Page 11 - Perceptions papers

CHRISTIANITY

Prof. David L. Coleman, Ph.D.

Christianity and the Afterlife: Christians all agree that our mortal death is not the end of our

life with God. Death of the body is part of life that returns us to God who calls us into being and

who celebrates our return. Various Christian churches and denominations articulate this mystery

with different nuances, but again all believe that Jesus Christ will return at the end of historical

time, the end of “this” world, and will judge the living and the dead. Matthew’s gospel, Chapter

25, verses 31 – 46 is a beloved and often quoted narration of the final judgment. Jesus returns

and “all the nations will be assembled before him.” Judgment is made according to how one has

responded to the needs of others, particularly “one of these least brothers [and sisters] of mine,

you did to me.” Did you feed the hungry, give drink to the thirsty, welcome the stranger among

you, clothe the naked, nurse the ill and visit the imprisoned? These are six of the “corporate

works of mercy.” Jesus identifies himself with the poor and the marginalized, showing us that

true faith always manifests in charity for those in need.

The language of Matthew’s judgment scene does speak to the gathering of all nations of

peoples and has been interpreted as excluding faith in Jesus from the criteria for salvation.

However, the whole narration is given to the disciples who do believe, and to us as a way to

clearly see that faith must be manifest as charity, and it is charity that is eternal, for God’s own

being is Love. Faith in Jesus Christ always draws us to loving action for the good of all God’s

creation.

The Catholic tradition, reflecting over the millennia on life, the gospels, and the afterlife,

says the following in Catechism of the Catholic Church, the authoritative guide to Catholic

doctrine and teaching:

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