Apocatastasis facts for kids
Apocatastasis means universal restoration. It is an old idea that started in Ancient Greece. It describes a time when everything will return to its original, perfect state.
Some people believed that living things had moved away from their creator. This idea is sometimes called Apostasy. Apocatastasis suggests that, in the end, everything will be reunited with its creator. It means everything will go back to how it was meant to be. Some thinkers believed that everything, even things that seemed "lost" or "fallen," would be restored. This idea is sometimes called apokatastasis panton.
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Where Did the Idea of Apocatastasis Come From?
The idea of apocatastasis was first used in Ancient Greek philosophy. Many famous thinkers used this term long before it was used by Christian scholars.
Ancient Greek Philosophers and Apocatastasis
- The Pythagoreans
- Heraclitus
- The Stoics
- Neoplatonism
- Friedrich Nietzsche
Most of these philosophers thought that this "restoration" would happen many times, in a cycle. It was not a one-time event for them.
Christian Scholars and Apocatastasis
Later, some early Christian scholars also used the term apocatastasis. These included Clement of Alexandria, Origen, and Gregory of Nyssa. For them, this "restoration" was different. They believed it would happen only once, not in a repeating cycle.
See also
In Spanish: Apocatástasis para niños
