Note on the Meaning of Redemption

This article by Olivier Clément offers a theological study of the notion of redemption, examining its scriptural and patristic foundations. The approach is analytical and comparative: Clément traces the semantic evolution of the term from its Old Testament roots to its treatment in the Orthodox tradition. The main idea is that redemption should not be understood as the payment of a debt intended to appease divine wrath — the dominant conception since Anselm of Canterbury — but as a victorious liberation from the powers of evil, death and sin, oriented toward the deification of man and communion with God. The theological contribution of the article lies in its highlighting of the patristic reading, particularly in Maximus the Confessor, Athanasius and Gregory of Nazianzus, which situates the Cross within a cosmic vision of the Incarnation, distinct from the juridical and satisfactory framework of Western soteriology.