The Afterlife

Like the adherents of many other religions, Christians believe that human existence extends beyond this life. In the afterlife, the consequences of the choices people make now in relation to God and God’s grace will be fully realized.

Christian beliefs about the afterlife have been influenced by the cultures in which Christianity has developed, as well as by scripture. As a result, they are extremely varied and complex.

Heaven

Perhaps it is best to begin with what most Christians believe about heaven. In essence, heaven is perfect and eternal union with God, the fulfillment of the true purpose and deepest desire of human beings. Whether understood as an actual place or a state of being, as physical or spiritual, as earthly or celestial, “heaven” always means the ineffable bliss of everlasting existence in the loving presence of God.

Although the New Testament texts make frequent reference to heaven, they do not describe it in detail. Instead, the New Testament authors provide glimpses of heaven as the city of God, the heavenly Jerusalem, life everlasting, the holy place, and the great reward. In the gospels, Jesus speaks of heaven as “paradise” (Luke 23:43) and as a place he will prepare for his followers (John 14:2-3). Paul’s letters describe heaven both as the present dwelling place of God and as the future home of believers. According to Paul, Christians can be certain of heaven because their experience of the Holy Spirit in this life gives them a taste of a future reality in which mortality will be “swallowed up by life” (2 Corinthians 5:4).

For some Christians, heaven is not a place but a spiritual state of being. This view evinces the influence of ancient Greek thought, which held that the true self is an immortal soul that can exist apart from the body and beyond space and time.

Purgatory One of the most striking differences between Christian views of the afterlife concerns purgatory. In Roman Catholic thought, purgatory is an intermediate place or state between earthly life and heaven in which the souls of the dead suffer temporal punishment due for sin. Just as a friend might forgive you for some wrong you have done but still expect you to do something to demonstrate your sorrow, Roman Catholic doctrine holds that sinners must make reparation or satisfaction for sins already forgiven by God. Traditionally imagined as a cleansing fire, purgatory offers the opportunity to complete the work of reparation left undone in earthly life. The scriptural basis for belief in purgatory is found in 2 Maccabees (12:39-45), a deuterocanonical text in which prayer is offered for the dead so that “they might be released from their sin.”

Although Orthodox Christianity does not accept the Roman Catholic doctrine of purgatory, most Orthodox Christians believe that after death souls enter a “condition of waiting” in which they can benefit from prayers said on their behalf. Protestant Christians reject belief in purgatory because they find no basis for it in scripture (most Protestant Bibles do not include 2 Maccabees).

Hell

Hell is not so much God’s punishment for sin as the self-imposed consequence of rejecting God’s grace. Some Christians understand hell as an actual place, others think of it as a state of being, and still others do not believe in hell at all. In describing why hell must exist, one Orthodox writer has said: “God will not force us to love Him, for love is no longer love if it is not free; how then can God reconcile to Himself those who refuse all reconciliation?”-

The word translated as “hell” in English versions of the New Testament is Gehenna, the name of a valley bordering Jerusalem where many Jews in the time of Jesus expected that the worst of sinners would one day suffer torment. Thus, Gehenna works well as a way of illustrating the pain of separation from God. Although hell clearly refers to a state of existence, there is little basis in the New Testament for understanding it as an actual place. It was not until the early Middle Ages that hell was transformed in the popular imagination into a subterranean pit of fiery horrors. Although hell has long been understood as a necessary expression of divine justice, many Christian thinkers have found this idea to be inconsistent with God’s love. Some have taught that God will ultimately save all people from the consequences of sin.

Comparison of Christian Traditions

Apostolic Succession

Orthodox: An important feature of Orthodox belief; ensures continuity with the Church established by Christ through a succession of bishops.

Roman Catholic: An important feature of Roman Catholic belief; ensures continuity with the Church established by Christ through a succession of bishops.

Protestant: Rejected by most Protestants.

Authority of Scripture and Tradition

Orthodox: Tradition is the transmission of divine truth taught by Christ and the apostles. Scripture is just one form of tradition. Others include the liturgy, the Holy Mysteries (i.e., sacraments), doctrines, religious art, and texts about the lives of saints.

Roman Catholic: Divine truth taught by Christ and the apostles is transmitted by means of scripture and tradition. Apart from this distinction between scripture and tradition, tradition is understood largely as it is in Orthodox Christianity.

Protestant: Scripture alone is an authoritative source for Christian doctrine.

Bible

Orthodox: Consists of the Old Testament, New Testament, and deuterocanonical books.

Roman Catholic: Consists of Old Testament, New Testament, and deuterocanonical books.

Protestant: Consists of Old and New Testaments only.

Church Government

Orthodox: Episcopal. Authority is in the hands of bishops (Greek, episkopoi), with the Ecumenical Patriarch recognized as the “first among equals.”

Roman Catholic: Episcopal. Authority is in the hands of bishops. The Bishop of Rome (i.e., the pope) has primacy over all other bishops.

Protestant: Although some Protestants, such as Lutherans and Methodists, recognize the authority of bishops, most reject episcopal government in favor of other forms that place authority in the hands of individual congregations or other independent governing bodies.

Clergy: Gender and Celibacy Orthodox: All clergy must be male. Priests and deacons may marry but only before ordination. Bishops must be celibate.

Roman Catholic: All clergy must be male. Priests and bishops must be celibate, with the exception of priests in the Eastern Rite of the Roman Catholic Church, who may marry.

Protestant: Many churches ordain women. Clergy may marry.

Eucharist

Orthodox: Christ is truly present in the Eucharist; the bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ by means that are a divine mystery.

Roman Catholic: Christ is truly present in the Eucharist; the bread and wine become the body and blood of Christ through “transubstantiation,” the transformation of the inner substance of these elements but not their outward appearance.

Protestant: For most Protestants, the bread and wine are not changed.

Mary

Orthodox: Venerated as a saint and Theotokos (Greek, “Mother of God”)

Roman Catholic: Venerated as a saint and “Mother of God”

Protestant: Regarded as a woman of great virtue chosen by God to be the mother of Christ. Protestants do not venerate Mary as a saint.

Papacy

Orthodox: The pope is the successor of St. Peter as Bishop of Rome and so enjoys a position of honor among them, but he has no authority over other bishops.

Roman Catholic: The pope is the successor of St. Peter as Bishop of Rome and, as the Vicar (i.e., representative) of Christ, has authority over the Church. He is infallible when, through the action of the Holy Spirit, he defines doctrines relating to faith and morals.

Protestant: The pope is the leader of the Roman Catholic Church and has no authority outside the Roman Catholic Church.

Sacraments

Orthodox: The sacraments, or “holy mysteries,” are ways in which God discloses himself and imparts grace. Although usually said to be seven in number—Baptism, Chrismation, Eucharist, Confession, Holy Unction, Marriage, and Ordination— Orthodoxy regards all that the Church does as sacramental and has never defined the sacraments as seven.

Roman Catholic: There are seven sacraments, visible signs and channels of divine grace, which is invisible. The seven are the same as those in Orthodoxy, with some known by different names: Confirmation (Chrismation), Reconciliation (Confession), Anointing of the Sick (Holy Unction), Holy Orders (Ordination).

Protestant: Only two sacraments are generally recognized: Baptism and the Eucharist.