From primordial curse to eschatological restoration: Ecological challenges from Genesis 3:14–20 and Romans 8:18–25

Abstract

This work employs a comparative study of the theologies of Genesis 3:14–20 and Romans 8:18–25 as it relates to the problem of ecological imbalance. It attempts to re-interpret from a Christian theological point of view the primary and the secondary causes of decay from Genesis and the implications of those for the ecosystem, identifies Paul’s eschatological theology of restoration, and then re-reads the import of his eschatological hope in Romans for the restoration of the creation. By inter-acting the curse theology of Genesis 3 with the restorative theology of Romans 8, the work shows the drift of the ‘very good’ world from its initial, harmonious state to its present state of chaos and the challenge to redress the contemporary ecological imbalance.