These revision notes for the new OCR Religious Studies A level cover ideas about death and the afterlife. They cover ideas about resurrection, heaven, hell, purgatory, election and universalism and include evaluation of the ideas. They are detailed and are to an A* standard.
Eschatology The study of death, judgements and the final destiny of the soul
Ancient Plato's dualist vies in particular influenced Christian views
Greeks
Jewish Sadducees don't believe in l-a-d, Pharisees do. The Torah refers to it as a possibility but it is
Beliefs not a prominent theme
Bodily It isn't until Jesus' death and resurrection that such ideas about the resurrection of the body
Resurrection became more certain as Christians believed accounts of what happened to Jesus after
death gave clear evidence about what resurrection of the physical body will be for us
4 Gospels The story is different in the 4 gospels. But if they had been the same they would have been
on accused of conspiring together. As they are different it might suggest that they cannot be
resurrection trusted. However, the fundamental elements remain the same
Unanswered Was the resurrection unique to Jesus? What about the existence of
Questions heaven/hell/purgatory? Is it immediate judgement of final? Will our afterlife be physical or
left after non-physical?
Jesus'
resurrection
St. Paul 1 Uses the metaphor of a seed to explain l.a.d. He suggests that as a seed transforms into a
Corinthians tree the body will be transformed after death
15: 35-39
St. Paul 2 Uses the metaphor of a tent and a house. If our earthly tent is destroyed we have an
Corinthians eternal home in heaven. Tents are temporary and fragile whereas homes are permanent
5:1-3 and solid
3 central Resurrection will involve some sort of body, it is not a disembodied spiritual existence
Christain The resurrected person will be the same as the person who lived
beliefs Resurrection is a miracle by God - not simply a natural process
The Parable The reward of living morally will be dealt with on judgement day. The 'righteous' are not
of the those who have kept up the commandments but those who have helped the oppressed
Sheep and and marginalised as Jesus did. It suggests that all who have pursued justice will be saved -
the Goats not just Christians
Thomas He believed that humans have a rational soul which is able to have a life after death. He
Aquinas believed the soul gave humans the ability to reason and make the free choice to love
Beatific God with the final goal and reward of living eternally in the presence of God. He thought
Vision perfect happiness would be achieved when faith in God is replaced by knowledge of him
in the beatific vision - all doubt is removed. You live for eternity outside of time
Evaluation Strengths: if the beatific vision is timeless then there is no need to wonder why people do
of the not get bored. Heaven is also not a place so it could not get full-rather it is a state of being
Beatific Weaknesses: The difference between someone living in time and outside of it is so great
Vision that how can you be the same person
The rich Suggests if you suffer in life you will go to heaven, judgement is permanent, you don't
man and necessarily go to heaven if you are rich -judgement is based on life choice and actions
Lazarus you take on earth
Ideas about A place with no suffering, pain, death and sin, Beatific vision - R.C, infinite things to learn -
Heaven no boredom. ideas of plenty, family home with God, purified people live in peace, timeless
and eternal, united with loved ones
Dante's Believed heaven was beyond description. The rational soul yearns for the ultimate good
ideas about and harmony with God's love. The end of the journey is Empyrean from which God's light
Heaven descends. There are 10 'mobiles' of paradise which represent different intellectual levels of
truth. Each soul finds its own intellectual level of bliss and resting place
Bernard Argues that part of life's pleasure is making choices about how to spend our limited time
Williams on earth. Surely heaven would just get boring. But perhaps boredom is not a possibility in
heaven
Karl Rahner Suggest the idea of a timeless afterlife where you couldn't get bored
Problems It's difficult to understand how we could be the same person if we are incapable of feeling
with heaven pain, negative emotions, and have a very different body
Ideas about Simply the absence of eternal life, for those who have committed mortal sins and do not
Hell repent (R.C) It is not imposed by God rather it is self-exclusion, a place of departed spirits
awaiting judgement, eternal pain and punishment with torture, demons, and fire,
separation from God for eternity
Hick's view He thought that ideas about Hell were developed as a form of social control rather than it
of Hell being a real place.
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