Las relaciones con la comunidad y las funciones del relacionista público

My explorations of Origen’s Comm. Jo. and Cels. have shown that both works contain apologetics for the wider public, as well as more radical thoughts on hermeneutics. In order to provide an alternative to Watson’s construal of a ‘comprehensive approach’ in the later Origen, I explored additional evidence from Princ. and Comm. Jo. 10–20. The evidence from Princ. indicated that there are instances where Origen prefers a purely spiritual meaning (in light of dissonant plurality and alleged empirical falsehood), while there are far more instances where the Gospels contain historically true passages (where alleged contradictions can be addressed successfully). Analysing relevant examples from Comm. Jo. 10–20, I demonstrated that Origen did not abandon completely the quest for historical and literal truth (in combination with deeper spiritual truth), as he continues addressing wrong teaching that contradicts basic Christian beliefs. In fact, there are instances when Heracleon’s spiritual interpretations must be rejected, and a literal interpretation preferred, in order for the gospel to be good news.61

56 _{Raymond E. Brown, The Gospel according to John I–XII, AB 29 (New York: Doubleday, 1966), 173. Cf.}

Comm. Jo. 10.9.48–60; 10.9.222–24; 13.187–92; 13.51.349–51 (Watson, Gospel Writing, 525–28).

57_{Watson, Gospel Writing, 527.} 58_{Ibid., 528.}

59_{Ibid., 525–28. Even if there are no more harmonisations of alleged contradictions between the synoptics}

and John following Book 10, it remains significant that at a number of intervals, Origen continues to defend the plain and empirical truth of some texts.

60Contra Watson, Gospel Writing, 550–51; 607–8.

61_{Dungan, Synoptic Problem, 81, 427n64–n65. Related see Dale C. Allison, Constructing Jesus: Memory, Imag-}

What Crouzel has argued in relation to Origen’s doctrines in general, this article has attempted to demonstrated in relation to Origen’s comprehensive approach to Gospel differences: ‘To recover with certainty [Origen’s comprehensive approach to Gospel differences] ... one must look for ... [it] in his own work, studied not in some particular text or other, but in his work as a whole’.62 It is only by

working through the early and later Origen’s treatise that one is able to come to a truly comprehensive understanding of Origen’s approach to Gospels differences.

5. Conclusion

Watson’s interpretation of Origen’s Comm. Jo., Book 10, and the hermeneutical implications extracted from it, forms the heart of his call for a new paradigm shift in biblical studies. The old paradigm, represented by Augustine, the early Origen, modern harmonisations, various Gospels synopses, and quests of the historical Jesus, must be subverted and destroyed, making way for a deeper spiritual and theological approach that respects irreducible pluriformity intrinsic to the fourfold Gospel. According to Watson, the fourfold Gospel marks the end of all attempts to reconstruct the life of the historical Jesus. In Watson’s reading of Origen, we witness an old paradigm and new paradigm, an early Origen and a later Origen, an Origen before Book 10 and an Origen after Book 10 of his Comm. Jo. The problem with this binary construal, we discovered, is that the later Origen—especially in Cels.—harmonises differences, rejects selective readings that compromise historicity, uncovers contradictions in Celsus’s arguments, and offers external and internal evidence in support of the historicity and credibility of the pluriform resurrection appearances of Jesus. Precisely that which Watson submits to devastating criticism in the early Origen is done by the ‘hero’ of Watson’s ‘more comprehensive’ ‘new paradigm’, long after Book 10 of his Comm. Jo. Watson never mentions this, nor reflects on its possible significance in

Gospel Writing. In personal correspondence, Watson explained that he would not expect Origen’s more radical thoughts on hermeneutics for the sophisticated Christian (Comm. Jo., Book 10) to feature in a work of apologetics intended for a wider public and simple believers (Cels.).

To test Watson’s claims, I focused on the potential significance of the absence of Cels. in Gospel Writing, followed by engagement with the claim that Cels. is a popular apologetic work for the wider public, in contrast to the Comm. Jo., which is for the sophisticated reader, and includes more radical thoughts on hermeneutics. I offered evidence indicating that both works contain apologetics intended for the wider public, providing answers for believers whose faith might otherwise be shaken. Next I explored the significance of criticisms leveled against the wider public in Cels., focusing on Origen’s rejection of the popular view that the flesh will be raised in future, and his rejection of the literal truth of the events narrated in Matthew’s story of the baptism of Jesus. In both instances, Origen rejected simplistic interpretations and sided with more sophisticated readers. I concluded that both Cels. and the Comm. Jo. contain apologetics, as well as more sophisticated and radical hermeneutics. In order to provide a more nuanced alternative to Watson’s ‘comprehensive approach’ in the work of Origen, I offered additional evidence, exploring relevant examples from Princ. and Comm. Jo. 10–20. The former highlighted that already in his earlier work, Origen acknowledged historical falsehood, but also argued that there are significantly more narratives containing historical truth. The latter confirmed that Origen’s

Comm. Jo., Book 10, cannot be understood as a paradigm shift, as he continues to harmonise alleged contradictions and establish historical truth among the Gospels, when deemed necessary.

All the evidence considered, my conclusion is that Origen’s approach to Gospel differences cannot be reduced to either a complete rejection of any attempt to smooth out tensions, harmonise contradictions to establish historical truth (often in conjunction with deeper spiritual truth), or the embrace of attempts to smooth out almost all tensions, and harmonise contradictions to establish historical truth (often in conjunction with spiritual truth). Rather, a more comprehensive approach to Gospel differences in Origen (compared to Watson’s selective reading of Origen as hermeneutical framework for his comprehensive approach) would encompass a nuanced middle position rejecting both extremes.