Beginning in paragraph 10 of Spe Salvi, Pope Benedict begins to explore the question: “Eternal life – what is it?” In this section, the Holy Father raises a rather provocative question: “do we really want this—to live eternally?” (SS 10) He notes how for many people, their understanding of eternal life is just a continuation of this present life. Because this life is all that we know, this becomes the focus of our desire. Only with faith can we look beyond what this present life has to offer.
As he is reflecting on this, he offers the following words that have stuck with me since the first time I read them almost 18 years ago, and I think it is worth quoting them in full:
To continue living for ever —endlessly—appears more like a curse than a gift. Death, admittedly, one would wish to postpone for as long as possible. But to live always, without end—this, all things considered, can only be monotonous and ultimately unbearable. This is precisely the point made, for example, by Saint Ambrose, one of the Church Fathers, in the funeral discourse for his deceased brother Satyrus: “Death was not part of nature; it became part of nature. God did not decree death from the beginning; he prescribed it as a remedy. Human life, because of sin … began to experience the burden of wretchedness in unremitting labour and unbearable sorrow. There had to be a limit to its evils; death had to restore what life had forfeited. Without the assistance of grace, immortality is more of a burden than a blessing”[6]. A little earlier, Ambrose had said: “Death is, then, no cause for mourning, for it is the cause of mankind’s salvation”(ibid.)
While indeed we want to delay death as long as possible to get the most out of this life, there is truth in acknowledging that just to go on living this life without end is not as desirable as it might sound.
For those without faith in the prospect of the gift that eternal life brings, the thought of death can be frightening, and it can prompt us to make efforts to prolong life as much as possible. There is the thought among some people that if we just figure out the right science, we can extend life indefinitely, without our bodies breaking down, conquering the problem of death. But such hope is unrealistic. To this, some might object: “Not yet!” But as Christians, we know that only in the Lord is death conquered, and in Him alone do we have a hope that has substance, for it has been revealed to us, and we are already sharing in a foretaste of it through the gift of grace. We know that while in this body we are not fully at home with the Lord. Only when we are with Him in Heaven will that hope reach is fulfillment. St. Paul expresses this well:
So we are always courageous, although we know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. Yet we are courageous, and we would rather leave the body and go home to the Lord.
(2 Cor 5:6-8)
Because this life is all that we know, and since what eternal life is remains somewhat a mystery, we can take comfort in knowing that whatever eternal life is like – what we will see, what we will know, how we will feel – all of those questions we ask – we can be assured of this: we will not be disappointed. (cf. Rom 5:5)