Death and the Afterlife

what does the parable of the sheep and the goats teach about the afterlife

at the end of time jesus will come and seperate the good from the bad.

the good are those who helped others in life the bad are those who did not

quote from the parable of the sheep and the goats that jesus uses to talk about helping others which is helping him

‘whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters, you did for me’

key teaching points from the parable of the sheep and the goats

god will judge our actions not just our religious observance

christ identifies himself with the poo and hungry - we help or fail to help christ himself

jesus’ own actions of looking after the marginalised are a model for christians of how to act

jesus’ resurrection and physical resurrection

jesus did not appear as a ghost there was no corpse left after the resurrection

jesus’ resurrection and wounds

jesus appeared with a ‘glorified body’ but still had the wounds of his suffering

jesus’ resurrection and victory

the resurrection is a victory over sin and death

jesus’ resurrection and sharing

believers will share in the resurrection

jesus’ resurrection and christ in heaven

the ascension marks the physical arrival of christ in heaven

quote for heaven being eternal

‘god will have a house in heaven for us to live …. which will last forever’

quote for eternal life including a physical element

‘by being clothed with it we shall not be without a body’

quote for eternal life including union/life with god

‘he will live with them and they shall be his people’

quote for hell being a physical place

‘the place for them is the lake burning with fire and sulfur’

quote for heaven not being exclusively for christians

‘there are many rooms in my fathers house’

quote for heaven being a physical place

‘the street of the city was of pure gold’

quote for hell includes literal suffering

‘and in hades, where he was in great pain’

quote for there being different stages to judgement

‘if what was built on the foundations survives the fire, the builder will receive a reward’

quote for punishment being eternal

‘whoever says something against the holy spirit will not be forgiven - now or ever’

what is final judgement

the judgement of all people at the end of time

what is particular judgement

the judgement of individuals at the moment of death

what does the roman catholic church teach about the time of judgement

at the moment of death people are judged individually and go to either heaven, purgatory or hell

what do catholics, anglicans and methodists believe about the soul after death

it will be reunited with the body at final judgement

the roman catholic churches belief on both particular and final judgment

believes in both

the soul will be judged after death and then again at the end of time when everyone will be resurrected

which denomination only speaks of final judgement

methodists

what does jesus’ word to the criminal on the cross suggest about time of judgement (‘today you will be with me in paradise’)

we go to heaven straight away

is the parable of the rich man and lazarus particular or final judgement

particular

what does the parable of the rich man and lazarus teach about both heaven and hell

they are actual places

there is no movement between heaven and hell

what does the parable of the rich man and lazarus teach about heaven/getting to heaven

people on earth have the information they need to get into heaven - in the scriptures

an awareness of the value and needs of others results in closeness with god in the afterlife

what does the parable of the rich man and lazarus teach about hell/going to hell

lack of consideration for others leads to hell

those in hell are aware of the happiness of those in heaven and it increases there suffering

the wicked will receive just punishment if not now the in the next life

non biblical reasons for particular judgement

it makes no sense for judgment to be delayed - where doe the soul go while waiting

heaven and hell may not be literal places - so there is no reason to wait for reward or punishment

non biblical reasons for final judgement

our bodies decay on earth so there must be a moment when they are all resurrected together

as time is something different after death its entirely possible we just sleep until the moment of judgement

heaven as an actual place

where a person may go after death and experience and emotional happiness

heaven as a spiritual state

a person experiences as part of their spiritual journey after death

heaven as a symbol

symbols of a person’s spiritual journey after death

N.T. Wrights view of heaven as a physical place

heaven is the world redeemed '

when jesus returns to judge the world and redeem it

the fall brought disruption and salvation will be incomplete if the world is unredeemed

an embodied and physical understanding of heaven

heaven and the transformation of creation

god made world good

sin came into the world

kog will not become complete until the end of time when jesus will return to the earth and lead to cosmic reconciliation and the restoration of creation to its proper order

strengths of heaven being an actual place

matched to the revealed theology of the bible

resolves issues of personal identity that were raised by aquinas’ beatific vision

it also seems to fulfil both human and spiritual longings (eg being reunited with loved ones but still worshipping god)

bernard williams weaknesses of heaven as an actual place

ongoing existence would result in boredom and inertia

the limited timeframe of our lives gives our earthly life meaning and urgency

unlimited time would mean that all goals would be achievable and all choices would ultimately become meaningless

john martin fischers response to williams

an ending life could be full of a mix of desirable things

a longer life also increases that chance of the experience of boredom fitting into a larger context of meaningful experience

other weaknesses of heaven being an an actual place

if we cannot experience sadness or loss it raises the question of whether we are still us

we lose a significant amount of our free will and agency which would significantly undermine the assertion that our personal identity has continued after death

also begs the question of why did god not just make us tis state to start with (he did and the oops the fall)

strengths of heaven being a spiritual state

solves the problem of what people ‘do’ for eternity

if heaven is one simultaneous moment there is no issue of boredom or inertia that would occur if heaven is a place in time

weaknesses of heaven being a spiritual state

are you ‘you’ without change

our conception of who we are come from our interaction with external stimuli and thought processes

what is dantes inferno

the first part of an epic poem

there a 9 circles of hell involved

the punishments in these circles often fit the sin that has been committed

for example greed’s inhabitants drag around heavy weights and boulders with their chest all the time

could be interpreted as retributive punishment

couple of quotes about hell

and throw them into the blazing furnace where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth (matthew 13:50)

do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. rather be afraid of the one who can destroy both soul and body in hell (matthew 10:28)

explain hell as a place of punishment

balances the scales of justice

a literal lake of fire in which the dammed will experience the horror of everlasting torment

its fully deserved and therefore just

explain hell as a spiritual place

hell is essentially psychological and spiritual in nature, consisting of the knowledge that every possibility for joy and happiness has been lost forever

its a condition in which self-loathing, hatred for others, hopelessness and infinite despair consumes the soul like a metaphorical fire.

what is a majority of protestants view of hell

hell will be a place of perpetual conscious torment both physical and spiritual

this is known as the eternal conscious torment view

what is humes issues with hell

the idea of hell as a punishment is inherently unjust

its unjust for a finite sin to be punished infinitely

it does not allow for a gradation of sin (are all sins worthy of the same form of punishment)

what is anselms response to humes hell criticism

because god is infinitely great the slightest offense is infinitely serious and if its infinitely serious then no suffering the sinner endures over a finite period of tie could possibly pay for it

objections to anselms view of hell/punishment

when we hold someone accountable we consider their accountability and agency in their decision

we rarely consider who the victim was when considering the correct punishment

john hicks view of hell as punishment

punishment does not solve the sin

its not a solution to healing

its a reaction not a repair

this view of hell is simply for social control

the catholic churches view of hell

places less emphasis on the idea of god inflicting punishment

they insist its a real place or state

the main element of the punishment is alienation from god which is a result of our actions

we chose hell and the suffering we endure is a result of our free choices

C.S. Lewis quote on how hell is a choice

‘the doors of hell are locked on the inside’

strengths of hell as a choice

overcomes the problem of a loving god punishing people for sins

places greater emphasis on personal responsibility

experience of hell is justified coz its a choice

means god hasn’t rejected anyone

weaknesses of hell as a choice

why would people persist in rejecting god even after surviving death and experiencing hell

if we have free will should it not be possible to change when we are experiencing the negative state

responses to the weaknesses of hell as a choice

richard swinburne suggests that once our will is fixed for bad we shall never desire or seek what we have missed as we’ve made an irrevocable choice of character

buckareff and plug suggest god will always have an open door policy towards those in hell

what is annihilationism

the view adopted by jehovah witnesses (and some protestants) that resurrection and the immortality of the soul are conditional

god will chose to bring to an end the existence of those who are judged to noy be worthy of heaven

also referred to as second death

strengths of annihilationism

overcomes the problems of other 2 ideas

avoid problem of punishment but also the persistence of punishment but also the persistence of free will

seems less brutal and inhumane

weaknesses of annihilationism

not taught by jesus (he very clearly referred to hell as a place of punishment

god would essentially carry out a mass execution on all people regardless of the severity of their sins which still seems unjust

hell as symbolic of earthly states

simply states we experience in life when we do not act in accordance with our telos

the sum of all the negative moments in life

which book refers to the end of time

revelation

what is a beatific vision and how is it heaven

meeting god face to face - its a state not a place

what is purgatory

a spiritual state that people who although arnt bad enough for hell arnt good enough for heaven either so need to go through a form of purification before heaven

who believes in purgatory

the catholic church

CCC quote about purgatory

‘purification so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven

what is hicks universalism

we are all going to heaven

we are in the vale of soul making - where choices are a part of a journey to become more god like in ourselves

this continues after death if we are not yet perfectly transformed into gods likeness

no single religion is true - all people can come closer to god

what is election

the idea that god chooses where we go after death

what is limited election

the view that only a few christians will be saved

what is unlimited election

the view that salvation is offered to everyone but only some will accept the offer and chose to be saved

what is double predestination

the view that god chooses those who go to heaven and also those who go to hell s

what is single predestination

the view that god chooses those who go to heaven

what were augustines ideas on election

we are all born corrupt

no one is worthy of gods help

god decides who gets his grace and will therefore go to heaven

what were calvins views on election

‘all are not created on equal terms but soem are preordained to eternal life others eternal damnation’

calvin sees election as not only a result of gods foreknowledge but also he believes our actions are also controlled by god

what is the dutch reformed churches view on election

The Dutch Reformed Church have summarised their Calvinist view in the following acronym: 

Total depravity: Due to original sin 

Unconditional Election: God chooses some and not others as he wills. 

Limited atonement: Christ only died for the elect 

Irresistible grace: If God calls you-you cannot resist 

Perseverance of the elect/Saints: ‘once saved always saved.’ 

what is the catholic churches view on election

people send themselves to hell

god knows that some people will fulfil their calling and so these people are chosen for heaven

single predestination

the omnibenevolence of god and election

its essential for everyone to go to heaven because of gods omnibenevolence

similar to the inconsistent triad

the atonement of jesus

supporters of universalism would also point out that jesus died to redeem human nature

if people were still to go to hell it would suggest the sacrifice was insufficient to save them

D.Z. Philips idea of heaven, hell and purgatory as symbolic states

religious imagery about heaven, hell, and purgatory are symbols of how people can live their lives

they are not states in the future but symbolic of our lives here and now

which state they are in when they die is the state their ‘eternal life’ is because once someone is dead their life is fixed forever