The Penitence of Origen is a text in the

New Testament apocrypha The New Testament apocrypha (singular apocryphon) are a number of writings by early Christians that give accounts of Jesus and his teachings, the nature of God, or the teachings of his apostles and of their lives. Some of these writings were cit ...

, thought to have been falsely attributed to

Origen of Alexandria Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an early Christian scholar, ascetic, and theolog ...

. Not to be confused with Origen's text Selecta in Threnos (also named ''Origen on Lamentations''), it is a Lamentation purporting to have been cried by Origen himself. Jodocus Coccius quotes from it (mistakenly attributing it to ''Selecta in Threnos''): :''I will begin to throw myself upon my knees, and pray to all the saints to come to my aid; for I do not dare, in consequence of my excess of wickedness, to call upon God. O Saints of God, you I pray with weeping full of grief, that ye would propitiate his mercies for me miserable. Alas me! Father Abraham, pray for me, that I be not driven from thy bosom, which I greatly long for, and yet not worthily, because of the greatness of my sins'' The text has an affinity with the prayer used before communion, sometimes known as the ''

Mea Culpa ' is a Latin phrase that means "my fault" or "my mistake" and is an acknowledgement of having done wrong. The expression is used also as an admission of having made a mistake that should have been avoided, and may be accompanied by beating the br ...

''. The work was declared apocryphal and rejected in the

Decretum Gelasianum The Gelasian Decree ( la, Decretum Gelasianum) is a Latin text traditionally thought to be a Decretal of the prolific Pope Gelasius I, bishop of Rome from 492–496. The work reached its final form in a five-chapter text written by an anonymous sc ...

Citations

References

* New Testament apocrypha {{NewTestament-apocrypha-stub