Nicene Creed

[Kenneth100]

As the Nicene Creed states “He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead…”, are we to assume that we cannot enter the gates of heaven until the return of Jesus? Also, what is the theory behind the ‘resurrection of the dead’?

I am a life-long Catholic and say the Nicene Creed daily and I’ve always wondered about those two points.

 

[Sacred_Heart_1]

As the Nicene Creed states “He will come again in glory to judge the living and the dead…”, are we to assume that we cannot enter the gates of heaven until the return of Jesus? Also, what is the theory behind the ‘resurrection of the dead’?

I am a life-long Catholic and say the Nicene Creed daily and I’ve always wondered about those two points.

We will enter the gates of Heaven before Christ’s return upon our own deaths, considering that we have attained Sainthood. Only angels and Saints are in Heaven. Those who do not make Sainthood before death go onto purgatory before being admitted into Heaven.

The resurrection of the dead is for all, good and wicked. On that day the good will rise to the resurrection of Life and the wicked will rise to condemnation. In the resurrection we will be given incorruptible bodies that no longer get sick, age or die. We will be eternal on earth and live upon the earth forever giving glory to God.

 

[empther]

are we to assume that we cannot enter the gates of heaven until the return of Jesus? Also, what is the theory behind the ‘resurrection of the dead’?

There are souls in Heaven now. The Church says so everytime it canonizes a Saint.

It is the nature of the soul that its activity never stops. Where are the souls of the dead if not in Heaven? ( or the other place )

While the soul is the person, Aquinas says the body also deserves reward too, and so at the end of the world all souls will be reunited with their bodies.
Why God doesn’t do this now is a mystery, but consider this. Shall God reunite a sainted soul with its body if the body is in your local cemetary? Doesn’t seem right, does it?

Exceptions can be made. Jesus and Mary are definitely physically in Heaven.
The Book of Genesis mentions the unique case of Enoch: “Enoch walked with God and was seen no more because God took him.”
Moses left the people to meet the Lord. Did God take his body to Heaven? He could have.

It is a doctrine of the Church that all bodies will be resurrected at the end of the world.
Does that mean others are not resurrected before? Perhaps bodies that were destroyed here on earth? Scripture gives no guidance on this idea and the Church is rightly silent.

 

[Sacred_Heart_1]

There are souls in Heaven now. The Church says so everytime it canonizes a Saint.

It is the nature of the soul that its activity never stops. Where are the souls of the dead if not in Heaven? ( or the other place )

While the soul is the person, Aquinas says the body also deserves reward too, and so at the end of the world all souls will be reunited with their bodies.
Why God doesn’t do this now is a mystery, but consider this. Shall God reunite a sainted soul with its body if the body is in your local cemetary? Doesn’t seem right, does it?

Exceptions can be made. Jesus and Mary are definitely physically in Heaven.
The Book of Genesis mentions the unique case of Enoch: “Enoch walked with God and was seen no more because God took him.”
Moses left the people to meet the Lord. Did God take his body to Heaven? He could have.

It is a doctrine of the Church that all bodies will be resurrected at the end of the world.
Does that mean others are not resurrected before? Perhaps bodies that were destroyed here on earth? Scripture gives no guidance on this idea and the Church is rightly silent.

Don’t forget Elijah he was assumed into Heaven too.

 

[empther]

Don’t forget Elijah he was assumed into Heaven too.

Don’t forget Gene Roddenbury, creator of Star Trek.

His ashes were dispersed in space by the space shuttle.

:takeoff::egyptian:

 

[Sacred_Heart_1]

Don’t forget Gene Roddenbury, creator of Star Trek.

His ashes were dispersed in space by the space shuttle.

:takeoff::egyptian:

I didn’t know Gene Roddenbury made it to space.

 

[Aelred_Minor]

Regarding the Last Judgement, remember that we will be subject to two judgments.

First comes an individual judgement immediately after death. This is when it is determined whether we will go to Hell or else to Heaven, perhaps with some Purgatory first.

The second judgement is a communal judgement that will happen after the general resurrection, when all of us, including those who have already been in Heaven or Hell for a long time (if we can speak of time in that way regarding heaven and hell), will be gathered together and separated corporately into the elect and the reprobate.

The way I’ve often heard it described, all the deeds of our life will also be shown to our fellow human beings, including those we knew in life. This is important because justice demands that our personal reputations be restored if they were wrongfully tarnished and that false good reputations be lost. The Final Judgement allows all such misunderstandings of people and their motives in life to be corrected.

The Final Judgement will also obviously be the occasion for the definitive manifestation of God’s justice and mercy.

Finally, Pope Benedict XVI, before his election, speculated that at the Final Judgement there will also be a sort of judgement of God Himself, so to speak, in which God will answer for the way He managed the Universe, including all the evils He allowed to occur. The answer, Cardinal Ratzinger speculated, would be seen in the wounds of Christ.

 

[Aelred_Minor]

Don’t forget Elijah he was assumed into Heaven too.

Some, including the Roman Catechism I think though I don’t have mine on me at the moment to check, have taught that Enoch and Elijah will die, if only momentarily, before the General Judgement, so that all men will have received their bodies back from God.

Regarding Moses, he certainly died and was buried under the River Jordan. It may be he was later resurrected and assumed into heaven, but he already died first.