How did the apostles recognize Moses and Elijah during the Transfiguration of Jesus?

[AmbroseSJ]

Russ of Tokyo:

We infer from the Bible that Enoch and Elijah went to heaven and bypassed death, and have physical bodies in heaven.

When you say “we infer” you are not referring to the Church. Nowhere does the Church teach this. What the Church DOES teach is that NO ONE went to heaven before the Redemption, since ALL MANKIND (except the BVM) were born with Original Sin. Therefore, until the Resurrection, no one was in Heaven. Jesus Himself said so. (John 3:13)

Now only the BVM and Jesus Christ are bodily in Heaven.

No one has bypassed death either. (Romans 5:12) Original Sin has seen to that. These are dogmas of the Catholic Church, not faulty inferences derived from Scripture.

There are many alternate intepretations for Elijah and Enoch. 1st and 2nd Temple Judaism did not have a “heaven” in the sense that Christians now understand it. They had the Bosom of Abraham. Not the same thing.

 

[bmonk]

Short answer: We don’t know exactly HOW they recognized Moses and Elijah. It could have been any of several possibilities. It is enough, however, to acknowledge that they did recognize them, realized they represented the Law and Prophets, and went from there. Including the realization that the Father had now given Jesus a status above the Law and Prophets–we are to listen to HIM, before Moses and Elijah.

 

[TimothyH]

Short answer: We don’t know exactly HOW they recognized Moses and Elijah. It could have been any of several possibilities. It is enough, however, to acknowledge that they did recognize them, realized they represented the Law and Prophets, and went from there. Including the realization that the Father had now given Jesus a status above the Law and Prophets–we are to listen to HIM, before Moses and Elijah.

I never noticed that. Thank you!

-Tim-

 

[bsroufek]

St. Paul says that,in Heaven, will will know, even as we are known. So, I believe that in Heaven we will know who everyone is and their life stories.

Jesus said [Luke 8:17], “There is nothing concealed that will not be disclosed, or hidden that will not be made known.” This is a pretty awesome statement, really, but it also answers your question, I think, because not only will we know everyone and their “hidden lives” but we will know everything in Heaven.

 

[Gorgias]

Russ of Tokyo:

We infer from the Bible that Enoch and Elijah went to heaven and bypassed death, and have physical bodies in heaven.

When you say “we infer” you are not referring to the Church. Nowhere does the Church teach this. What the Church DOES teach is that NO ONE went to heaven before the Redemption, since ALL MANKIND (except the BVM) were born with Original Sin. Therefore, until the Resurrection, no one was in Heaven. Jesus Himself said so. (John 3:13)

There seem to be two distinct issues here that you’re addressing simultaneously:

Could Enoch and/or Elijah have been in heaven prior to Jesus’ resurrection?
Who could be bodily in Heaven now (prior to Jesus’ second coming)?

The answer to the first is ‘no’ – however, Enoch and/or Elijah could have been in the ‘limbo of the patriarchs’ (to which Jesus went after his death, to lead the just to heaven).

The answer to the second, though…

Now only the BVM and Jesus Christ are bodily in Heaven.

Is there a reference to Church teaching that you can provide? I looked, but didn’t find any…

Thanks!

 

[Nita]

Now only the BVM and Jesus Christ are bodily in Heaven.

.

Matthew 27:51-53 And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom; and the earth shook, and the rocks were split; the tombs also were opened, and many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to many.

 

[fisherman_carl]

In Matthew 17:3, I’ll quote from Douay Rheims,
“And behold there appeared to them Moses and Elias talking with him.”

Surely Peter, James, and John had never seen Moses or Elijah as they had lived long ago, I don’t think they had a portrait of them. How did they know these two men they saw Jesus with weren’t angels, or any of the other prophets? Daniel? Isaiah? If the answer is “They were told by the Holy Spirit” that seems like kind of a cop out answer since the scripture doesn’t say that. Thanks for any insight.

Moses was the one holding the 10 commandments and Elijah was the one with fiery chariot. Just kidding! The bible doesn’t say how they knew who they were. It just says that they knew. Keep in mind the gospel writers are writing this down after the fact.

I think Moses and Elijah were pretty big heroes back then. Mary is kind of a hero in modern day times in the Church. She appears to a number of children. How do they know who she is when they haven’t seen her before?

 

[AmbroseSJ]

Gorgias:

me:
Now only the BVM and Jesus Christ are bodily in Heaven.
you:
Is there a reference to Church teaching that you can provide? I looked, but didn’t find any…

The dogmas of the Ascension of Jesus Christ into heaven, and the Assumption of Mary into heaven.

Did you find any on anyone else?