And He is the head of the Body, the Church, who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, that in all things He may have the pre-eminence. The Council of Chalcedon affirms that this is no different Christ who became Incarnate of the Ever-Virgin Mary, the Mother of God. It is the same Christ who loved, laboured, died and rose again. He came amongst us on account of the inherent tragedy of the Fall which touched upon not only human life but the whole of creation as well. They cannot be separated.
Human redemption leads to a cosmic restoration.
For the earnest expectation of the creation eagerly waits for the revealing of the sons of God. It proceeds in and through the human realm to embrace the whole Cosmos and this will also receive its freedom from corruption and death in the New Creation. In the Church, this redemption of matter, space and time, this sanctification of all things is achieved in Christ by the power of the Holy Spirit regenerating and making all things new through his People. A redeemed humanity has, therefore, a crucial role to play in the healing of the Universe as a priestly order, every Orthodox Christian becoming God s agent for the renewal of creation. We are called to be God s gardeners in a new Eden.