Hell

**The Life of Hell**
Christianity was a major part of life during the Medieval times. Christians had a fundamental belief that the prophecies taught by the church came directly from Christ. The growing disciples within and around the church functioned with an “organized religion” that shaped their daily lives and gave a structure for their souls (Russell, 19). Faith and order was maintained through scriptures which were taught by priest, bishops, pastors and those who claimed to have visions. Christians supported the doctrine that if you lived your life according to the scripture, that a wonderful place in heaven awaits your soul. They also believed that anyone who did not support and function in the light of God would have a painful afterlife in the fiery pits of hell. The fear of an afterlife in Hell is what rooted the Christian society. The idea of life in hell was seemingly a very major topic for Christianity during the Medieval times. Because of the lack of record keeping and illiteracy during that time, no one knows exactly what the disciples thought of hell. History has recorded multiple stories and various art forms that strongly suggest that hell was alive in the hearts and minds of Christians. Those stories usually adjusted to suit the current times. This concept was reinforced through their daily surroundings in the form of stories, theatrical events, sermons, paintings, community gossip, and the transcribed writings of saints and bishops. I believe that Hell is alive in the spiritual Christian world. Hell has been kept alive through the consistant reinforcment of the literary arts. The earliest known documentation of the “Land of the Dead”, as written nearly four thousand years ago, on baked clay tablets from the Tigris-Euphrates Valley, a region named Sumer (Turner, 5). It contained stories about gods, heroes, religious thoughts, myths, literature, and much more (Turner, 5). With the help of time and various translations, the actual information on those tables has taken on a life of its own. Hell became known as “a place of individual, corporal and eternal torture, applicable to all ages (before and after Christ) and to all nations” (Kyrtatas, 282). During the early Medieval times, Christians believed that all the views about hell came from the Jewish community. According to the Jewish prophecy, Jesus described Hell (or //geenna-// the death of both the body and the mortal soul) as a place where “the corps of those who rebel against God are left unburied, exposed to the worm the never dies and the fire that is never extinguished” (Mark 9:48). The Jews were not afraid of a mortal death, but instead a death in Hell which meant no possibility of going to heaven. Stories like this flooded the communities and functioned to reiterate the fact that certain sinful actions done by mortals were punishable by an afterlife in Hell. During the Middle Ages, as penance became more important, Hell was driven into the thoughts of congregations through the art and preaching (Rasmussen, 368). One very popular sermon that was repeatedly delivered to the disciples was a quote from Jesus: Then he will say to those on his left, “Depart from me, you who are cured, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels. For I was hungry and you gave me nothing to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me nothing to drink, I was a stranger and you did not invite me in, I needed clothes and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not look after me.” Matthew 25:41-43 The passage never mentions hell but saints believed that this quote from Jesus specifically illustrates hell and torture. This was one among many sermons that spoke to the souls of the community. The preaching’s instructed the community on how to avoid hell and what the consequences were for heresy. A large portion of the stories that were preached to the disciples, usually fit in with the current social times and order. For example, writings from the //Apocalypse of Peter// and Dante’s Inferno describes judgments and punishment, in the afterlife, for what they deemed as very serious behaviors within the community; “aborted children blind their mothers with fire, abused children watch their parents mangled by wild beast, disrespectful children and disobedient slaves are tortured, non-virgins are torn to pieces, and fornicators and homosexuals are cruelly punished” (Turner, 84). Hell was also centered on the Seven Deadly Sins, which gave very specific characteristics of certain behaviors. These sermons gave descriptive punishments that attracted large crowds as though it was some form of entertainment for the public, with messages of obedience. Bishops and monks wrote stories about Hell which they claimed were the true accounts of visions or from those who briefly visited Hell and for whatever reason, were brought back to life and shared their graphic stories. One retold vision dated 633, was from an Irish preacher named Furseus. In it he tells how he was “lifted up by angels over a dark valley, then saw four fiery eyes in the air. The angels told him that these punished respectively liars, the covetous, creatures of strife and discord, and the pitiless and fraudulent. Then the four flames joined together in one big flame, in which he saw devils flying. One demon threw a tortured sinner at him, a man from whom Furseus had inherited some money. When Furseus was restored to his body, he carried a burn mark from this experience on his jaw and shoulder for the rest of his life” (Turner, 94-95).

Apocalyptic books had been written to signify a devastating end of life. These books were a testament to the Last Judgment for the living and tell what the future holds for wondering souls. Readings about the judgment day were very complicated because that came from a verity of sources, all claiming to have actual knowledge of Hell and the afterlife. The //Apocalypse of Paul// describes Hell as “rivers and pits of fire, snow, and blood, along with worms, beasts, and avenging angels with instruments of torture… On the north side of Hell is a narrow, stinking fiery pit reserved for unbelievers, and in it are several two headed worms that do not sleep, teeth gnash and chatter because of the extreme cold of the pit, despite the fires” (Turner, 86-87). Stories like these compelled Christians to repent for their sins out of fear. Medieval preachers were given homilies (commentaries that followed the readings of scripture), pamphlets, books about penance, visual literature and examples to help support their creative sermons. Artist created beautifully powerful paintings, about the consequences of sin, which were put in church cathedrals. Medieval plays about Hell appealed to the thrill seeker. Writers were able to combine the views of the church with Norse mythology, folklore, feudal fantasy and poetry (Turner, 91). Because of the wide spread illiteracy and poverty, the Medieval church held and produced the majority of all the writings and biblical scriptures. Of course some rebelled against the constant threat of an afterlife in Hell. One man by the name of Francois Villon was a well known sinner. He was a thief, murder, and a womanizer. He denied the existence of the afterlife and anything having to do with Jesus. However, he once wrote a prayer to the Virgin which he thought expressed the feelings of his mother (Turner, 111): // I am a woman, old and poor, // // Who knows nothing, not a single letter. // // In the parish church where I worship // // Paradise is painted, with harps and lutes, // // And A Hell where the damned are boiled: // // One fills me with fear, the other joy and delight. // // Give me that joy, great goddess //. No one really knows the spirit of this man, but we can assume that he, and many others, were aware of the overwhelming saturation of Hell literature and art that consumed their lives. The thoughts of Hell were alive during the Medieval times in multiple forms. The church used every known available resource, including writings, visual and spoken literature, to create a well organized Christian community, knowledgeable about the afterlife. They remained fearful of Hell and craved the joys of Heaven. Some could argue that this was a form of brainwash from the church and that none of the stories are founded on fact. Others might say that these methods were ordained by God and were necessary to educate the illiterate and keep them on the path to righteousness. I think they are both correct. Wherever your faith guides you, is where you need to be. The truth is in the eye of the beholder.

For more interesting Medieval art check out this clip: []

References:

Turner, Alice K. (1993). The History of Hell. Orlando, Flordia: Harcourt Brace & Company

The Harrowing of Hell Author(s): Sona Rosa Burstein Source: Folklore, Vol. 39, No. 2 (Jun. 30, 1928), pp. 113-132 Published by: Taylor & Francis, Ltd. on behalf of Folklore Enterprises, Ltd. Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/1255866 Accessed: 29/06/2010 20:59

Descendit Ad Inferos: Medieval Views on Christ's Descent into Hell and the Salvation of the Ancient Just Author(s): Ralph V. Turner Source: Journal of the History of Ideas, Vol. 27, No. 2 (Apr. - Jun., 1966), pp. 173-194 Published by: University of Pennsylvania Press Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/2708637 Accessed: 29/06/2010 21:12

Kyrtatas, Dimitris J. (2009). The origins of Christian Hell. In Numen: International review for the history of religion, 56 Issue 2/3 p 282-297, 16p. Retrieved from []

Rasmussen, Tarald (2009). Hell disarmed? The function of hell in reformation spirituality. Numen: International review for the history of religion, 56 issue 2/3, p366-384, 19p. Retrieved from [|http://proxygsu-mer2.galileo.usg.edu/login?url=http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=rlh&AN=36867382&site=ehost-live] [|Michelangelo] - **The Last Judgment** [|www.renaissance-spell.com/Michelangelo-Painti...]

[|The Damned Painted by Luca Signorelli] [|www.italyfarmhousesrental.com/.../last_Judge.jpg] The Last Judgment by, [|Hieronymus Bosch]

[|www.funprox.com/.../ art/bosch_judgment.jpg]