In defence of freedom of choice

: Origen's interpretation of Romans 9 and its Latin reception in the 4th/5th Centuries

Abstract

My thesis investigates whether 4th/5th-century Latin writings reveal a reception of Origen’s exegetical comments on chapter 9 of Paul’s letter to the Romans that address the theme of human freedom of choice.

Part 1 of my thesis analyses the arguments concerning freedom of choice which in the writings of Origen seek to explain difficult passages of Romans 9.

Part 2 examines the arguments concerning freedom which focus on the explanation of the same Pauline passages in the commentaries of Ambrosiaster, Augustine, the Budapest Anonymous and Pelagius, and it further examines whether the investigated remarks reveal a reception of Origen’s argumentation.

Part 3 offers a close analysis of the contents of the anonymous Pelagian treatise De induratione, with the purpose of tracing a possible reception of Origen’s exegetical speculation in the work.

My thesis concludes that Origen’s arguments grounded on the idea of human freedom of decision have plausibly been received in both the Latin commentaries on Paul and in De induratione.

Date of Award	12 May 2022
Original language	English
Awarding Institution	University of Bristol
Supervisor	Karla Pollmann (Supervisor) & Laura Jansen (Supervisor)