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Dianne
Mutersbaugh
wrote:
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Hi, guys —
In the Creed, we say:
He descended into Hell.
I don't understand this and it has been bothering
me to the point that I usually take that line
out when saying the Creed.
- Could give me clarification on what this
means?
It just can't mean what it says.
Thank you,
Dianne
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Can
you clarify what He descended into Hell means
in the Creed? }
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and in a similar question:
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Anthony
Jones wrote:
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Hi, guys —
How did Jesus descend into Hell and stay there
for three days, if he said to the good
thief on the Cross:
Today you will be with Me in Paradise?
Also, some people believe that when we die,
we sleep in Christ. I've always taken this
to mean those believers who have died — those
who sleep in Christ — but
some people take it to literally mean that
believers who die, sleep in Christ until the
Second Coming.
- What do Catholics believe about this?
Finally, I've been reading The Gospel
of the Nazarenes. It's also been published
under the title: The Gospel of the Holy
Twelve.
- Has anyone on this site read it (and the
history that's included in the beginning)?
- If so, what did you think of it?
Anthony
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How did Jesus descend into Hell if He said this to the thief and what does sleep in Christ mean? }
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John
replied:
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Dianne,
Thank you for your timely question.
If you attend Mass this Sunday you'll
get the answer in the second reading.
1 Peter 3:18-20 states:
For Christ also suffered for sins
once, the righteous for the sake
of the unrighteous, that he might
lead you to God. Put to death
in the flesh, he was brought to
life in the spirit. In it he also
went to preach to the spirits
in prison, who had once been disobedient
while God patiently waited in
the days of Noah during the building
of the ark, in which a few persons,
eight in all, were saved through
water.
1 Peter 3:18-20 (NABRE)
Prior to the Cross, no one could
enter Heaven. All souls went to Sheol or Hades.
Those who had rejected God and the
grace given to them, were damned. Those
who had accepted God and whatever
grace they had been given, were in
a state of purification or a sort
of holding place. (Note: I wouldn't
get too caught up in defining it
as a location as more of a condition. This
is somewhat of a metaphorical
language that explains a Mystery.)
When
Christ died, he
went to Sheol or Hades and
revealed Himself to those who
had responded to His grace
and took them to Heaven. Again,
this could be imagery; don't
get caught up in the geography
of Heaven and Hell.
The Book of Hebrews, Chapter 11 talks
about all the Old Testament believers
that died awaiting the promise. Jesus
went to them and delivered the promise
of Redemption.
We sometimes get confused because
both Sheol and Hades are translated
as Hell, but it's really not the
final damned destination. The Book
of Revelation tells us that Hell
(Hades) itself will be thrown into
the Lake of Fire.
Again we have a metaphor, but it's
important to note that Hades can
also refer to a purgative state (Purgatory) and
not to the Hell of the damned. Church
teaching is consistent with Revelation
in that it teaches that at the End
of Time, when Jesus returns, there
will be no more Purgatory.
This line in the Creed is often translated, He
descended to the dead. That's
a little less confusing.
Finally, it's never OK to purposely
omit a line from the Creed.
If you have a question, you need
to ask it and get it resolved. Men and women died to defend the
ancient Creeds. The Creeds of the
Church are part of the infallible
Church Teaching.
No one has the authority to mess
with them.
Thanks,
John
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Mary
Ann replied:
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Anthony,
The Hades of the Creed in Latin,
translated Hell in English, is the
abode of the dead, Sheol in Hebrew.
Prior to the Death of Christ, the
souls of the Just could not go to
Heaven. St. Peter speaks of Christ preaching
to the just when He died. Christ
went to the abode of the dead and
brought them the Gospel and liberated
them. (1 Peter 3:19)
Another interpretation can be seen
of the words, as well. That by experiencing
the absence of His Father, He experienced
Hell, and in experiencing a death
that no human has experienced,
the radical separation of soul
and body experienced as a destruction,
Christ is the only one who has ever
experienced death. He swallowed up
this death in Himself, because as
God, His Body and Soul remained possessed
by God even as His Human Soul was
separated from His Body.
As a result, all humans now are able
to die in Him, that is, not truly
die at all, that is, they are not
destroyed forever. Their body and
soul will reunite. Until that time,
as a complete being, we are said
to sleep, because our
bodies die but our principle of life,
our soul, remains alive, awaiting
the Resurrection of the body at the
Second Coming.
Mary Ann
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Eric
replied:
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Hi, Anthony —
We do not believe in soul sleep.
See:
I've never heard of the Gospel of
the Nazarenes but see the Wikipedia
article.
Eric
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Paul
replied:
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Hi Anthony,
When St. Paul speaks of those who
have fallen asleep we see that
as a metaphor for those who have
died, whose souls are now disembodied.
Although there may be hints in Scripture
of what this condition is like before
Christ comes back again and the resurrection
of the body occurs,
we really don't know.
We do know that the disembodied soul
is immediately judged and will experience
Heaven, Hell or Purgatory.
Hope this helps,
Paul
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