Do we sleep in heaven?
In Christian thought, heaven has been seen as the ultimate
attainment of bliss by the redeemed. At All Saintstide many sing
"Hark the sound of holy voices" to celebrate their joy in heaven,
as with "love and peace they taste for ever, and all truth and
knowledge see, in the Beatific Vision of the Blessed Trinity". That
magnificent hymn resonates in every verse with the language and
vivid imagery of those chapters of Revelation where the activity of
the blessed is described as ceaseless praise and worship.
Descriptions of the life of heaven are inevitably symbolic, in
the only language at our disposal, but accordingly it is not one of
somnolent slumber. Admittedly, several New Testament texts (e.g. 1
Thessalonians 4.14-16) do equate death with sleep, and describe the
condition of departed believers as having "fallen asleep". The
Greek verb koimaomai/koimasthai was a common metaphorical
euphemism for death, but when used by Christians it included belief
that there would be an awakening to resurrection life, to be with
Christ. So, Paul, in 1 Corinthians 15, proclaimed Christ "the first
fruits of those who have died (or fallen asleep)", and "we will not
all die (or sleep) but we will all be changed" (1 Corinthians 15.20
and 15.51).
The stark contrast between pagan (and neo-pagan) fatalism and
Christian hope becomes evident in Antiquity. The Roman poet
Catullus utterly despaired of any hereafter except sleep: "when the
sun sets, it sets to rise again: but for us, when our brief day is
over, there is one endless night that we must sleep."
When we turn to the Christian convert and theologian St
Augustine of Hippo, we indeed hear of rest, but rest with a
difference: "there we shall rest and we shall see; we shall see and
we shall love; we shall love and we shall praise" (City of
God Book XXII, chapter xxx). More than once, Augustine singles
out the whole business of the praise of God in heaven: "uplifting
one another to the same praise in most fervent love to one another
and to God, all the citizens of that city will say Alleluia,
inasmuch as they say Amen". (Sermon CCCLXII.29).
In realms of heavenly glory, there is no more sleep, but an
assent to God's work of redemption, and an endless Alleluia chorus
that praises him.
(Canon) Terry Palmer
Magor, Monmouthshire
What we do or don't do in heaven, assuming we get there, is hard
to know. In Revelation 21.4b, the voice from the throne says:
"Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no
more, for the first things have passed away." Sleep is a feature of
the creation. It is also a gift of God: "he gives his beloved
sleep" (Psalm 127.2). Jesus slept on the boat in the storm and
needed waking (Matthew 8.25).
A more pressing question is what sleep means in this life. St
Paul wants us to wake up (Romans 13.11). Sleep is a metaphor for
inattentiveness: "Are you still sleeping and taking your rest?"
(Mark 14.41). It is also a time of openness to God, as in the
dreams of Jacob and both Josephs. It can also be a euphemism for
death (Mark 5.39b).
So, whether in heaven or earth, we are called to be awake and
alert to the fulfilment of the Kingdom.
(Canon) Andrew Bishop
Guildford
Christ said that we shall be accountable for all our
actions. Do we have to watch our every thought and action? How can
we do this?
G. C.
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