{"id":947,"date":"2012-10-09T08:50:57","date_gmt":"2012-10-09T14:50:57","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/paperbacktheology\/?p=947"},"modified":"2012-10-09T08:50:57","modified_gmt":"2012-10-09T14:50:57","slug":"where-is-heaven","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.patheos.com\/blogs\/paperbacktheology\/2012\/10\/where-is-heaven.html","title":{"rendered":"Where is Heaven?"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<\/head>

In the faith section of our Kansas City Star this weekend was an interesting article<\/a> asking local pastors to weigh in on their thoughts about heaven. The results were quite interesting. Surveys tell us that somewhere around 80% of Americans believe in a real place called heaven.<\/p>\n

Where is Heaven?<\/p>\n

The pastors from KC weighed in (you can see their answers at the bottom). Perhaps the most interesting commonality was that none of them were willing to give its location. This is actually a good thing.<\/p>\n

I think the very best explanation on this comes from N.T. Wright. Wright\u2019s historical work roots Jesus firmly within the Jewish tradition, much more than typical American folk theology. Thus his explanation of the theological concept of heaven is less tainted by American evangelicalism. Wright insists that the hope for the Christian is not that God will destroy the world & they\u2019ll escape to heaven. But that heaven (which is the place where God dwells), will be remade and joined with earth into what Revelation calls \u201ca new heaven and a new earth.\u201d Wright\u2019s characteristic way of explaining it is that \u201cheaven is important, but it\u2019s not the end of the world.\u201d The Christian hope is not for \u201cheaven,\u201d it is for \u201cresurrection,\u201d and the return of the world\u2019s true king, Jesus Christ.<\/p>\n

Wright\u2019s understanding of what heaven is and what it\u2019s for is not new or novel, although he is such a great communicator and writer, his explanations are more accessible than most theologians. His view represents the most common view of New Testament scholars on the subject of heaven. What is most striking is how much this view differs from the typical American Christian. The folk-theology of heaven is that our bodies unzip and the soul (true self), flies away to some undisclosed location where there are clouds and angels to live for eternity. This is neither the view of the KC area pastors, nor New Testament Scholars. Yet it remains the folk theology of many Christians, especially evangelicals. Wright says nothing could be further from the Jewish picture of heaven.<\/p>\n

\u201cOur picture, which we get from Dante and Michelangelo, particularly of a heaven and a hell, and perhaps of a purgatory as well, simply isn\u2019t consonant with what we find in the New Testament,\u201d Wright said. \u201cA lot of these images of hellfire and damnation are actually pagan images which the Middle Ages picks up again and kind of wallows in.\u201d (Find this article here<\/a>)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Heaven as this spiritual realm that exists in some far off reaches in outer space somewhere is a pervasive, yet misleading part of the evangelical narrative according to Wright. The Jewish notion of heaven is connected to the kingdomof Godand the bodily resurrection of the dead. God\u2019s kingdom work is at the center of the discussion about heaven. It\u2019s known in Judaism as tikkun olam<\/em>, (repairing the world). Wright says,<\/p>\n

\u201cAnd so it\u2019s not a Platonic, timeless eternity, which is what we were all taught,\u201d Wright said. \u201cIt is very definitely that there will come a time when God will utterly transform this world \u2014 that will be the age to come.\u201d (citation<\/a>)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Thinking about heaven is important, but Wright seems to point to the idea that it can be a real distraction. We pray, \u201cThy kingdom come, thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven,\u201d for a reason. Our focus should not be on getting all that is down here to go \u201cup there.\u201d Our focus should be getting all that is \u201cup there\u201d down here.<\/p>\n

Is this challenging for you? What do you think?<\/p>\n

Here\u2019s a look at what the local KC church leaders said:<\/strong><\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Pastor Dan Wakefield of Abundant Life Assembly of God in Overland Park listed many biblical verses indicating heaven is a real place.<\/p>\n

First, Jesus said it was a real place in John 14:2-3, he said. It states that \u201cIn my Father\u2019s house are many mansions\u201d and \u201cI go to prepare a place for you.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cSo either Jesus and the apostles were lying to us or telling us the absolute truth, and I believe they were telling the absolute truth.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Snorgrass\u00a0said heaven is a literal place \u201cwhere God, angels of heaven and all who have been saved abide. This is the place of eternal life, joy, peace, contentment. \u2026<\/p>\n

\u201cImagine no police, no military, never any wars, no dumps, everything is perfect, pure and clean. There is no discrimination, prejudices, no doctors, lawyers, hospitals, funerals, no disease of any kind.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Mormon spokesman Bruce Priday said his faith considers heaven an actual and \u201cbeautiful place where we will accordingly receive an eternal dwelling place in a specific kingdom of glory in heaven based on our faith and obedience.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s harder to pin down where it\u00a0is,\u00a0he said, adding that Ezra Taft Benson, a former church president, taught that the spirits of those who have died are not far from us.<\/p>\n

Another past president, David D. McKay, said: \u201cIt\u2019s possible to make home a bit of heaven. Indeed, I picture heaven as a continuation of the ideal home,\u201d Priday quoted.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Rogers\u00a0knocked down some old stereotypes. \u201cSince heaven is outside our universe of time and space, it\u2019s not \u2018in the sky\u2019 or \u2018in space\u2019 any more than it is any other place.<\/p>\n

\u201cSince being in the presence of God is far beyond our earthly human experience, we can no more imagine what heaven \u2018looks like\u2019 than an unborn child can understand what the outside world looks like \u2014 perhaps less so, if that\u2019s possible.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0The Rev. Rick Power ofCollegeChurchof the Nazarene inOlatheagreed: \u201cWe couldn\u2019t travel there by spacecraft but the destination is very real.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to the Book of Revelation, God\u2019s plan is to bring heaven to earth, he said, as a dwelling place for redeemed people. God said his creation was very good, he explained. \u201cHe\u2019s not going to throw it away, but restore it at the end of time.\u201d<\/p>\n

This somewhat resembles the Islamic vision.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Syed E. Hasan of the Midland Islamic Council\u00a0said he has been researching the origins and end of the earth for nearly two years.<\/p>\n

He said some verses in the Qur\u2019an suggest that heaven will be on a \u201ctransformed earth, where the current laws of science will be very different from what we know, and this new world will be the everlasting place of rest for the faithful believers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Much agreement exists between the Qur\u2019anic revelation and astrophysical discoveries, Hasan, a geoscientist, said. The universe is expanding but will slow down and then stop, which will cause it to collapse \u201cto form a singular entity where the known laws of physics, chemistry and maths will not be valid.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hasan said the Qur\u2019an states that \u201cas We originated the first creation, so We shall bring it back again.\u201d<\/p>\n

It also says, \u201cOn the day when earth is changed into different earth and heavens into different heavens, mankind shall stand before God, who conquers all.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Anand Bhattacharyya, an active Hindu, noted how scriptures talk about heaven being somewhere in the cosmos.<\/p>\n

\u201cAccording to the theory of karma and reincarnation, heaven is the place where noble souls, who have performed good karma in their lives, go after death to enjoy the rewards of their good karma. After exhausting the rewards they are reborn again and start a new life. This process continues until the ultimate liberation is achieved.\u201d<\/p>\n

Rebirth is an element, as well, of Buddism, a faith of several heavens that are temporary.<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Gibbons\u00a0said when she heard people of other faiths talk about heaven as a\u00a0physical\u00a0place, \u201cit just sounded like a made-up fairy tale.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cThe existence of loved ones when they die is in our memories and the impact they had on the world,\u201d she said. \u201cWe just don\u2019t know where we are going when we die. What makes more sense to me is that consciousness ceases with our physical life.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0The Talmud does not discuss heaven much.<\/p>\n

Yanklowitz still believes \u201call righteous people from any faith have a place there.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cIf one has cultivated one\u2019s eternal, spiritual self, then that part of the self will continue,\u201d he said. \u201cIf one has not, when one\u2019s body is finished, one\u2019s whole self is finished.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<\/body><\/html>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In the faith section of our Kansas City Star this weekend was an interesting article asking local pastors to weigh in on their thoughts about heaven. The results were quite interesting. Surveys tell us that somewhere around 80% of Americans believe in a real place called heaven. Where is Heaven? The pastors from KC weighed […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1118,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[104,31],"class_list":["post-947","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-heaven","tag-n-t-wright"],"yoast_head":"\nWhere is Heaven?<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"In the faith section of our Kansas City Star this weekend was an interesting article asking local pastors to weigh in on their thoughts about heaven. 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