Christian Eschatology and the Afterlife
What do Christians believe happens after death? Explore resurrection, judgement, heaven and hell, and the divergent views Christians hold.
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The last things ✝️
**Eschatology** means beliefs about the "last things": **death**, **judgement**, and **life after death**. For Christians, these beliefs shape how they live now and offer **hope** in the face of death.
Hope in resurrection 🌅
At the heart of Christian hope is the **resurrection of Jesus**. Christians believe that because Jesus rose from the dead, believers too can share in **eternal life**. St Paul explores this in **1 Corinthians 15**, and John's Gospel records Jesus saying, "I am the resurrection and the life."
The key word
What does the term eschatology mean?
- Beliefs about death and life after death
- The study of church buildings
- The rules for daily worship
- The history of the first disciples
Facing judgement ⚖️
Christians believe that after death each person faces **God's judgement**. In the **Parable of the Sheep and the Goats** (Matthew 25), Jesus teaches that people are judged on how they treated others, especially those in need: "whatever you did for the least of these, you did for me."
Sheep and goats
In the Parable of the Sheep and the Goats, people are judged mainly on...
- How they treated others in need
- How much money they gave to the temple
- Whether they memorised the whole law
- The family they were born into
Heaven and hell 🕊️
Christians believe in **heaven**, eternal life in the presence of God, and **hell**, eternal separation from God. Christians differ on whether these are **literal places** or **metaphors** for closeness to, or distance from, God.
Match each term to its meaning
- Eschatology
- Resurrection
- Judgement
- Salvation
- Beliefs about death and the last things
- Rising from death to new life
- God assessing a person's life
- Being saved from sin, through Jesus
Christian beliefs
Select the TWO beliefs many Christians hold about the afterlife.
- The dead will be resurrected
- People face God's judgement
- Everyone is reincarnated as an animal
- Nothing at all happens after death
Christians disagree 🔀
Christians do not all agree about the afterlife: - **Roman Catholics** also believe in **purgatory**, a state of purification before entering heaven; most Protestants do not accept this. - Some Christians read heaven and hell **literally** as places; others read them **metaphorically** as states of being with or without God.
Match each view to its belief
- Roman Catholic view
- Literal view
- Metaphorical view
- Shared Christian hope
- Purgatory purifies a soul before heaven
- Heaven and hell are real places
- Heaven and hell are states of being
- Jesus' resurrection brings hope of eternal life
Apply the belief
An interactive activity.
Eschatology frame
Eschatology covers death, judgement and life after death. Christian hope rests on the _____ of Jesus, who said "I am the resurrection and the life." After death each person faces God's _____, taught in the Parable of the _____ and the Goats. Roman Catholics also believe in _____, a state of purification before heaven.
The big picture
What is the main source of Christian hope for life after death?
- The resurrection of Jesus
- The wealth of the church
- Keeping every festival perfectly
- The great age of the Bible