Death and the afterlife Flashcards
what is a key teaching for the after life in the bible
the parable of the sheep and the goats
what does this aim to teach us
All nations will be gathered before him- all peoples will be judged before him
People will be divided in the same way the sheperds were before the goats
You will be granted heaven due to your actions on earth.
You will also be granted hell due to your actions on earth.
what does this parable remind us of
the fact that we are judged on what is in the inside not the outside, God already knows what happens on the outside
what to certain christians believe about death
it is a state of eternal sleeping before we wait for the final judgement to be made by God
what is the final judgement
the judgement made at the end of time for all by God, where our souls will be reunited with our bodies at the ressurection of the dead
what do other christians reject this with
particular judgement- this is when we are judged straight after death
how does the bible support this
we are able to see in the bible that people are judged straight after death through the story of lazarus and the parable of the rich man
how does the new testament present hell
an eternal fire where the soul and the body can be destroyed and there will be a gnashing of teeth
how do christians see hell
they either see it as a place of torture or a place of seperation from God where we experience psychological guilt
what does the roman catholic church say about hell
it describes hell as a place where people go to when they freely choose to not follow God, its a place of eternal seperation with eternal fire
what do other christians think of hell
they believe hell is a spiritual state for our soul
why do they believe this
focusing too much on hell as a place makes us lose touch with teaching, understanding hell to be a place of psychological suffering helps us see it as a state rather than a place, it also makes sense for us to see hell as a state if it seperates our soul and body
why do christians believe hell should be understood as a symbol of someones life on earth
the focus goes from being a punishment to focusing on the actions made for someone to not achieve salvation
why is it beneficial seeing it this way
it emphasises the psychological power of eternal punishment has on a persons actions
how does the old testament speak of heaven
a future transformation where we shift towards a messianic world- the lamb and lion will live without conflict, weapons will be used as farming tools
how does the new testament view heaven
a place where we will meet with God face to face as it is where he lives
what do catholics believe about heaven
a place where we come face to face with God in the most ultimate way possible- the beatific vision
what is the beatific vision
the most direct revelation of God we can imagine, it is an eternal reward for those who have chosen christ and his ways
how do protestants slightly differ from this view
they not only see heaven as a place where we are face to face with God but we also live with other believers
what is the difference with catholics and protestants
for catholics its a state but for protestants its a place
what is purgatory
this is a state everyone goes through after death where we are all cleansed of our sins
what does the roman catholic church say about purgatory
all who have a friendship with God but have not been purified from their sins will go through purification to get the holiness needed for salvation
what can catholics point to to support their view
matthew 12:31- some sins can be forgiven, not all but some. all sins other than blasphemy against the soul
where can purgatory be found in writings
writing of origen and writings of gregory of nyssa. talked about a place of purification where Gods work of redemption was complete
