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 LIFE AFTER DEATH Like other Jews, Jesus did not talk so much about dying and going to heaven (or elsewhere), as about dying and then everyone being raised from the dead in the age to come. He never went into the subject much, in the sense of: "If you're curious about the afterlife, here's the lowdown." But he did talk about it a fair bit. There were Jewish people in his day who believed in "one life, one death, and that's your lot." Jesus thoroughly disagreed with them. "You don't know your Bibles," he said. "Or the power of God." Other Jews believed in the Day of Resurrection. We all die, and lie around for a bit. Then at the end of the world, the dead are raised to life and judged by God, and the good guys get to live in a newly-recreated world. This seems to be what Jesus went along with. But what about this day of judgment? Jesus talked about it as a way of setting the world right. There was to be recompense for those who missed their fair share and whose goodness had gone unrewarded, and justice for those who had done wrong and got away with it. If this sounds very familiar, though, be warned. The stereotyped Christian idea of heaven and hell – a choice between eternity with goatee-wearing demons sticking pitchforks in you or harp-playing on a cloud in a whiter-than-white nightie – is reading an awful lot between lines that Jesus left blank. What he said on the subject was not so much to inform as to warn and encourage. To sum it up: "It's good news for the good and bad news for the bad. So make sure you're on the right side." More of Jesus' sayings |
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