If Christian apologists were to hold their own against the various kinds of opposition they met, and new Christian leaders were to understand Christianity and not be led astray, schools were necessary. The earliest disciples had sat at the feet of Jesus. Christians of the second and third generations instructed the young in the apostolic tradition and in the Bible. But late in the second century, the establishment of catechetical schools was needed to supplement this instruction. Alexandria especially enjoyed such a great reputation as an educational center that it was the logical place for a Christian school. Connected with the Christian school in Alexandria were two young men who became successively the headmasters and who put their mark on the mind of the Eastern Church. These teachers were Clement and Origen. Clement never swerved from his conviction that Christ was the source and center of all knowledge. He believed that God dwelt in humanity and gave humanity its worth. Like the Greek Fathers, he trusted the power of the human will to set a person’s feet along the right path. Origen, who was highly educated, probed deeper into the mysteries of Christianity than others before him. He remained for many years at the head of the school, though he traveled widely in search of manuscripts and was in demand for spiritual counsel. He compiled the Hexapla, using six biblical texts in parallel columns for purposes of comparison, and was a great exegetical scholar.
Impact: The schools, especially the one in Alexandria, preserved early writings and produced important scholars who impacted the church for centuries.