Read Origen’s[36] four books _On First Principles_. The first deals
with the Father, the Son and the Holy Ghost. In this his statements
are often blasphemous; thus, he asserts that the Son was created by
the Father, the Holy Ghost by the Son; that the Father pervades all
existing things, the Son only those that are endowed with reason, the
Holy Ghost only those that are saved. He also makes other strange and
impious statements, indulging in frivolous talk about the migration
of souls, the stars being alive, and the like. This first book is
full of fables about the Father, Christ (as he calls the Son), the
Holy Ghost, and creatures endowed with reason. In the second book
he treats of the world and created things. He asserts that the God
of the Law and the prophets, of the Old and the New Testament, is
one and the same; that there was the same Holy Spirit in Moses, the
rest of the prophets, and the Holy Apostles. He further discusses
the Incarnation of the Saviour, the soul, resurrection, punishment,
and promises. The third book deals with free will; how the devil
and hostile powers, according to the Scriptures, wage war against
mankind; that the world was created and is perishable, having had
a beginning in time. The fourth book treats of the final end, the
divine inspiration of the Scriptures, and the proper manner of
reading and understanding them.