The ecological–theological implications of the narrative of creation in the Pauline tradition

Abstract

This study investigates the theological significance of creation across the Pauline corpus, examining key passages in which creation, life, and created beings are explicitly addressed (e.g. Rm 1:20; 8:19–22; 11:36; 14; 1 Cor 8:6; 10:26; 15:20–28, 35–49; Col 1:15–20; Eph 1:20–23; 3:9; 4:6). It argues that, although Paul does not present a systematic doctrine of creation, his letters exhibit a coherent narrative framework that integrates creation, redemption and eschatological consummation. Within this narrative, creation is consistently portrayed as participating alongside humanity in both present suffering and future transformation, thereby forming a shared community of destiny. Furthermore, Paul affirms the intrinsic goodness and revelatory significance of the created order while reconfiguring its value within a christological horizon, in which all things are created through and reconciled in Christ. This study also contends that the eschatological vision of creation’s liberation and restoration reshapes the relationship between believers and the created world, fostering an ethic of responsibility without collapsing the distinction between creator and creation. By articulating a christologically grounded narrative of creation, this study offers a theological foundation for contemporary Christian ecological engagement.
Intradisciplinary and/or interdisciplinary implications: This study contributes to Pauline scholarship by highlighting the integrative role of creation within the framework of creation, redemption and eschatological consummation. It challenges reductive anthropocentric readings and offers a more comprehensive theological interpretation of Paul. Interdisciplinarily, it provides a christologically grounded foundation for ecological theology and environmental ethics. It also suggests a constructive role for the church in contemporary environmental engagement, grounded in its theological understanding of creation.