According to certain religious beliefs, God’s presence in a human being is in the soul. Perhaps this is why the soul is said to be pure and immortal. The human being is also said to be a component of the body and the soul. In this case, the body comprises the physical and the mental categories. There is also the belief that there is life after life. In the second life, the righteous will go to heaven while sinners will go to hell. It is believed in these quarters that heaven and hell do not have physical features but are in a state. This means that the state of being in the presence of God is heaven while the state of the absence of God is hell.
The presence of God is peace, love and all goodness while His absence shows lack of these. Such physical attributes as fire, pain, sorrow and lack for Hell while kingdom, peace, wealth and abundance for Heaven are mere symbols to hit home the message. There may actually be neither kingdom in the real sense nor hell fire to burn people. Rather the message is that the state of heaven is like the earthly kingdom while the state of hell is like the earthly burning furnace. If these states are not physical as imagined, then one may not require physical bodies to attain them or experience them.
There are certain beliefs that heaven is up above the sky while hell is below the earth. If this makes sense, it will help in our analysis. In death, the body is separated from the soul. It should be understood that the soul, body and mind have different functions. While the body and mind are in relation to the world, the soul relates with God. However, their functions are interwoven. It should also be understood that the soul is eternal and immortal. The mind’s products can also live forever while the body is temporary and in transit. As I was saying, in death, the body decays and turns to earth or what is believed to be hell or Hades (There is no presence of God here). The products of the mind are left in the world to assist in changing the people and the world as we experience in science and discoveries, history, language, arts, culture, literature etc. The soul, uncontaminated and pure will go back to its owner, (God the creator) which state is referred to as Heaven. While on earth, the soul is responsible for supervising the body and the mind.
At judgment, the soul that supervised an accomplished body and mind will rest eternally with God and remains in His presence (Heaven). The unaccomplished ones will pick up new bodies and return to earth for total fulfillment, thus certain beliefs in re-incarnation. The transit situation is what is referred in some sectors as purgatory. The unaccomplished body is confined to earth (Hell) eternally with no second option as the soul. This is because the body does not face judgment but only the soul. An unfulfilled soul cannot be in the presence of God but hovers around until assigned to another body for a repeat performance. The accomplishment of the body and mind therefore is the sum totals of the quality and quantity of what goodness and beneficial things it left behind on earth. Through faith, we are exposed to the inward presence of God in us. He assists us through grace in nurturing our body and mind to adapt to all inherent virtues needed to live forever in His presence in both body and soul.
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