Difference between revisions of "Harrowing of Hell" - New World Encyclopedia
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| − | [[Image: | + | [[Image:harrowhell.jpg|frame|right|The Harrowing of Hell, depicted in the ''Petites Heures de Jean de Berry'', 14th c. [[illuminated manuscript]]]] |
The '''Harrowing of Hell''' is a doctrine in [[Christian]] [[theology]] referenced in the [[Apostles' Creed]] and the [[Athanasian Creed|Athanasian Creed]], which states that [[Jesus]] "descended into [[Hell]]". It has been termed the most controversial phrase in the ''Apostle's Creed''.<ref>[http://www.creeds.net/ancient/descendit.htm He Descended into Hell]</ref> | The '''Harrowing of Hell''' is a doctrine in [[Christian]] [[theology]] referenced in the [[Apostles' Creed]] and the [[Athanasian Creed|Athanasian Creed]], which states that [[Jesus]] "descended into [[Hell]]". It has been termed the most controversial phrase in the ''Apostle's Creed''.<ref>[http://www.creeds.net/ancient/descendit.htm He Descended into Hell]</ref> | ||
| + | |||
| + | Though many [[Christian ]][[creed|creedal]] statements attest that Jesus “descended to hell” before being resurrected, the specific denotations of this phrase often fail to be elucidated. Intriguingly, this descent, known as the ''Harrowing of Hell'', was actually one of the most popular understandings of the [[atonement]] (the process of salvation) throughout the early history of the Church. According to this doctrine, [[Christ]]’s death was soteriologically necessary, because it allowed him to visit the realm of the dead and do battle with [[Satan]]. In this way, the taint of [[Original Sin]] was remedied through a frontal assault, which allowed Jesus to defeat the Dark Lord and throw open the doors of Hades for all eternity, allowing the souls of the faithful to ascend to [[Heaven]]. This doctrine was especially popular among the laity, as it provided a concrete image of salvation that was easily encapsulated in religious iconography (which was often their only point of entry into such discourse). | ||
==Etymology== | ==Etymology== | ||
| − | The original [[Greek language|Greek]] wording in the ''Apostles' Creed'' is ''{{polytonic|κατελθόντα εἰς τὰ κατώτατα}}'', ("katelthonta eis ta katôtata"), and in [[Latin]] ''descendit ad inferos''. The Greek ''{{polytonic|τὰ κατώτατα}}'' ("the lowest") and the Latin ''inferos'' ("those below") may also be translated as "[[underworld]]", "netherworld", or as "abode of the dead". Thus, sometimes this phrase is translated as "descended to the dead." The first use of the English "harrowing" in this context is in homilies of [[Aelfric]], ''ca.''1000. ''Harrow'' is a by-form of ''harry'', a military term meaning to "make predatory raids or incursions"<ref>''Oxford English Dictionary''</ref> | + | The original [[Greek language|Greek]] wording in the ''Apostles' Creed'' is ''{{polytonic|κατελθόντα εἰς τὰ κατώτατα}}'', ("katelthonta eis ta katôtata"), and in [[Latin]] ''descendit ad inferos''. The Greek ''{{polytonic|τὰ κατώτατα}}'' ("the lowest") and the Latin ''inferos'' ("those below") may also be translated as "[[underworld]]", "netherworld", or as "abode of the dead". Thus, sometimes this phrase is translated as "descended to the dead." The first use of the English "harrowing" in this context is in homilies of [[Aelfric]], ''ca.''1000. ''Harrow'' is a by-form of ''harry'', a military term meaning to "make predatory raids or incursions."<ref>''Oxford English Dictionary''</ref> The term "Harrowing of Hell" refers not merely to the idea that Christ descended into Hell, as in the Creed, but to the rich tradition that developed later, asserting that he triumphed over ''inferos'', releasing Hell's captives, particularly [[Adam and Eve]], and the righteous men and women whose stories are recorded in the [[Septuagint]]. |
==Biblical sources== | ==Biblical sources== | ||
| − | The doctrine is inferred from a particular interpretation of the following verses | + | The doctrine is inferred from a particular interpretation of the following verses: |
*Acts 2:27 and 2:31 declare in effect that Hades ("place of the dead") could not hold the crucified Christ. | *Acts 2:27 and 2:31 declare in effect that Hades ("place of the dead") could not hold the crucified Christ. | ||
| − | *Two passages of [[First Epistle of Peter|1 Peter]] principally have been used as a basis for the ancient doctrine | + | *Two passages of [[First Epistle of Peter|1 Peter]] principally have been used as a basis for the ancient doctrine: |
| − | :*1 Peter 3:19-20 says that Jesus "went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah...." | + | :*1 Peter 3:19-20 says that Jesus "went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah...."(NRSV) |
:*1 Peter 4:6 says that the gospel was "proclaimed even to the dead..." (NRSV). | :*1 Peter 4:6 says that the gospel was "proclaimed even to the dead..." (NRSV). | ||
| − | + | Other references in the [[Bible]] have also been interpreted by some to allude to the Harrowing of Hell such as: | |
| − | + | ||
| − | + | :*2 Corinthians 2:14 "But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads in every place the fragrance that comes from knowing him"(NRSV) | |
| − | : | + | :*Zachariah 9:11 refers to prisoners in a waterless pit. "As for thee also, by the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water." The verses' reference to captives has been presented as a reflection of Yahweh's captives of the enemy in [[Book of Psalms|Psalm 68:17–18]]: "God's chariots were myriad, thousands upon thousands; from Sinai the Lord entered the holy place. You went up to its lofty height; you took captives, received slaves as tribute. No rebels can live in the presence of God." |
| − | : | + | :*Isaiah 24:21-22 also refers to spirits in prison, reminiscent of Peter's account of a visitation to spirits in prison: "And it shall come to pass in that day, that the {{Lord}} shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth. And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited." |
| − | |||
| − | |||
| − | |||
| − | |||
| − | * | ||
=== Early Christian teaching === | === Early Christian teaching === | ||
| − | [[Image:Kariye ic.jpg|thumb|250px|right|A c.1315 fresco depicting the Harrowing of Hell in the parecclesion of the | + | [[Image:Kariye ic.jpg|thumb|250px|right|A c.1315 fresco depicting the Harrowing of Hell in the parecclesion of the Chora Church, [[Istanbul]].]] |
| − | The Harrowing of Hell was taught by [[theology|theologians]] of the early [[church]]: St. [[Melito of Sardis]] (died ''ca'' 180) ''Homily on the Passion''; [[Tertullian]] (''A Treatise on the Soul'', 55), [[Hippolytus (writer)|Hippolytus]] (''Treatise on Christ and Anti-Christ'') | + | The Harrowing of Hell was taught by [[theology|theologians]] of the early [[church]]: St. [[Melito of Sardis]] (died ''ca'' 180) ''Homily on the Passion''; [[Tertullian]] (''A Treatise on the Soul'', 55), [[Hippolytus (writer)|Hippolytus]] (''Treatise on Christ and Anti-Christ''), [[Origen]] (''[[Against Celsus]]'', 2:43), and, later, St. [[Ambrose]] (died 397). |
| − | The Gospel of Matthew relates that immediately after Christ died, the earth shook, the veil in the Temple was torn in two, and many people rose from the dead and walked about in Jerusalem testifying. According to the apocryphal [[Acts of Pilate|Gospel of Nicodemus]], the Harrowing of Hell was foreshadowed by Christ's raising of [[Lazarus]] from the dead prior to his own crucifixion. The hymns | + | The Gospel of Matthew relates that immediately after Christ died, the earth shook, the veil in the Temple was torn in two, and many people rose from the dead and walked about in Jerusalem testifying. According to the apocryphal [[Acts of Pilate|Gospel of Nicodemus]], the Harrowing of Hell was foreshadowed by Christ's raising of [[Lazarus]] from the dead prior to his own crucifixion. The hymns suggest that John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus in Hell by prophesying to those held there that Christ would soon release them, just as he prepared the way for Jesus on earth. |
| − | In the ''[[Acts of Pilate]]''—usually incorporated with the widely-read medieval ''Gospel of Nicodemus''—texts built around an original that might have been as old as the 3rd century C.E. with many improvements and embroidered interpolations, chapters 17 to 27 are called the ''Decensus Christi ad Inferos.'' They contain a dramatic dialogue between Hades and prince Satan, and the entry of the King of Glory, imagined as from within Tartarus | + | In the ''[[Acts of Pilate]]''—usually incorporated with the widely-read medieval ''Gospel of Nicodemus''—texts built around an original that might have been as old as the 3rd century C.E. with many improvements and embroidered interpolations, chapters 17 to 27 are called the ''Decensus Christi ad Inferos.'' They contain a dramatic dialogue between Hades and prince Satan, and the entry of the King of Glory, imagined as from within [[Tartarus]]. |
| + | |||
| + | The richest, most circumstantial accounts of the Harrowing of Hell are found in medieval dramatic literature, such as the four great cycles of English mystery plays, which each devote a separate scene to depict it, or in passing references in [[Dante]]'s ''Inferno''. The subject is found also in the Cornish mystery plays and the York and Wakefield cycles: see Mystery play. These medieval versions of the story do not derive from the bare suggestion made in the Epistle ascribed to Peter, but come from the ''Gospel of Nicodemus.'' | ||
==Conceptions of the afterlife== | ==Conceptions of the afterlife== | ||
[[Image:HarrowingBermejo.jpg|thumb|right|220px|''Christ leads the patriarchs from Hell to Paradise,'' by Bartolomeo Bertejo, Spanish, ca 1480: [[Methuselah]], [[Solomon]] and the [[Queen of Sheba]], and [[Adam]] and [[Eve (Bible)|Eve]] lead the procession of the righteous behind Christ.]] | [[Image:HarrowingBermejo.jpg|thumb|right|220px|''Christ leads the patriarchs from Hell to Paradise,'' by Bartolomeo Bertejo, Spanish, ca 1480: [[Methuselah]], [[Solomon]] and the [[Queen of Sheba]], and [[Adam]] and [[Eve (Bible)|Eve]] lead the procession of the righteous behind Christ.]] | ||
| − | The [[Old Testament]] affirms that [[Book of Job|Job]] and other righteous men went to [[Sheol]] when they died, as did [[David]] and the other [[psalm]]ists. No Hebrew figure ever descended into Sheol and returned, although an apparition of the recently deceased Samuel briefly appeared to Saul when summoned by the [[witch of Endor]]. Parts of the New Testament can be read as drawing a distinction between Sheol, the common "place of the dead" | + | The [[Old Testament]] affirms that [[Book of Job|Job]] and other righteous men went to [[Sheol]] when they died, as did [[David]] and the other [[psalm]]ists. No Hebrew figure ever descended into Sheol and returned, although an apparition of the recently deceased Samuel briefly appeared to Saul when summoned by the [[witch of Endor]]. Parts of the New Testament can be read as drawing a distinction between Sheol, the common "place of the dead", and [[Gehenna]], the lake of eternal fire where the evil dead are tormented. English accounts are not always mindful of this distinction, and the two destinations may both be rendered ''Hell''. |
The Hellenistic views of heroic descent into the Underworld and successful return follow traditions that are far older than the [[mystery religion]]s popular at the time of Christ. The [[Epic of Gilgamesh]] includes such a scene, and it appears also in the [[Odyssey]]. Writing shortly before the birth of Jesus, [[Vergil]] included it in the [[Aeneid]]. What little we know of the [[worship]] in mystery religions such as the [[Eleusinian Mysteries]] and [[Mithraism]] suggests that a ritual death and rebirth of the initiate was an important part of their [[liturgy]]. Again, this has earlier parallels, in particular with the worship of [[Osiris]]. The ancient homily on ''The Lord's Descent into Hell'' may mirror these traditions by referring to [[baptism]] as a symbolic death and rebirth. (''cf.'' [[Epistle to the Colossians|Colossians]] 2:9-15) Or, these traditions of Mithraism may be drawn from early Christian homilies. | The Hellenistic views of heroic descent into the Underworld and successful return follow traditions that are far older than the [[mystery religion]]s popular at the time of Christ. The [[Epic of Gilgamesh]] includes such a scene, and it appears also in the [[Odyssey]]. Writing shortly before the birth of Jesus, [[Vergil]] included it in the [[Aeneid]]. What little we know of the [[worship]] in mystery religions such as the [[Eleusinian Mysteries]] and [[Mithraism]] suggests that a ritual death and rebirth of the initiate was an important part of their [[liturgy]]. Again, this has earlier parallels, in particular with the worship of [[Osiris]]. The ancient homily on ''The Lord's Descent into Hell'' may mirror these traditions by referring to [[baptism]] as a symbolic death and rebirth. (''cf.'' [[Epistle to the Colossians|Colossians]] 2:9-15) Or, these traditions of Mithraism may be drawn from early Christian homilies. | ||
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The [[Catechism of the Catholic Church]] states: "By the expression 'He descended into hell', the Apostles' Creed confesses that Jesus did really die and through his death for us conquered death and the devil 'who has the power of death' (Heb 2:14). 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."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p122a5p1.htm Catechism of the Catholic Church, 636-637.]</ref> | The [[Catechism of the Catholic Church]] states: "By the expression 'He descended into hell', the Apostles' Creed confesses that Jesus did really die and through his death for us conquered death and the devil 'who has the power of death' (Heb 2:14). 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."<ref>[http://www.vatican.va/archive/catechism/p122a5p1.htm Catechism of the Catholic Church, 636-637.]</ref> | ||
| − | As the Catechism says, the word "hell" - in Latin, ''infernus, infernum, inferi''; in Greek, ''{{polytonic|ᾍδης}}'' (Hades); in Hebrew, ''שאול'' (Sheol) - is used in Scripture and the Apostles' Creed to refer to the abode of all the dead, whether righteous or evil, unless or until they are admitted to heaven | + | As the Catechism says, the word "hell" - in Latin, ''infernus, infernum, inferi''; in Greek, ''{{polytonic|ᾍδης}}'' (Hades); in Hebrew, ''שאול'' (Sheol) - is used in Scripture and the Apostles' Creed to refer to the abode of all the dead, whether righteous or evil, unless or until they are admitted to heaven.<ref>Catechism of the Catholic Church, 633.</ref> This abode of the dead is the "hell" into which the Creed says Christ descended. His death freed from exclusion from heaven the just who had gone before him: "It is precisely these holy souls who awaited their Savior in Abraham's bosom whom Christ the Lord delivered when he descended into hell", the Catechism states (633), echoing the words of the [[Roman Catechism]], 1,6,3. His death was of no avail to the damned. |
| − | |||
| − | |||
===Eastern Orthodox=== | ===Eastern Orthodox=== | ||
| + | [[Image:Descent into hell-Russian Museum.jpg|thumb|250px|''Harrowing of Hell'', an icon by [[Dionisius]], from the Ferapontov Monastery.]] | ||
[[John Chrysostom]]'s homily also addresses the Harrowing of Hell, and is typically read as the chief homily at [[Pascha]], the Eastern Orthodox celebration of Easter. In the Orthodox liturgical practice, the chief "liturgical color" goes from purple on Good Friday to white on Holy Saturday in celebration of the harrowing of Hell then taking place, and in anticipation of Christ's imminent resurrection. | [[John Chrysostom]]'s homily also addresses the Harrowing of Hell, and is typically read as the chief homily at [[Pascha]], the Eastern Orthodox celebration of Easter. In the Orthodox liturgical practice, the chief "liturgical color" goes from purple on Good Friday to white on Holy Saturday in celebration of the harrowing of Hell then taking place, and in anticipation of Christ's imminent resurrection. | ||
| − | + | The traditional Eastern Orthodox [[icon]] depiction, which also represents the [[Resurrection of Jesus]], shows Jesus standing on the broken and flattened gates of Hell (also called the Doors of Death, which have fallen to form the pattern of a cross), holding the hands of [[Adam]] and [[Eve (Bible)|Eve]] and pulling them up out of Hell, and surrounded by various righteous figures from the Old Testament ([[Abraham]], [[David]], etc.); the bottom of the icon shows Hell as a place of darkness and death, often with various bones strewn about, and one figure still tied up in chains who is generally identified as [[Death]] or the [[Devil]]. The Harrowing of Hell is generally more common and prominent in Orthodox [[iconography]] compared to the Western tradition. | |
| − | |||
| − | The traditional Eastern Orthodox [[icon]] depiction, which also represents the [[Resurrection of Jesus]], shows Jesus standing on the broken and flattened gates of Hell (also called the Doors of Death, which have fallen to form the pattern of a cross), holding the hands of [[Adam]] and [[Eve (Bible)|Eve]] and pulling them up out of Hell, and surrounded by various righteous figures from the Old Testament ([[Abraham]], [[David]], etc.); the bottom of the icon shows Hell as a place of darkness and death, often with various bones strewn about, and one figure still tied up in chains who is generally identified as [[Death]] or the [[Devil]]. | ||
===Protestant=== | ===Protestant=== | ||
| − | The historical mainstream Protestant position is that if Christ had descended into Hell (place of eternal suffering), he would have had to bear [[Damnation|God's Curse]]. | + | The historical mainstream Protestant position is that if Christ had descended into Hell (place of eternal suffering), he would have had to bear [[Damnation|God's Curse]]. Calvin's conclusion was that "Christ's descent into hell was necessary for Christians to realize how much our salvation cost the Son of God" because Christ did in fact endure the penalty for the sins of the redeemed. |
| − | ===Latter-day | + | ===Latter-day Saints=== |
In the [[Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]], the Harrowing of Hell is not a one-time event but an ongoing process.<ref>See "Doctrine and Covenants", section 138.</ref> | In the [[Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]], the Harrowing of Hell is not a one-time event but an ongoing process.<ref>See "Doctrine and Covenants", section 138.</ref> | ||
Revision as of 02:54, 27 November 2007
The Harrowing of Hell is a doctrine in Christian theology referenced in the Apostles' Creed and the Athanasian Creed, which states that Jesus "descended into Hell". It has been termed the most controversial phrase in the Apostle's Creed.[1]
Though many Christian creedal statements attest that Jesus “descended to hell” before being resurrected, the specific denotations of this phrase often fail to be elucidated. Intriguingly, this descent, known as the Harrowing of Hell, was actually one of the most popular understandings of the atonement (the process of salvation) throughout the early history of the Church. According to this doctrine, Christ’s death was soteriologically necessary, because it allowed him to visit the realm of the dead and do battle with Satan. In this way, the taint of Original Sin was remedied through a frontal assault, which allowed Jesus to defeat the Dark Lord and throw open the doors of Hades for all eternity, allowing the souls of the faithful to ascend to Heaven. This doctrine was especially popular among the laity, as it provided a concrete image of salvation that was easily encapsulated in religious iconography (which was often their only point of entry into such discourse).
Etymology
The original Greek wording in the Apostles' Creed is κατελθόντα εἰς τὰ κατώτατα, ("katelthonta eis ta katôtata"), and in Latin descendit ad inferos. The Greek τὰ κατώτατα ("the lowest") and the Latin inferos ("those below") may also be translated as "underworld", "netherworld", or as "abode of the dead". Thus, sometimes this phrase is translated as "descended to the dead." The first use of the English "harrowing" in this context is in homilies of Aelfric, ca.1000. Harrow is a by-form of harry, a military term meaning to "make predatory raids or incursions."[2] The term "Harrowing of Hell" refers not merely to the idea that Christ descended into Hell, as in the Creed, but to the rich tradition that developed later, asserting that he triumphed over inferos, releasing Hell's captives, particularly Adam and Eve, and the righteous men and women whose stories are recorded in the Septuagint.
Biblical sources
The doctrine is inferred from a particular interpretation of the following verses:
- Acts 2:27 and 2:31 declare in effect that Hades ("place of the dead") could not hold the crucified Christ.
- Two passages of 1 Peter principally have been used as a basis for the ancient doctrine:
- 1 Peter 3:19-20 says that Jesus "went and made a proclamation to the spirits in prison, who in former times did not obey, when God waited patiently in the days of Noah...."(NRSV)
- 1 Peter 4:6 says that the gospel was "proclaimed even to the dead..." (NRSV).
Other references in the Bible have also been interpreted by some to allude to the Harrowing of Hell such as:
- 2 Corinthians 2:14 "But thanks be to God, who in Christ always leads us in triumphal procession, and through us spreads in every place the fragrance that comes from knowing him"(NRSV)
- Zachariah 9:11 refers to prisoners in a waterless pit. "As for thee also, by the blood of thy covenant I have sent forth thy prisoners out of the pit wherein is no water." The verses' reference to captives has been presented as a reflection of Yahweh's captives of the enemy in Psalm 68:17–18: "God's chariots were myriad, thousands upon thousands; from Sinai the Lord entered the holy place. You went up to its lofty height; you took captives, received slaves as tribute. No rebels can live in the presence of God."
- Isaiah 24:21-22 also refers to spirits in prison, reminiscent of Peter's account of a visitation to spirits in prison: "And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall punish the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth. And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited."
Early Christian teaching
The Harrowing of Hell was taught by theologians of the early church: St. Melito of Sardis (died ca 180) Homily on the Passion; Tertullian (A Treatise on the Soul, 55), Hippolytus (Treatise on Christ and Anti-Christ), Origen (Against Celsus, 2:43), and, later, St. Ambrose (died 397).
The Gospel of Matthew relates that immediately after Christ died, the earth shook, the veil in the Temple was torn in two, and many people rose from the dead and walked about in Jerusalem testifying. According to the apocryphal Gospel of Nicodemus, the Harrowing of Hell was foreshadowed by Christ's raising of Lazarus from the dead prior to his own crucifixion. The hymns suggest that John the Baptist prepared the way for Jesus in Hell by prophesying to those held there that Christ would soon release them, just as he prepared the way for Jesus on earth.
In the Acts of Pilate—usually incorporated with the widely-read medieval Gospel of Nicodemus—texts built around an original that might have been as old as the 3rd century C.E. with many improvements and embroidered interpolations, chapters 17 to 27 are called the Decensus Christi ad Inferos. They contain a dramatic dialogue between Hades and prince Satan, and the entry of the King of Glory, imagined as from within Tartarus.
The richest, most circumstantial accounts of the Harrowing of Hell are found in medieval dramatic literature, such as the four great cycles of English mystery plays, which each devote a separate scene to depict it, or in passing references in Dante's Inferno. The subject is found also in the Cornish mystery plays and the York and Wakefield cycles: see Mystery play. These medieval versions of the story do not derive from the bare suggestion made in the Epistle ascribed to Peter, but come from the Gospel of Nicodemus.
Conceptions of the afterlife
The Old Testament affirms that Job and other righteous men went to Sheol when they died, as did David and the other psalmists. No Hebrew figure ever descended into Sheol and returned, although an apparition of the recently deceased Samuel briefly appeared to Saul when summoned by the witch of Endor. Parts of the New Testament can be read as drawing a distinction between Sheol, the common "place of the dead", and Gehenna, the lake of eternal fire where the evil dead are tormented. English accounts are not always mindful of this distinction, and the two destinations may both be rendered Hell.
The Hellenistic views of heroic descent into the Underworld and successful return follow traditions that are far older than the mystery religions popular at the time of Christ. The Epic of Gilgamesh includes such a scene, and it appears also in the Odyssey. Writing shortly before the birth of Jesus, Vergil included it in the Aeneid. What little we know of the worship in mystery religions such as the Eleusinian Mysteries and Mithraism suggests that a ritual death and rebirth of the initiate was an important part of their liturgy. Again, this has earlier parallels, in particular with the worship of Osiris. The ancient homily on The Lord's Descent into Hell may mirror these traditions by referring to baptism as a symbolic death and rebirth. (cf. Colossians 2:9-15) Or, these traditions of Mithraism may be drawn from early Christian homilies.
Interpretations of the doctrine
Roman Catholic
The Catechism of the Catholic Church states: "By the expression 'He descended into hell', the Apostles' Creed confesses that Jesus did really die and through his death for us conquered death and the devil 'who has the power of death' (Heb 2:14). 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."[3]
As the Catechism says, the word "hell" - in Latin, infernus, infernum, inferi; in Greek, ᾍδης (Hades); in Hebrew, שאול (Sheol) - is used in Scripture and the Apostles' Creed to refer to the abode of all the dead, whether righteous or evil, unless or until they are admitted to heaven.[4] This abode of the dead is the "hell" into which the Creed says Christ descended. His death freed from exclusion from heaven the just who had gone before him: "It is precisely these holy souls who awaited their Savior in Abraham's bosom whom Christ the Lord delivered when he descended into hell", the Catechism states (633), echoing the words of the Roman Catechism, 1,6,3. His death was of no avail to the damned.
Eastern Orthodox
John Chrysostom's homily also addresses the Harrowing of Hell, and is typically read as the chief homily at Pascha, the Eastern Orthodox celebration of Easter. In the Orthodox liturgical practice, the chief "liturgical color" goes from purple on Good Friday to white on Holy Saturday in celebration of the harrowing of Hell then taking place, and in anticipation of Christ's imminent resurrection.
The traditional Eastern Orthodox icon depiction, which also represents the Resurrection of Jesus, shows Jesus standing on the broken and flattened gates of Hell (also called the Doors of Death, which have fallen to form the pattern of a cross), holding the hands of Adam and Eve and pulling them up out of Hell, and surrounded by various righteous figures from the Old Testament (Abraham, David, etc.); the bottom of the icon shows Hell as a place of darkness and death, often with various bones strewn about, and one figure still tied up in chains who is generally identified as Death or the Devil. The Harrowing of Hell is generally more common and prominent in Orthodox iconography compared to the Western tradition.
Protestant
The historical mainstream Protestant position is that if Christ had descended into Hell (place of eternal suffering), he would have had to bear God's Curse. Calvin's conclusion was that "Christ's descent into hell was necessary for Christians to realize how much our salvation cost the Son of God" because Christ did in fact endure the penalty for the sins of the redeemed.
Latter-day Saints
In the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Harrowing of Hell is not a one-time event but an ongoing process.[5]
In literature
- In Dante's Inferno the Harrowing of Hell is mentioned in Canto IV.
- The Medieval romance of Sir Orfeo has often been seen as drawing parallels between the titular character and Jesus freeing souls from hell.
- In Stephen Lawhead's novel Byzantium, a young Irish monk is asked to explain Jesus' life to a group of Vikings, who are particularly impressed with Jesus' "Helreið."
- In I.L. Peretz's short story Neilah in Gehenna, a Jewish hazzan descends to Hell and uses his unique voice to bring about the repentance and liberation of the souls imprisoned there.
Notes
- ↑ He Descended into Hell
- ↑ Oxford English Dictionary
- ↑ Catechism of the Catholic Church, 636-637.
- ↑ Catechism of the Catholic Church, 633.
- ↑ See "Doctrine and Covenants", section 138.
ReferencesISBN links support NWE through referral fees
- MacCulloch, J.A. Harrowing of Hell: A Comparative Study of an Early Christian Doctrine. Ams Pr Inc., 1982. ISBN 978-0404184261
- Pitstick, Alyssa Lyra. Light in Darkness: Hans Urs von Balthasar and the Catholic Doctrine of Christ's Descent into Hell. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing Company, 2007. ISBN 978-0802840394
- Martin, Regis. The Suffering of Love: Christ's Descent into the Hell of Human Hopelessness. Ignatius Press, 2007. ISBN 978-1586171056
- Turner, Alice K. The History of Hell. Harvest Books; 1st Harvest ed edition, 1995. ISBN 978-0156001373
External links
All links retrieved October 24, 2007.
- Catholic Encyclopedia: Harrowing of Hell
- Encyclopedia Britannica: Harrowing of Hell
- Gospel of Nicodemus: Descensus Christ ad inferos (English)
- Le Harrowing of Hell dans les Cycles de York, Towneley et Chester, by Alexandra Costache-Babcinschi (E-Book, French)
- Lord's Descent into Hell, The
- Russian Orthodox iconography of the Harrowing of Hell
- Summa Theologica: Christ's descent into hell
Credits
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