Page 101 - Orthodoxy Zizioulas

T H E FA L L F R O M T H E F U T U R E
The Fall from the Future
The traditional presentation of the fall is primarily proto-
logical. It assumes an original state of perfection from
which humanity deviated, falling into a lower condition
marked by sin, suffering, and death. At first glance, the biblical
narrative seems to support this view, describing creation as
“very good” (Gen. 1:31) and humanity as living in a state of
harmony before disobedience.
Yet this idea of an original “golden age” is not unique to the
Bible. It was widespread in ancient thought. Greek mythology,
especially in Hesiod and Plato, spoke of a primordial age of
perfection, later lost. Orphic and Gnostic traditions also de-
scribed a fall from an original state, often understood as a
descent of the soul into the body. In this context, evil is ex-
plained as a deviation from an initial perfection.
However, such a view raises serious difficulties today. Sci-
entific evidence indicates that humanity emerged within a
world already marked by struggle, suffering, and death. Death
was not introduced at a historical “fall”; it was present from
the beginning of biological life.
Modern biblical scholarship has therefore reinterpreted the
Genesis narrative in ways that avoid conflict with such find-
ings. But even more significant is the witness of the Fathers,
which does not present a uniform picture. Patristic thought
moves in two directions: one placing perfection at the begin-
ning, and another—more decisive—placing it at the end.
Significantly, the earliest Christian writings—the Apostolic
Fathers—make no explicit reference to the fall. When the
101