People call heaven the highest bliss that a person can experience. The Bible gives a description of heaven in Orthodoxy on various levels: spiritual, mental and physical. Very often Christians call the Kingdom of Heaven paradise, a place given by the Creator for a happy life for the glory of the Creator.
Eden - heaven on earth
Reading the Bible carefully, we see that the word “paradise” is first described in Genesis 2:8.
Before this, the Almighty created Heaven and earth, the stars, plants and fauna, and only then in the east he founded the paradise of Eden, the location of which can be determined by a geographical map. The Bible says that one river flowed from Eden, which divided into four: Pishon, Gihon, Tigris and Euphrates.
Garden of Eden
If the first two rivers have sunk into oblivion, the Tigris and Euphrates still exist today, which serves as indisputable proof for atheists of the existence of Eden. Modern Christians identify the concepts of heaven and Eden, although Eden is the name of a place, and paradise is the place where the Divine essence resides. The mercy of the Lord and His care for His children are amazing. The Loving Father first prepared everything for the bliss of the first people, and then created them themselves.
Adam and Eve were kicked out of their place of bliss, but the first earthly couple did not lose the love of God. Adam and Eve could be in direct communication with the Creator, they saw Him and were filled with His mercy. It is difficult to imagine the feelings of people who were “shrouded” in the love of the Creator.
In the structure of the Garden of Eden, theologians of the world have traced three components connected together:
- Eden;
- external world.
Eden became the prototype for the creation of the tabernacle, a tent created according to the descriptions given by the Creator. The Tabernacle served as the place of temple services for the Jews while moving through the desert and consisted of the Holy of Holies - paradise, the Sanctuary - Eden, and the outer court - the outer world.
The Tabernacle and its Ministry
In the design of modern temples one can also draw a parallel with the habitat of the first people. The altar is a symbol of the heavenly corner, the meal is associated with Eden, and the porch is a symbol of the outside world.
You should not look for the location of the Garden of Eden on modern maps, because it was created even before the flood, after which the earth’s crust changed.
For Orthodox believers, the Garden of Eden has become a place given by the Creator, where there is no suffering, illness, or death itself. Great is the promise of the Most High given in the Revelation of John. It says that the heavenly corner on earth will be restored. (Rev. 21:1)
Important! The description of heaven in Orthodoxy implies not only the geographical location of the Garden of Eden, but the bliss of being in the love of the Creator in spirit and soul, both now and in eternity.
The Kingdom of God is a heavenly Eden
A great consolation for people who have lost their loved ones is the possibility of meeting them in heaven. The kingdom of heaven, promised by Jesus Christ, is in heaven and on earth, in the hearts of Christians.
The goal of earthly life, filled with suffering, wars, cataclysms, anxiety for tomorrow and one’s descendants, is the transition to Heavenly Jerusalem.
In the Gospel of Matthew 25:34 there is a promise of inheriting a prepared corner of Eden in Heaven, Jesus promises to drink wine with his disciples in the kingdom of the Father. (Matthew 26:29)
The Revelation of John describes paradise in heaven, which the prophet saw with his own eyes.
Vision of John the Evangelist
According to the testimonies of St. Theodora, Euphrosyne, St. Andrew the Fool (each of them at one time was raised into heaven to the third heaven), the heavenly corner exists.
Testimony of Andrei Yurodivy
I saw myself dressed in the brightest robe, as if woven from lightning; a crown was on my head, woven from great flowers, and I was girded with a royal belt.
Rejoicing at this beauty, marveling with my mind and heart at the indescribable beauty of God's paradise, I walked around it and had fun. There were many gardens with tall trees: they swayed with their tops and amused the eyes, a great fragrance emanated from their branches... It is impossible to compare those trees to any earthly tree: God’s hand, and not man’s, planted them. There were countless birds in these gardens...
I saw a great river flowing in the middle (of the gardens) and filling them. On the other bank of the river there was a vineyard... Quiet and fragrant winds breathed there from four sides; from their breath the gardens shook and made a wonderful noise with their leaves... After that we entered into a wonderful flame, which did not scorch us, but only enlightened us.
I began to be horrified, and again the one who guided me (the angel) turned to me and gave me his hand, saying: “We must ascend even higher.” With this word we found ourselves above the third heaven, where I saw and heard many heavenly powers singing and praising God... (Rising even higher), I saw my Lord, like Isaiah the prophet once, sitting on a high and exalted throne, surrounded by seraphim.
He was clothed in a scarlet robe, His face shone with an indescribable light, and He turned His eyes towards me with love. Seeing Him, I fell on my face in front of Him... What joy then overwhelmed me from the vision of His face is impossible to express, so even now, remembering this vision, I am filled with indescribable sweetness." The Venerable Theodora saw in paradise "beautiful villages and numerous abodes prepared for those who love God,” and heard “the voice of joy and spiritual gladness.”
The Kingdom of God is within man
The message of the Kingdom of God given by Jesus Christ runs like a red thread throughout the New Testament. The Creator is love, when filled with this feeling for other people, a person fills his heart with special bliss, Heavenly paradise.
Jesus Christ sent His disciples to bring people the Good News about the future life in eternity. (Luke 9:2)
Understanding the truth of the existence of a corner of bliss in heaven, a person ceases to be afraid of death, he tries to live his earthly, very short path so that he spends eternal life not in hell, but surrounded by angels and the light of the Holy Trinity. A churchgoer, filled with the love that reigns in the Orthodox Church, with his earthly life accomplishes the feat of preparing for the transition to Heavenly Jerusalem.
Forgiveness of sins from God
One of the ways Orthodox Christians can be surrounded by angels in heaven is through forgiveness.. Throughout his earthly life, a person, wittingly or unwittingly, offends people, and he himself is offended by them. The Holy Church, by the great Grace of the Creator, bestowed upon believers the sacraments of Communion and Confession.
Read about confession and communion:
- What prayers are usually read before confession and communion?
The response of the truly Orthodox to the words “Forgive me,” after which the sound “God will forgive,” is striking. People have great trust in God; if a person forgives from a pure heart, then the Almighty will definitely forgive, this is His promise. “God will forgive” is not just an excuse, it is faith in the love of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
Very often an Orthodox person, weak in spirit, looks at the sins of another and compares his life with someone else’s. The worst thing is that on Judgment Day, every believer and non-believer will have to meet God face to face, and there will be no loved ones, relatives, neighbors and friends nearby. Everyone will give their own answer as to why they did not accept Jesus Christ into their hearts and did not receive an “entrance ticket” to heavenly paradise.
The Son of God said that only He is the road leading to God the Father. (John 14:1-6) Only I have faith in Christ, through His revelations a person is transformed from the inside, filling his heart with the Kingdom of God.
According to Metropolitan Hilarion, paradise is a state of the human soul, a bliss that can only be felt by the Orthodox, filled with the love of the Creator. The Metropolitan’s statements echo the words of the Evangelist Luke, who wrote that the Kingdom of God is within Christians. (Luke 17:20)
Learning to serve God through love for people, becoming the hands of Jesus on earth, filling the world with Christian love - these are the paths to filling the presence of God in the hearts of the Orthodox.
Return of heaven to earth
Psalm 37:29 states that the truly righteous will be the heirs of the new earth that God will create on our planet. Based on the prayer “Our Father,” one can trace the idea that Christ pointed out to Christians the coming of the Kingdom of God to earth.
Our Father who art in heaven! Hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven
New heavens and new earth in the Bible
The prophet Daniel wrote about a world government on earth led by Christ (Dan. 2:44), when God's rule will gather the nations and a new paradise will reign.
The prophet Isaiah also preached a new time, promising that the old times would seem like a bad dream. On the new Mount Zion there will be joy and gladness, and sorrow and sorrow will be removed.
Tell the timid souls: be strong, do not be afraid; Behold your God, vengeance will come, God’s recompense; He will come and save you.
Then the eyes of the blind will be opened, and the ears of the deaf will be unstopped.
Then the lame will leap up like a deer, and the tongue of the dumb will sing; For waters will break out in the desert, and streams in the desert.
And the ghost of waters will turn into a lake, and the thirsty earth into springs of water; in the jackals' home, where they rest, there will be a place for reeds and reeds.
And there will be a high road there, and the way along it will be called the holy way: the unclean will not walk on it, but it will be for them alone. Those who follow this path, even inexperienced ones, will not get lost.
The lion will not be there, and the wild beast will not mount him; he will not be found there, but the redeemed will walk.
And the redeemed of the Lord will return, they will come to Zion with joyful shouting; and everlasting joy will be upon their heads; they will find joy and gladness, and sorrow and sighing will be removed.
The prophet John was instructed to tell people the good news that God promises to return paradise to earth as it was in Eden without pain, sorrow and problems. The New Jerusalem, the kingdom of joy, love and bliss is described in the 21st chapter of Revelation; the apostle emphasizes that at this time people again receive the gift of seeing and communicating with the Creator.
In order to meet God in the future, according to Archpriest Chaplin, you need to be filled with faith in God so that you know Him on an earthly level and be sure that you recognize the Creator in heaven, and He will recognize you.
God offers people His love in exchange for loyalty and obedience, and then He will fill believers with wisdom under one condition - they will not seek the truth on their own, tasting the fruit of Good and Evil, tasting sin.
Important! A person who tries to deal with sins and righteousness on his own, without knowing God's instructions, will certainly be blinded by the devil through money, sex, power, pride and unforgiveness. Only the word of God reveals true heaven - the bliss of being in God's presence.
What is heaven in Orthodoxy and how to get there
— 90 percent of all believers imagine hell and heaven exactly as Dante described them: completely material. Similar ideas can often be found in Orthodox literature intended “for the general reader.” To what extent are such ideas acceptable?— First of all, it must be said that the crude ideas of the medieval Catholic West in no way correspond to the patristic Orthodox Tradition. The Holy Fathers of the Church, thinking about heaven and hell, always based their reasoning on the immeasurable goodness of God and never savored in detail (as we find in Dante) either the torment of hell or the bliss of heaven. Heaven and hell never seemed to them to be crudely material. Not by chance St. Simeon the New Theologian speaks: “Everyone imagines hell and the torments there as he wishes, but no one really knows what they are.”. In the same way, according to thought St. Ephraim the Syrian, “the hidden bosom of heaven is inaccessible to contemplation”. Discussing the mysteries of the next century, the Fathers of the Church teach, in accordance with the Gospel, that Gehenna is prepared not for people, but for fallen spirits rooted in evil, and Saint John Chrysostom notes the educational significance that hell has for a person: “We are in such a difficult situation that, if it were not for the fear of Gehenna, we, perhaps, would not even think of doing anything good.”. Modern Greek theologian Metropolitan Hierotheus Vlahos In general, he speaks of the absence in the teachings of the Fathers of the concept of created hell - thus, he decisively denies those crude ideas with which the French-Latin tradition is full. The Orthodox Fathers also mention subtle, spiritual, “external” heaven and hell, but they propose to pay the main attention to the “internal” origin of the state that awaits man in the next century. Spiritual heaven and hell are not reward and punishment from God, but, accordingly, the health and illness of the human soul, especially clearly manifested in another existence. Healthy souls, that is, those who have worked to cleanse themselves from passions, experience the enlightening effect of Divine grace, and sick souls, that is, those who have not deigned to undertake the work of cleansing, experience a scorching effect. On the other hand, we must understand that, except for God, no one and nothing can lay claim to perfect immateriality: angels and souls, of course, have a nature that is qualitatively different from the visible world, but still they are quite crude in comparison with the absolute Spirit of God. Therefore, their bliss or suffering cannot be imagined as purely ideal: they are linked to their natural structure or disorganization.
- Still, is there any difference between the paradise where the righteous go after death, the Kingdom of God and the future, eternal life after the general resurrection?
— Obviously, there is a difference, since, according to the Holy Fathers, both bliss and torment will increase after the general resurrection, when the souls of the righteous and sinners are reunited with their bodies restored from the dust. According to Scripture, a full-fledged person is a God-created unity of soul and body, therefore their separation is unnatural: it is one of the “wages of sin” and must be overcome. The Holy Fathers reasoned that the very union, the entry of the soul into the body resurrected by God, would already be the beginning of aggravated joy or suffering. The soul, uniting with its bodily members, with which it once did good or evil, will immediately experience special joy or sorrow and even disgust.
- About hell. It is clear why it is called “eternal torment”, but there is also such an expression as “eternal death”... What is this? Nothingness? In general, if all life is from God, then how can those who are rejected by God exist (even in eternal torment)?
— Actually, in the Holy Scriptures there is no expression “eternal death”; there is a combination "second death"(Acts 20 and 21). But they constantly talk about secrets "eternal life", "eternal glory" saved. The concept of “second” or “eternal” death is explained by the Holy Fathers. So, explaining her secret, St. Ignatiy Brianchaninov noted that “the hellish dungeons represent a strange and terrible destruction of life, while preserving life”. This eternal cessation of personal communication with God will be the main suffering of the condemned. St. Gregory Palamas This explains the combination of external and internal torment: “When all good hope is taken away and when there is despair of salvation, involuntary reproof and gnawing of conscience through crying will immeasurably increase the due torment.”.
Even in hell one cannot speak of the complete absence of God, Who fills the entire created world with Himself, without at the same time mixing with it. “If I go to hell, you are there”, proclaims the inspired David. However St. Maxim the Confessor speaks of the difference between the grace of being and well-being. It is obvious that in hell existence is preserved, but there cannot be well-being. A mysterious depletion of all good occurs, which can be called spiritual death. The creation created by God cannot renounce the gift of existence itself, and the presence of the Creator becomes painful for those who renounce being with Him, in Him and according to His laws.
— Why does the Church talk about two judgments: a private one, which happens to a person immediately after death, and a universal, terrible one? Isn't one enough?
— The soul, entering the afterlife, understands with all clarity that there can be no agreement between good and evil, between God and Satan. In the face of the Divine Light, the human soul sees itself and clearly realizes the relationship between light and darkness in itself. This is the beginning of the so-called private court, in which, one might say, a person judges and evaluates himself. And the final, last, Last Judgment is already connected with the Second Coming of the Savior and the final destinies of the world and man. This judgment is more mysterious, it takes into account both the intercession of the Church for its children, especially through the bloodless liturgical sacrifice offered in the course of history, and the deep omniscience of God about each of His creations and the final determination of every free person in his relationship to God when He appears in front of everyone.
— In our lives, people who deny someone’s love—whether Divine or human—live very well: they, as they say, do not burden themselves with unnecessary problems. Why, after death, denying Divine love, will they suffer? In other words: if a person himself, of his own free will, according to his own taste, chose the path of opposing God, why will he suffer from this?
— The suffering of a person who has rejected God and Divine love, who has rejected Christian self-sacrifice, will consist in the fact that all the infinite beauty of God, who is Love, will be revealed to him. The ugliness of his own egoistic existence will also be revealed to him. Having fully realized the true state of affairs, an egoist will inevitably feel suffering - this is how a freak and a traitor suffers when he finds himself in the company of noble and beautiful heroes. “Those tormented in Gehenna are struck by the scourge of love! And how bitter and harsh is this torment of love!”- this is how the hellish torment of fruitless repentance looks St. Isaac the Syrian. At the same time, it must be emphasized that the self-loving pride in which the inhabitants of hell become ossified will not allow them to admit that they are wrong and the ugliness of the path they have chosen, despite its absurdity. The purpose and meaning of any path are most obvious at its end, just as the quality of a fruit is clear during its ripening, and since hell is the end and the result of an atheistic choice, both the foundations of existence and the bitter consequences of proud and unrepentant resistance to the Creator will become clear in it. .
— Humanly speaking, not all people are remarkably good and not all are hopelessly evil. There are few saints and villains, the bulk are gray: both good and evil (or perhaps, more accurately: neither good nor evil). It seems that we do not reach heaven, but hellish torment is too cruel in our case. Why doesn't the Church talk about any intermediate state?
“It’s dangerous to dream about getting some kind of easy, average place in your future life, for which you don’t have to really strain your will.” The person is already too relaxed spiritually. The Holy Fathers talk about different abodes in heaven and hell, but nevertheless they clearly testify to a clear division at the Judgment of God, which no one can avoid. Probably, many sins of human earthly life can be conditionally called “small”, justified by human weakness. Nevertheless, the mystery of God's judgment is that this judgment will still happen, although God's only desire is general salvation. Lord “wants all people to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth”(1 Tim. 2:4). Strictly speaking, we should fear not so much external punishment as internal punishment, not hell as the final condemnation, but even a small insult to the goodness of God. At the old man's Paisius of Athos there is a thought that not many will go to hell, but even if we escape it, what will it be like for us to appear before the Face of God with an uncleaned conscience? This should be the Christian's main concern.
In addition, it is important to understand that upon entering the spiritual world, a lightning-fast struggle takes place in the human soul between the darkness and light living in it. And it is unclear what the result of this battle of incompatible forces will be, revealing their essence, hidden until death under the “veil of flesh.” This internal confrontation itself is already painful for their bearer, and it is generally difficult to say how suffocating the victory of inner darkness over light is.
— And also about “small sin.” Is it really possible to go to hell for eating a cutlet during Lent? For smoking? Because he occasionally allowed himself some not quite decent thoughts (not actions)? In a word, for the fact that I was not pulled into line every second of my life, but sometimes allowed myself to “relax a little” - by human standards, is it completely excusable?
“The point is not in the apparent cruelty of God, who is supposedly ready to send to Gehenna for minor human weakness, but in the mysterious accumulation of the power of sin in the soul. After all, a “small” sin, although “small,” is committed, as a rule, many times. Just as sand, consisting of small grains of sand, can weigh no less than a large stone, so a small sin gains strength and weight over time and can weigh on the soul no less than a “big” sin committed once. In addition, very often in our lives, relaxation “in small things” imperceptibly leads to large and very serious sins. It is no coincidence that the Lord said: “... faithful in little and faithful in much"(Luke 16:10). Excessive tension and pettiness often even harm our spiritual life and do not bring us closer to God, but demandingness in our attitude towards ourselves, our spiritual life, our attitude towards our neighbors and towards the Lord Himself is natural and obligatory for a Christian.
Questions asked by Alexey Bakulin
Heaven is not so much a place as a state of mind; just as hell is suffering resulting from the inability to love and non-participation in the Divine light, so heaven is the bliss of the soul resulting from the excess of love and light, to which the one who has united with Christ fully and completely participates. This is not contradicted by the fact that heaven is described as a place with various “abodes” and “chambers”; all descriptions of paradise are only attempts to express in human language that which is inexpressible and transcends the mind.
In the Bible, "paradise" (paradeisos) is the garden where God placed man; In the ancient church tradition, the same word was used to describe the future bliss of people redeemed and saved by Christ. It is also called the “Kingdom of Heaven,” “the life of the age to come,” “the eighth day,” “the new heaven,” “the heavenly Jerusalem.” The Holy Apostle John the Theologian says: “And I saw a new heaven and a new earth, for the first heaven and the first earth had already passed away, and there was no more sea; And I, John, saw the holy city of Jerusalem, new, coming down from God from heaven, prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from heaven saying, “Behold, the tabernacle of God is with men, and He will dwell with them, they will be His people, and God Himself with them will be their God. And God will wipe away every tear.” from their eyes, and there will be no more death: neither crying, nor crying, nor pain will be any more, for the former things have passed away. And He who sat on the throne said: Behold, I am making all things new... I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end; to the thirsty I will give freely from the fountain of living water... And the angel took me up in the spirit to a great and high mountain, and showed me the great city, holy Jerusalem, which came down from heaven from God. It had the glory of God... I am the Temple did not see in it, for the Lord God Almighty is its temple, and the Lamb. And the city has no need of either the sun or the moon to illuminate it; for the glory of God has illuminated it, and its lamp is the Lamb. The saved nations will walk in its light... And nothing unclean will enter into it, and no one devoted to abomination and lies, but only those who are written in the Lamb's book of life" (Rev. 21:1-6, 10, 22-24 , 27).This is the earliest description of heaven in Christian literature.
When reading descriptions of paradise found in hagiographical and theological literature, it is necessary to keep in mind that most writers of the Eastern Church talk about the paradise that they saw, into which they were raptured by the power of the Holy Spirit. Even among our contemporaries who have experienced clinical death, there are people who have been to heaven and talked about their experience; in the lives of saints we find many descriptions of paradise. St. Theodora, St. Euphrosyne of Suzdal, St. Simeon the Divnogorets, St. Andrew the Fool and some other saints were, like the Apostle Paul, “caught up to the third heaven” (2 Cor. 12:2) and contemplated heavenly bliss. This is what Saint Andrew (10th century) says about heaven: “I saw myself in a beautiful and amazing paradise, and, admiring the spirit, I thought: “What is this?.. how did I end up here?..” I saw myself clothed in the very a bright robe, as if woven from lightning; a crown was on my head, woven from great flowers, and I was girded with a royal belt. Rejoicing at this beauty, marveling with my mind and heart at the indescribable beauty of God's paradise, I walked around it and had fun. There were many there gardens with tall trees: they swayed with their tops and amused the eyes, a great fragrance emanated from their branches... It is impossible to compare those trees to any earthly tree: God's hand, and not man's, planted them. There were countless birds in these gardens... I saw a great river flowing in the middle (of the gardens) and filling them. On the other bank of the river there was a vineyard... Quiet and fragrant winds breathed there from four sides; from their breath the gardens shook and made a wondrous noise with their leaves... After that we We entered into a wonderful flame that did not scorch us, but only enlightened us. I began to be horrified, and again the one who guided me (the angel) turned to me and gave me his hand, saying: “We must ascend even higher.” With this word we found ourselves above the third heaven, where I saw and heard many heavenly powers singing and praising God... (Rising even higher), I saw my Lord, like Isaiah the prophet once, sitting on a high and exalted throne, surrounded Seraphim. He was clothed in a scarlet robe, His face shone with an indescribable light, and He turned His eyes towards me with love. Seeing Him, I fell on my face before Him... What joy then came over me from the vision of His face is impossible to express, so even now, remembering this vision, I am filled with indescribable sweetness." The Monk Theodora saw "beautiful villages in paradise and numerous mansions prepared for those who love God,” and heard “the voice of joy and spiritual gladness.”
In all descriptions of paradise, it is emphasized that earthly words can only to a small extent depict heavenly beauty, since it is “inexpressible” and surpasses human comprehension. It also speaks of the “many mansions” of paradise (John 14:2), that is, of different degrees of bliss. “God will honor some with great honors, others with less,” says St. Basil the Great, “because “star differs from star in glory” (1 Cor. 15:41). And since “the Father has many abodes,” he will give rest to some in a more excellent and higher state, while others are in a lower state." However, for everyone, his “abode” will be the highest fullness of bliss available to him - in accordance with how close he is to God in earthly life. All the saints who are in paradise will see and know one another, and Christ will see and fill everyone, says St. Simeon the New Theologian. In the Kingdom of Heaven, “the righteous will shine like the sun” (Matthew 13:43), become like God (1 John 3:2) and know Him (1 Cor. 13:12). Compared to the beauty and luminosity of paradise, our earth is a “dark prison,” and the light of the sun, compared to the Trinitarian Light, is like a small candle. Even those heights of divine contemplation to which the Monk Simeon ascended during his lifetime, in comparison with the future bliss of people in paradise, are the same as the sky drawn with a pencil on paper, in comparison with the real sky.
According to the teachings of the Monk Simeon, all the images of paradise found in hagiographic literature - fields, forests, rivers, palaces, birds, flowers, etc. - are only symbols of the bliss that lies in the unceasing contemplation of Christ:
You are the Kingdom of Heaven,
You are the land of the meek, Christ,
You are my green paradise.
You are my divine palace...
You are the food of all and the bread of life.
You are the moisture of renewal,
You are the life-giving cup,
You are the source of living water,
You are the light of all Your saints...
And "many abodes"
Show us what I think
That there will be many degrees
Love and enlightenment
That everyone to the best of their ability
Will achieve contemplation,
And that measure is for everyone
There will be greatness, glory,
Peace, pleasure -
Although to varying degrees.
So, there are many chambers,
Various monasteries
Precious clothes...
Various crowns,
And stones and pearls,
Fragrant flowers...-
All this is there
Just contemplation
You, Lord Lord!
Saint Gregory of Nyssa spoke about the same thing: “Since in the present century we live life in different and varied ways, there are many things in which we take part, for example, time, air, place, food, drink, clothing, sun, lamp and much more, serving the needs of life, and none of this is God. The expected bliss has no need for any of this: all of this, instead of everything, will be for us the nature of God, devoting itself in proportion to every need of that life... God is also a place for the worthy , and a dwelling, and clothing, and food, and drink, and light, and wealth, and a kingdom... He who is all things is also in all (Col. 3:11).” After the general resurrection, Christ will fill every human soul and all creation with Himself, and nothing will remain outside of Christ, but everything will be transformed and shine, change and melt. This is the endless “non-evening day” of the Kingdom of God, “eternal joy, eternal Liturgy with God and in God.” Everything superfluous, temporary, all unnecessary details of life and being will disappear, and Christ will reign in the souls of the people redeemed by Him and in the transformed Cosmos. This will be the final victory of Good over evil, Light over darkness, heaven over hell, Christ over Antichrist. This will be the final abolition of death. “Then the word that is written will be fulfilled: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” Death! Where is your sting? Hell! Where is your victory?.." (Hos. 13:14) Thanks be to God, who has given us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ!" (1 Cor. 15:54-57).
Many sources often mention such a place as heaven. And there are many interpretations of this word. Despite this, we can safely say that this corner is actually very good. And many strive to get there after death. So what is heaven? Why is there so much different information about him? We will try to address these and other questions in this article.
General idea of heaven
Those things that no one has ever seen usually cause a huge amount of controversy. Thus, in some religions, heaven means the state of a person when he feels perfect. In Greek, paradise is called “paradise” and means a happy life. Others believe that this place is in heaven, closer to God. So, in different sources you can find completely different interpretations and designations of this word. Quite often heaven is called the Garden of Eden. We can say that these two words are synonyms and in context they have the same meaning. In the Bible, paradise is also called the Kingdom of Heaven, and in ancient mythology you can find such a concept as “Elysees Fields”. Let's look at them in more detail and find out their differences and similarities.
Heaven in the Old Testament
The Bible mentions this sacred place several times. According to Scripture, it was in it that God created the first people - Adam and Eve. What is heaven for them? For Adam and Eve, this was a place where they had great power. They were created in the image and likeness of God, and in addition, endowed with his abilities. So, they understood the language of animals, could control the elements and were immortal. Despite all the privileges, there was one rule in paradise - you could not eat the fruit of the tree of knowledge. This is a special plant planted by the Lord God. Fruits grew on it - apples of Eden, and they were forbidden to eat.
The first people disobeyed God and tried the forbidden fruit. At that very moment they were expelled from paradise forever. Before the coming of Jesus Christ, it was believed that no one would be able to return back to heaven. This was a huge mistake by the ancestors of mankind, because they could do whatever they wanted, did not need anything, and could not fulfill only one simple rule. According to the Bible, they were inspired to commit this sin by the devil, who appeared to Eve in the form of a serpent, and she had already persuaded her husband to taste the forbidden fruit...
Sinners and righteous
To correctly interpret the meaning of the word “paradise”, you need to understand exactly who the sinners and the righteous are. As for Orthodoxy, everything here, at first glance, is quite simple. So, Adam and Eve committed original (ancestral) sin by disobeying the Lord God. Thus, all the descendants of the first people are already born with this offense. They are mortal, do not understand the language of animals, cannot control the elements, and are forced to earn their bread with sweat and blood. All descendants of Adam and Eve are responsible for their mistake. In addition, each one contains other sins - pride, envy, gluttony, fornication, anger, greed, despondency. One must be able to fight the manifestation of these qualities in oneself and, in addition, fulfill the divine commandments - such a person will be considered a righteous person. And then after death he will go to heaven. The definition and concept of a righteous person differs significantly in other religions. However, it is important to understand that the main thing is that such a person sincerely fulfills all the regulations and commandments in accordance with his faith.
Heaven and sinners
Considering the above, we can conclude that the road to the Garden of Eden is closed to sinners. They will never know the happiness of being there. Before the Son of God came to the sinful earth, not a single person could find himself in the Kingdom of Heaven. It is believed that Jesus washed away the sins of the people with his blood and torment, and the road to heaven was opened again. People could atone for their sins and pray for forgiveness. What is heaven after death? This is a wonderful place where a person finds himself after his death. Peace, love, happiness awaits him here. According to Christian teaching, a person goes to heaven after torment and suffering. Adherents of this religion believe that for the first 40 days after a person’s death, his soul will face an ordeal. She passes through whole legions of evil spirits. They all accuse her of the sins that a person committed during his life. The soul is then allowed to visit hell and heaven to become familiar with what awaits it after judgment. Only on the fortieth day does the Supreme Court take place, and a place is determined for her - hell or heaven. What can such a place mean for the soul? It is in the first 40 days after a person’s death that one must constantly pray for his soul in order to ease the punishment and allow him to enter the Gardens of Eden. Otherwise she will go to hell. This is a terrible place where the soul is tormented throughout the entire time.
Kingdom of heaven
We have all heard repeatedly that after death a righteous person goes to heaven. But is this really so? Orthodox Christians who have carefully read the New Testament know that after the coming of Christ all sinners were forgiven and could enter the Kingdom of Heaven. Here an eternal, carefree life awaited their souls. There is information about the first person to go to heaven. This was one of the thieves who was crucified with Jesus Christ. It so happened that the Son of God was executed along with two robbers. One of them believed that Jesus was actually the Messiah and asked him to forgive his sins. The Son of God replied that he would now be with him in paradise. The “good thief” was the first person who actually believed in God and asked for forgiveness of sins, and for this Jesus rewarded him by taking him with him to the Kingdom of Heaven.
However, some religious movements give this concept a different meaning. What is heaven in their understanding?
Heaven on earth
Let's take, for example, such a religious community as Jehovah's Witnesses. They believe that the Kingdom of Heaven is a government under the leadership of Jesus Christ. He calls the righteous to himself, and they become anointed Christians. When the end of the world comes, all the righteous will come to life and live in peace on earth. They believe that in this way God again wants to create heaven on earth. Thus, all sinners will go to hell, and peace and harmony will reign on earth. Some religious movements also believe that souls will be sent to heaven or hell only after Judgment Day and the Great Resurrection. In other words, everyone who dies goes to heaven and awaits their fate there.
In addition, not only in Christianity, but also in many other religions and mythologies, there is also a mention of such a concept as “paradise”. Let's look at them in more detail.
Ancient mythology
Islam
The Islamic tradition is quite similar to the Orthodox one. Here heaven is described as an incredibly beautiful and fragrant place. It has several tiers for different categories of righteous people. According to the teachings of Muslims, even before the creation of all things and the earth, the Almighty created heaven and hell. It was then that he decided that these places would never be destroyed. Paradise is a beautiful garden of incredible size. At the entrance there are several angels guarding the gate. Gold and silver bricks, flowering trees, ponds and springs - all this is characteristic of paradise in the Islamic religion. As in Orthodoxy, the righteous are destined for a place in heaven, and the sinners are destined for hell.
Heaven in Buddhism
The most interesting information about the tabernacles of paradise can be found in this religion. The thing is that in Buddhism there are no separate places for hell and heaven. In addition, it is not believed that people will be locked in these places forever. In fact, heaven is a multi-valued concept. According to Buddhism, it is found in everyone's heart. Adherents of this movement do not dream of going to heaven and are not afraid of hell. They know that this is only a temporary residence for a person and his soul. Everything is reborn, and man too. His life depends on his actions in the past and the awareness of his sins. They believe that everyone's duty is to live a righteous and measured life.
A person who has done many bad things in his life goes to hell for a short time. Here he has the opportunity to realize his mistakes and correct them in his future life. And heaven is where a person can enjoy peace, contemplation of magnificent nature and silence and be reborn again. As mentioned earlier, there are no special places where it is located. Heaven is in a person's heart. The only difference is that the sinner, dying, sees abandoned mountains, wind and terrible creatures around him, while the righteous have birds singing in his soul and the grass turning green.
Where is heaven
We have already mentioned that some religious movements believe that he is on earth, others claim that he is in heaven. For many centuries there has been no clear answer to this question. However, there are clear indications in the Old Testament that heaven was on Earth. Trees grew there and animals lived there. Then God created the first two people - Adam and Eve. On the other hand, it was said that he drove them out of the Garden of Eden. It turns out that not the whole planet was paradise, but only a certain place?
Some Orthodox believers believe that the meaning of the word "paradise" actually changes slightly in this context. God did not expel Adam and Eve from a specific place, but from his paradise. In this case, we mean all the benefits that were provided to the first people - immortality, the absence of illnesses and sorrows.
According to others, heaven is a spiritual place where the souls of people who have already died go. Most often you can hear about this from esotericists and those who communicate with spirits. They claim that the soul can go to heaven, hell, or remain wandering on earth. The last case concerns those people who committed suicide. Their souls are not accepted either in heaven or in hell, and they find themselves locked in our world.
The third party believes that heaven is a very tangible place. It is located somewhere in India. Thus, some rivers described in the Old Testament coincide in description with the Indian Indus and Ganges. Perhaps, some believe, this is where God’s creation of the entire world began, but there is not even indirect evidence for these thoughts.
Afterlife
Who doesn’t wonder where a person goes after death and what it depends on? Where is the scale on which a person’s good and bad deeds are weighed? These questions concern many people, but, alas, there is still no consensus on this matter. Some believe that those who go to heaven will remain there forever, others believe that the soul is reborn. There are a huge number of opinions, but there is a relationship between them all. This is the awareness that it is necessary to fulfill the commandments and laws that religion prescribes to a person. You should act conscientiously with the people around you and help them. In addition, after the death of an Orthodox person, a sinful soul can still be saved. There are as many as 40 days for this. At this time, one should mourn, light candles for his repose and, most importantly, pray for his soul and its forgiveness.
Paradise in everyday life
We often come across the word “paradise” in everyday life. For example, the advertisement talks about “heavenly pleasure”, and the store has a sign “Paradise”. This word and its synonyms have become firmly established in everyday life, and people quite often do not even think about their meaning. In this case, it should be understood that the word does not need to be associated with religions and mythology. In everyday life, the word “paradise” means a cozy place where a person feels good and comfortable, where he is overwhelmed with feelings of happiness, joy, and pleasure. It is a carefree place, characterized by the absence of problems and sadness.
Conclusion
So what is heaven? Is this the Kingdom of Heaven, the Gardens of Eden, or something else? After all, in a general sense, all these words are very similar. Can the person who is there be called an “immortelle”? Heaven is a term that includes all these concepts. In other words, if we talk about the first people, then for them paradise, of course, was their place of residence, and if we are talking about the dead, then this is the place for the rest of the soul. Each religion gives its own interpretation of this word, but at the same time, each claims that this is a good and warm place. In heaven, a person or his soul feels comfortable and carefree. This word is associated with green grass, beautiful streams and waterfalls.
Some skeptics believe that heaven is everything that God created on earth. These are forests, lakes and fields, endless meadows and high mountains, waterfalls and volcanoes, and there is no that mythical Garden of Eden that everyone talks about. Who knows? Perhaps heaven is only the internal state of a person, because the same thing can be seen from both the good side and the bad side. The one who has the gardens of Eden blooming in his soul sees life in a white light, rejoices even in the most pleasant little things and is not upset by trifles.
What will happen to me after death? Every person asked himself this question. And even the most inveterate atheist probably periodically has doubts: what if everything doesn’t end in death? And if so, what will happen after it?
Since childhood, we have all heard about hell and heaven from various sources. In heaven there are bliss prepared for the righteous, and in hell the souls of sinners will be consigned to eternal torment. Both hell and heaven, as a rule, acquire very concrete realities in our heads during our lives, which often and, it seems to me, quite naturally cause a smile in a sane person. Well, you must admit, it’s hard to imagine a place where numerous devils fry tormented sinners in frying pans. At the same time, different cultures and different religions sometimes give completely different pictures of the afterlife. Thus, Catholics have an idea of purgatory, where the souls of dead sinners can supposedly be cleansed of the sins they committed during their lifetime. In Orthodoxy there is the concept of ordeal, which every soul goes through after death. But it is difficult to imagine that all people living on Earth have their own posthumous “fate,” which will depend on the religious and cultural views of their people.
I really want to understand this issue and clearly understand: what awaits our soul after death, what is the view of the Orthodox Church on existence after earthly life? What determines the posthumous fate of a person? It is also important to understand how people living in this world were able to form an idea of what awaits us after death.
What exactly are hell and heaven? If these are specific places where our souls will go, then where are they located? Or do the words “hell” and “heaven” rather designate a certain state in which our souls will remain, depending on what the experience of our entire life has been? And where will the souls of non-believers end up or is there no afterlife for them?
Death as a condition for immortality
Marxism has spoken its weighty word:
Matter does not disappear.
A student will die - on his grave
A huge burdock grows (Anastasia Krasnova. Student song. Mechanics and Mathematics of SSU. 1970s)
There are disgusting toads here
The grass is falling into the thick grass.
If not for death,
then I would never
I didn’t understand that I was living... (O. Mandelstam)
Vladimir Sergeevich Solovyov once noted that the entire spiritual life of a person is determined by the contradiction between the knowledge of the inevitability of death and the inability to accept this as something due and necessary. At the deepest level, no person, no matter what beliefs he holds, can agree that his personal death is a completely regular event, which, due to its inevitability, should be treated calmly and indifferently.
With all the banality of death, with its everyday proximity and repetition, even a desperate positivist experiences some confusion when reporting the death of another person, puts on a significant face and stops joking. But why does the obvious always appear as incredible? Probably because, firstly, every death seems to be an invasion of the other world, which in the depths of spiritual experiences even to an atheist is revealed to at least the reality of non-existence, and secondly, any death is inevitably projected onto its own fate, reminding of finitude and its only life.
The fact that death is essentially unnatural, that, being a law of nature, it violates some other law of human existence, is proven by the presence of the fear of death itself. Where does it come from? If we do not have an internal experience of death, but rationally consider it simply the cessation of personal existence, then why are we afraid of it?
If you think about it, the entire human culture is a protest against death. The trace of a palm or the sinuous lines drawn by the fingertips, imprinted for millennia in the frozen clay of primeval caves - what is this if not evidence of the desire to leave behind something that will exist after a person doomed to early death disappears?
Apparently, this is the deep basis of all creativity, especially artistic creativity: to separate oneself from oneself, to express one’s inner world in autonomous forms, in order to ensure its existence in the form of a work of art after the physical death of the author.
“No, I won’t all die!” - Pushkin assures. The Christian Church understands where this confidence comes from, which in one form or another is inherent in every person. This is a genetic memory rooted in the Divine revelation that was given to our universal ancestor Adam. And although for thousands of years nature convinced man of the opposite, this memory and this confidence, despite everything, repeated: “No, all of me will not die! Not a single entity created by God can be destroyed! Man is doomed to immortality.”
***
The Holy Scriptures speak very sparingly about death as such, and even more so about posthumous existence. The reason is that to understand such things you need appropriate experience, and a living person fundamentally cannot have the experience of dying.
Let us note, in parentheses, that the vaunted science has not made much progress in understanding the phenomenon of death: neither in the biological, nor in the psychological, nor even in the philosophical aspect.
The Old Testament, avoiding sensual images, communicates the most important things about death.
Firstly, death is not an immutable law of existence: “God did not create death and does not rejoice in the destruction of the living, for He created everything for existence, and everything in the world is salvific, and there is no harmful poison, and there is no kingdom of hell on earth” (Wis. 1:13-14).
Secondly, death is a consequence of human sin: “Righteousness is immortal, but unrighteousness causes death: the wicked attracted her with hands and words, considered her a friend and wasted away, and made a covenant with her, for they are worthy to be her lot” (Wis. 1 :15-16).
Thirdly, the posthumous fate of a person is entirely determined by his earthly life: “Rejoice, young man, in your youth, and let your heart taste joy in the days of your youth, and walk in the ways of your heart and in the vision of your eyes; only know that for all this God will bring you to judgment" (Eccl. 11:9).
Posthumous existence in this era seemed uniquely bleak.
The New Testament opens with the joyful news of the Resurrection of Christ. The Savior's death on the cross, His descent into hell and His subsequent Resurrection are a victory over the kingdom of Satan and death itself. The whole essence of the New Testament is contained in the main hymn of Easter:
Christ is risen from the dead,
Trampling death upon death,
And to those in the tombs
Gave me a life.
Belief in the coming general resurrection is the main content of the Christian faith, everything else is secondary. The Apostle Paul speaks about this very emotionally: “If in this life only we hope in Christ, then we are of all men most miserable” (1 Cor. 15:19).
The 25th chapter of the Gospel of Matthew speaks quite clearly and unambiguously about the general resurrection and the subsequent Last Judgment: “When the Son of Man comes in His glory and all the holy angels with Him, then He will sit on the throne of His glory, and all nations will be gathered before Him " (Matt. 25:31-32).
The New Testament convinces us that every person who has ever lived on earth will be resurrected. “...All who are in the tombs will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who have done good will come out to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil to the resurrection of condemnation” (John 5:28-29). It says "everything". The Apostle Paul writes: “As in Adam all die, so in Christ all shall live” (1 Cor. 15:22).
Thus, death and subsequent resurrection become just the boundaries of an endlessly lasting life. It is very important that the coming general resurrection will be the resurrection of man in the unity of spirit, soul and body. The Orthodox Church does not profess the immortality of the soul, like many ancient religions, but rather the bodily resurrection. Only now the body will be different, transformed, free from imperfections, diseases, deformities that are the consequences of sin. The Apostle Paul convincingly speaks about this coming transformation: “we will not all die, but we will all be changed” (1 Cor. 15:51).
Probably, in eternal life a person will not face some static state, but a new activity. After all, the Kingdom of Heaven is called Eternal Life, and life is always activity... From the hints of the Apostle Paul, we can even guess what this activity will consist of - in the endless knowledge of the Infinite God. And isn't this the highest bliss?
But there is another eternity. Eternity with the opposite sign, an eternity of hell. The word "hell" itself probably goes back to the ancient Greek Hades - the joyless kingdom of the dead. In the description of hell, the common people's imagination of the Middle Ages created many impressive images that made the blood run cold in the veins. The Holy Scriptures talk about hell in a much more restrained way.
Speaking about the eternal torment of sinners, Christ uses the image of “fiery hell” (Matthew 5:22), “a never-sleeping worm and an unquenchable fire” (Mark 9:44), which was well understood by His contemporaries. Gehenna was a garbage dump in the vicinity of Jerusalem, where insects were always swarming and fire was constantly burning, which became the main symbol of hellish torment.
Many theologians considered eternal torment not as endlessly lasting physical pain, but as mental pain, pangs of conscience, or eternal annoyance at missed opportunities, at an incorrectly spent earthly life. The basis for such a “humane” interpretation can be the words of Jesus Christ Himself, who says that hell is filled with “weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matthew 8:12). Indeed, unbearable physical pain involves screams and screams, and crying and gnashing of teeth are signs that are more likely to be characteristic of mental experiences.
The opinion of the remarkable Russian thinker Evgeniy Nikolaevich Trubetskoy is interesting. In the epilogue to the book “The Meaning of Life,” he suggests that perhaps eternal torment is an eternal subjective experience of the moment of death. What actually happens in a moment is experienced by the condemned sinner as eternity.
Be that as it may, all this is just speculation. Let us not rush to find out what the afterlife essentially is. In due time, everyone will know for sure about this.
It is important to understand one thing - death helps a person realize the greatest value of life, awakens the ability to see behind everyday life the great miracle of God's Providence for man. And at the same time, physical death is a condition of metaphysical immortality, a guarantee of Eternal life, in which man becomes not only the image, but also the likeness of God.
This optimism of Christianity is expressed with extraordinary force in the final words of the Creed: “I look forward to the resurrection of the dead and the life of the next century! Amen.” The Church Slavonic word “expect” means to expect with faith, to expect with effort. “I hope for the resurrection of the dead” means I’m not just passively waiting, but seriously preparing for this event, making efforts to change myself, realizing that our earthly life is, among other things, also a preparation for Eternal life, for the fullness of being with By God and in God!
