The Twelfth Article

"and life everlasting"

COMPENDIUM

This last article of the Creed teaches that after this life there is another, either eternally happy for the elect in paradise, or else eternally miserable for the damned in hell. The bliss of paradise is beyond our comprehension, because it passes the understanding of our limited intelligence, and because the goods of heaven cannot be compared with the goods of this world. The happiness of the elect consists in seeing, loving, and always possessing God, who is the source of every good. The misery of the damned consists in ever being cut off from the vision of God and punished with eternal torments in hell.

The benefits of heaven and the evils of hell are, at present, only for the soul, because only the soul is now in heaven or hell. But after the resurrection of the flesh, men will be happy or tormented in the entirety of their human nature, both soul and body, for all eternity. The nature and duration of the benefits or evils of heaven or hell will be equivalent, but in measure and degree, they will be greater or less according to the merits or demerits of each individual.

The Creed ends with the word Amen, with which prayers also conclude. At the end of a prayer, this word means "So be it," but at the end of the Creed, it means "So it is," i.e., I believe all that is contained in the twelve Articles of this Creed is most true, and I am more certain of their truth than if it were proved by ocular demonstration.

CATECHISM

246. What are we taught by the Last Article: life everlasting?

The Last Article of the Creed teaches us that, after the present life there is another life, eternally happy for the elect in heaven, or eternally miserable for the damned in hell.

247. Can we comprehend the bliss of heaven?

No, we cannot comprehend the bliss of heaven, because it is beyond the scope of our limited minds, and because the goods of heaven cannot be compared with the goods of this world.

248. In what does the happiness of the elect consist?

The happiness of the elect consists in forever seeing, loving and possessing God, the source of all good.

249. In what does the misery of the damned consist?

The misery of the damned consists in being forever deprived of the vision of God and punished with eternal torments in hell.

250. Are the happiness of heaven and the miseries of hell for the soul alone?

The happiness of heaven and the miseries of hell at present affect the soul alone, because at present the soul alone is in heaven or in hell; but after the resurrection of the flesh, man in the fullness of his nature, that is, in body and in soul, will be for ever happy or for ever tormented.

251. Shall the bliss of paradise and the miseries of hell be the same for all men?

The bliss of heaven in the case of the blessed, and the miseries of hell in the case of the damned, will be the same in substance and in eternal duration; but in measure, or degree, they will be greater or less according to the extent of each one's merits or demerits.

252. What does the word Amen signify at the end of the Creed?

The word Amen at the end of a prayer signifies "So be it;" at the end of the Creed, it signifies "So it is," that is to say, "I believe that all things contained in these twelve Articles are most true, and I am more certain of them than if I had seen them with my eyes."