1. The action of bringing something into existence absolutely, i.e., out of nothing (ex nihilo). Properly understood, creation so defined does not imply that there is no efficient cause of the things that are created but that the efficient cause did not bring them into existence through changing something already in existence (active creation).  Active creation is to be distinguished from God’s conservative action of sustaining everything in existence absolutely. 2. The effect produced by the act of creation; all created things that exist (passive creation).