen’s statements on the infinity of God correctly,
we need to view them in the context of very important distinctions that the
author makes at several points in his writings, and which he clearly ex-
plains. The distinction in question is that between theology and economy,
or between the essence of God and the power of God16. Thus, according to
the Alexandrian, when the Scripture refers to God in a theological way, re-
ferring to the essence of God, or to God in himself (τὸν θεὸν καθ᾿ ἑαυτόν),
it states that “there is no end to his greatness (μεγαλωσύνης αὐτοῦ οὐκ
ἔσται πέρας)”17. However, when it refers to God in an economic way, refer-
ring to God acting in the world, or to his power, it depicts God in a finite
way, speaking and acting like a human being. Thus, in his essence, God is
infinite, as well as incorporeal, almighty, invisible, and simple18. Although
14
Cf. footnote above. It is worth adding that the negative understanding of infin-
ity as something imperfect is to be found, above all, in Aristotle’s thought. However,
the infinity of the first principle was already discussed by the Presocratics. For more
information on the subject, see A. Drozdek, In the Beginning Was Apeiron: Infinity in
Ancient Philosophy, Stuttgart 2008. Nevertheless, in the Presocratic thought, infinity is
understood in the material sense. A positive understanding of infinity, referring to the
power of an incorporeal and transcendent God, emerges when Greek philosophy meets
biblical thought, that is, in Hellenistic Judaism. Cf. D. Mrugalski, The Platonic-Biblical
Origins of Apophatic Theology: Philo of Alexandria’s Philosophical Interpretation of
the Pentateuchal Theophanies, VV 41/3 (2023) p. 499-528. The doctrine was subse-
quently adopted by the Christian theology. Cf. Mrugalski, The Notion of Divine Infinity
and Unknowability, p. 69-84.
15
See Justinianus Imperator, Epistula ad Mennam Constantinopolitanum, Mansi IX
489 = Origenes, De principiis II 9, 1, SCh 253, p. 211-212; Justinianus Imperator, Epistula
ad Mennam Constantinopolitanum, Mansi IX 525 = Origenes, De principiis IV 4, 8, SCh
269, p. 262-263.
16
Cf. Origenes, In Ieremiam homilae 18, 6; Origenes, In Genesim homiliae 3, 1-2.
17
Ps 144:3 [LXX]; cf. Origenes, In Ieremiam homilae 18, 6, SCh 238, p. 198.
18
Cf. Origenes, In Genesim homiliae 3, 2, GCS 29, p. 39: “Nos sicut incorporeum
esse Deum et omnipotentem et invisibilem profitemur”; Origenes, GCS 29, p. 41: “Simplex
472 Damian Mrugalski OP

God is sometimes compared to created beings, these comparisons are al-

ways limited and inadequate. This is because a finite creature cannot be
compared to the One who “infinitely transcends the created nature (τῷ
ἀπείρῳ ὑπεροχῇ ὑπερέχοντι πάσης γενητῆς φύσεως)”19. Being absolutely
incorporeal and simple, God has no characteristics that could circumscribe
or limit him in any way (circumscribi uel inhiberi)20. He has no material
location, physical size, corporeal shape or colour21. The latter statement
seems to be a polemic with the claims made by Aristotle who, considering
the issue of infinity in his Physics, stated that location, surface, or form
are what encomasses a given being and what makes it finite22. For infinity
by its very nature cannot be encompassed by anything. For this reason,
according to Aristotle, who did not accept the existence of forms separate
from matter, no infinite being can actually exist23. Meanwhile, to Origen,
incorporeal God is a being that is not encompassed and not limited by any-
thing. This is presumably the reason why he has doubts about whether God
should be understood as substance or rather as something that exists above
substance since substance is something that has a form or is a form24.
Although the distinction between God’s essence and God’s power
may suggest that the latter is finite, Origen makes further distinctions,

namque est illa substantia et neque membris ullis neque compagibus affectibusque composi-
ta, sed quidquid divinis virtutibus geritur, hoc ut homines possint intelligere aut humanorum
membrorum appellatione profertur aut communibus et notis enuntiatur affectibus”; Ori-
genes, De principiis I 1, 6, SCh 252, p. 100: “Non ergo corpus aliquod aut in corpore esse
putandus est deus, sed intellectualis natura simplex, nihil omnino in se adiunctionis admit-
tens; uti ne maius aliquid etinferius in se habere credatur, sed ut sit ex omni parte μονάς, et ut
ita dicam ἑνάς, et mens ac fons, ex quo initium totius intellectualis naturae uel mentis est”.
19
Origenes, Contra Celsum III 77, SCh 136, p. 174.
20
Origenes, De principiis I 1, 6, SCh 252, p. 100.
21
Origenes, De principiis I 1, 6, SCh 252, p. 100: “Mens uero ut moueatur uel opere-
tur, non indiget loco corporeo neque sensibili magnitudine uel corporali habitu aut colore,
neque alio ullo prorsus indiget horum, quae corporis uel materiae propria sunt”. Cf. also
Origenes, Homiliae in Genesim 13, 3, GCS 29, p. 118: “non in loco aliquo quaeramus
Deum (…). Non ergo in loco neque in terra habitat Deus”; Origenes, De oratione 23, 1-5;
Origenes, Contra Celsum VII 34.
22
Cf. Aristoteles, Physica 204b; 205a-206a; 207b. It is worth adding that Origen’s
predecessor, Clement of Alexandria, who explicitly used the term ἄπειρος to refer to God,
stated that God is infinite, as He is absolutely simple, indivisible, has no dimensions and
no shape. Cf. Clemens Alexandrinus, Stromata V 81, 6, GCS 15, p. 380.
23
Cf. Aristoteles, Physica 203a-208a.
24
Cf. Origenes, Contra Celsum VI 64; Origenes, Commentarii in Ioannem XIII 21,
123; Origenes, De oratione 27, 8.
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 473

which imply that God’s power can also be considered infinite. It is the
distinction between the absolute and the ordered power of God, or, ac-
cording to later terminology, the distinction between potentia dei abso-
luta et potentia dei ordinata. According to the Apostle Paul’s statement,
the Power and Wisdom of God is, for Origen, the Only-Begotten Son
of God, Christ25. He is considered as eternally existing in God and, at
the same time, is eternally generated or eternally begotten by the Father;
He is Power and Wisdom in the absolute sense (καθάπαξ lub ἀπόλυτον)26
and has the same substance as the Father, or even, as Origen says in De
principiis, He is the substance of God itself (ipsa dei substantia)27. Thus,
the Son is infinite as is the Father28. Meanwhile, when He is considered
as acting in the world, He is the Power and Wisdom of God adapted to
the capacities of the creatures that receive it, and therefore, in a sense, fi-
nite29. This is also the way Origen understands the incarnation of the Son,
which was a kind of limitation on infinity. Placing the Son in “a tiny
form of the human body” was intended to demonstrate “the infinite and
invisible greatness of God the Father present in Him” to the people30.

25
Cf. 1Cor 1:24; Origenes, De principiis I 2, 1; Origenes, Commentarii in Ioannem
I 22, 140; I 34, 248.
26
Origenes, Commentarii in Ioannem I 34, 245-248, SCh 120, p. 180-182.
27
Origenes, De principiis I 2, 8, SCh 252, p. 126. Cf. also Origenes, De principiis,
I 2, 6, SCh 252, p. 122: “quae imago etiam naturae ac substantiae patris et filii continet
unitatem”. Edwards even argues that Origen used the term ὁμοούσιος to describe the uni-
ty of the nature of the Father and Son. However, the term has been translated in various
ways, which is exemplified by the texts cited above. Cf. M.J. Edwards, Did Origen Apply
the Word ‘homoousios’ to the Son?, JThS 49 (1998) p. 658-670.
28
Cf. Origenes, De principiis I 3, 7, where it is stated that there are no differences in
the essence of each of the persons of the Trinity.
29
This does not mean, however, that the Power, which is the Son acting in the world,
is finite by its nature, but that it can be revealed in a finite manner. Cf. Origenes, De prin-
cipiis I 2, 9, SCh 252, p. 130, where two Powers of God are mentioned; one unbegotten
and the other begotten but, as Origen stresses, equally eternal and immeasurable (inmen-
sa). Many passages can be cited here that mention God’s power, for which anything is
possible (omnia possibilia sunt) on the one hand, and, on the other hand, a certain measure
of power (μέτρον τῆς δυνάμεως), which is managed by the Logos acting in the created
world, or the Logos adapting its form to certain situations. Cf. Origenes, Contra Celsum
III 70; V 23-24; Origenes, Commentariorum in Matthaeum series (Matt 26, 42) 95; Ori-
genes, Commentarii in Matthaeum XI 17; Origenes, Commentarii in Ioannem I 10, 60-63;
Origenes, In Genesim homiliae 14, 1.
30
Origenes, De principiis I 2, 8, SCh 252, p. 128: “flius dei breuissimae insertus
humani corporis formae ex operum uirtutisque similitudine dei patris in se inmensam
474 Damian Mrugalski OP

Of course, we are not talking about corporeal greatness here, but about
the greatness of his power, which Origen mentions a bit earlier. Similar-
ly, in the Homilies on the Song of Songs, the Saviour coming down to
earthly matters is compared to a small drop that has trickled down “from
the great power and great divine majesty”31. Although referring to the is-
sue of the absolute Power and Wisdom of God in the Commentary on
the Gospel of John Origen does not explicitly state that it is infinite, such
a statement is to be found in the Homilies on Numbers, where the notion
of infinity is combined with the concept of unknowability. Since God’s
Wisdom is infinite, the process of its discovery by man can never end32.
A similar theme appears in De principis, where, while interpreting Apos-
tle Paul’s exclamation “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and
knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and his ways
past finding out!”33. Origen states that no man “even when aided and en-
lightened in mind by God’s grace, will ever be able to reach the final goal
(ad perfectum finem) of his inquiries”34. As far as the infinite Wisdom of
God is concerned, getting to know certain Divine issues, which is the end
of a certain process of cognition, in fact, becomes the beginning of a new
path of cognition, the end of which again becomes a new beginning, and
so on ad infinitum35.

atque inuisibilem magnitudinem designabat”. It is worth adding that, in the same para-
graph, Origen uses an interesting example, which, in a sense, also points to the infinity
of God. He compares God to a statue “which encompasses the whole world with its
vastness and, due to its size, cannot be seen by anyone”. However, it is possible to make
another statue, which is much smaller in size but similar to that infinite statue in every
other way, so that it can be grasped by the sight and that its form can be seen. The in-
carnate Logos is precisely such a finite statue. Though he is enclosed in a finite body,
he demonstrates the infinite power of God in his works and power. Cf. Origenes, De
principiis I 2, 8, SCh 252, p. 126.
31
Cf. Origenes, In Canticum canticorum homiliae 2, 3, SCh 37 bis, 110: “si ergo
uideris Saluatorem meum ad terrena et humilia descendentem, uidebis, quomodo a uirtute
magna et maiestate diuina ad nos modica quaedam stilla defluxerit”.
32
Cf. Origenes, In Numeros homiliae 17, 4, SCh 442, p. 288: “Eorum uero qui
sapientiae et scientiae operam nauant, quoniam finis nullus est – quis enim terminus Dei
sapientiae erit? – ubi quanto amplius quis accesserit tanto profundiora inueniet, et quanto
quis scrutatus fuerit tanto ea ineffabilia et incomprehensibilia deprehendet; incomprehen-
sibilis enim et inaestimabilis est Dei sapientia”.
33
Rom 11:33.
34
Origenes, De principiis IV 3, 14, SCh 268, p. 391, tr. G.W. Butterworth, p. 413.
35
Cf. Origenes, De principiis IV 3, 14, SCh 268, p. 391. Similar statements on the in-
finity of Divine Wisdom are made by Philo of Alexandria and Clement of Alexandria,
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 475

The infinity of Divine Wisdom, which contains infinite ideas, pro-

vokes a certain aporia related to Aristotle’s logic. Since infinity cannot be
encompassed by anything, as this would mean it is no longer infinite, can
it be encompassed by the Divine Mind? Origen was aware of this aporia,
which is evidenced by his statement made in the Commentary on Genesis
transmitted in the Philocalia:

And we must first observe that if we believe the mind of God to be great eno-
ugh to embrace the perfect knowledge of every individual existence, so that
not the least ordinary occurrence escapes His Divinity, this belief involves
the tenet, not demonstrably certain (οὐ μὴν ἐναργῆ τὴν ἀπόδειξιν), but held as
being consistent with the eternity of God’s understanding, which transcends
all nature, that His knowledge includes ideas that are numerically infinite
(ἄπειρα ἀριθμῷ)36.

Meanwhile, in the Commentary on the Psalms, he states, while refer-

ring to a similar problem:

Thus the stars are numbered, the infinite multitude of saints is numbered. One
Christ alone cannot be numbered. “Great is our Lord, and great is his power,
and of his wisdom there is no number” (Ps 146:5). Great power: Christ is
the power of God and the wisdom of God (1Cor 1:24). And His wisdom has
no number. Christ is wisdom, and only wisdom cannot be numbered (et una
sapientia non potest numerari)37.

The above statements refer to God’s omniscience but also to God’s

omnipotence. The number of created beings, the number of saints, and
the number of events that occurred in history are finite and countable.
However, God’s omniscience encompasses the future, and therefore
also the beings that will be created through God’s omnipotence, and

whose writings were well-known to Origen. Cf. Philo Alexandrinus, De posteritate Caini
151-152; Clemens Alexandrinus, Stromata IV, 156,1-157,1.
36
Origenes, Philocalia 23, 20, SCh 226, p. 198, tr. G. Lewis, p. 193.
37
Origenes – Hieronymus, Tractatus sive homiliae in Psalmos 146, 4-5, CCL 78,
p. 331 (own translation). Although the authorship of this treaty used to be ascribed to Je-
rome, it has been sufficiently proven that the treaty was written by Origen and translated
by Jerome. Cf. V. Peri, Omelie origeniane sui Salmi. Contributo all’identificazione del
testo latino, Città del Vaticano 1980.
476 Damian Mrugalski OP

the graces that God will grant in the future38. Although, according to
Origen, the world will have an end, even in the apokatastasis when “God
will be all in all” (1Cor 15:28), Divine Wisdom, Power, and Goodness
will be constantly active; God will never cease to bestow goods on his
creatures39. This is because the One who exists since eternity and for
eternity (ἐξ ἀπείρω ἐπ᾿ ἄπειρον), writes Origen in De oratione, can
grant us “far more than we could ever ask for or imagine” in the fu-
ture (Eph 3:20). He can even do things that “surpass ‘what no eye has
seen, what no ear has heard’ and that surpass ‘what no human mind
has conceived’ (1Cor 2:9)”40. Thus, also in the ages to come, God will
continue to show the “immeasurable riches of his grace (τὸ ὑπερβάλλον
πλοῦτος τῆς χάριτος αὐτοῦ)” (Eph 2:7)41. For this reason, the Wisdom
and the Power of God, which is Christ, is infinite and uncountable. How-
ever, Origen stresses that this cannot be demonstrated by logical proof
(ἀπόδιξιν) but is the object of faith.
The actual number of created beings is, however, finite. Also in the
beginning, God created a finite number of beings, which Origen states
referring to a passage in Wis 11:20 [LXX]: “by measure and number and
weight you ordered all things”42. He supplements this claim with the fol-
lowing arguments: 1) infinity cannot be encompassed, comprehended, or
understood (ubi finis non est, nec conpraehensio ulla vel circumscriptio

38
This claim is also expressed in the homily on Psalm 76 preserved in a recently
discovered manuscript (Codex Monacensis Graecus 314) that contains Origen’s homilies
written in Greek. Commenting on the verse Ps 76:20: “In the sea was your way, and your
paths in many waters, and your footprints will not be known”, and, at the same time,
referring to the passage in Rom 11:33: “Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and
knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments, and how his roads are not to be
tracked”, Origen states: “As much as a human being wants to find out how to grasp the
tracks of God, he is not enabled to track down everything; for example, what does God
intend in the limitless age (εἰς τὸν ἄπειρον αἰῶνα), or what did he intend from the limitless
age (ἐκ τοῦ ἀπείρου αἰῶνος)?”. Cf. Origenes, In Psalmos homiliae, Homilia IV in Psal-
mum LXXVI, 212-213, GCSNF 19, p. 349, tr. J.W. Trigg, p. 285.
39
Cf. Origenes, De principiis I 2, 10. Cf. Origenes, De principiis I 4, 3, where there
is a reference to the eternal, creative, beneficent, and caring power of God. Cf. Origenes,
De principiis II 11, 1-7, where Origen argues that in life after death the souls of the saved
continue their search for truth under the guidance of the Logos, and receive divine nour-
ishment according to the measure that finite creatures are able to receive.
40
Origenes, De oratione 27, 16, GCS 3, p. 375.
41
Origenes, De oratione 27, 15, GCS 3, p. 374.
42
Cf. Origenes, De principiis II 9, 1; IV 4, 8.
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 477

esse potest)43; 2) if the world was infinite, God would not be able to
encompass it, govern it, or know it (quodsi fuerit, utique nec contineri
uel dispensari a deo quae facta sunt poterunt)44; 3) God encompasses
everything and is not encompassed, or comprehended, by anything (vir-
tute enim sua omnia conpraehendit, et ipse nullius creaturae sensu con-
praehensus est)45; 4) only God knows and penetrates Himself (illa enim
natura soli sibi cognita est)46. The claim of God’s finite power does not
appear in this argument. The claim that God has to be finite in order to
know Himself also does not appear, although the above-mentioned schol-
ars have reached such conclusions. On the contrary, since infinity encom-
passes everything and since it cannot be encompassed by anything, it is
precisely God, who encompasses everything and cannot be encompassed
by anything Himself, that is infinite47. If the world was infinite, it would,
in a sense, be identical with God, or would encompass God, which is an
obvious absurdity. In the above statements, Origen points to the funda-
mental difference between the transcendent God and the world that He
created, which is precisely the difference between infinity and finiteness.
As far as the question of God’s knowledge of Himself, or the question of
the interpenetration of the Persons of the Trinity, is concerned, it could
be the topic of a separate study. At this point, suffice it to say that Origen
makes another distinction here, this time concerning epistemology. He
argues that knowledge in the conceptual sense, or encompassing a giv-
en thing by a notion or definition (which is expressed by the verb con-
praehendo/καταλαμβάνω), is one thing, while knowledge in the sense
of penetrating a certain truth (which is expressed by the verb cognosco/

43
Origenes, De principiis II 9, 1, SCh 252, p. 352; cf. Origenes, De principiis III 5,
2, SCh 268, p. 222.
44
Origenes, De principiis II 9, 1, SCh 252, p. 352; cf. Origenes, De principiis III 5,
2, SCh 268, p. 220-222.
45
Origenes, De principiis IV 4, 8, SCh 268, p. 420.
46
Origenes, De principiis IV 4, 8, SCh 268, p. 420.
47
Cf. Origenes, De oratione 23, 1-5, which contains a commentary on the Lord’s
Prayer, and more specifically on the words: “who art in heaven”. According to Origen,
God, of course, does not dwell in heaven: “Since, in that case, as contained God will
be formed to be less than the heavens because they contain Him. Whereas the ineffable
might of His godhead demands our belief that all things are contained and held to-
gether by Him (περιέχεσθαι καὶ συνέχεσθαι)”. Origenes, De oratione 23, 1-5, GCS 3,
p. 349‑350. Cf. also Origenes, Contra Celsum VII 34, SCh 150, p. 90, where it is men-
tioned that God contains everything but is not contained by anything Himself (οὐδέν
ἐστι τὸ περιέχον τὸν θεόν).
478 Damian Mrugalski OP

γιγνώσκω as well as intellego/νοέω) is another48. God cannot be encom-

passed by any notion. God and His Wisdom are incomprehensibilis and
inaestimabilis49. This, however, does not imply that the Son cannot know
the Father. On the contrary, only the Son knows (cognoscit) the Father,
and only the Spirit penetrates (scrutatur) everything, even the depths of
God50.

2. Reception of Origen’s thought in the West before Augustine

Origen’s ideas were known to the Latin West long before Augus-
tine’s conversion. It was probably in the second half of the 3rd centu-
ry AD when Latin writers who still knew Greek, could read Origen’s
writings and use them in their work. Although M. Simonetti believes
that we have no certain information about Origen’s writings being used
this was in the 3rd century AD, except for some analogies in the ideas
that appear in De Trinitate by Novatian51, G. Heidl has even proposed
the claim that Novatian was the first translator of Origen’s works and
the author of the first compilation of excerpts from his works52. What
Origen and Novatian certainly have in common is the series of state-
ments in favour of transcendence, incorporeality, simplicity, and un-
knowability of God53, as well as the concept of the infinity of God,

48
Cf. Origenes, Commentarii in Ioannem, passage 51, GCS 10, p. 495; Origenes,
Contra Celsum VI 62; Origenes, De principiis I 1, 5; I 1, 9; Origenes, Commentarii in
Ioannem I 27, 187.
49
Cf. Origenes, De principiis I 1, 5, SCh 252, p. 96; Origenes, In Numeros homiliae
17, 4, SCh 442, p. 288.
50
Cf. Matt 11:27; 1Cor 2:10; Origenes, Contra Celsum VII 44; Origenes, De prin-
cipiis I 1, 8; I 3, 4; IV 4, 8; Origenes, Commentarii in Ioannem I 24, 146; II 28, 172.
51
Cf. M. Simonetti, Origene in Occidente prima della controversia, “Augustinia-
num” 46/1 (2006) p. 26.
52
This scholar identified passages and compilations of texts from the lost Commen-
tary on Genesis by Origen and contrasted them with Novatian’s statements. Cf. Heidl,
The Influence of Origen on the Young Augustine, p. 237-272.
53
Cf. Novatianus, De Trinitate 5, 6; 6, 5; 7, 1-5; Origenes, De principiis I 1, 1-2;
I 1, 5; Origenes, In Genesim homiliae 3, 2. It is worth adding that Novatian refers to the
same biblical texts, which Origen referred to when he argued in favour of God’s incor-
poreality; namely, John 4:24: “God is a Spirit”; Deut 4:24: “God is a consuming fire”,
and 1 John 1:5: “God is light”. He also claims that their texts should not be understood in
a corporeal sense.
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 479

which scholars tend to overlook. In his work De Trinitate, Novatian

makes a distinction, characteristic of Platonism, between a being that
is real, unchangeable, and eternal, and a being that is in the process of
becoming, and destructible54, and then states that the real and highest
being, namely God, must be one. This is because the very term “high-
est” (summum) implies not only that there is nothing higher than this
being, but also that it has no equal (parem non habet)55. After that, he
adds: “There cannot be two infinites (nec duo infinita esse possunt), as
the very nature of things dictates. And that is infinite which neither has
any sort of beginning nor end”56. Further on in his text, Novatian ex-
plains that infinity encompasses everything but cannot be encompassed
by anything itself. If God did not encompass everything, He would not
be God. If, however, some other power encompassed Him, He would
also not be God, but that which would encompass Him would be God57.
These explanations are interesting because they appear as part of the
“proof” of the oneness of God rather than of His infinity. The infinity of
God’s nature and power is assumed here as if it were an obvious thing.
If God is infinite, which is obvious, there can be nothing equal to Him.
The second part of this statement does not seem to be that obvious, and
therefore is explained in the following way; according to logic, there
can be no duo infinita, as infinity encompasses everything. Novatian’s
argument sheds new light on Origen’s claim made in the controversial
passages of De principiss II, 9,1 and IV, 4,8, in which some scholars
find a claim on the finite power of God. In fact, the Alexandrian, like
Novatian, accepts the infinity of God as an obvious thing and explains
why God created a finite world in a similar vein. If the world was in-
finite, the world would encompass God instead of being encompassed
by Him. Meanwhile, it is God who virtute sua omnia conpraehendit, et
ipse nullius creaturae sensu conpraehensus est58. Novatian’s statement
conveys exactly the same meaning. It is worth adding that Novatian, like
Origen, derives the claim of the impossibility of conceptually knowing
and naming what God is from the concept of infinity. A concept and
a name encompass something that can, by its nature, be encompassed
(ex naturae suae condicione comprehenditur). Meanwhile, the infinite

54
Cf. Novatianus, De Trinitate 4, 6-7.
55
Cf. Novatianus, De Trinitate 4, 8, CCL 4, p. 18.
56
Novatianus, De Trinitate 4, 9, CCL 4, p. 18.
57
Cf. Novatianus, De Trinitate 4, 9, CCL 4, p. 18.
58
Origenes, De principiis IV 4, 8, SCh 268, p. 420.
480 Damian Mrugalski OP

nature of God cannot be encompassed by anything; neither by a concept

nor by a name59.
In the first half of the 4th century AD Origen’s influence on the West-
ern thought is beyond doubt. It becomes apparent in the works and trans-
lations by Hilary of Poitiers, which was attested to by ancient writers60. As
far as the infinity of God in Hilary’s thought is concerned, although a few
studies have been written about it, none of them has taken notice of the pos-
sibility of Origen’s influence on the doctrine formulated by the Bishop of
Poitiers on this matter61. Meanwhile, already at the beginning of his work
De trinitate, Hilary criticised those who “enclosed the Lord of the uni-
verse and Father of infinity (infinitatis parentem) in the confines of metal,
stone, or wood”62. A similar critique is to be found in Origen who, on this
occasion, also uses the term ἄπειρος, which corresponds to the Greek term
infinitus, when referring to the transcendent nature of God63. According
to Hilary, the infinity of God is also evidenced by the biblical statement
made in Exod 3:14 “I am who I am”, as to exist means to last forever, to be
unchanging, and therefore to have no beginning and no end64. Also in this
case, we can find an analogous thought in Origen’s writings65. Although
Hilary’s statement refers to infinity in the temporal sense, while speaking
of the nature of the Father in whom everything has its source in book II
of De Trinitate, he states that God is infinite because He encompasses ev-
59
Cf. Novatianus, De Trinitate, 4, 10-11, CCL 4, p. 18. Cf. Origenes, De principiis
II 9, 1; III 5, 2.
60
Cf. Hieronymus, De viris illustribus 100; Hieronymus, Epistula 112, 20. Follow-
ing his exile to Phrygia in 356, Hilary came into direct contact with the works of Origen.
He translated some of them and used others in his works. Cf. Simonetti, Origene in Occi-
dente, p. 27-30.
61
Cf. J.M. McDermott, Hilary of Poitiers: The Infinite Nature of God, VChr 27
(1973) p. 172-202; M. Weedman, The Polemical Context of Gregory of Nyssa’s Doctrine
of Divine Infinity, JECS 18/1 (2010) p. 81-104; J.A. Mercer, Divine Perfection and Human
Potentiality: The Trinitarian Anthropology of Hilary of Poitiers, Oxford 2019, p. 55-98.
As far as the latter monograph is concerned, Mercer dedicated one chapter of his study
to the question of Origen’s influence on Hilary’s thought, however, he focused primarily
on the concept of generatio aeterna of the Son by the Father, and on cosmological and
soteriological themes. Cf. Mercer, Divine Perfection and Human Potentiality, p. 17-30.
62
Hilarius, De Trinitate I 4, CCL 62, p. 4.
63
Cf. Origenes, Contra Celsum III 77, SCh 136, p. 174.
64
Cf. Hilarius, De Trinitate I 5-6, CCL 62, p. 5.
65
Cf. Origenes, De oratione 24, 2-3, GCS 3, p. 354 where, quoting a passage from
Exod 3:14, Origen reaches the conclusion that God is immutable and eternally unchang-
ing: “αὐτός ἐστιν ἄτρεπτος καὶ ἀναλλοίωτος ἀεί”.
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 481

erything but cannot be encompassed by anything Himself66. Meanwhile,

further on in his argument from the premise of the infinity of God’s na-
ture, he derives the conclusion on its unknowability. The finite human
mind cannot encompass, that is, conceptually comprehend and adequately
name, the infinite. However, this does not mean that the infinite Father
is not knowable to the Son or that the Son cannot know the Father. On
the contrary, “no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows
the Father except the Son” (Matt 11:27)67. The same biblical quote also
appears in Origen’s writings, in the context of the reflection on the un-
knowability of the infinite68. According to Hilary, God’s power is infinite
too. This claim appears in his De Trinitate, which quotes biblical passages
from Isa 40:12 and Isa 66:1-2, that speak of the great hand of God that
has built everything and holds everything in its grasp69, but also in his
Tractatus super Psalmos, where he comments on the statement made in
Ps 144:3: “magnus Dominus et laudabilis nimis et magnitudinis eius non
est finis”70. Both passages also mention that infinity surpasses the cogni-
tive capacity of the finite mind. Unfortunately, Origen’s commentary on
Psalm 144 has not been preserved. However, scholars have no doubt that
in his Tractatus super Psalmos, Hilary closely followed Origen’s com-
mentary71. The quote from Ps 144:3 was preserved in Origen’s Homilies
on Jeremiah, in the place where he makes a distinction between theology
and economy, which was discussed above72. It follows from his statement
that the expression magnitudinis eius non est finis is a theological claim,

66
Cf. Hilarius, De Trinitate II 6, CCL 62, p. 42-43: “Infinitus quia non ipse in aliquo,
sed intra eum omnia. Semper extra locum, quia non continetur. (…) ei esse sine fine est”.
67
Cf. Hilarius, De Trinitate II 6, CCL 62, p. 42-43.
68
Cf. Origenes, De principiis IV 4, 8. Cf. also Origenes, De principiis II 9, 1, III 5,
2; Origenes, De oratione 23, 1-5, Origenes, Contra Celsum VII 34.
69
Cf. Hilarius, De Trinitate I 6.
70
Cf. Hilarius, Tractatus super Psalmos 144, 6, CCL 61B, p. 271: “Haec Dei prima
et praecipua laudatio est, quod nihil in se mediocre, nihil circumscriptum, nihil emen-
sum et magnitudinis suae habeat et laudis. Virtus ejus opinione non clauditur, locis non
continetur, nominibus non enuntiatur, temporibus non subditur: artus ad id sensus noster
est, ingenium hebes est, sermo mutus est. Finem magnificentia ipsius nescit: et aliquam
ementiendi se opinionem immensa magnitudo non patitur. Extenta ubique, extenta semper
est, hanc habens infinitatis suae laudem: caeterum omnem intelligentiam infinitae hujus in
se qualitatis excedens”.
71
Cf. Simonetti, Origene in Occidente, p. 28-30; Mercer, Divine Perfection,
p. 18-19.
72
Cf. Origenes, In Ieremiam homilae 18, 6, cited above.
482 Damian Mrugalski OP

and therefore describes the essence of God. It is also worth noting that
Hilary, following Origen, also develops the doctrine of generatio aeterna,
or the eternal generation of the Son by the Father, which points to the tem-
poral infinity of the Father and Son. This question becomes extremely
relevant in the era of the Arian controversy, as Arius, and later Eunomius,
linked the notion of being ungenerated with the essence of God; in that
case, only God the Father could be infinite in every sense. Meanwhile,
the Son, being generated, had his origin in the Father73. For this reason,
Hilary, more than Origen, emphasised the infinity of the nature and pow-
er of God, although, as we have seen, similar themes appear in Origen’s
thought. According to Hilary, God is God and Father in infinity. If one
subtracts some time from the Son, and therefore if, as the Arians suggest,
one assumes that He began to exist in time, then one subtracts time from
the Father as well. For this would mean that for some time the Father
would not have the Son. Although He would still be God in infinity, He
would not be such as the Father (non tamen et Pater in ea fuerit infinitate
qua Deus est)74.

3. The infinity of God in Augustine’s thought

In the monograph on Origen’s influence on the young Augustine,

G. Heidl states that Augustine, following Origen in his early writings,
“accepted the philosophical principle that every intellect including that of
God is limited”75. To support his claim, the scholar quotes passages from
De principiis II 9, 1 and IV 4, 8, which were mentioned above, as well as
the following statement made by Augustine in De diversis quaestionibus
octoginta tribus:

Everything which understands itself comprehends itself. But what compre-

hends itself is limited with respect to itself. Now the intellect understands
itself. Therefore it is limited in respect to itself. Nor does it wish to be without

73
Cf. K. Kochańczyk-Bonińska – M. Przyszychowska, Incomprehensibility of God
and the Trinitarian Controversy of the Fourth Century, VoxP 61 (2014) p. 239-247.
74
Cf. Hilarius, De Trinitate XII 32, CCL 62A, p. 604-603. For more on this sub-
ject cf. M. Weedman, The Trinitarian Theology of Hilary of Poitiers, Leiden 2007,
p. 136‑147; 180-195; Weedman, The Polemical Context, p. 92-96; Mercer, Divine Per-
fection, p. 13-70.
75
Cf. Heidl, The Influence of Origen on the Young Augustine, p. 186.
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 483

limits, although it could be, since it wishes to be known to itself, for it loves
itself76.

The passages cited by Heidl, both from Origen and from Augustine,
do not in any way mention the finite character of the Divine intellect. It is
true, however, that both Origen and Augustine believe that infinity can-
not be encompassed and that, in consequence of this, it is unknowable.
However, both thinkers relate this claim to the finite intellect of creatures
rather than the intellect of God. Moreover, both before his conversion
and after, Augustine believed that God is infinite. His conversion was
linked to his discovery of the incorporeality of God. As a Manichaean, he
believed that God is infinite in the sense of material extension77. He was
to arrive at the new, incorporeal understanding of the infinity of God by
hearing the words “I am that I am” (cf. Exod 3:14) in his heart78. Augus-
tine refers to this voice again in the final part of his Confessions, where
he states:

Loud and clear have you spoken to me already in my inward ear, O Lord,
telling me that you are eternal, and to you alone immortality belongs, because
no alteration of form, no motion, changes you. Nor does your will vary with
changing times (…). Again, Lord, loud and clear have you spoken to me
in my inward ear, to tell me that you have made all natures and substances
which are not what you are and yet have being; that alone is not from you
which has no being. You have told me also that if our will moves away from
you, who are, toward anything which less truly is, that movement is trans-
gression and sin79.

As has been stated above, Augustine, who was writing his Confes-
sions as a bishop at the time when the Origenist controversy became no-
76
Cf. Augustinus, De diversis quaestionibus octoginta tribus 15, CCL, 44A, p. 21:
“Omne quod se intellegit, comprehendit se; quod autem se comprehendit, finitum est sibi;
et intellectus intellegit se, ergo finitus est sibi. Nec infinitus esse vult, quamvis possit, quia
notus sibi esse vult; amat enim se”, tr. D.L. Mosher, p. 44.
77
Cf. Augustinus, Confessiones VII 1, 1-2; VII 5, 7; VII 14, 20; VII 20, 26. For more
on this subject cf. also S. Macdonald, The Divine Nature, in: The Cambridge Companion
to Augustine, ed. E. Stump – N. Kretzmann, Cambridge 2001, p. 71-90; Teske, To Know
God and the Soul, 33-36 and 139-151; B. Dobell, Augustine’s Intellectual Conversion:
The Journey from Platonism to Christianity, Cambridge 2009, p. 8-12 and 208-210.
78
Cf. Augustinus, Confessiones VII 10, 16.
79
Augustinus, Confessiones XII 11, 11, CCL 27, p. 221-222, tr. M. Boulding, p. 318.
484 Damian Mrugalski OP

torious also in the West, did not make any mention of his early fascination
with Origen. However, it is possible to find some references to the Alex-
andrian’s thought in the text cited above. He also believed that God does
not change and is not subject to development80, and he made a similar
connection between the statement made in Exod 3:14 and the concepts
of God’s eternity, incorruptibility, immutability, and holiness. Also, ac-
cording to Origen, sinners distance themselves from the ‘One who is’ and
move towards non-being, because evil is non-being81. Meanwhile, after
Origen, as has also been noted above, the statement from Exod 3:14 is
cited by Hilary in the context of a discussion on the infinity of God82. Of
course, the concepts of God’s incorporeality and infinity are to be found
also in Plotinus’ thought; they were considered by Augustine during his
reading of Libri platonicorum, which he mentions in Confessions83. How-
ever, the Platonists’ books could not have been the only reason for Augus-
tine’s conversion to Christianity. He mentions in De ordine that he was
also familiar with libri maiores nostri, or books by Christian authors84.
It is possible that some works by Origen and Hilary were among them85. If
we accept the claim made by G. Heidl that the libri pleni, which contrib-
uted directly to Augustine’s conversion, were precisely the Homilies on
the Song of Songs and the Commentary on the Song of Songs by Origen,

80
Cf. Origenes, De principiis I 2, 10.
81
Cf. Origenes, De oratione 24, 2-3; Origenes, In Epistulam ad Romanos libri IV 5,
12-13; Origenes, Commentarii in Iohannem II 13, 95-96; Origenes, De principiis I 3, 6.
82
Cf. Hilarius, De Trinitate I 5-6.
83
Cf. Augustinus, Confessiones VII 20, 26. Cf. also Teske, To Know God and
the Soul, 149: “That Augustine learned from the books of the Platonists how to conceive of
God and the soul as incorporeal beings seems beyond doubt. That it was through Augus-
tine that the whole Western Church came to an idea of God and the soul as spiritual seems
equally beyond doubt”. Such radical claims are impossible to uphold. While it is difficult
to deny the influence of Platonic philosophy on Augustine’s thought, as I have demon-
strated in earlier paragraphs, the doctrine of God’s incorporeality was known in the West
through the works of Novatian and Hilary of Poitiers, as well as through the works of
Origen translated into Latin.
84
Cf. Augustinus, De ordine I 11, 31.
85
Cf. Heidl, The Influence of Origen on the Young Augustine, p. 24-26. Even if
Augustine did not initially have access to all of Origen’s works, due to his poor command
of Greek, he certainly had access to the works of Hilary of Poitiers, which, as has been
demonstrated above, included Origen’s ideas. In fact, Augustine mentions Hilary’s name
multiple times and cites his works. Cf. Augustinus, De Trinitate VI 10, 11; XV 3, 5; Au-
gustinus, Contra Iulianum II 26; II 28-30; Augustinus, Ep. 180, 3.
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 485

translated by Jerome in 38386, then it is worth noting that a significant

part of the Prologue to this work was dedicated to the spiritual, not the
corporeal, reading of the Scripture. It states that God Himself is incor-
poreal and incorruptible and that this God loves all that is spiritual; that
the love featured in the Song of Songs is to be understood in the spiritual
sense, and that the lives of the patriarchs: Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, are
a symbol of the journey of a man ascending towards the spiritual reality87.
This is the teaching that Augustine may have had in mind also when he
was arguing with the Manichaeans, which can be seen in the work Contra
Faustum Manichaeum. In it, he accuses the Manichaeans of an inability
to see the spiritual and mystical meaning of the Old Testament88. In the
same work, he also asks the question concerning the infinity of God:
Deus finem habet, aut infinitus est?89. According to Faustus, the Christian
God is finite because He is the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, which
means that He has power over those who bear the sign of circumcision.
Augustine replies to this accusation in the Origenian spirit, encouraging
his adversary to purify his material and corporeal image of God through
faith90. Once he has done so, he will see his questions in a different way.
He will no longer ask whether the One who is not contained in any space
is finite, or whether the One who is perfectly known only by the Son is
infinite, or how the One who is unbounded is limited, or how the One
who is the measure of all things is infinite91. In these questions resound
the echoes of the themes raised by Origen, mentioned above. According
to Origen and Augustine, God, being infinite, cannot be encompassed

86
Cf. Heidl, The Influence of Origen on the Young Augustine, p. 7-17.
87
Cf. Origenes, Commentarium in Canticum Canticorum, Prologus 1, 4-6; 2, 3-7; 2,
28; 3, 15-20.
88
Cf. e.g. Augustinus, Contra Faustum Manichaeum XXII 6-10. It is worth noting
that in this text, Augustine explains to the Manichaeans that the term “light”, which refers
to God in the Bible, is to be understood in the spiritual, not corporeal, sense. It is the same
for the expression “reflection of eternal light” (cf. Wis 7:26) which, according to Augus-
tine, is to be understood as referring to the Wisdom of God. Similar arguments and similar
biblical quotes can be found in Origen’s writings. Cf. Origenes, De principiis I 1, 1-5; I 2,
5-9.
89
Augustinus, Contra Faustum Manichaeum XXV 1, CSEL 25,1, p. 725.
90
An encouragement to such purification and to a spiritual reading of the Scripture,
including the lives of the patriarchs, is also to be found in Origen’s writings. Cf. Origenes,
Commentarium in Canticum Canticorum, Prologus 1, 4-6.
91
Cf. Augustinus, Contra Faustum Manichaeum XXV 2, CSEL 25/1, p. 727-728.
486 Damian Mrugalski OP

by anything, and although He is infinite, He is known by the Son92. It is

worth adding that at the time of writing of Contra Faustum Manichae-
um, Augustine had access to a large proportion of the Latin versions of
Origen’s homiletic writings and, possibly, also to the work De principiis,
which was translated in 398 by Rufinus93. In his later work, De Genesi ad
litteram, Augustine returns to the theme of incorporeality and infinity of
God, which is linked to it:

The God who alone has immortality and dwells in light inaccessible, whom
no human being has ever seen or can see (1Tm 6:16), is not contained in any
place whether of finite or infinite space, nor altered by the passage of times,
whether finite or infinite. For there is nothing in the substance by which he
is God that is smaller in the part than in the whole, as must be the case with
things that are in place; nor was there in his substance anything that is not
there now or that will be and is not yet, as is the case with natures which can
experience the changes and chances of time94.

This statement is found in the context of Augustine’s reflections on

the question of Divine providence. Unfortunately, Origen’s Commentary
on Genesis has not been preserved; however, in his Homilies on Genesis,
also in the context of reflections on the question of Divine providence,

92
According to A. Drozdek, Augustine did not reply to Faustus’ question of whether
God is infinite, because he pondered the question himself. The scholar suggests that per-
haps he was considering an alternative possibility; namely, that God is “above the infinite
and the finite”. Cf. Drozdek, Infinity in Augustine’s Theology, p. 49-50. In my opinion,
Augustine, annoyed by Faustus’ fairly “crude” accusation, which derived the conclusion
that God’s power is finite from the sign of circumcision, stated that he would not consider
this issue until his adversary understood the spiritual and mystical meaning of Old Tes-
tament symbols. Therefore, he continued his argument by referring to earlier parts of the
same work, which touch on the spiritual reading of the Old Testament. At the same time,
however, he indicated that there were far more serious problems involved in the question
of God’s infinity and that they could be addressed only once one would accept the concept
of incorporeality of God’s nature. Augustine considered these problems when he familia-
rised himself with Origen’s works.
93
Cf. Heidl, The Influence of Origen on the Young Augustine, p. 65. Let us add
that, in the introduction to his translation of De principiis, Rufinus informs us that Je-
rome “translated into Latin more than seventy books by Origen, which he called homiletic
books, and some commentaries on the writings of the Apostle”. Cf. Origenes, De principi-
is, Praefatio Rufini 2, SCh 252, p. 70.
94
Augustinus, De Genesi ad litteram VIII 19, CSEL 28, p. 258, tr. E. Hill, p. 368.
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 487

similar statements on the incorporeality and simplicity of God have been

made95. Moreover, when he speaks about the activity of God in De prin-
cipiis, Origen states that God “does not need physical space in which to
move and operate, nor does he need a magnitude discernible by the sens-
es, nor bodily shape or color, nor anything else whatever like these, which
are suitable to bodies and matter”96. Also in Origen’s thought, we can find
the distinction between God who transcends “all sense of meaning, not
only temporal but also eternal”, and creation, which is subject to change
in time97. It is also worth noting that the Philocalia contains a passage
preserved from Origen’s Commentary on Genesis that was cited above,
in which it is stated that infinite ideas are contained in God’s mind, as
God’s knowledge encompasses everything, including the past and the fu-
ture98. This statement, in a way, corresponds to the second part of the text
by Augustine, cited above, according to which, in the substance of God,
“there was anything that is not there now or that will be and is not yet”.
Commenting on the statement from Ps 144:3-4: “Magnus Dominus et
laudabilis valde et magnitudinis eius non est finis”, Augustine states that
God is unknowable because of His infinity:

And we are bidden to praise him whom we cannot comprehend. If we could

comprehend him, there would be a limit to his greatness; but because his
greatness is without limit, we can comprehend something of God, but never
the whole. Since this is so, since we are weak and fall far short of his gran-
deur, let us look to what he has made, so that we may be strengthened by his
goodness. As we contemplate his works let us praise the worker, the maker
for what is made, the creator for his creation, passing in review all the things
known to us, things plain to see99.

Further on in his statement, Augustine argues that admiring and

studying the works created by God reveals to man the immense goodness
and boundless greatness (immensa bonitas et interminabilis magnitudo)
of God. However, it does not lead to conceptual knowledge of the essence
of His nature. A similar reasoning is to be found in Origen’s De prin-
cipiis where, although the term infinitus is not used in relation to God’s

95
Cf. Origenes, In Genesim homiliae 3, 2.
96
Origenes, De principiis I 1, 6, SCh 252, p. 100, tr. G.W. Butterworth, p. 14.
97
Cf. Origenes, De principiis IV 4, 1. Cf. Origenes, De principiis I 3, 4.
98
Cf. Origenes, Philocalia 23, 20, cited above.
99
Augustinus, Enarrationes in Psalmos 144, 6, CCL 40, p. 2091, tr. M. Boulding, p. 383.
488 Damian Mrugalski OP

nature, it is still described as incomprehensibilis and inaestimabilis100.

However, the verse of Ps 144:3, commented on by Augustine, appears
in Origen’s work when he makes the distinction between theology and
economy, discussed above101, and in the Commentary on the Psalms by
Hilary, which was influenced by an analogous commentary written by
Origen. In the latter, we can find a reasoning that is strikingly similar to
that presented by Augustine102.
To Augustine, as earlier to Origen and Hilary, Christ is the Power
and the Wisdom of God (cf. 1Cor 1:24). Although He is generated, He
is co-eternal with the Father. On this occasion, all these three thinkers
developed the concept of generatio aeterna of the Son by the Father,
which was first developed and argued by Origen. This topic is discussed
by Augustine, above all, in his De Trinitate, in the context of the anti-Ar-
ian polemic. In this case, it is difficult to argue that Augustine drew his
arguments directly from Origen, as at the time of the Arian controversy,
this concept appears in the works of numerous defenders of the Nicene
doctrine, which is attested by Augustine himself103. Nonetheless, it is
worth noting that the metaphors that appear in the argumentation, such
as e.g. the eternal reflection of eternal light, and the cited biblical quotes,
can be found in Origen’s work104. In this context, Augustine also argues
that the Son does not differ from the Father, not only in the temporal
sense but also in every other sense. He has the same substance, and there-
fore is also infinite:

But here in material things, one is not as great as three together, and two are
more than one. In that highest Trinity, however, one is as much as three toge-
ther, and two are not more than one. And they are infinite in themselves. And
so each is in each, all are in each, each is in all, all are in all, and all are one105.

100
Cf. Origenes, De principiis I 1, 5-6, SCh 252, p. 96-98.
101
Cf. Origenes, In Ieremiam homilae 18, 6, cited above.
102
Cf. Hilarius, Tractatus super Psalmos 144, 6, cited above.
103
Augustine himself informs us that he was familiar with the arguments of Christian
authors in favour of the eternity of the Father and Son, which were made as part of the an-
ti-Arian polemic. Cf. Augustinus, De Trinitate VI 1, 1, CCL 50, p. 228: “Et hinc nonnulli
nostri adversus Arianos hoc modo ratiocinati sunt”.
104
Cf. Augustinus, De Trinitate VI 1, 1-1, 3, 5; Origenes, De principiis I 2, 1-13; IV 4, 1.
105
Augustinus, De Trinitate VI 10, 12, CCL 50, p. 242-243, tr. S. McKenna, p. 214.
Also according to Origen, there are no differences in the substance of each of the persons
of the Trinity. Cf. Origenes, De principiis I 3, 7.
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 489

However, the influence of Origen’s thought on Augustine’s doctrine

of the infinity of God is most evident in the chapter of Book XII of his De
civitate Dei titled: “Against Those Who Assert that Things that are Infinite
Cannot Be Comprehended by the Knowledge of God”106. This issue was
addressed by many philosophers, including Aristotle, who believed that in-
finity cannot be encompassed by anything, and the Stoics. Arguing against
such views, Augustine first observes that, according to the Scripture, God
created a finite number of creatures (cf. Wis 11:20 [Vlg. 11:21]; Isa 40:26)
and that God knows all the things that He created (cf. Matt 10:30). Al-
though the number of created beings is finite, the Wisdom of God has no
limits, which, according to Augustine, also finds confirmation in the Scrip-
ture (cf. Ps 146:5). Although this seems to contradict Aristotle’s logic, Au-
gustine argues that God can even know infinity:

Although, then, there is no definite number corresponding to an infinite num-

ber, an infinity of numbers is, nevertheless, not incomprehensible to Him of
whose intelligence ‘there is no number’ (Ps 146:5). It follows, then, that since
whatever is comprehended by knowledge is limited by the very comprehen-
sion of the one who knows, in some ineffable way, all infinity is made finite
by God since in His knowledge it is not incomprehensible. Now, if the infi-
nity of numbers cannot be beyond the limits of the knowledge of God which
comprehends it, who are we little men that we should presume to put limits
to His knowledge, as is done by those who argue that, unless the same pattern
of temporal events is repeated in identical cycles, God can neither foresee
what He creates with a view to making it, nor know it after He has made it?
The fact is that God, whose knowledge is simple in its multiplicity and one
in its diversity, comprehends all incomprehensible things with an incompre-
hensible comprehension. And this is so true that, even if He willed to keep on
endlessly creating one new and dissimilar thing after another, not one of them
could possibly seem new and unexpected to Him, nor would He foresee them
merely, as it were at the last moment, but by His foreknowledge He would
have them before Him throughout all eternity107.

Let us first observe that, in his reflections on the infinity of God’s

wisdom and knowledge, Augustine refers to the same biblical passages
106
Augustinus, De civitate Dei XII 19, CCL 48, p. 375: “Illud autem aliud quod di-
cunt, nec Dei scientia quae infinita sunt posse conprehendi”.
107
Augustinus, De civitate Dei XII 19, CCL 48, p. 375-376, tr. G.G. Walsh – G. Mo-
nahan, p. 280-281.
490 Damian Mrugalski OP

that were cited by Origen when he was referring to the question of infini-
ty; namely, Wis 11:20108 and Ps 146:5109, which refer to the finite number
of creatures and to the wisdom of God that has no number. Both think-
ers are convinced that God is omnipotent and omniscient, which means
that God’s power and knowledge encompass absolutely everything. Both
thinkers also ponder the issue of whether this “everything” can mean
infinity, that is, whether one infinity can encompass another infinity. Ac-
cording to Origen, since “God comprehends all things, it follows from
this very fact that they can be comprehended that they are understood to
have both a beginning and an end (quia omnia conpraehendit, supereset
ut eo ipso quo conpraehendi possunt, et initium habere intellegantur et
finem)”110. For that which has no beginning and no end is incomprehen-
sible. The same claim was accepted by Augustine, who stated that even
an infinite number which God, being omniscient, has to know, and, all
infinity in general, is, as it were, finite to God, because it is encompassed
by God’s knowledge (quapropter si, quidquid scientia conprehenditur,
scientis conprehensione finitur: profecto et omnis infinitas quodam inef-
fabili modo Deo finita est)111. The passage from Book III of Origen’s De
principiis cited above makes no mention of the infinite number which be-
comes, as it were, finite, to the knowledge of God. However, the problem
of infinity being encompassed by God’s wisdom was relevant to Origen,
which was discussed in the first paragraph of this text. He stated that the
Divine mind contains “numerically infinite ideas”. According to Origen,
this claim cannot be substantiated by a logical proof, but it is related
to the belief in the transcendence and omnipotence of the Divine Mind,
which knows all events and all things, including those that happened in
the past and those that will happen in the future112. Augustine’s reasoning
is similar. Although an infinite number of created things does not actual-
ly exist, God actually knows not only the things that have existed in the
past, that exist in the present, and that will exist in the future, but also
the things that could exist owing to his omnipotence. Augustine too, like
Origen, is aware that his claim of the infinity existing actually in God’s

108
Cf. Origenes, De principiis II 9, 1; IV 4, 8, cited above.
109
Cf. Origenes – Hieronymus, Tractatus sive homiliae in Psalmos 146, 4-5, cited
above.
110
Origenes, De principiis III 5, 2, SCh 268, p. 222, tr. G.W. Butterworth, p. 313.
111
Augustinus, De civitate Dei XII 19, CCL 48, p. 375.
112
Cf. Origenes, Philocalia 23, 20; Cf. also Origenes, In Numeros homiliae 17, 4,
cited above.
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 491

Mind contradicts the evidence provided by philosophers, which he states

explicitly in an earlier chapter of the same book: “My faith is not unset-
tled by any of the philosophers’ arguments, not even by the supposedly
most pointed objection that the Infinite cannot be comprehended by any
amount of knowledge, and, therefore, that God’s knowledge is no more
than the finite ideas of all His finite creations”113.
There is no doubt that at the time of writing De civitate Dei Augus-
tine was familiar with Origen’s ideas contained in De principiis. Ori-
gen’s name, as well as the Greek title of his work περὶ ἀρχῶν are men-
tioned earlier, in Book XI of De civitate Dei, which critiques the theo-
ry of the pre-existence of souls, and of their fall114. Despite the critique
of his controversial claims, Origen is here recognised by Augustine as
a man of great knowledge and trained in ecclesiastical science (hominem
in ecclesiasticis litteris tam doctum et exercitatum)115, which suggests an
old, and perhaps even still ongoing, fascination with his thought, which
Augustine, being a “politically correct” bishop, would not admit. As far
as the passage on infinite ideas contained in God’s mind, taken from Ori-
gen’s Commentary on Genesis and cited in the Greek Philocalia is con-
cerned, G. Heidl has proved that Latin compilations of excerpts from
this commentary circulated in the Western world even before Augustine’s
conversion116. Moreover, even in the same work De civitate Dei, Augus-
tine refers to Origen’s exegesis of difficult passages in Genesis, and ac-
cepts the Alexandrian’s solutions with approval117. The conviction about
God’s radical transcendence and incorporeality, as well as the struggle
with aporias provoked by the concept of the infinity of God, which we
can find in Origen’s thought, must have impressed Augustine when he
was young and when he was old. This is clearly evidenced by the afore-
mentioned chapter of Book XII of De civitate Dei, in which the tension
between the logic of ancient philosophers concerning infinity and the bib-
lical faith in God’s omnipotence and omniscience becomes apparent. On
this occasion, Augustine does not refer to Plotinus but to the essential
truths of the Christian faith, confirmed by the relevant passages of Scrip-
ture. The background to these reflections is, of course, a philosophical

113
Augustinus, De civitate Dei XII 18, CCL 48, p. 373, tr. G.G. Walsh – G. Monahan,
p. 276.
114
Augustinus, De civitate Dei XI 23, CCL 48, p. 341.
115
Augustinus, De civitate Dei XI 23, CCL 48, p. 342.
116
Cf. Heidl, The Influence of Origen on the Young Augustine, p. 237-289.
117
Cf. Augustinus, De civitate Dei XV 27, CCL 48, p. 495.
492 Damian Mrugalski OP

problem, however, it is a problem related to the philosophy of Aristotle

rather than Plotinus, as Plotinus’ infinite One does not think118. Mean-
while, the question of “encompassing” infinity appears in Aristotle’s
thought and is taken up, and criticised, by Origen. However, the latter,
like Augustine, apart from arguments of faith, does not have sufficient
philosophical arguments to reject the claim that infinity cannot be en-
compassed by anything, including God’s incorporeal intellect. The only
arguments that remain are therefore the faith that the omnipotent God can
do what He wants to do and that the omniscient God actually knows what
He will do and what He could do through his omnipotence. Thus, God’s
knowledge also encompasses infinity.

4. Conclusions

As far as the question of infinity of the incorporeal and transcen-

dent God is concerned, many scholars are convinced that Augustine
borrowed it from Plotinus, which is to be evidenced by the statement
about his reading of the libri platonicorum, found in Confessions. Due
to the absence of research into the positively understood infinity of God
before Plotinus, this claim became a kind of opinio comunis among
scholars. Meanwhile, the doctrine of the infinity of the transcendent
God was present in the East since the very beginning of the encounter
of biblical thought with Greek philosophy. It reached the West with
the writings of Novatian and Hilary of Poitiers, who were influenced
by Origen’s thought, and with the Latin translations of Origen’s writ-
ings dating from the time before Augustine’s conversion. In his early
writings, Augustine mentions libri pleni which, according to Heidl, are
to be identified with Origen’s Homilies on the Song of Songs, and libri
maiores nostri, which could be, among others, the writings of Hilary of
Poitiers, whose name was mentioned in Augustine’s writings a number
of times. All these writings emphasise God’s transcendence, incorpo-
reality, and infinity. This doctrine appears in the works of Christian
authors alongside the exegesis of certain biblical passages. One of these
passages is Exod 3:14, where God says about Himself: “I am who I am”.
This sentence was allegedly heard by Augustine when he was pondering
the question of whether God is finite or infinite in the sense of physical

118
Cf. Plotinus, Enneades VI 7, 37-38.
 The Influence of Origen on Augustine 493

dimensions. Other biblical passages supporting the infinity of God, cit-

ed by Origen and Hilary of Poitiers, and then by Augustine, include
Ps 144:4: “Magnitudinis eius non est finis” and Ps 146:5: “Sapientiae
eius non est numerus”. From these statements, they derive the claim on
the infinite power and wisdom of God, as well as the thesis that God is
unknowable to the finite human intellect. For in fact, according to Ar-
istotle’s logic, infinity cannot be encompassed by anything. Although
God’s power is infinite, it has brought a finite world into existence.
Origen repeated this claim several times in his works, citing the follow-
ing passage from the Wis 11:20: “omnia mensura et numero et pondere
disposuisti”. Augustine shares this view, citing the same passage from
the Scripture. Although both Origen and Augustine do not doubt that
God encompasses all beings He created with his power and wisdom,
both ponder the question of whether God’s knowledge can also encom-
pass infinity. This question arises in two contexts; the discussion of
the trinitarian doctrine and the discussion of the doctrine of creation.
As far as the former is concerned, both Origen and Augustine recog-
nise the Son as God’s infinite Wisdom, and, following the statements
made in the Scripture, they claim that only the Son knows the Father
and that only the Spirit penetrates everything, including the depths of
God (cf. Matt 11:27; 1Cor 2:10). The mutual knowledge of the per-
sons of the Trinity, each of which is infinite, follows from the unity
of God’s nature and points to a certain interpenetration of the persons
whose nature is intelligible, rather than to a conceptual or definitional
knowledge. Meanwhile, as far as the latter question, that is, the knowl-
edge of an infinite number of beings or events in the created world, is
concerned, both Origen and Augustine believe that God knows not only
the beings that have existed or exist actually in a limited number, but
also the events and beings that may come into existence through his
omnipotence. Thus, both thinkers claim that God’s knowledge actually
encompasses infinity. Although this claim cannot be substantiated with
logical proof, as it contradicts the logic related to infinity, both main-
tain that it follows from the belief in transcendence, omnipotence, and
omniscience that characterise the Divine Mind.
494 Damian Mrugalski OP

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