Understanding Eschatology: Death, Judgment, Heaven, Hell, the Second Coming

Limbo, the Eschata, Eschatology and Christian Hope

The theology of the last things such as death, judgment, heaven, hell and the second coming of Christ, belongs to the study of eschatology. This study takes as its principle still the person of Christ, who remains as the source of Christian hope for all Christians, in view of the end time, and the future thereafter, where a new earth and a new heaven shall be created.

Definition of Limbo

Some theologians define limbo as a state of being shared by all those who have died deserving neither the full experience of heaven nor the everlasting sorrow of hell. The term is taken from Latin, "limbus", meaning "on the border" or on the edge. The word also means a border or hem of a garment. This technical theological term designates the place or condition of those who have died without baptism, but also without the mortal guilt necessary for condemnation to hell.

Two kinds of limbo

Tradition distinguishes between the limbo of the Fathers (limbus patrum), and the limbo of the infants (limbus infantum). The first designates all the just who have preceded Jesus in salvation history, including Old Testament figures, and all those of non-Jewish origin. The second refers to the state of children who have died without baptism but also not committing any sin. In 1794 A.D., Pope Pius VI taught that a Catholic can believe in this spiritual condition of happiness called "limbo", where no pain is suffered by those who are destined to be in that state of being.

Definition of eschata

The eschata refers to the last things: death, judgment, heaven, hell and the second coming of Christ (particularly called parousia). These last things can be viewed two ways: by focusing on the destiny of the individual with accounts of what will happen to him in terms of purgatory, heaven or hell, or on the other hand, by focusing on the collective destiny of the world, both natural and human, in terms of a general resurrection of the dead and the dawning of a new earth and a new heaven.

Eschatology and Christian hope

The eschata are understood more in the context of eschatology, which refers to the study of the last things. But eschatology is always to be seen and guided by the principle that Jesus is the norm and foundation for all truth regarding the last things, and what would be in the future after it. Jesus and His resurrection becomes the center that produces Christian hope for personal lives and the social and environmental dimensions in which these are situated. Thus, even if the future remains very much a mystery for every Christian, the promise of new life in Christ to come can always be imaged in the person of Christ Himself and through the scripture: "no eye has seen nor ear heard, nor the heart of man conceived what God has prepared for those who love him".

Related sources:

• The New Dictionary of Theology, Komonchak, Collins and Lane, editors
• The New Concise Catholic Dictionary, by Reynolds R. Ekstrom

St. John Paul (1991-1995 A.D.)

Series: On the life of John Paul II

From 1991 - 1995 A.D.

The Gulf War

As the world entered the decade of the 1990s, it just experienced the breakup of the Soviet Union and the retreat of Soviet communism. Now, the focus of the world's attention was riveted on the impending Gulf War. John Paul wrote a letter to USA President George Bush and to President Saddam Hussein of Iraq, in an attempt to avert the war. The letter was written the 5th of January, 1991 A.D., but the Gulf War still erupted two days later. Fortunately, the war was brief and shortlived; it ended on February 28, 1991 A.D.

Still the missionary Pope

1991 A.D. again saw the Pope travelling to countries outside Rome:
May 10-13: Portugal
June 1-19: Poland
August 13-20: Czestochowa, Poland (3rd World Youth Day)
October 12-21: Brazil
In the Holy Father's fourth visit to Poland, he saw the advent of free enterprise. The Western world was now coming to Poland: mass-market paperbacks, Hollywood movies, and commercial TV. But the Holy Father had a mission in mind for Poland - that Poland would return to its Christian roots and become a beacon of hope for the rest of Europe in the coming third millenium.

A third social encyclical

The Pope wrote three important encyclicals on questions of labor, politics, and economics. The first in 1981 A.D. (Laborem Exercens - On Human Work); the second in 1987 A.D. (Sollicitudo Rei Socialis - On Social Concern); and the third encyclical - which was to clarify his position on capitalism (Centesimus Annus - The Hundredth Year), was written on May 1, 1991 A.D. His basic message was that only Catholic social doctrine can purify capitalism and democracy. This third social encyclical reflects John Paul's social wisdom - a wisdom believed by many to be his legacy not only for the coming decades but also and perhaps, even in the coming centuries.

Highlight of 1992 A.D.

Aside from his missionary trips outside Italy, the year 1992 A.D. saw the Holy Father establishing diplomatic relations with various countries, and recognizing the sovereignty of many states. The Pope recognized the Russian Federation in January 1 and Croatia and Slovenia in January 12. He also established diplomatic relations with Croatia, Slovenia, Ukraine (February 8); Swaziland (March 11); Mongolia (April 4); Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Moldova (May 23); Nauru (June 1); Mexico (September 21); Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan (October 17); and Belarus (November 11). Aside from establishing political ties with many states, the Holy Father never forgot his mission to the nations. His pastoral visits outside Italy included: Senegal, Gambia, and Guinea (February 19-26), Angola, Sao Tome and Principe (June 4-10), and Santo Domingo (October 9-14) for the 5th centenary of the evangelization of Latin America. It was also in this year, 1992 A.D., that the Holy Father instituted the World Day for the Sick - celebrated annually on February 11, and beatified two persons: Jose Maria Escriva de Balaguer (founder of Opus Dei), and Giuseppina Bakhita of Sudan.

Physical suffering

In his mid-seventies, the Pope suffered one physical affliction after another. In July 1992 A.D., he had a nonmalignant growth taken from his large intestine, and stones removed from his gallbladder. In November 1993 A.D., he broke his shoulder in a fall. The following year, he fractured his femur slipping in the shower, and was obliged to have an artificial hip replacement. Despite all these, the Holy Father, did not lack hope. On August 12-15, 1993 A.D., he was in Denver, Colorado, addressing a hundred thousand young people - the fourth International World Youth Day. The cheers of the Church's youth in America invigorated him and gave him cause for optimism.

World Youth Days

International World Youth Days had been held in Argentina, Spain, and Poland. The fourth was held in the USA. For his next World Youth Day trip, in 1995 A.D., John Paul would travel to the Philippines. It was in Manila, 1995 A.D., where the Holy Father would attract four million to his papal mass - his largest-ever crowd. The World Youth Days were his idea, a way of reaching out to young Catholics directly, bypassing the filtering effects of Church elders and the news media (these Youth events alternate yearly between Rome and an international site). Both the Pope and his young flock are, according to him, pilgrims on the same path, searching for "a real encounter with Jesus Christ."

Edited from the following sources

• The Pope Coming from the East, by Teresio Bosco, S.D.B.
• An Intimate Portrait: John Paul II, by Mark Bakermans
• The Pontiff in Winter, by John Cornwell
• Pope John Paul II: Champion of Faith, by TV Guide Magazine Group, Inc.
• Special Report: The 25 Years of Pope John Paul II, Vatican Information Service
• John Paul II: A Great Pope Passes into History, Readers Digest (June 2005)
• John Paul II: 1920-2005, Newsweek Special Double Issue (April 11/April 18, 2005)

St. John Paul II (1986-1990 A.D.)

More missionary and pastoral visits

John Paul II continued in his missions to the peoples of the world outside of the Vatican city. From 1986-1990 A.D., the following were the places he visited - always witnessing Christ, the Prince of Peace, and the Good Shepherd, to his universal flock:

1986

• Jan 31 - Feb 10: India
• Jul 01 - Jul 08: Colombia and Santa Lucia
• Oct 04 - Oct 07: France (East-Central region)
• Nov 18: Bangladesh, Singapore, Fiji

1987

• Mar 31 - Apr 13: Federal Republic of Germany
• Jun 08 - Jun 14: Poland
• Sep 10 - Sep 21: U.S.A. and Canada

1988

• Mar 07 - May 19: Uruguay, Bolivia, Paraguay, Peru
• Jun 23 - Jun 27: Austria
• Sep 10 - Sep 20: Zimbabwe, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozambique, Swaziland
• Oct 08 - Oct 11: Strasbourg, Metz and Nancy, France

1989

• Apr 28 - May 06: Madagascar, La Reunion, Zambia, and Malawi
• Jun 01 - Jun 10: Norway, Iceland, Finland, Denmark, Sweden
• Aug 19 - Aug 21: Santiago de Compostela, Spain, and Asturias
• Oct 06 - Oct 10: Seoul, Korea, Indonesia, and Mauritius

1990

• Jan 25 - Feb 01: Cape Verde, Guinea Bissau, Mali, Burkina Faso, and Chad
• Apr 21: Czechoslovakia
• May 06 - May 14: Mexico and Curacao
• May 25: Malta
• Sep 01 - Sep 10: Tanzania, Burundi, Rwanda, and Ivory Coast

The situation in Poland in 1986

By 1986 A.D., the Solidarity leaders were released from jail. Solidarity had formed a coalition with Poland's bishops and its vast network of parishes. This sustained the people's morale and hope. This was the state of affairs in Poland when Pope John Paul II was able to land again in his native country in June 1987 A.D. The Pope addressed a congregation of more than a million faithful near Gdansk, the scene of the shipyard strike that launched the Solidarity movement back in 1980 A.D. He ended his message by saying: "Solidarity means one another, and if there is a burden, then the burden is carried together, in community. Thus: Never one against another. Never one group against another, and never a burden carried by one alone, without the help of others."

The fall of communism

Following the failure of Jaruzelski's national referendum for economic reforms, there were again waves of strikes. But the Soviet Union had a new leader by this time: Gorbachev. Gorbachev had no intention of supporting the falling regimes of Eastern Europe. He focused on fixing the economic and political system of the Soviet Empire. Poland was then left to its fate. After many months, Solidarity finally became legal. Elections took place on June 4, 1989 A.D. All but one of the hundred seats in the Polish Senate, and all the free seats in the parliament, were won by the Solidarity-backed Citizen's Committee. Official diplomatic relations were restored between the Holy See and Poland. The world was then to witness something extraordinary in modern history: the implosion of the Soviet system. Many say that the bloodless collapse of communism had been initiated by the Polish Pope.

A strict conservative

In terms of adhering to the official theology of the Church, the Holy Father published in 1990 A.D., a document titled Ex Corde Ecclesiae (From the Heart of the Church). He was seeking to control the academics in Catholic universities and colleges. The document advocated tighter control on "orthodox" teaching and the curbing of pluralist freedoms. As regards this, his attention was then brought to the Catholic academes of the United States. As the Soviet Empire eventually faltered and collapsed, the freedoms that were intrinsic to the culture of the United States, were, in his view, tending towards error, and thus, became an increasing focus of his attention for correction.

John Paul II gathers the world to pray for peace

Despite the problems he had to resolve in his native Poland, and the fall of communism, and the responsibility to keep theology on the right track, Pope John Paul was successful in his universal role as peacemaker. On October 27, 1986 A.D., he attended the First World Day of Prayer for Peace which he convened in Assisi with some 60 representatives of the main Christian and non-Christian religions. The World Day of Prayer was a daylong affair in the piazza at the Basilica of St. Francis of Assisi. Prominent among the religious leaders present were: the Archbishop of Canterbury, Dr. Robert Runcie, leader of the Church of England; the Dalai Lama, the Buddhist leader from Tibet (exiled from his country since 1959 A.D.); Mother Teresa (now Blessed Teresa of Calcutta), the Albanian nun who ministers to the poor in the slums of Calcutta, India; Elio Toaff, chief rabbi of Rome; and many others.

The Pope's message was: "Peace, where it exists, is always extremely fragile...we must endeavour to provide it with secure foundations...we are here because we are sure that, above and beyond all such measures, we need prayer...if the world is finally to become a place of true and permanent peace."

His 1986-1990 A.D. pontificate

The Holy Father ends his last year of his 1986-1990 A.D. pontificate with the following highlights:

• five pastoral visits to countries outside of Italy
• the exchange of representatives between the Holy See and the Soviet Union (March 15, 1990 A.D.)
• the official visit of President Mario Soares of Portugal (April 27, 1990 A.D.)
• the Eighth General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops on the Formation of Priests (Sept 30 - Oct 28, 1990 A.D.)
• and in his "Urbi et Orbi" message, the Pope appeals for peace in the Persian Gulf (December 25)