Concept of Creation in Saint Athanasius
Georges Florovsky's essay emerged from his lifelong project to articulate the distinctive theological vision of the Eastern Orthodox tradition for the modern West. Writing in the mid-twentieth century when patristic scholarship was experiencing renewed vigor, Florovsky sought to demonstrate how Athanasius of Alexandria's understanding of creation provided a foundation for Orthodox theology that differed significantly from both Western scholastic and Protestant approaches.
Florovsky argues that Athanasius developed a uniquely coherent doctrine of creation that avoided both the Platonic tendency to devalue the material world and the Arian reduction of the Logos to a creature. For Athanasius, creation exists through the eternal Logos who is fully divine, not as a necessary emanation but as a free act of divine love. This understanding preserves both the transcendence of God and the genuine goodness of creation, while establishing the theological foundation for the Incarnation. Florovsky traces how Athanasius's anti-Arian polemic led him to articulate a vision of creation as participating in divine life through the Logos, who serves as both the principle of creation's existence and the means of its restoration. This participatory understanding of creation, Florovsky contends, became foundational for the entire Eastern theological tradition and its distinctive approach to theosis.
The essay has remained influential among Orthodox theologians and patristic scholars for its clear exposition of how Athanasius's Christological insights shaped his cosmology. Florovsky's analysis helped establish the scholarly consensus that Athanasius's greatness lay not merely in his political opposition to Arianism but in his theological creativity.
Who should read this: Serious students of patristic theology and Eastern Orthodox thought will find this essay essential, particularly those interested in how Christology and cosmology intersect in early Christian thought. Readers seeking devotional material or practical spiritual guidance should look elsewhere.