Death and the Afterlife Notes
Heaven and Hell
Matthew 25 - Parable of the sheep and the goats:
Judgment “he will separate the people one from another
as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats”
Permanence the righteous will go to “life eternal” but the
others will suffer “everlasting punishment”
Heaven “come you who are blessed by my father take your
inheritance the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of
the world”
Hell “those on his left, depart from me, you who are cursed
into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels”
Arguments concerning permanence in heaven/hell:
Someone who screwed up in their life ends up going to hell
FOREVER. Such an eternal punishment can’t be reconciled with
an all-loving God
- J.L Mackie with inconsistent triad
Hume- immorality of eternal punishment for finite wrongdoing
It is not morally justified that finite crimes should be punished
eternally = if hell is eternal there can’t be an omnibenevolent
God. This supports the point above
John Hick – soul making theodicy – hell is a temporary place
for spiritual development to take place before going to heaven.
This is an attempt to respond to the accusations above.
Bible suggests the afterlife is permanent in the parable of the
sheep and the goats from Matthew 25
, LITERAL/PHYSICAL INTERPRETATION
First branch of physical, another dimension
Heaven = perfect, full of physical pleasures we know on earth
= with physical bodies/form = we have bodily sensations like
we have now
- E.g. when new Jerusalem talked about in revelations-
physical dimensions like jewels and gold
- “First fruits of us all” – Jesus having a physical resurrection
= we will all be physically resurrected too (quote from
Corinthians)
- “Those who sleep in death will also be raised”- just like
Jesus was
Hell = physical pain, suffering and torture
- E.g. “fiery lake of burning sulfur” Revelations
The second branch of physical is the transformation of
Earth to a prelapsarian state of perfection
= this new earth will be like the garden of Eden for the entire
world / God’s idea of paradise
This suggests general judgement (at the end of time) rather
than particular judgement (immediately after death)
No sin, no death, no barrier to mankind’s relationship with God
anymore
- “Heavenly bodies will be burned and dissolved” when
earth burns down for new earth
- “For the new heavens and new earth”- Peter
= EVERLASTING (within time/ has a starting point) AND
PERMANENT
= EMBODIED AFTERLIFE
Arguments against physical heaven + hell
What body will you be resurrected in??
- If you die as an old crippled 90yo that won’t be heavenly
to be resurrected in
Heaven and Hell
Matthew 25 - Parable of the sheep and the goats:
Judgment “he will separate the people one from another
as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats”
Permanence the righteous will go to “life eternal” but the
others will suffer “everlasting punishment”
Heaven “come you who are blessed by my father take your
inheritance the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of
the world”
Hell “those on his left, depart from me, you who are cursed
into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels”
Arguments concerning permanence in heaven/hell:
Someone who screwed up in their life ends up going to hell
FOREVER. Such an eternal punishment can’t be reconciled with
an all-loving God
- J.L Mackie with inconsistent triad
Hume- immorality of eternal punishment for finite wrongdoing
It is not morally justified that finite crimes should be punished
eternally = if hell is eternal there can’t be an omnibenevolent
God. This supports the point above
John Hick – soul making theodicy – hell is a temporary place
for spiritual development to take place before going to heaven.
This is an attempt to respond to the accusations above.
Bible suggests the afterlife is permanent in the parable of the
sheep and the goats from Matthew 25
, LITERAL/PHYSICAL INTERPRETATION
First branch of physical, another dimension
Heaven = perfect, full of physical pleasures we know on earth
= with physical bodies/form = we have bodily sensations like
we have now
- E.g. when new Jerusalem talked about in revelations-
physical dimensions like jewels and gold
- “First fruits of us all” – Jesus having a physical resurrection
= we will all be physically resurrected too (quote from
Corinthians)
- “Those who sleep in death will also be raised”- just like
Jesus was
Hell = physical pain, suffering and torture
- E.g. “fiery lake of burning sulfur” Revelations
The second branch of physical is the transformation of
Earth to a prelapsarian state of perfection
= this new earth will be like the garden of Eden for the entire
world / God’s idea of paradise
This suggests general judgement (at the end of time) rather
than particular judgement (immediately after death)
No sin, no death, no barrier to mankind’s relationship with God
anymore
- “Heavenly bodies will be burned and dissolved” when
earth burns down for new earth
- “For the new heavens and new earth”- Peter
= EVERLASTING (within time/ has a starting point) AND
PERMANENT
= EMBODIED AFTERLIFE
Arguments against physical heaven + hell
What body will you be resurrected in??
- If you die as an old crippled 90yo that won’t be heavenly
to be resurrected in
