Death and the Afterlife Flashcards
Final Judgement
Judgement of all people by god at the end of time
Particular Judgement
Judgement of individuals at their time of death
What is Jesus parable for final judgement
The parable of the sheep and the goats, talks of Jesus sitting on a throne of judgement
Key teachings of the parable of the sheep and the goat on death and afterlife
- All christians and non christians will be judged before god
- People will be divided the same as a shepherd (God) divides goats, he removes goats to keep his sheep safe
- Once divided those on the right are blessed due to their actions in their life and offered inheritance of heaven
- Ones on the left who have not helped people are condemned to Hell in eternal pubishment
What does the parable of the sheep and the goat reinforce
Humans must use their god given ability to do good and help others as this is what we will be judged on in the end not our faith, the time of judgement can never be known
What did Calvin argue about judgement
The dead are conscious in agony or bliss whilst they wait for the day of judgement where souls will be reunited with bodies, held also by anglicans and methodists
Reasons why Gods judgement is immediately after death
- Biblical evidence in rich man and altars for god welcoming people immediately into heaven
- Doesn’t make sense for judgement to be delayed as where would the soul go
- ## Heaven and Hell aren’t literal there is no need to wait for final judgement
Reasons why Gods judgement takes place for all people at the end of time
- Majority of biblical evidence suggests judgement is done for all people at the same time, book of revelation
- Bodies are needed for heaven or hell so judgement must wait till a time when all bodies can be resurrected
- Time is a different thing after death so it is possible we just sleep until moment of judgement
What is Christians belief of resurrection
People will be given a renewed spiritual body
Issues raised by christian Resurrection
- Why only some people like Jesus and Lazarus
- Is the bible supposed to be metaphorical or literal
- Is there a waiting room when you die like purgatory
- In what sense are people the same person after death
- Is resurrection immediate or at the end of time
St Paul on resurrection
Heavily advocated that resurrection was real and Jesus was ressurrected. Talks about perishable physical body and imperishable spiritual body
—-> Uses example of a tent as our body now being replaced by a more solid structure after death that better suits the soul
Central christian ideas on resurrection
- Resurrection will involve body life whether its material or spiritual and will be a better state of living
- Resurrected person will be the exact same
- Resurrection is a miracle of gods grace and goodness
Story of Rich man and Lazarus
- Rich man ignored Lazarus whenever he begged for money
- Rich man goes to hell and sees Lazarus alongside Abraham in heaven and asks for help, but Abraham refuses as he never helped Lazarus.
Who are the goats
Fail to take opportunities to help others
Flew criticism of afterlife
‘If Joe is witnessing his funeral, who is the Joe observing and the Joe being buried’
—–> Flew raises personal identity problem of resurrection, If the Joe observing is just spirit or soul is this the same person
Bernard Williams criticism of Heaven
Questioned whether an eternity in heaven would be desirable or actually boring
Karl Rahner criticism of Heaven
Argued it is limited earthly lives that gives our lives meaning, but this doesnt suggest that a timeless life in the afterlife wouldn’t have meaning
What did Aquinas define the soul as
Life principle and the form or char ateristics of living things
Aquinas on the afterlife
Used Aristotles idea of the soul but linked it to christianity arguing that the soul allows us to reach our potential by completing our purpose of living with god and seeing him face to face, this can only be done in the afterlife where we live in heaven in perfect timeless bliss
What is Aquinas view on afterlife called
Beatific Vision
Problems with Aquinas beatific vision
- If the soul is timeless then it never changes or improves
- Is the person after death really the same as the person before
Dante on Heaven
Heaven might be symbolic of a persons moral life with heaven and hell reflecting emotions, discards biblical teaching
Understandings of Heaven in the New Testament
Corinthians - It is where we will see God face to face
Revelation - Every tear will be wiped away and there will be no more death or mourning
What was the earliset Christian view on heaven and then why did this divide
Christians believed the Kingdom of God would return in their life time, but some christians died which sees a shift on teachings about a future kingdom of god and this divided more with different denominations
What do Catholics believe about Heaven
Beatific Vision, direct revelation of God
What do Protestants believe about Heaven
The same as catholic but expresses heaven as more of a place and community of those humans who chose christ
What are the advantages of understanding heaven symbolically
- Counters arguments that it would be boring
- Solves issues of within or without time
- More just helpful ways to focus on good moral conduct
- Dantes view that they are reflections of peoples moral lives, feeling of good actions can be interpreted as heaven
Purgatory
State of preparation for heaven where sins are repented to become fit for judgement into heaven
Catholic teachings on Purgatory
- Some souls aren’t sufficiently graceful enough to go to heaven so need cleansing
- Purging sins in this life helps reduce time in purgatory
- some punishment in purgatory
Rahner development on Purgatory
Purgatory is where the soul becomes aware of the consequences of all the sins and the learning of how these were wrong, the pain of repenting for these
Why don’t Protestants believe in purgatory
There is no Jesus or biblical evidence
What is the imagery of Purgatory
Purifying fires which cleanse humans to help them achieve the holiness for heaven
Catholic biblical support for Purgatory
Matthew says all sins can be forgiven, so Catholics interpret this as there must be a place after death where christians are given an opportunity to make up for sins before meeting God
What did Gregory of Nyssa argue that predated Purgatory
He talked of a place of cleansing fires where humans could be purified and redeemed in gods eyes after death
What is Hicks view on purgatory
He rejects that God would condemn people to eternal suffering instead proposing Universalism
Hicks Universalism
The same journey of soul making in our choices in life to become like God carries on after death, coinsides with Jesus teachings of reconciliation throughout life, he came up with this to counter the view that all non Christians would go to hell
Criticisms of Hick universalism
- Undermines Jesus uniqueness
- Makes good moral choices pointless if everyone reaches heaven in the end
Strengths of Purgatory
- longstanding catholic and christian tradition and central teaching of repentance
- Purgatory is more in line with gods all loving nature
Weakness of Purgatory
- No need for purgatory because a just god will reward those who tried to follow good lives
- It is a medieval invention
Luther on purgatory
Rejects it as a corrupt invention of the Catholic Church being abused to selll indulgences in the Middle Ages
Calvin on Purgatory
very little biblical basis and undermines gods ultimate grace in offering Jesus as salvation for all people
What are two interpretations of Hell
- Separation from god
- Eternal punishment
Hume on Hell
Hell calls gods justice into question as a finite sin deosnt warrant an infinite punishment
Hick on Hell
Contradicts with a loving god as it is eternal no opportunity for salvation, it was used as a method of control by religious authorities to scare people into obeying them, this punishment achieves nothing
What is much of the New Testament portrayal of Hell
A place of eternal fire where both body and soul will be destroyed
What are medieval views of hell now seen as
More products of their time as not hell is accepted as less violent and more guilt or just separation from god
CS Lewis on Hell
Hell is eternal separation from God
Augustines view on babies going to hell
Babies who die would go to hell because of orginial sin
What is the more spiritual state teaching based view of Hell
Hell is a spiritual state of psychological suffering of being separated from god, enforces teachings of acting morally
Symbolic view of Hell
Hell is a symbolic reflection of wrong moral actions so enforces the need for good moral actions
Reasons why Hell is eternal
- Biblical and church support
- People should be held to account if choicely refuse god and Jesus
- Must be a point at which someone fails to get to heavne
Reasons why Hell is not eternal
- Those who don’t get to heaven are simply annihilated, annhiliationism, supported by Jesus with the word Gehenna
- Hell isnt eternal and only exists until final judgement day
- A god of love would never condemn people to eternal punishing
Augustine on limited election
All humans are born with original sin and are corrupt not being able to save themselves, therefore it is up to gods grace who he saves
What is limited election
The idea that god chooses the eternal destiny of each human at the time they are born as he is omniscient
Problem with original sin
Jesus actions should have wiped all original sin
Calvin on predestination
God is in absolute control of the whole world and people choices and predestined some humans for hell and some for heaven
What is Calvin and Augustines view known as
Double Predestination, god is the only completely free being that chooses to give his grace to save some but also damn some
Barth on Unlimited election
Jesus brought salvation to the whole world and through him one can be elected, available to all people but only utilised by those who accept Jesus so Christians
Hick on Unlimited election
More universalist belief that everyone will be saved, idea of afterlife as a place of growing to become more godlike
—-> this came from his pluralist belief that all people prayed to the same divine
Who criticised Hicks view
Ratzinger - argued that it severely undermined the significance of Christs death on the cross if everyone is saved regardless of faith
Which two scholars argue there is no afterlife
Dawkins - Non scientific idea and doest exist
- It is just wishful thinking as seems incoherent to want terrible people to live forever
