R
RaiseMeUp
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So I have been taught that the gates of Heaven did not open until Jesus ascended. And that prior to that Abraham’s Bosom is where the dead went. Are there any biblical references to this???
Yes.So I have been taught that the gates of Heaven did not open until Jesus ascended. And that prior to that Abraham’s Bosom is where the dead went. Are there any biblical references to this???
Totally concur!From the Catechism:
CCC 637 In his human soul united to his divine person, the dead Christ went down to the realm of the dead. He opened heaven’s gates for the just who had gone before him.
He opened the gates when He “descended into hell” after His death and before His Resurrection.
Hell/Hades is the abode of the dead.This is where i get confused. Because of the state of being purged before entering Heave (purgatory) and I thought He went into the abode of the dead. Because I thought the chasm between Heaven and hell cannot be crossed. Those in hell are condemned and cannot be saved while those in Heaven have no need to be preached the Good News because they are with the Father - So the “imprisoned” spirits I thought referred to those who were in another state until Christ came and opened the Kingdom of Heaven.
When the Apostle’s Creed say he “descended into hell,” it is my understanding that it is not using the word “hell” in the sense in which we normally think of it as the place where the souls of the damned are sent for eternal punishment. Rather it is referring to the Hebrew concept of “sheol,” which was the underworld where all of the dead were sent, not just the damned. So I think your understanding of it being the “abode of the dead” is correct. I could be wrong as I am not in any way educated in ancient hebrew and greek, but I think “sheol” was translated into ancient greek as “hades” which translates into English as “hell.”This is where i get confused. Because of the state of being purged before entering Heave (purgatory) and I thought He went into the abode of the dead. Because I thought the chasm between Heaven and hell cannot be crossed. Those in hell are condemned and cannot be saved while those in Heaven have no need to be preached the Good News because they are with the Father - So the “imprisoned” spirits I thought referred to those who were in another state until Christ came and opened the Kingdom of Heaven.
And since ultimately we speak of timeless states rather than physical locations within time, it can be hard to wrap our minds around it allHell/Hades is the abode of the dead.
Abraham’s Bosom was in Hades and was separated from the “lake of fire” in Hell where the damned were. So, when we say that Jesus descended into Hell, we are saying that he went to Abraham’s Bosom to free the souls there. Christ is God, and He is all powerful. He is able to ‘traverse’ the barrier between Heaven and Hell (and earth). When He descended to Hell, to Abraham’s Bosom, He emptied it, leaving only the place of the damned, the “lake of fire”.
Hmmm…i had never heard that before. I always thought his baptism was more of an example and not needed. But if it actually opened up the gates of heaven, then it was neededOpening gates came at His Baptism.
Leading captives into Heaven comes later, after Christ’s death.
God bless.
Cathoholic
sorry, I find this forum to be very useful by searching old threads for topics I am searching for. I don’t see a point in creating a new thread when a lot of valuable info is already in a thread.This is a long dormant thread. We are not supposed to resurrect old threads.
His Baptism WAS an example. A prefigurement to Christian Baptism but fell short of Christian Baptism.Hmmm…i had never heard that before. I always thought his baptism was more of an example and not needed. But if it actually opened up the gates of heaven, then it was needed