ORTHODOX CHRISTIAN BELIEF ON DEATH AND MOURNING

Posted byFather GeorgePosted inUncategorized

My beloved brothers and sisters in Christ Our Only True Lord, God and Savior,

CHRIST IS IN OUR MIDST! HE WAS, IS, AND EVER SHALL BE.

Orthodox Christian Belief on Death and
Mourning.

The Holy Apostle Paul writes, "Brethren, I do not want you to be ignorant
about those who have fallen asleep, so that you will NOT grieve like those
WHO HAS NO HOPE. Because if we believe that Jesu died and rose again,
so must we believe that God WILL BRING WITH JESUS ALL THOSE WHO
HAVE DIED BELIEVING IN HIM…" (Thessalonians 4:13-17).

According to our Holy Orthodox Church, death is a passage, a separation of soul from body, but not an end, leading to an intermediate state before the final resurrection, wit prayers for the departed crucial for their journey and the grieving’s healing , blending sorrow with the joyful hope of Christ’s victory over death, focusing on prayers, memorials (3th, 9th, 40th days), and Mysteries (Sacraments) for spiritual preparation and comfort. The understanding is that death is nothing but a doorway, a separation of the soul from the body, anticipating the General Resurrection at Christ’s Second Coming, as taught in the Creed (resurrection of the body): "I look for the resurrection of the dead, and the life of the world to come. Amen."

We believe that the body, created by our Creator God and in His image, is vital, and resurrection means a glorified incorruptible body, making us whole again. Our soul remains conscious and journeys, with prayers helping it receive comfort and move toward God. Death constitutes the last chapter of the history of our human life. Death is truly a mystery, and only in the light of everlasting life, in the name of Jesus Christ, has its dreadful threat been transformed into a happy and victorious event for the faithful. The Holy Apostle Paul, in his First Epistle to the Corinthians 15:50-58 gives an account of the Christian understanding of death, saying: "Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood is not able to inherit the Kingdom of God; neither doth corruption inherit incorruption. Behold, I tell you a mystery: On the one hand we shall not all fall asleep, but on the other hand we shall all be changed–in a moment, in a wink of an eye, at the last trumpet. For a trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed. For it is needful for this corruptible to put on itself incorruption and this mortal to put on itself immortality. But whenever this corruption should put on itself incorruption, and this mortal should put on itself immortality, then the word which hath been written shall come to pass: ‘Death is swallowed up in victory. ‘O death, where is thy sting? O Hades, where is thy victory?’ Now the sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God Who giveth us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ."

The Christian must not neglect his earthly life but live it wisely and with purpose. Earthly life can be meaningful and rewarding. Earthly life is a preparation for everlasting life. Our Almighty and Loving God granted humanity this significant experience and has endowed us with charistmata, and opportunities to live according to His will and serve Him with faith and love. This earthly life is a training ground preparing us spiritually to progress from God’s image to God’s likeness.

The believer has a responsibility to take care of his/her body and nourish it. Saint Paul asks the question, "Do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit WHO IS IN YOU, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s" [1 Corinthians 6:19).  "Temple" refers to the individual Christian as a DWELLING PLACE OF THE SPIRIT,  All Christian know that according to the HolyScripture the human body is a creation of God for He unlike His other creations who were created by a command, formed Adam's body "out of dust from the ground" (Genesis 2:7).  The "breath of life" is the grace of the Holy Spirit, the "Giver of Life" (the Creed).  God breathed the breath of life into man's body, and he became "a living soul."  Therefore, Adam was a living soul because he possessed A BODY, A SOUL, AND THE GRACE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT.


   The significance of this is clear, moreover, by the fact that Jesus Christ's body rose after His death.  The Holy Apostle Paul states that without the Resurrection of the bodies of the Christians, the Gospel and Faith are in vain, saying:  "But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain" [1 Corinthians 15:13-14).  It is therefore imperative that the Christian keep and maintain a healthy body and that the body should never be either abused or exploited [i.e., prostitution] by any means. This is also the reason why it is prohibited for one to commit suicide, to the extent that the Orthodox Church does not allow Church funeral services in such cases.

God "breathed the breath of life into man’s body and he became "a living soul." Adam was A LIVING SOUL because he possessed A BODY, A SOUL, AND THE GRACE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT. It is man’s soul that gives life to the body. Jesus says, "For what profit is it to a man if he gains the whole world, and loses his own soul? Or what will a man give in exchange for his soul?" [Matthew 16:26]. And again, when "the Son of Man" comes in "glory" to "reward each according to his works (v. 27), it will be shown that absolutely nothing exceeds the value of finding true life, the salvation of one’s soul.

"Most assuredly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God; and those who hear will live…Do not marvel at this; for the hour is coming in which all who are in the graves will hear his voice and come forth–those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who hae done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation" [John 5:25-29]. This passage is read at the Orthodox funeral service. These verses refer to the general resurrection of the dead at the end of days. However, that "hour" is already present and "now is" in that encounter with Christ results inlife or judgment as a present reality, depending upon one’s response. Those who believe in Christ have already "passed from death into life" (v.24).

"Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life? (Luke 10:25). This is a momentous question for every person. The answer of Jesus is to love God above else, and to love one’s neighbor. Our Lord reminds us: "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die" (John 11:25-26). The Holy Apostle Paul assures us on this point by declaring: "For to me to live is Christ and to die is gain" (Philippians 1:21). It is the belief of every Christian that those who believe in Christ will inherit eternal life. The early Christians did not fear death, but saw it as a thing to be welcomed and looked forward to. They understood death as a release from sin, sickness, suffering and sorrow and the opportunity to be with Christ forever. We rightly mourn and grieve the loss of our departed loved ones, but we should not feel sorry for them, unless they have rejected God with all their heart, and even then we can simply place them in the mercy of our compassionate God.

Saint John Chrysostom writes: "O death, where is thy sting? O Hades, where is thy victory? Christ is risen, and thou art annihilated. Christ is risen, and the evil ones are cast down. ‘Christ is risen, and the Angels rejoice. Christ is risen, and life is liberated. Christ is risen, and the tomb is emptied of the dead; for Christ, having risen from the dead, is become the firstfruits of those that have fallen asleep. To Him be glory and power forever and ever. Amen"

_________

"Glory Be To GOD
For
All Things!"
– Saint John Chrysostomos
+ + +

With sincere agape in His Divine and Glorious Diakonia (Ministry)
The sinner and unworthy servant of God
+ Father George

Leave a comment