Faith.
Amen!
People care about you.
What Clare is so kindly saying is that there are no answers here for a question that has no bearing on our faith journey while in this life.
Why couldn’t God apply the merits of Christ’s sacrifice to them before the event happened according to our human timeline? After all, isn’t this what God did for Mary in the Immaculate conception?
The Mystery of the Incarnation indeed was the cause of God bestowing a “singular grace and privilege” on the BVM. It was NOT for her own sake, just as it could NOT be for the sake of the persons of Elijan, Enoch and Moses.
Enoch and Elijah need not have ascended into the ‘heaven of heavens’ or, in other words, to that heaven where Christ ascended too upon his ascension into heaven, the heaven of God’s throne where Christ sits at the right hand of the Father above all of creation and where the blessed and holy angels dwell. This heaven is most likely the heaven which St Paul speaks about when he says that he knew a man, himself presumably, who was caught up to the third heaven. A third heaven implies that there are a first and second heaven which Genesis 1 speaks about in the creation of the heavens and the earth. As another poster mentioned quoting the CCC, Christ opened the gates of heaven by his death, resurrection, and ascension into heaven. Until this time, the heaven of the blessed saints and holy angels was closed to all human beings. St Paul says that Christ “is the head of the body, the Church; his is the beginning the first-born from the dead, that in everything he might be pre-eminent” (Colossians 1: 18). The holy people of old such as Enoch, Elijah, and Moses are members of Christ’s body which is his Church. Now, St Paul says that Christ is pre-eminent in everything. But, how could Christ be pre-eminent in everything such as ascending into the heaven of the blessed if Enoch or Elijah ascended there before him? It doesn’t make sense. Jesus is the redeemer of the whole human race including Enoch and Elijah.
Very good article from Fr. Ray Ryland. I agree with Fr Ryland that Enoch and Elijah did actually die the death of the body. The bible is clear that Moses did.
How can Mary and Jesus be bodily in heaven? Because they’re Glorified?
Well, Jesus is fully God and fully man. How can the man part breathe there? Ditto for Mary? Again, because they’re Glorified?Well, Jesus is God sooooooo
Mary was sinless.
Read this by Fr. William Saunders, expert at EWTN
*We firmly believe that from the first moment of her conception Mary was free of all sin, including Original Sin, by a special favor of almighty God. The Archangel Gabriel recognized her as “full of grace,” “blessed among women” and “one with the Lord.” Mary had been chosen to be the Mother of our savior. By the power of the Holy Spirit, she conceived our Lord Jesus Christ, and through her, true God became also man, “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us.”
During her lifetime, although the Gospel citations are limited, Mary always presented our Lord to others: to Elizabeth and her son, John the Baptist, who leapt for joy in the womb at the presence of the Lord still in his own mother’s womb; to the simple shepherds as well as the wise Magi; and to the people at Cana, when our Lord acquiesced to His mother’s wish and performed the first miracle.
Moreover, Mary stood at the foot of the cross with her Son, supporting Him and sharing in His suffering through her love as only a mother could do. Finally, she was with the Apostles at Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit descended and the Church was born. Therefore, each of us can step back and see Mary as the faithful servant of God who shared intimately in the birth, life, death and resurrection of our Lord.
For these reasons we believe that the promises our Lord has given to each of us of sharing eternal life, including a resurrection of the body, were fulfilled in Mary. Since Mary was free of Original Sin and its effects (one of which is corruption of the body at death), since she shared intimately in the life of the Lord and in His passion, death and resurrection, and since she was present at Pentecost, this model disciple appropriately shared in the bodily resurrection and glorification of the Lord at the end of her life. (Note that the solemn definition does not specify whether Mary physically died before being assumed or just was assumed; it simply states, “Mary, having completed the course of her earthly life…”)*
OK, ignore common sense.
Yes, Jesus and Mary are bodily in heaven because they are glorified for one thing. In your original post you say you are contemplating the location of heaven presumably the heaven we hope to go to someday, this is a good question. In the language of scripture, heaven is upwards, i.e, above the earth even as the created heavens are where the sun, moon, and stars are located and from where the rain falls. It is an article of the catholic faith which we recite in the creed and as it is told in scripture that Jesus ascended into heaven: