Mosheim says: “Origen unquestionably stands at the head of the interpreters of the Bible in this century. But with pain it must be added, he was first among those who have found in the Scriptures a secure retreat for all errors and idle fancies. _As this most ingenious man could see no possible method of vindicating all that is said in the Scriptures against the cavils of the heretics_ and the enemies of Christianity, PROVIDED HE INTERPRETED THE LANGUAGE OF THE BIBLE LITERALLY, he concluded that he must expound the sacred volume _in the way in which the PLATONISTS WERE ACCUSTOMED TO EXPLAIN THE HISTORY OF THEIR GODS_.”[79] [Sidenote: Higher criticism is Platonism] Murdock, in his notes, says: “Origen perversely turned a large part of Biblical history into moral fables and many of the laws into allegories. Probably he learned this in the school of Ammonius, which expounded Hesiod, Homer, and the whole fabulous history of the Greeks allegorically. The predecessors of Origen, who searched after a mystical sense of Scripture, still set a high value on the _grammatical, or literal, sense;_ but he often expresses himself, as if he attached no value to it. Before him allegories were resorted to, only to discover predictions of future events and rules for moral conduct; but he betook himself to allegories _in order TO ESTABLISH THE PRINCIPLES OF HIS PHILOSOPHY_ on a Scriptural basis.... His propensity to allegories must be ascribed to the fertility of his invention, _the prevailing custom_ of the Egyptians, _his education, the instructions he received from his teachers_, and the example both of the philosophers, of whom he was an admirer, and of the Jews.... He hoped, by means of his allegories, more easily to convince the Jews, to confute the gnostics, and to silence the objections of both. But we must not forget his attachment to that system of philosophy which he embraced. _This philosophy could not be reconciled with the Scriptures; ... and therefore the Scriptures must be interpreted allegorically_, that they might not contradict his philosophy.... As the body is the baser part of man, so the literal is the less worthy sense of Scripture; and as the body often betrays good men into sin, so the literal sense often leads us into error.” [Sidenote: Here is reason above faith]