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Revisiting the Allegory/Typology Distinction: The Case of Origen
- Author(s):
- Peter Martens (see profile)
- Date:
- 2008
- Group(s):
- Christian Apocryphal Literature, Christian Mysticism, Religious Studies
- Subject(s):
- Church history--Primitive and early church, Religion, Civilization, Classical, History, Ancient
- Item Type:
- Article
- Tag(s):
- Early Christianity, Religions of late Antiquity
- Permanent URL:
- http://dx.doi.org/10.17613/M63V5K
- Abstract:
- There is a significant debate in Origenian scholarship today about the allegory/typology distinction. Some scholars accept the demarcation between these two forms of nonliteral scriptural interpretation, whereas others reject it. In this paper I seek to determine whether, or to what extent, the allegory/typology distinction is valid for study of this prominent early Christian exegete. My article unfolds in three steps. First, I canvass the last sixty years of scholarship that insists upon this distinction and determine where consensus has been reached, as well as where disagreement still exists; next, I turn to Origen’s own writings and assess how he used and defined the Greek terms that stand behind “allegory” and “typology”; in the third section I explore if there was in Origen’s writings a distinction that resembled what most scholars today intend to invoke when they speak of allegory and typology. In my conclusion I contend that the literature’s allegory/typology distinction is of mixed value. I propose ways to salvage what is important in this distinction and dispense with what is problematic.
- Metadata:
- xml
- Published as:
- Journal article
- Status:
- Published
- Last Updated:
- 6 years ago
- License:
- All Rights Reserved
jecsallegorytypology-pdf.pdf