Friday 9/26/14

This week’s LifeTeen Question of the Week comes to us from Catherine Roche. She asks:

Does Heaven have a geographical location?


Some time in the early 12 ^th century, medieval theologian Pierre Abelard wrote a book called Sic et Non which translates to “Yes and No.” I’m going to steal his method to answer your question. Yes, but also, no.
Sic

Let’s start with what we know. Each week at Mass when we say the Creed, we profess a belief in “the resurrection of the body.” Some people think (if they think about the Creed at all) that that line refers to Christ’s body, or talks about some sort of “spiritual resurrection of the body of Christ, the Church.” Those people are wrong. That line refers directly to our bodies. Saint Paul was very clear about this. In Chapter 15 of his first letter to the Corinthians he addressed the issue head on to silence those who were saying that the body did not resurrect, but merely the spirit. He insisted that the bodies of the faithful would resurrect on the last day, but that they may not look like they did in life. He compares our bodies to seeds, which are buried in the ground only to sprout up again as something more magnificent. The resurrection of the body is the reason that the Catholic Church teaches that all bodies should be buried in one place, even those which have been cremated.
If, on the last day, our bodies are to be physically resurrected, we will need a physical place for them. That means that Heaven must have a physical location.


Et Non

At the same time, there must also be a spiritual Heaven which precedes the physical Heaven of the last day. We know that the Saints are in heaven already but we still have many of their bodies here on earth (some of them are even on display). This proves a spiritual heaven that, at least for now, must exist. Fun fact: the Canonization process (the process through which the Church names a person a Saint) actually has a “test” to make sure that the person is in Heaven. The miracles required to canonize a Saint are not actually things that they did while alive, but rather, miraculous intercessions once they have died. The idea is that if they are able to intercede on our behalf once they are dead, they must be with God in Heaven.


So there you have it. If Heaven is not yet a physical location, it will be. Whatever you do, don’t go looking for it. There is only one way to get there… unless you’re Mary. She was assumed straight to Heaven, body and all.

If you have a question you would like Mike to answer, submit it under the “Ask Mike” section of our website or, to guarantee that your question is chosen, please engrave it on a gold ingot and mail it to: