Hope vs justice XII: the hope of post-mortem salvation via intercession, a survey
Hope vs justice XII: the hope of post-mortem salvation via intercessions, a survey
That there
were ‘many’ who, even ancient times, didn’t accept the idea of ‘endless
torments’ even in Antiquity is something that we can even learn from the
writings of those who opposed them[1].
The doctrine of ‘universal salvation’ or at least, a possibility of salvation
for some of the damned after their death is most famously associated
with the third century theologian Origen of Alexandria. In this text, however,
I won’t discuss the case of the form of universalism that was advocated
by Origen (and others) but I’ll discuss a different kind of universalism that
we might call intercessory universalism. The main features of intercessory
universalism are the following ones:
1. Unrepentant sinners fully deserve
unending punishment
2. Unrepentant sinners are saved by the
intercessions of those who belong to the Church, either in the
afterlife or in this life
It should
be noted that, however, that most texts that I’ll quote in what follows do not explicitly
state that the intercessions save all the unrepentant sinners but
they nevertheless open up the possibility of post-mortem salvation, at least for some people[2].
The
Apocalypse of Peter, the Sybilline Oracles and the Epistola Apostolorum
Let’s start
with the infamous ‘Apocalypse of Peter’. I say ‘infamous’ because it is perhaps
the earliest Christian text that speaks in detail of the physical torments
of various classes of the damned in hell in a way that isn’t dissimilar to Dante’s
inferno[3].
A 5th century fragment of the 14th chapter of the Apocalypse
of Peter has the following passage:
“Then I will grant to my called and elect ones
whomsoever they request from me, out of the punishment. And I will give them
[i.e. those for whom the elect pray] a fine baptism in salvation from the
Acherousian lake which is, they say, in the Elysian field, a portion of
righteousness with my holy ones”
The
presence of this fragment in at least some of the earliest versions of the ‘Apocalypse
of Peter’ is supported by the following passage in another work, the ‘Sybilline
Oracles’ (again from the second century):
“To these pious ones imperishable God, the
universal ruler, will also give another thing. Whenever they ask the
imperishable God to save men from the raging fire and deathless gnashing he
will grant it, and he will do this. For he will pick them out again from the
undying fire and set them elsewhere and send them on account of his own people
to another eternal life with the immortals in the Elysian plain where he has
the long waves of the deep perennial Acherusian lake.” (Book 2, 330–338)
Notably,
both passages speak of events that seem to occur in the afterlife and
notably it tells us two other things: (1) that the sinners apparently deserve unending
torments and that (2) that they are spared from their fate by the prayers of
the righteous. It doesn’t state that all sinners will be saved but we can infer
that it is likely the case, given that even in the Gospels we find passages
that speaks about prayers for enemies (cf. Matthew 5:43-48, Luke 6:27-36) and
in one passage (1 Timothy 2:1-6), it is said that Christians should pray for ‘all
men’. A similar idea can be found from another text that probably dates in the second
century, the Epistola Apostolorum:
“…Whoso then hath kept my commandments
shall be a son of the light, that is, of the Father that is in me. But because
of them that corrupt my words am I come down from heaven. I am the word: I
became flesh, and I wearied myself (or, suffered) and taught, saying: The heavy
laden shall be saved, and they that are gone astray shall go astray for ever.
They shall be chastised and tormented in their flesh and in their soul.
And we said unto him: O Lord, verily we are
sorrowful for their sake. And he said unto us: Ye do rightly, for the righteous
are sorry for the sinners, and pray for them, making prayer unto my Father.
Again we said unto him: Lord, is there none that maketh intercession unto thee
(so Eth.)? And he said unto us: Yea, and I will hearken unto the prayer
of the righteous which they make for them.” (Epistola Apostolorum,
39-40, source: https://www.earlychristianwritings.com/text/apostolorum.html )
Again, we
find the idea that the damned deserve their just punishments but the righteous
will intercede for them. We aren’t explicitly told that the prayers will be
satisfied but only ‘heard’. However, given that in this passage the Lord says
that “Ye do rightly, for the righteous are sorry for the sinners, and pray for
them, making prayer unto my Father”, we might conclude that this might be
indeed the case.
These texts
seem to agree about three important things: (1) the damned will be punished
in the afterlife and their just punishment is unending, (2) the righteous will
pray for the damned and (3) God will deliver the damned from punishments
thanks to the prayers of the righteous. Notably, in a later Ethiopian text that
is related to the Apocalypse of Peter (see: https://ancientafterlifebelifs.blogspot.com/2026/02/hope-vs-justice-iii-apocalypse-of-peter.html), the salvific act is made by Christ
himself rather that isn’t ‘prompted’ by the prayers of the righteous (indeed,
Christ himself prays for those who are crucifying Him in Luke 23:34).
Post-mortem
salvation of specific individuals
In this section,
we will discuss again three ‘tales’ of post-mortem salvation but this time the salvation
is granted only to specific individuals. The first is the case of Dinocrates, a
seven year old boy that apparently died unbaptized, who is saved via the
intercession of his sister, the Martyr Perpetua (fl. 2nd century):
“3. After a few days, while we were all
praying, on a sudden, in the middle of our prayer, there came to me a word, and
I named Dinocrates; and I was amazed that that name had never come into my mind
until then, and I was grieved as I remembered his misfortune. And I felt myself
immediately to be worthy, and to be called on to ask on his behalf. And for him
I began earnestly to make supplication, and to cry with groaning to the Lord.
Without delay, on that very night, this was shown to me in a vision. I saw
Dinocrates going out from a gloomy place, where also there were several others,
and he was parched and very thirsty, with a filthy countenance and pallid
color, and the wound on his face which he had when he died. This Dinocrates had
been my brother after the flesh, seven years of age, who died miserably with
disease — his face being so eaten out with cancer, that his death caused
repugnance to all men. For him I had made my prayer, and between him and me
there was a large interval, so that neither of us could approach to the other.
And moreover, in the same place where Dinocrates was, there was a pool full of
water, having its brink higher than was the stature of the boy; and Dinocrates
raised himself up as if to drink. And I was grieved that, although that pool
held water, still, on account of the height to its brink, he could not drink.
And I was upset, and knew that my brother was in suffering. But I trusted that
my prayer would bring help to his suffering; and I prayed for him every day
until we passed over into the prison of the camp, for we were to fight in the
camp-show. Then was the birthday of Geta Cæsar, and I made my prayer for my
brother day and night, groaning and weeping that he might be granted to me.
4. Then, on the day on which we remained in
fetters, this was shown to me. I saw that that place which I had formerly
observed to be in gloom was now bright; and Dinocrates, with a clean body well
clad, was finding refreshment. And where there had been a wound, I saw a scar;
and that pool which I had before seen, I saw now with its margin lowered even
to the boy's navel. And one drew water from the pool incessantly, and upon its
brink was a goblet filled with water; and Dinocrates drew near and began to drink
from it, and the goblet did not fail. And when he was satisfied, he went away
from the water to play joyously, after the manner of children, and I awoke.
Then I understood that he was translated from the place of punishment.” (Diary
of Perpetua/The Passion of Perpetua and Felicity, chapter 2, 3-4; source: https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0324.htm )
Notably,
this text assumes that even 7 year olds can be punished in the afterlife, at
least if they have not joined the Church! However, it does seem to allow for
some hope: Dinocrates is delivered by the prayers of his living sister and he
is ‘translated from the place of punishment’. This language of ‘transfer’ is
also found in another text, the ‘Acts of Paul and Thecla’, another second
century text. Here, it is suggested that St. Thecla, a disciple of St. Paul,
successfully intercedes for Falconilla, the dead pagan daughter of a woman that
gave hosted her:
“And when the beasts were exhibited, they bound
her to a fierce lioness; and Tryphæna accompanied her. But the lioness, with
Thecla sitting upon her, licked her feet; and all the multitude was astonished.
And the charge on her inscription was: Sacrilegious. And the women cried out
from above: An impious sentence has been passed in this city! And after the
exhibition, Tryphæna again receives her. For her daughter Falconilla had died,
and said to her in a dream: Mother, you shall have this stranger Thecla in my
place, in order that she may pray concerning me, and that I may be transferred
to the place of the just.
And when, after the exhibition, Tryphæna
received her, at the same time indeed she grieved that she had to fight with
the wild beasts on the day following; and at the same time, loving her as much
as her daughter Falconilla, she said: My second child Thecla, come and pray for
my child, that she may live for ever; for this I saw in my sleep. And she,
nothing hesitating, lifted up her voice, and said: God most high, grant to this
woman according to her wish, that her daughter Falconilla may live forever. And
when Thecla had thus spoken, Tryphæna lamented, considering so much beauty
thrown to the wild beasts.
And when it was dawn, Alexander came to take
her, for it was he that gave the hunt, saying: The governor is sitting, and the
crowd is in uproar against us. Allow me to take away her that is to fight with
the wild beasts. And Tryphæna cried aloud, so that he even fled, saying: A
second mourning for my Falconilla has come upon my house and there is no one to
help; neither child, for she is dead, nor kinsman, for I am a widow. God of
Thecla, help her!
And immediately the governor sends an order
that Thecla should be brought. And Tryphæna, taking her by the hand, said: My
daughter Falconilla, indeed, I took away to the tomb; and you, Thecla, I am
taking to the wild-beast fight. And Thecla wept bitterly, saying: O Lord, the
God in whom I believe, to whom I have fled for refuge, who delivered me from
the fire, grant a recompense to Tryphæna, who has had compassion on Your
servant, and because she has kept me pure. Then a tumult arose, and a cry of
the people, and the women sitting together, the one saying: Away with the
sacrilegious person! The others saying: Let the city be raised against this
wickedness. Take off all of us, O proconsul! Cruel sight! evil sentence!” (source: https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/0816.htm )
While we
are not explicitly told that Falconilla was saved, nevertheless, it seems to be
assumed that she was and that prayers for the dead can be efficacious. This was
indeed how it was read in Antiquity and we can find confirmation of this in a
text that apparently was falsely attributed to St. John of Damascus (fl. 8th
century) that also has another interesting tale: the prayer of St. Gregory the
Great (fl. 6th century) on the behalf of Emperor Trajan. Here is the
text:
“16.But it is time to recall other accounts.
Gregory the Dialogist, Bishop of old Rome, renowned and known as a holy and
wise man – and they say that when he celebrated the liturgy an angel always
concelebrated with him – while walking on the road stopped to pray to the Lord
to forgive the sins of Emperor Trajan.
Then a heavenly voice came to him saying:
“I have your prayer and grant forgiveness to
Trajan. But you must cease offering prayers to the impious.”
That this is true is affirmed by the whole East
and West.
Do you see that this surpasses the case of
Falconilla? For she at least harmed no one, whereas he caused the bitter death
of many martyrs.” (Concering Those Who Have Fallen Asleep in Faith, 16;
source: https://www.mystagogyresourcecenter.com/2026/02/concerning-those-who-have-fallen-asleep.html )
Notably,
the author is impressed by the fact that Trajan was forgiven even if he
persecuted Christian, a far more impressive case of post-mortem mercy than Falconilla
and this was affirmed by ‘the whole East and West’! However, it seems that that
the tale implies that the case of Trajan was a rather rare occurrence.
In the Middle Ages, St. Thomas Aquinas (fl. 13th
century) gave the following interpretation of the tale of Trajan:
“Obj. 5: Further, the Damascene in
the same sermon relates that Gregory, while praying for Trajan, heard a voice
from heaven saying to him: I have heard thy voice, and I pardon Trajan:
and of this fact the Damascene adds in the same sermon, the whole East
and West are witnesses. Yet it is clear that Trajan was in hell,
since he put many martyrs to a cruel death. [On Those Who Have
Fallen Asleep in Faith, falsely ascribed to Damascene]. Therefore, the
suffrages of the Church avail even for those who are in hell.
…
Reply Obj. 5: Concerning the incident of Trajan it may be
supposed with probability that he was recalled to life at the prayers of
blessed Gregory, and thus obtained the grace whereby he received the pardon of
his sins and in consequence was freed from punishment. The same applies to all
those who were miraculously raised from the dead, many of whom were evidently
idolaters and damned. For we must say likewise of all such persons that they
were consigned to hell, not finally, but as was actually due to their own merits
according to justice: and that according to higher causes, in view of which it
was foreseen that they would be recalled to life, they were to be disposed of
otherwise.
Or we may say with some that Trajan’s soul was
not simply freed from the debt of eternal punishment, but that his punishment
was suspended for a time, that is, until the judgment day. Nor does it follow
that this is the general result of suffrages, because things happen differently
in accordance with the general law from that which is permitted in particular
cases and by privilege. Even so the bounds of human affairs differ from
those of the miracles of the divine power, as Augustine says (On the
Care of the Dead 16).” (Supplement of the Third Part, Summa
Theologica, question 71, article 5, objection and reply 5, source: https://aquinas.cc/la/en/~ST.IIISup.Q71.A5.Rep5 )
Here Aquinas
offers two interpretations of the Trajan tale. The first is that he indeed was
saved in a rather improbable circumstance (i.e. he was temporarily resuscitated
in the times of Gregory the Great and forgiven) that nevertheless seem to have
been regarded as possible by Aquinas in some rare circumstances. Neither
Aquinas nor the author of the tale of Trajan explain why this ‘second
possibility’ is given only to some specific individuals. The second interpretation isn't really that Trajan was saved but that his punishment was 'suspended' until the judgment day.
St Augustine’s
criticism of intercessory universalists of his time:
St. Augustine
(fl. 4-5th centuries) sharply criticized a form of intercessory
universalism of his days in the City of God, book 21, chapter 18, 24 (source:
https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/120121.htm
). In it, he quotes texts like Matthew 25:46 that seem to imply that the
punishment of the damned are indeed endless (and the ‘intercessory universalist’
agreed that they deserve that!) and Matthew 25:41, which states that the
human damned and the fallen angels will be sentenced to the same ‘eternal fire’.
So, Augustine tells us, if the human beings will be delivered from their just
punishment by the intercessions the same should happen to the ‘fallen angels’,
something that his opponents deny. Notably, he also says that these universalists thought that unrepentant
sinners will not be punished at all. This diverges from the accounts we
have seen so far: the damned will experience post-mortem punishments but will
be saved in the afterlife. Augustine also tells us that the supporters of this
kind of ‘ultra-universalism’[4]
in which all human beings will get to Heaven without even experiencing some
temporary punishments.
Timotheus
II (fl. 14th century), patriarch of the ‘Church of the East’:
Patriarch
Timotheus II is sometimes cited as a proponent of ‘universalism’ in the
East-Syrian Church.[5]
I did manage
to find the testimony of Joseph Assemani (source: https://archive.org/details/assemani-1728-bibliotheca-orientalis-clementino-vaticana-3.2/page/n372/mode/1up (Joseph Assemani, volume 3.2/4, pp. 344-346)). He quotes three passages
from Timotheus II and provides a Latin translation. Unfortunately, some words
were unclear to me and my transliteration might be erroneous. Also, since I
don’t know Latin I used Google to translate – so, of course, the English translation
is unreliable. Notably, it is a text that teaches the possibility post-mortem
salvation via the prayers and also an apparently universalist text that emphasizes
Christ’s role.
Google translation from Latin to English:
““The deceased are helped by the prayers of the living, Timothy II, the
Patriarch, teaches expressly in his book on the Seven Sacraments of the Church,
chap. 6, led.7. where, having set himself this question: If everyone is
rewarded according to the measure of his labor, what profit is prayer for the
deceased? or the oblation to him for whom it is offered? he brings a
threefold answer, the first of which is:
“Although it is true that none of those who sow wheat, nor any of those who
sow tares, gather wheat; nevertheless, prayer, however small, helps and
confirms the hope of the deceased, if indeed it is done from the company of the
faithful who have hope; just as a person who is tossed about in the sea, if it
is done from the number of those who can swim, does not determine to move his
hands and feet; and thus, repelling despair from within himself, he is lifted
up.”
The other answer:
“The soul, which is stripped of its body, is helped by prayers and
offerings; for just as the soul acts upon the virtues of the body, so it can
act upon a soul weaker than itself; just as the soul of Simon, the Prince of
the Apostles, acted upon the souls and bodies of Ananias and Sapphira. And as
we read in the Book of Paradise, by a certain manner of prayers, the souls of
certain sinners were transferred from place to place, that is, from torments to
pleasures. Therefore, since the soul of the one praying is a stronger
potentiator than that which has departed from the body, the weaker one is moved
by the weaker one and is enlightened, and is prepared by an active mind and the
Holy Spirit to receive the gift of beatitude, and is transformed from glory to glory
by the Lord Spirit.”
the third answer:
“Christ, the common victim for all, to what age of men did he benefit when
he was sacrificed? Not the first, the middle, or the last? Or did he indeed
benefit the middle; but not the first and the last at all? But if he benefited
all equally, namely the dead and the living; for he is the grace of all, and of
the whole world; it is therefore clear that the sacrifice of the Lamb of the
living God, who takes away and takes away the sin of the world, is not for the
end of utility, nor for the end of use, when it is offered for the living and
for the dead. Therefore the Baptist does not say, who took away the sin of the
world; for he knew that he continually and always took away and forgave the
sins of the world. Not if the irrational sacrifices of the law, lamb, I say,
and kid, and calf, and tortures, and young colts, were not offered for the end
of utility, nor for the end of use, according to the law, for sinners, but they
washed away and cleansed sins, but not in every part, nor always; for they were
a type and image of the Lamb of God, who takes away and takes away the sin of
the world; How much more can the living Lamb of God cleanse the sins of the
living and the dead? But if certain strategists and soldiers, fighting for the
ancient and paternal law, I say Judas, Maccabeus and his companions, begged
pardon for the sins of the sons of his people after their slaughter and fall;
and that while they were sick in the worship of idols; how much more is Christ
our Lord, when he is sacrificed, believed to forgive the sins of the living and
the dead? Therefore the sacrifice of the Son of God, when offered, benefits
all. Sins are not entirely, nor in every respect, forgiven to the soul; it is
clear that the deceased does not resort to repentance and tears, since he enjoyed
the power and free will of his will; yet in this the kindness and philanthropy
of God are often seen, as grace and piety work even those things which are not
done by will. Therefore it is useful, and of great benefit, that the Lamb of
God is constantly sacrificed for us, both to those who share in the sacrament
of his sacrifice, and to him, for whose sake and for whose sake it is perfected
and consummated.””
Latin text: “Defunctos suffragiis vivorum juvari, ex
professo docet Timotheus II Patriarcha in libro de septem Ecclesiae Sacramentis
cap. 6 . led.7. ubi hac sibi praefixa quaestione: Si unicuictue pro laboris
mensura merces retribuitur , quid prodest oratio defuncto? aut Oblatio ei, pro
quo offertur ? triplicem relponfionem affert, quarum prima eft:
“Tametsi verum est, neminem eorum, qui triticum
semiant, neque ullum eorum, qui zizania seminant, triticum colligere; oratio
tamen, quantulacmunque fit, defuncti spem adjuvat et confirmat, si quidem ex
caetum fidelium spem habentium fit; quemadmodum qui in mari fluctuat, si ex
eorum numero fit, qui natare possunt, manus pedesque motare non definit; atque
ita desperationem seipso repellens, sublevatur”
Altera responsio:
“Anima, quae corpore exuta est, precibus
oblationibusque juvantur; nam sicuti anima in virtues corporis agit, ita agere
potest in animam seipsa infirmiorem; quemadmodum anima Simonis Apostololorum
Principis egit in animas et corpora Ananiae et Sapphirae. Et sicuti in
libro paradisi[6]
legitur, ob quemdam precum modum, de loco in locum, idest, ex cruciatibus in
voluptates translatae sunt animae qorumdam peccatorum[7].
Quum igitur anima orantis potentiator firt, quàm ea qua è corpore migravit,
haec infirmior ab invalidiori agitur et illuminatur, atque ad recipiendum
beatitudinis donum à mente activa et à Spiritu Sancto preaeparatus, et à gloria
in gloriam per Dominum Spiritum transmutatur.”
tertia responsio:
“Christus communis pro omnibus victima, cuinam
hominum aetati profuit, quum immolatus fuit? Primis ne, mediis, an postremis?
An verò mediis quidem profuit; primis verò ac postremis nequaquam? Sin autem
omnibus aequé profuit, defunctis scilicet et vivis; omnium enim, totiusque
mundi gratia est; perspicuum igitur fir, non fine utilitate, nec fine usu esse
sacrificium agni Dei vivi, qui tollit et aufert peccatum mundi, qunado pro
vivis et pro defunctis offertur. Propterca non ait Baptista,qui abstulit
peccatum mundi; Sciebat enim illum continuo et semper auferre et dimittere
peccata mundi. Non si irrationalia legis sacrificia, agnus, inquam, et haedus,
et vitulus, et tortures, et pulli columarum, non fine utilitate, nec fine usu
il lege pro peccatoribus offerebantur, sed peccata abluebant mundabantque, esti
non omni ex parte, neque semper; typus enim erant et imago agni Dei, qui tollit
aufertque peccatum mundi; quanto magis vivus Dei agnus mundare potest vivorum
mortuorumque peccata? Quodsi strategi quidam militesque pro vetere paternaque
lege decertantes, Judasm inquam, Macabaeus et socii, veniam deprecati sunt pro
peccatis filiorum populi sui post illorum ccaedem casumque; idque quam in
idolorum cultu aegrotarent; quanto magis Christus Dominus noster quum
immolatur, creditur dimittere peccata vivorum mortuorumque? Itaque omnibus
prodest sacrificium filii Dei, quando offertur. Eisi enimi non omnino, neque ex
omni parte dimittuntur peccata; eòscliciet quia defunctas ad poenitateniam et
lacrymas non confugit, quum potestate liberosque voluntatis arbitrio frueretur;
in hoc tamen magnopere benignitas et philatropia Dei plerumque conspicitur, ut
gratia et pietas etiam ea, quae non ex voluntate geruntur, operatur. Utile
igitur est, multumque prodest, ut pro nobis assidue immoletur agnus Dei, tùm
iis, qui sacramento immolationis ejus participes siunt, tùm ei, eujus causa et
propter quem perficitur et consummatur.””
Assuming
that the 'Google translations' are correct, it seems that Timotheus II endorsed
an universalist or 'quasi-universalist' view based on intercessions.
The first two quotes seem to imply that he believed that intercessions
of the living faithful can help the dead who are said
to be unable to repent. The third quote, instead, has a stronger 'universalist'
language and seems to say that Christ's sacrifice will benefit all ("...how much more is Christ our Lord, when he
is sacrificed, believed to forgive the sins of the living and the dead?
Therefore the sacrifice of the Son of God, when offered, benefits all"). Again, also in the third
quote we find the idea that the damned are unable to repent
("it is clear that
the deceased does not resort to repentance and tears, since he enjoyed the
power and free will of his will"). Timotheus II seems to argue in the following way: it is
accepted that intercessions can help others, so, arguably, the sacrifice of
God's Son should have much more efficacy than the efforts of human beings on
behalf of others. And since Christ’s sacrifice was on the behalf of all…
Notably, the
English translation of the ‘second answer’ we read that thanks for the prayers
of the righteous some will be transferred from place to place, a language that echoes the tale of Thecla and Falconilla and the tale of Perpetua and Dinocrates.
The case
of Kristos Samra (fl. 15th century)
Let’s now
bring to our attention another tale, this time of an Ethiopian saint, Kristos
Samra. While not an ‘ancient’ figure, I found interesting the case of an
important Ethiopian Christian figure, Kristos Samra[8]
(fl. around the 15th century), venerated in some Oriental Orthodox
Churches. To her, it is attributed a tale in which she recounts a ‘journey’ to
the hell in order to attempt to save human beings trapped there. There are two
available English translations online[9],
one of which is part of an academic article available with a registration on
Academia[10]
(which contains scholarly footnotes).
The tale
starts with a prayer of Kristos that she herself was ‘afraid to make’:
“I replied, “If you permit your maidservant
[to ask], tell me why you created our father Adam in your image and likeness,
and why you were crucified on the wood of the cross. Was it not for the sake of
Adam and his offspring?”
Christ replied, “Yes, I was crucified for their
sake.”” (transl.
Micheal Kleiner, Wendy Laura Belcher)
Given this
reply, she then asks to pardon all human beings to which Christ replies that,
however that the suffering that experienced by Him was ‘heavier’ than the sins
to be pardoned:
“So I said to him, “If your
crucifixion happened for their sake, pardon [all] those who have died, from
Abel up to now and in eternity, O Lord! Truly, you are merciful, slow to be
angered, given to compassion, and righteous. There is no other God than you, you
are all-powerful, and nothing is impossible for you; the entire earth does not
[even] fill your hands.”
Now Christ replied to me with these words,
“Please judge [for yourself], my dear Kristos Samra. [Weigh] the sins that Adam
and his offspring have committed [against] the cross that I, your creator,
carried in the court of Caiaphas and Annas with Pontius Pilate as their
superior: If they are weighed on the scales, which one is heavier? Does not my
suffering [in human hands], which I received on [Good] Friday, weigh heavier?””
(ibid.)
In other
words, those trapped in hell experience what they deserve. They are justly
condemned and suffer for their sins.
Then there
is a bit of dialogue between Kristos Samra and Christ, which culminates in a
request from the former to pardon all human beings because there is none that
doesn’t sin, so in this sense nobody deserves salvation! (Kristos asks:
“Is there any wood that doesn’t smoke [when burned], are there humans who
don’t sin?”) and even to pardon the Devil, because, according to Kristos,
if the Devil is pardoned, all human beings will then be saved and God doesn’t
want the perdition of sinners but their conversion (Kristos to Christ: “…Truly,
you don’t desire the sinner’s death, but rather his turning back [from sin]!”).
To this Christ replies with a laugh because nobody asked to do that.
Hence, the
story goes, Christ summons the Angel Michael to bring Kristos to the realm of
the Dead (Sheol, which in the story appears to be conflated with Gehenna[11]).
In the realm of the dead, she saw people that were “biting each other like
dogs” and she then has a dialogue with the Devil:
“So I called out for him, in the language of
the angels, “Satan!”
Instantly, Satan shouted [back], in a loud
voice, “Who calls out for me, in the place where I am Lord God of many hosts?”
After Satan had said this, he came to me and
told me, “I‘ve been looking for you for a long time. Today you have finally
come to my home.”
At this point, I replied to him, “Come out
quickly! Our Lord has pardoned you, as well as those who are yours.”
When I said this to him, he became enraged. He
seized my left hand and dragged me down to the lowest level of She‘ol.” (ibid.)
Notably,
here Satan is depicted as choosing to remain in hell by rejecting God’s
pardon. This is consistent with the view that the cause of hell is one’s own
obstinate will to reject God’s love. Fortunately, Michael intervenes and saves
both Kristos and, with her, all the trapped human beings that manage to cling
to the wings of Michael and Kristos:
“My brothers, what can I tell you about the
wailing that arose in that hour! All the [captive] souls swarmed me like bees.
[Fortunately], the number of souls who escaped from [hell] on the wings of
Saint Michael and on my own wings was something like 100,000. I was delighted
when I saw how happy those souls were. I frolicked among them just like a young
calf; I was like a horse that races in the king’s presence.” (ibid.)
While the
100000 number is perhaps purely symbolic (the other translation has 10000[12]),
i.e. a way to indicate ‘many’, it is significant that the story depicts a
striking example of the power of intercession. These people are dead but
contrary to a widespread view among Christians here we have a tale of
post-mortem salvation.
So here we
have a depiction of the tension between ‘mercy’ and ‘justice’, the desire for
repentance/salvation and the need to satisfy the demands of ‘justice’, with,
however, I believe a note of hope. For at least some of the
condemned, there is still hope via intercession[13].
Silouan
the Athonite (fl. 19-20th century):
Let us
conclude with an anecdote about Silouan the Athonite (1866-1938) reported by
his student Sophrony of Essex (1896-1993) quoted in the paper ‘Dare we Hope for
the Salvation of All?’ written by Kallistos Ware (1934-2022) which can be found
here: https://afkimel.wordpress.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/09/dare-we-hope-for-the-salvation-of-all.pdf
It was particularly characteristic of Staretz
Silouan to pray for the dead suffering in the hell of separation from God... He
could not bear to think that anyone would languish in “outer darkness.” I
remember a conversation between him and a certain hermit, who declared with
evident satisfaction, “God will punish all atheists. They will burn in
everlasting fire.” Obviously upset, the Staretz said, “Tell me, supposing you
went to paradise, and there looked down and saw somebody burning in
hell-fire—would you feel happy?” “It can’t be helped. It would be their own
fault,” said the hermit. The Staretz answered him with a sorrowful countenance.
“Love could not bear that,” he said. “We must pray for all.” (Archimandrite
Sophrony (Sakharov), Saint Silouan the Athonite, 48)
This brief
story, in my opinion, shows very well the deep tension between the doctrine of
eternal damnation and the hope and desire motivated by love. If justice truly
requires eternal damnation in some cases and justice needs to be fulfilled, the
hope and desire motivated by love may not, in the end, be fulfilled.
[1] For instance, one can find
occasional remarks that 'many' people raised objections to the notion of
endless punishments in St. Augustine (Enchiridion 112: https://christgettysburg.org/download/st-augustine-enchiridion-on-faith-hope-and-love-1955-english-translation/?wpdmdl=1160&refresh=66e761b301a401726439859 ), St. John Chryosostom
(Homilies on 2 Thessalonians 1:9-10, https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/23053.htm ), St. Basil (Rules for Monks,
quoted here: https://afkimel.wordpress.com/2020/02/07/committing-theological-fraud-st-basil-the-great-and-david-bentley-hart/ ). All these lived between the
late fourth and early fifth centuries.
[2] This possibility is denied, for
instance, by the largest Christian denomination, the Roman Catholic Church,
which nevertheless prays that no one should be lost: https://ancientafterlifebelifs.blogspot.com/2026/03/the-current-catholic-catechism-on-hell.html
[3] See for more details, e.g.: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apocalypse_of_Peter
[4] A similar view was advocated by
Hosea Ballou much later: https://afkimel.wordpress.com/2024/05/29/the-ultra-universalism-of-hosea-ballou/
[5] See e.g. “ Timotheus
II., patriarch of the Nestorians, wrote that "by the prayers of the saints
the souls of sinners may pass from Gehenna to Paradise," (Asseman. IV.
p. 344).” (J.W. Hanson, the Prevailing view chap. 5, source: https://www.tentmaker.org/books/prevailing/upd5.html )
[6] Assemani adds: “(in vitis Patrum)”
(translation: “in the life of
the Fathers”)
[7] Assemani adds: “(hìc intelligit
Timotheus historiam scù fabulam animae Trajani Imperatoris, aliorumque vel
ethnicorum vel malorum Christianorum, quae precibus Sanctorum à Gehenna
liberatae dicuntur.)” (translation: “Here Timotheus understands the history and fable of the soul of the Emperor
Trajan, and of other pagans or bad Christians, who are said to have been
delivered from Gehenna by the prayers of the Saints.”)
[9] The first can be found here: https://www.scribd.com/document/68019468/Saint-Kirstos-Semra-s-Hagiography-2011-de-Birhan ; the second here: https://wendybelcher.com/african-literature/the-life-of-kristos-samra/ . I’ll use this latter translation
which also appears in a paper (see the following footnote).
[10] See: https://www.academia.edu/39782156/The_Life_and_Visions_of_Kr%C9%99stos_%C5%9A%C3%A4mra_a_Fifteenth_Century_Ethiopian_Woman_Saint_Kristos_Samra_
[11] The translators use the word ‘hell’
to translate the word 'gähännäm', footnote 70, p. 21 of the pdf file.
[12] Note that the word ‘myriad’ derives
from the number 10000 in ancient Greek language.
[13] It should be noted that the
Churches that venerated Kristos Samra (Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church and the Coptic
Orthodox Church of Alexandria) never, to my knowledge, accepted the Fifth
Ecumenical Council of 553 (accepted by the Roman Catholic Church and the
Eastern Orthodox Churches) which is assumed to have condemned ‘universalism’
(there is controversy about this, but I don’t want to address the debate here).
This perhaps explains why in the time of Kristos Samra and the immediate
following centuries this tale was never seen as endorsing a ‘heretical’
teaching. So, perhaps, in these Churches it was easier to accept chances of
post-mortem salvation, just like in the East-Syrian Church (see: https://ancientafterlifebelifs.blogspot.com/2026/01/on-presence-of-universalism-in-east.html )
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