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It was after the crucifixion of the Messiah of Israel that Satan and godless Israelites rejoiced in their demonic triumph of unrighteousness. They thought that they had done away with “This Man”, this Miracle Worker, this Preacher of RIGHTEOUSNESS, this violator of the Sabbath, the "messiah", this One who claimed to be Almighty God the Son; and it was exhilarating to their godless mind (Matt. 27, Luke 23). As the Sabbath day was about to begin these godless men made their preparation to finish “their” Feast of Passover and partake in “their” man-made traditions (Matt. 15:7-11, 23, John 18:28). Satan...

Rock a My Soul in the Bosom of Abraham – Learning the Wisdom of an old Spiritual Msgr. Charles Pope • August 12, 2016 • There is an old African-American spiritual that says, “Rock a my soul in the bosom of Abraham. Oh, rock a my soul!” At first glance its meaning may seem obscure, but it speaks to a deep tradition and a kind of spiritual strategy that has great wisdom.Biblically, the “bosom of Abraham” referred to the place of rest in Sheol, where the righteous dead awaited the Messiah and Judgment Day. It is mentioned only once...

We all have our own views on separation of church and state. Some people think that the Constitution simply forbids the establishment of a Church of America. Others hold that any hint of religious principle must be excluded from the public arena. Where does Senator Bernie Sanders stand, and how does it affect his official actions? Although I am by no means an expert in matters of religion, based on a recent Senate hearing, I think I know enough to assert that Senator Sanders knows just enough about Christian doctrine (and in my opinion, about any religion, including his own)...

It was after the crucifixion of the Messiah of Israel that Satan and godless Israelites rejoiced in their demonic triumph of unrighteousness. They thought that they had done away with “This Man”, this Miracle Worker, this Preacher of RIGHTEOUSNESS, this violator of the Sabbath, this One who claimed to be Almighty God the Son and it was exhilarating to their godless mind (Matt. 27, Luke 23). As the Sabbath day was about to begin these godless men made their preparation to finish “their” Feast of Passover and partake in “their” man made traditions (Matt. 15:7-11, 23, John 18:28). Satan the...

In a previous blog post, I talked about the error of both Fr. Robert Baron and Hans Urs von Balthasar in positing the real possibility that Hell could be empty for all eternity. This post led to people asking more questions about the nature of Hell itself. What is it? Is it really "eternal?" and more.Below find my answers to some of those questions.By definition, according to CCC 1033, hell is “[the] state of definitive self-exclusion from communion with God and the blessed.” Some people cannot fathom how Hell could be a reality if God is truly an “all-loving” and...

The second reading from the Office of Readings for Holy Saturday is taken from an ancient homily on Christ’s descent into hell. It begins: “Something strange is happening—there is a great silence on earth today, a great silence and stillness. The whole earth keeps silence because the King is asleep.” The King fell asleep when His soul was separated from His body on Good Friday afternoon. He remained asleep until His soul reanimated His body on Easter morning. But during the silence and stillness of the King’s sleep, He harrowed hell.Our Lord’s descent into hell is well attested to...

Where is Christ after he dies on Friday afternoon and before he rises on Easter Sunday? Both Scripture and Tradition answer this question. Consider the following from a Second Century Sermon and also a mediation from the Catechism of the Catholic Church.An Ancient Sermon: Today a great silence reigns on earth, a great silence and a great stillness. A great silence because the King is asleep. The earth trembled and is still because God has fallen asleep in the flesh and he has raised up all who have slept ever since the world began. . . He has gone...

I have written here before on the reality of Hell, as revealed in Scripture. And though many dismiss Hell as either non-existent or a very remote possibility, no Biblical figure spoke more of Hell than Jesus, who also taught that “many” go there. It is a sober and straight-forward teaching of Scripture that there is a Hell and that many mysteriously choose to live apart from God and the values of God’s Kingdom.Yet, while fully asserting all this, I do wonder why the teaching on Hell is so unambiguously “hellish” and why the focus of the Lord’s teaching is almost...

This month I would like to explain the difference between the immediate state of the dead (what happens after death) and the ultimate destiny of the human race (Lake or Fire or New Jerusalem). In the Bible, various words are used to describe the state of the dead. The terms Sheol, in the Hebrew Bible, and Hades, in the Green New Testament, are EQUIVALENT. This is very important to understand. They mean the same thing-the place of Departed Spirits! In Psalm 16:10, we read these words of David: “For thou (YHVH) will not leave me soul in Hell (Sheol) neither...

I went looking for Hell the other day. No, not the one supposedly down there -- that one the demons would have to drag me to, kicking and screaming. I mean the Hell found in Scripture. Opening the New American Bible, I quickly flipped through some of the verses where I expected to find it, without success. Maybe a computer search would pick up what my eyes were overlooking? No such luck. No wonder I couldn't remember hearing Hell mentioned at Mass for a very long time -- someone has taken the very word out of our Bible! Thinking about the...

To Hell and Back—for a Popsicle The story is real. The Popsicle was sweet. The understanding is priceless. by Randy Stiver Jerusalem's sizzling summer sun in '73 fiercely scorched my exposed skin and slow-cooked my brain. I found archaeology at the Temple Mount to be good, hard, hot, dusty, thirsty work. It was so hot and three of us so thirsty that we stood at the edge of the precipice that noonday summoning the nerve to launch an expedition into the very depths of hell itself to find something to cool our dry tongues and parched lips. Down we went,...