Dante's Conception Of Heaven example essay topic

Everyone has a different idea about what Heaven is like, but who knows the true state of Heaven? No one can really know, because no one on earth has ever seen Heaven; though, many scholars have come up with different takes on what the believe Heaven to be. In Dante's Paradise, he explains his conception of Heaven by explaining the physical appearance of it, the separate levels within Paradise, and the actual souls residing there. However, Dante's conception of Heaven contradicts what Baptist believes it to be like. In Dante's Paradise, Heaven appears to be a place of brilliant light. So brilliant and bright that when he first arrives in Paradise, he can hardly see due to the illumination all around him.

He has trouble describing the exuberant light and can only say", I have been in His brightest shinning heaven and seen such things that no man, once returned from there, has wit or skill to tell about". (Dante Canto 1 pg. 391 lines 4-6) On this account, Christians and Dante are in agreement- that if someone has God in their life, it makes the darkness fade and the light shine through. The Bible assures this gift in stating", O Lord, you are my lamp, The Lord turns my darkness into light". (2 Samuel 22: 29) Once Dante's moved from Hell, through Purgatory, and finally reached Heaven, God showed him the light. Dante separates Paradise into nine different levels: the Moon, Mercury, Venus, the Sun, Mars, Jupiter, Saturn, Fixed Stars, Primum Mobile, and the Empyrean. "Just like the levels of Hell represented different levels of damnation" (Alvares pg. 1), Paradise has different levels according to what the souls did with their time on earth.

Christians believe that God forgives us of our sins, "So, brothers, I am telling you that through Jesus your sins can be forgiven". (Acts 13: 38) Also, deeds done by man on earth don't account for anything when judgment day comes. If man has been living his life through Christ, with the belief that Jesus, the Son of God, died for our sins, he will walk beside God in the kingdom of Heaven. Dante contradicts himself by presenting the different levels of Paradise, because in some souls are closer to God than others, jealousy will be present, and jealous is a sin.

All of the souls are happy to be in the presence of God; however, the ones that are closer to him most likely are even more content. If the souls in the level of the moon ever wish to be closer to God, like the souls in the level of Saturn, then they " re sinning by feeling jealousy. The Bible states that, "Therefore, since we are justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 5: 1) meaning, faith gets us to Heaven and holds our relationship with God. Though a likeness is present between Dante's conception of Heaven and Christian's conception, such as the light we have when we have God, there are differences.

Heaven doesn't have levels to separate God's children; all of His children live equally in Heaven with God. Otherwise, there would be jealousy and impurity in Heaven, which is impossible. Though listening to different theologies can be important, Christians have to understand the truth, that out souls go to be with God if we glorify him while on earth. Alighieri, Dante.

Ed. Mark Musa. The Portable: Paradise. Penguin Books USA, Inc., copyright 1995. World Publishing. Ed.

Wayne Rice. God's Word for Students. God's Word to the Nations Bible Society. Copyright 1995. Jean Alvares. web.