Did early christians believe in a corporeal God?
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I fell down a rabbit hole regarding Origen, and Wikipedia notes this interesting event that caught my eye:
> In 399, the Origenist crisis reached Egypt.[1] Theophilus of
> Alexandria was sympathetic to the supporters of Origen[1] and the
> church historian, Sozomen, records that he had openly preached the
> Origenist teaching that God was incorporeal. In his Festal Letter
> of 399, he denounced those who believed that God had a literal,
> human-like body, calling them illiterate "simple ones". A
> large mob of Alexandrian monks who regarded God as anthropomorphic
> rioted in the streets. According to the church historian Socrates
> Scholasticus, in order to prevent a riot, Theophilus made a sudden
> about-face and began denouncing Origen. In the year 400,
> Theophilus summoned a council in Alexandria, which condemned Origen
> and all his followers as heretics for having taught that God was
> incorporeal, **which they decreed contradicted the only true and
> orthodox position, which was that God had a literal, physical body
> resembling that of a human**.[a]
Was "God is corporeal" the orthodox position in the early church, and if yes, how long? As far as I understand, modern day christians for the most part regard God as incorporeal, right?
Asked by kutschkem
(6254 rep)
Jan 14, 2026, 11:57 AM
Last activity: Jan 14, 2026, 11:36 PM
Last activity: Jan 14, 2026, 11:36 PM