Zo]vXn 2022Death:APaschalMysteryandVictoryFr. Dr. Shaji P. JohnAll finite existence has a time limit, which is death. Its meaningvaries depending on whether it is examined from a biological,psychological, sociological, or theological perspective. Death isinterpreted in Christian theology in relation to God, the Creator, Judge,and Redeemer of life. The death and resurrection of Christ are centralin this interpretation.Death is understood in different ways in the Old Testament. It isconsidered as a given limit that God has set for all creatures (Isa. 40:6ff.; Ps. 90:10). Hence while premature or violent death is feared,finitude and mortality are not seen as intrinsically evil. The patriarchsdied “old and full of years” (Gen. 25:8). Death is seen as a continualthreat to full human life experienced in boundary situations likesickness, loneliness, and exile. Since life consists in relationship with112 Hm¿Ø-tUmIvkv Xntbm-tfm-Pn-°¬ skan-\m-cn, tIm´bw
Zo]vXn 2022God within the covenant community, experiencesof alienation from this source are death-like andare feared and lamented. Another way is to seedeath as the result of a primordial divine cursecaused by human sin (Genesis 2-3). All sufferingand death are construed as divine punishment forviolations of the covenant or the moral order ofcreation. Death is also understood as God’s enemy,which will be defeated at the end of history (Isaiah26; Daniel 12).Diverse understandings of death are alsoapparent in the New Testament. Although the earlychurch unanimously affirms that God has actedthrough Christ to assure final victory over death,tension is evident between seeing death strictly asenemy and seeing death and resurrection as thepattern of God’s way of salvation. God’s comingkingdom is signaled by Jesus’ forgiveness of sins,healing of the sick, and raising of the dead. YetJesus also calls his disciples to give up their oldway of life in order to find new life (Mk. 8:34 ff.).Different dimensions of death are implicit inthe New Testament portrayals of Jesus’ own death.While Matthew and Mark stress Jesus’ experienceof abandonment, Luke describes Jesus as serenelytrusting in God and praying for his persecutors ashe dies. For Paul death is the wages of sin (Rom.6:23) and the last enemy (I Cor. 15:26). As Adambrought death, so Christ brings new life (Rom.5:12 ff.). Christians die with Christ in baptism andin everyday discipleship in hope of participatingin his resurrection. Whereas Paul interprets thecross kenotically (Phil. 2:5 ff.), John views ittriumphantly (Jn. 19:30). Christ is the resurrectionand the life (Jn. 11:25), and he gloriously finishesthe work of salvation on the cross.Correspondingly, Paul emphasizes more thecommencement, John more the present actualityof new life in believers by the power of the Spiritof Christ.For most people death is the end of life. For theOrthodox Christians it is the beginning of a newlife. Human death, in the Orthodox Christiantradition, is the rupture of the psychosomaticunity, the untying of the bond between body andsoul; it is the separation of the soul from the body.This is not explicitly stated in the Holy Scripture,but it is indirectly described by the words of SaintJames: ‘‘the body apart from the spirit is dead’’(James 2:26). According to Saint Gregory theTheologian, life is the tie between body and soul,while death is their separation. 1 The soul is nonvisibleand, although being created and mortal bynature, it is by grace immortal. 2 The visible andtangible part of human nature is the body. Death,considered as a biological phenomenonexclusively, refers only to the body. The body issubjected to the laws of nature. Due to its veryessence, these laws cannot influence the soul.Accordingly, any attempt to define biologicaldeath by referring to the changes of the soul’ssituation is arbitrary and may disregard thatdifference in essence. At the moment of death, itis not the ‘‘departure’’ of the soul from the bodythat causes the latter’s collapse. The soul neitherenters nor exits the body, but co-exists with it.Rather, it is the body’s own decaying that rendersit unable to ‘‘follow the course’’ of the soul andreceive its life-giving energy. 3The value of a human life is epitomized by themoment of biological death. It is at this point whenGod’s proximity to man is realized in its fullestform. As a result, Orthodox Christians treat it withreverence, humility, and a deep sense ofmystery. We humans are immortal by grace, butwe live in mortal bodies, thus we experiencemortality. Our mortality is clear from the minutewe are born and continues throughout our lives. 4In this respect, death is not merely a momentaryevent, but also a continuous process. We couldsay that man is biologically dead, when theconsequences of the process of mortality becomenon-reversible. The body ceases to exist as suchfrom the very moment it ceases to support theperson. 5Orthodox Christian theology considers deathas a mystery. Mysteries can neither be observed,nor understood, or, even more so, defined. Everyeffort to determine details that are by natureinexplicable and inaccessible runs the risk toprofane the mysteries’ sacred character with falseknowledge and misleading definitions. 6 The lifeof the Church abounds with incidents that,although not rationally explainable, indicate thatdeath is not only a natural occurrence that can beprecisely defined, but also a spiritual event thatought to be approached with humbleness and fearof God. 7 Thus, Saint Seraphim of Sarov “passedaway, while he was praying: his soul separatedfrom his body before the body was dead - he washolding a lighted candle in his hand.” 8 Moreover,Russian tradition refers to the impressive story ofhierodeacon Serapion, who slept in the Lord onJune 25, 1859, while at his hermitage in Glinsk,Hm¿Ø-tUmIvkv Xntbmtfm-Pn-°¬ skan-\m-cn, tIm´bw 113
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