Dormitantii.
And touching the soules of the old Patriarkes, that died before the natiuitie of Christ, Austin, Hierom, Nazianzen, and other holy Fathers teache, that God in certaine places by him chosen out for that purpose, hath preserued the soules of al those that are departed from this life in the true faith of the Messias to come, in such sort that they féele no griefe, but yet are depriued of the sight of God. This place they call Abrahams bosome, and Hell (for Hell doth not alwaies betoken a place of torment, but also generally the state that soules are in after this life.) And that our Lord Iesus Christ did visit and release them, and when he ascended, carried them with himselfe into heauen. Albeit certain of the Fathers, as Ireneus, Tertullian, Hilarie, & others, think that they shall at the last day ascend to heauen. Some also there be of our time which maintaine this fonde opinion, that the soules sléep, vntil the day of the last iudgement, in which they shall be again coupled with their bodies: but this assertion hath no ground in holy scripture, of the which Caluin. point diuers haue entreated. But especially Iohn Caluin, that worthie seruant of God, in a proper Treatise that he wrote of the same matter, in which he doth learnedly confute their reasons that maintein the contrary opinion.
Wherefore sith holy scriptures, as the Fathers vnderstand and interpret them, teache that the soules of men, as soone as they departe from the bodies, do ascende vp into heauen if they were godly, descende into hell if they were wicked and faithlesse, and that their is no thirde place in which soules should be deliuered, as it were out of prison, & that soules can neither be reclaimed out of heauen or hel. Hereby it is made euident, that they cannot wander on the earth, and desire aide of men. For first the soules of the blessed néed no aid or help that men cā giue them: & on the other Ciprian mar. side, the damned sort can no way be reléeued: the which S. Ciprian the martir in his oration against Demetrian, doth plainly witnesse in these words: when we be once departed out of this world, there is afterward no place left for repentance, no way to make satisfactiō: here life is either woon or lost, & so forth. Albeit the testimonies alredy alleged on this point of doctrine, may well suffise those that loue the truth, and are desirous to come to the knowledge thereof: yet to increase the number, I wil recite other testimonies also out of Soules do not walke. yͤ fathers, to proue manifestly, yͭ the soules departed, do not againe return & wander on the earth, so that all they which haue not yet stopped their eares that the truth might not pierce & enter into them, may euidently perceiue, that those anciēt times taught a far better doctrine of those spirits and ghosts, than other latter times vnder poperie haue cōmended Tertullian. and allowed. Tertullian a very auncient writer, in the end of his booke De anima, saith, the soules do not any longer abide on the earth, after they be once loosed from their bodies: & that neither by their owne accord, nor other mens cōmandement, they do wander at all after they haue descended into hell, but he saith, that euil spirits do vse this kinde of deceyt, to faine themselues to be the soules of suche as are deceased. And that Hell is not open to any soule, that it should afterward at any time depart thence, Christ our Lorde in the parable of the poore man that was in rest, and the rich glutton that was in torment, doth plainely ratifie vnder the person of Abraham, that there can be no man sent backe to shewe or tel ought of the state of hel. And albeit the fathers haue noted certaine errours and scapes in Tertullian, yet there was neuer any that reproued him for Athanasius. this opinion. Athanasius in his booke of questions, the xiii. questiō, doth giue a reason wherfore God will not suffer that any soule deceased, shuld returne vnto vs, and declare what the state of things is in hel, and what great misery is there: hereby (saith he) many errors wold easily spring vp among vs: for many diuels might so take on thē the shape of men, and be transformed into yͤ likenesse of the dead, and say, that they arose frō the dead, and so publish many lying tales, and false opinions of things there don, therby to seduce and hurt vs. Weigh these wordes of Athanasius, I pray thée.
Chrisostome.
Sainct Chrysostome in his nyneteenth Homilie on the eight chapter of sainct Matthewes Gospell, hath in maner the same woordes, for hee moueth this question: Why suche as were possessed with Spirites, liued in graues? Therefore (sayeth he) they abode there, to put this false opinion in mens heads, that those persons soules whiche by violent death departed, were turned into Diuels, and so did seruice vnto witches and soothsayers. The which opinion the diuell first broughte in, thereby to diminishe the Martyrs prayse and glorie, that so the Sorcerers might slea those persons, whose wicked trauell and help they vsed, and those matters saith he, are far from truth. For he proueth by the Scripture, that the spirits of the godly are not vnder the power of the Diuels, nor yet do stray abroade after death: then that they woulde retourne vnto theyr owne bodies, if they mighte wander whether they lusted. And further if they didde any seruice too theyr Murtherers, by that meanes they should at their handes receiue a reward for an ill déed and displeasure. By naturall reason also it cannot come to passe, that a mans bodie should be turned into an other bodie, and therefore also the spirit of a man cannot be changed into a diuel.
But among other things which properly belong to our purpose, he saith: If we heare a noyse that saith, I am such a soule, we must thus thinke, that this talke proceedeth of some sleight and subtiltie of the diuel, and that it is not the soule of the dead bodie that speaketh these things, but the diuell that deuiseth them to deceiue the hearers. And by and by he saith, that there are to be counted old wiues words, or rather doting fooles toyes to mocke children withall. For the soule when it is parted from the bodie cannot walke any longer in these parties. For the soules of the iust are in the hands of God. And on the other side, the soules of the wicked after their departure hence, are straightway ledde aside and withdrawne from vs, which may euidently be séene by Lazarus and the rich man. And in another place also the Lord saith: This day will they take thy soule from thée; wherefore the soule cannot heere wander when it is departed from the bodie.
A little afterward he addeth, that it may be proued out of many places of scripture, that the soules of the iust do not here wander after death. For Steuen said, Lord receiue my spirit, and Paule desired to be loosed and to depart hence, and to be with Christ.
Also the scripture, as touching the Patriarks death, vseth this phrase, he is laide vnto his fathers, growne vp vnto a good olde age. And that the soules of sinners and wicked men, cannot after their departure, here abide any longer, we may learne by the riche mans words, if we will weigh and confider with our selues what be demannded and could not obtaine. For if after death mens soules might any longer haue their conuersation heere on earth, no doubt the riche man himselfe woulde haue returned as his desire was, and certified his friendes of hell torments. Out of which place of scripture it is most cleare, that soules immediatly vpon their departure from their body, are carried vnto a certaine place, whence they cannot of themselues returne, but néedes must waite there for that terrible day of iudgement.
Also in his second Homily of Lazarus, amōg other things, he saith; It is most plaine, not only by that we haue before rehearsed, but also by this parable, that soules parted from the bodie, haue their abiding here no longer, but are forthwith lead away. For it came to passe (saith he) that he died, and was carried away by the Angels. And not onely the soules of the iust, but of the vniust and wicked, are hence led away, and carried to their proper places, which doth euidently appeare, by another rich man, of which mention is made in the 12. of Luke, to whom the Lord said: Thou foole this night will they take thy soule from thée.
And in his fourth Homily of Lazarus, he plainly teacheth, that we should giue more credite to holy scripture, than to one that came from the dead, or an Angell from Heauen. Herewithall he also sheweth, that the dead doo not only make no appearance vnto men liuing, but yeldeth reasons wherefore they do not returne hither, in these words. If God had knowne that the dead being raised might haue profited the liuing, he would neuer haue let passe so great a benefit, who otherwise doth giue and prouide vs al things profitable.