Death and the Afterlife Flashcards
Who can the idea about heaven from the Catholic Church be traced back to?
Thomas Aquinas
Thomas Aquinas
1225 - 1274
What did Aquinas speak about heaven as?
He spoke about heaven as the ‘Beatific Vision’. This is the idea that heaven represents eternal happiness, which comes from being face-to-face with God. The Catholic Church teaches this view of Aquinas’ today.
Biblical support for the Beatific Vision
Jesus says ‘my Father’s house has many rooms’ = idea that you are going to God’s metaphorical / literal house - you will be living with him, idea of being face-to-face and gaining eternal happiness through this fulfilling of the Beatific Vision. Also, ‘my kingdom is not of this world’ - idea of a place where you can be with God and achieve the Beatific Vision.
Beatific Vision
Direct, self-communication of God to the individual person
Catechism
A summary of the principles of Christian religion
What does the Catechism say about heaven?
‘Heaven is the ultimate end and fulfilment of the deepest human longings.’ It is ‘a state of supreme, definitive happiness.’
Give a problem with heaven
How is the body able to be alive in heaven after it has physically died?
Who was Aquinas strongly influenced by?
Aristotle. The use of ‘ultimate end’ in the Catechism sounds very Aristotelian - Aquinas was influenced by Aristotle and Aquinas greatly influenced the teachings of the Catholic Church.
Heaven and Liberation Theology
The Liberation Theology view opposes the traditional view of heaven being a state of paradise after death. This is the idea that, when Jesus was speaking about the Kingdom of God, he meant a whole revolution in the actual, physical world in which they were living. It doesn’t refer to somewhere we go after death, but a transformation of the physical world in which we are living.
What did N.T. Wright say about heaven and liberation theology?
N.T. Wright said that the Gospels were promising a kingdom of this world. He believes that there will be a transformation and revolution in this world, as opposed to it being something after death.
What did Rudolf Bultmann believe about heaven and liberation theology?
He was very interested in the context of teachings shaping Christianity. He said that when we look at the context in which Jesus was teaching + when he lived, it could be about a transformation of this world, which is full of suffering and pain, as opposed to a second world - a life after death.
Different views of heaven
- is heaven a literal second world where you live for eternity?
- is heaven more of a spiritual state where you will be very happy?
- is heaven a transformation of this world here and now, as Liberation theology and N.T. Wright would support?
Parousia
Christ’s second coming
What did Paul Tillich say about heaven and hell being metaphors?
He said that with heaven, happiness comes from being at one with God and at one with the universe, and with hell, it is more of an alienation + separation. Heaven and hell must be taken as metaphors for the polar opposites in the experience of the divine.
Why might hell be viewed by some not as a physical place, but a spiritual state?
This could be because ideas about hell present a lot of problems for Christians, in terms of reconciling, there being a loving God etc.
What did Gregory of Nyssa say about hell?
He said that ‘hell is a guilty conscience.’
What did Gregory of Nyssa mean when he said that ‘hell is a guilty conscience’?
This is the idea that you induce hell upon yourself by choosing to turn away from God.
What did Paul Tillich say about hell?
He said that hell is a metaphor for alienation and is more psychological than physical.
What does the Roman Catholic Church believe about hell?
They believe that hell is an actual place, as they believe that it has to exist physically, in the same way that heaven has to exist physically. Although, they believe that, because God is ultimately loving, no-one is there and he will instead send people either to purgatory or straight to heaven.
John Paul II
Former head of the Catholic Church
What did John Paul II say about hell?
He said that he believed there was a hell, but didn’t think there was anyone there.
Physical image of hell
Pain, suffering, torture, fire, etc.
Symbolic image of hell
A turning away, an absence + alienation from God