Origen
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Origen was an early Christian scholar and theologian, and one of the most distinguished of the early fathers of the Christian Church.
Eusebius reported that Origen, following literally, castrated himself. This story was accepted during the Middle Ages and was cited by Abelard in his 12th century letters to Heloise. Scholars within the past century have questioned this, surmising that this may have been a rumor circulated by his detractors.
For religious reasons
In Europe, when women were not permitted to sing in church or cathedral choirs in the Roman Catholic Church, boys were sometimes castrated to prevent their voices breaking at puberty and to develop a special high voice. The first documents mentioning castrati are Italian church records from the 1550s.<ref name="one">John Rosselli, "Castrato" article in The New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians, 2001.</ref> In the baroque music era these singers were highly appreciated by Opera composers as well. Famous castrati include Farinelli, Senesino, Carestini, and Caffarelli. Joseph Haydn was almost castrated. The last castrato was Alessandro Moreschi (1858-1922) who served in the Sistine Chapel Choir.<ref>"All Mouth and No Trousers" from The Guardian, Aug 5 2002.</ref> However, in the late 1800s, the Roman Catholic Church, which had always considered castration to be mutilation of the body and therefore a severe sin, officially condemned the production of castrati; their castrations had been performed clandestinely in contravention of Church law.Template:Citation needed
A number of religious cults have included castration as a central theme of their practice. These include:
- The cult of Cybele, in which devotees castrated themselves in ecstatic emulation of Attis: see Gallus.
- Some followers of early Christianity considered castration as an acceptable way to counter sinful desires of the flesh. Origen is reported by Eusebius<ref>NPNF2-01. Eusebius Pamphilius: Church History, Life of Constantine, Oration in Praise of Constantine</ref> to have castrated himself based on his reading of the Gospel of Matthew Template:Bibleverse-nb, although there is some doubt concerning this story (SchaffTemplate:Citation needed considers the account genuine but cites Baur et al.Template:Citation needed in opposition) and Origen himself argues against such literal interpretations of other passages from Matthew in his First Principles.
- Boston Corbett was likewise inspired by this same verse Template:Bibleverse-nb to castrate himself (Corbett was the 19th-century American soldier who is generally believed to have fired the shot that killed John Wilkes Booth.)
- Bishop Melito of Sardis (d. ca 180) was a eunuch, according to the church history of Eusebius of Caesarea, though, significantly the word "virgin" was substituted in Rufino's Latin translation of Eusebius.
- Skoptsy
- Heaven's Gate
While Template:Bibleverse-lb expels castrated men from the assembly of Israel, Template:Bibleverse-lb, gives a much more accepting view of eunuchs, and in Acts 8:34-39, a eunuch is baptized.
