Introduction

As we saw in the section on judgement, the final destinations are:

• Heaven (for the good Christians)

• Hell (for everyone else)

Catholics also believe in Purgatory, which is a state after death in which Christians whose souls are not yet able to enter into Heaven are purified. This is an intermediate (and temporary) state before the soul gets to Heaven.

Heaven

Most Christians believe that Heaven is a real, though spiritual, place where people who have lived faithfully go after death, or after the Millennium (the thousand-year reign of Christ on Earth that follows the Final Judgement, according to some Christian traditions).

Heaven is thought of as a state of perfect happiness and eternal closeness to God, where there is no suffering, pain, or death.

Jesus's teachings

The Gospel of Luke describes one of the times Jesus was teaching a large crowd, which is often referred to as the Sermon on the Plain. The teachings are similar to those found in the more famous Sermon on the Mount (found in Matthew's Gospel). But there is a stronger emphasis on the plight of the poor and oppressed. Although he is preaching to the whole crowd, Jesus seems to address his disciples - those who have given up everything to follow him - when he says that Heaven is a reward for faithfulness.

This teaching encourages Christians to live morally and follow Jesus' teachings, with the hope of eternal life in Heaven as their ultimate reward.

Luke also reports Jesus as speaking about Heaven to one of the criminals who was crucified along side him. The criminal had expressed his acceptance at receiving the punishment that his crimes had warranted, and had asked Jesus to remember him when he ascended to his Kingdom (i.e., Heaven). Jesus told him:

This shows:

• Heaven is a paradise.

• Heaven can be reached by anyone who has faith in Jesus (even sinners, provided they are truly sorry).

• Heaven is reached immediately after death (although this is not understood literally by all Christian denominations).

The Book of Revelation

The Book of Revelation - the final book of the New Testament - provides a vivid vision of Heaven, describing a throne room surrounded by thousands of angels. In this vision, God sits at the centre on a radiant throne, and heavenly beings constantly worship him, declaring his holiness. The imagery is full of light, colour, and symbolism: a rainbow encircles the throne, lightning flashes represent God’s power, and hymns of praise fill the air.

The Book of Revelation also describes Heaven as a place where there is no suffering, pain, or death, and where God lives in perfect relationship with His people. This powerful picture helps Christians understand Heaven not just as a physical place, but as a state of complete peace, joy, and unity with God. and a sense of eternal peace. It emphasises the complete joy and absence of suffering for those who dwell there:

God

The Lord's Prayer (the prayer that Jesus taught his followers in the Sermon on the Mount) also reveals an important Christian belief about Heaven - that God is present there.

This highlights that God the Father is present in Heaven, reinforcing the idea of a close, personal relationship with him for believers.

Beatific vision

Christians believe that in Heaven they will experience the Beatific Vision, which means seeing God face to face. This is important because it represents complete union with God, with no suffering, sin, or separation. For many Christians, this is the ultimate goal of life, as it brings perfect happiness and fulfilment. In his first letter to the Christian community in Corinth, St Paul expressed this as follows:

The Beatific Vision gives Christians hope and motivates them to live in a way that brings them closer to God - even though that closeness can only finally be achieved in the afterlife.

Hell

Although the general view is that Hell is a punishment for sinners, there is disagreement between Christians over how exactly to think of it. For example, some understand Hell as simply the absence of God – a state in which someone spends eternity separated from God, whereas others see it as a place where sinners endure conscious suffering, whether spiritually, emotionally, or even physically, as a consequence of their rejection of God.

A place of punishment

Matthew 13 contains some important teachings from Jesus on the nature of Heaven, Hell and judgement. In the parable of the net, Jesus compares what will happen on Judgement Day to how fishermen keep the good fish they have caught and throw away the bad ones. Of those condemnd to Hell, Jesus says,

The Book of Revelation continues this theme, using vivid imagery of fire and burning sulphur, sometimes calling it the “lake of fire,” to emphasise the intensity of the suffering awaiting those who are judged as wicked.

Spiritual separation

After giving the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus continued his teachings throughout Galilee. When a Roman centurion asked him to heal one of his servants, Jesus was amazed by the centurion’s faith and commended him. At the same time, Jesus criticised those who lacked faith, warning that they would face exclusion from the Kingdom of God, emphasising the spiritual consequences of rejecting God’s authority and failing to trust in Him.

Other Biblical references

In the Bible, several different words are used to describe Hell or a place of divine punishment, each with its own particular meaning.

Sheol

In the Old Testament, the Hebrew word Sheol refers to the realm of the dead, a shadowy place where both the righteous and the wicked go. It is not necessarily a place of punishment, but a state of being separated from the living.

Hades

In the New Testament, the Greek word Hades is sometimes used as the equivalent of Sheol. Hades is used to refer to a temporary place where the dead await their final judgment.

Gehenna

In several teachings, Jesus uses the place name Gehenna as a metaphor for Hell. Gehenna was a rubbish dump just outside Jerusalem that would continuously be on fire - it would be used to get rid of all kinds of waste, including dead criminals. By all accounts it was a pretty awful place, and would have conjured up a terrible image of Hell.

Purgatory

Roman Catholic teaching holds that Purgatory is a state after death for souls who are saved but not yet fully purified. It is not eternal punishment like Hell, but a temporary process in which the soul is cleansed of remaining imperfections or attachments to sin (e.g., pride or selfishness) preparing it to enter Heaven and the presence of God.

Catholics often pray for the souls of the deceased, asking God to help them move through Purgatory more quickly. These prayers are seen as acts of love and support, helping the soul to be cleansed of any remaining sin or attachment to wrongdoing.

From Purgatory, a soul can only go on to Heaven; it cannot descend into Hell. This belief highlights God’s mercy and the idea that purification is part of becoming fully united with Him. Purgatory also encourages the living to pray for others and to lead holy lives themselves, knowing that spiritual growth may continue even after death.