(3.) The divines of the Middle Ages brought to light no new truths on this point, but assembled those
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already recognised into a system. They also estab- lished a doctrinal distinction between vitu crtcrna (eter- nal life) and bentitudo (happiness), detining tiiem both. Anselni (Z>e simil. c. xlvii) counts fourteen partes heati- tzidinis, seven of which relate to the glorifying of the body, and seven to the soul. The occupations of the saints are generally connected also with the number seven. Yet it was more customary to divide the dif- ferent aspects of that state — of course subject to all kinds of occasional modifications — into twelve parts (Bonavcntura, I)i(vta salut. x, c. iv; Peter d'Aillj-, Spec, condd. iii, c. xi; Johan. de Turre crem. Tract. xxxvi in re;;.') : " Duodecim considerationes vitse jeter- n.^ : 1. Ilia sola est vita vera; 2. Possidetur sanitas sins quacunque infirmitato, molestia aiit passione ; 3. Pulchritudo sine quacunque deformitate ; 4. Copia om- nium bonorum ; 5. Satietas et adimpletio omnium de- siderionim sine quocunque defectu ; 6. Securitas et pacis tranquillitas sine timore quocunque ; 7. Visio beata clarissinia et jucundissima divinitatis; 8. Delec- tatio summa ; 9. Sapientia et plenissima cognitio abs- que ignorantia (an especially gratifying prospect for the scholastics ; so that, for instance, Duns Scotus wonders whether the saints knew the real essence of things) ; 10. In ilia viventes summo ibi honore et glo- ria sublimantur; 11. Est in ea jucunditas ineffivbilis ; 12. Lius interminabilis." (The twelve points arc: 1. Eternal life is the only true life ; 2. It has health without infirmity or passion ; 3. Beautv without dis- figurement ; 4. AH blessings in abundance ; 5. Satis- faction of all desires ; 6. Peace and tranquillity with- out fears; 7. Bsatific vision of the Divinity; 8. Su- preme delight ; 9. Wisdom and perceptiou without ig- norauce; 10. The highest honor and glorj'; 11. Ineffable sweetness ; 12. Endless praise.) Thomas Aquinas rec- ognised, besiiles, the general and common beatitude, especial d.)'es, gifts. Thus, aside from the coi-ona aurea, he reserves a special aureola to the martyrs and saints, and also to monks and nuns, as a sort of superadded reward. According to him, the organ of transmission of the blessings of future life is knowledge ; according t ) Scotus, the will. After the tinias of Ansolm, an 1 among the scholastics and mystics, we find very at- tractive descriptions of the blessed state, full of ele- vated ideas. " Premium est," says Bernard {De imd- itat. c. iv), "videre Deum, vivere cum Deo, esse cum Deo, esse in D20, qui erit omnia in omnibus ; habere Deum, qui est summum bonum ; et ubi est summum bonum, ibi summa felicitas." (The reward is, to sea God, to dwell with God, to exist with God and in God, who shall be All in All; to possess God, who is ths highest Good ; and where the highest Good is, there is perfect bliss.)
(4.) The Roman Catholic Church has simply gath- ered the teachings of the scholastics into a whole on this point, and has established them in a more fixed and dogmatic manner, as is shown in the exposition given in the Roman Catechism. According to it, the vita (ftcrna (eternal life), b>- which believers are, af- ter their resurrection, to attain the perfection after w'hich they aim, is non mar/is perpetuitas vita;, quam in perpeluitate beatitudo, qnx beafortim desiderium ex- pleat (uot only perpetuity of life, but also bliss in that perpetuity, satisfying all the desires of the bless- ed). It is evident, moreover, that the nature of the blessedness of the saints cannot be appreciated by our minds in any but an empirical, not an absolute manner. According to the scholastics, the eternal blessings can be divided into, 1. Essential ; the contemplation of God in his nature and substance, and the consequent par- ticipation in his essence, which is identical with his possession. 2. Accessory ; glory, honor, perfect peace, etc. They are expressly represented as incentives to lead a virtuous life. On their connection with good works in the Romanist system, see Council of Xrent {Sess. vi, c. xxvi).
(5.) AVith the exception of the part relating to pur-
gatorj', the doctrine of the elder Protestantism on this subject does not essentiallv differ from that of the Romish Church. The symbolical books of the evan- gelical Church afford us but little information on this point. In general, the vita sterna continued to be considered as sulutis nostra} complementum, spei metr, finis fidei (the goal of hope, the end of faith). By it was understood the position of the just, partly after this life in general, and partly after the resurrection. (Comp. Avf/sburg Conf. art. 17; Apol. iv, 212; Cat. Min. ii, 3 ; Formula Concordice, 633, 723 ; Con/. Belg. art. 07 ; Luther, Works, i, 3G0, 887, 997 ; xi, 1487 ; Me- lancthon, loci, 1553, 75 ; Calvin, Institutes, iii, 9, 1.) Still the effects of a deeper study of Scripture (a re- sult of the Reformation) becamb manifest in various ways, and especially' in the idea of a beginning of eternal life in the heart of the believer, which was recognised as connected with regeneration {Apol. Con- fessionis, iv, 140, 148, 99, 187, 209, 210, 285, mostly in the German text ; Buddeus, 445, 503 ; Zwingli, Exj}.fid. V2 ■ P. aiartyr. Loci, 442 ; Cat. Pal. 58 ; Alting, E.rpl. Catech. 280 ; Alsted, 759 ; Perkins, Cat. 778 ; Confessio Bohem. Niem. 846). Compare also Jansenius, Comm. Cone. Ev. c. 136, 976. Yet this truly evangelical view was not steadily persisted in, but, on the contrar}', it was soon asserted again that the expression " eternal life" occurred onlj- in Scripture to designate the re- ward of Christian fidelity. Nevertheless, the funda- mental points of the idea of eternal life remained in the doctrine of a mystical union with Christ, and in the doctrine concerning the Eucharist. Blany draw a distinction between the vita spiritualis (spiritual life), of which Christ is the allmentum (food), and the vita ceterna (eternal life). The former was also designated as vita gratim (the life of grace), and the latter as vita glorix (the life of glory). There wore three degrees of eternal life recognised: 1, initialis, in this world; 2, partialis, after the death of the individual ; 3, per- fectionalis, after the last judgment. (So Peivson, On tlie Creed, Oxford, 1820, i, 598.) Gerhard's definition (Cotta, 20, 533) is an excellent exposition of the Pro- testant scholastic views on this subject: "Vita fcterna est felicissimus ac beatissimus ille status, quo Deus ex immensa misericordia (causa efficiens principalis) prop- ter Christum mediatorem (causa efficiens meritoria) perseverante fide (causa instrumentalis) adprehensum pios post hanc vitam beabit, ut primum quidem animse eorum a corporibus separatte, postmodum vero eredem in die resurrectionis glorificatis corporibus reunitas, ab omnibus miscriis, doloribus et malis liberataj. cum Christo, angelis Sanctis et omnilms electis in sempiter- na Iretitia, gloria et felicitate vivant, perfecta Dei cog- nitione, perfecta sanctitate et justitia ornatiB Deum a facie ad faciem sine fine vidennt, sine fastidio anient ac sine defatigatione glorificent." The early Protestant theologians speak of the felicity of the future life as incomprehensible and ineffable (Cot) f. Belg. 37; Bohem. in Niem. 846 ; Calvin, 3, 15, 10 ; Gerhard, 20, 340). Its blessings are partly privative, partly positive : the meeting again and recognition of Christians was con- sidered one of them (Zwingli In exp.fid. 12); this is called a positive blessing. That individual blessedness will not 1)6 disturbed by the knowledge of the damna- tion of others is called a privative blessing. In oppo- sition to Rome, the influence of personal merit on the future state was denied by these theologians ; but some of them, while admitting that blessedness is essential- ly the same for all, hold to several degrees of blessed- ness. A number of other questions as to the language of the blessed, the manner of the contemplation of God, if he shall be praised in word, etc., are generally treated by the ancient theologians after the example of Calvin, fnst. 3, 25, G, as irrelevant, and of no relig- ious importance. In later times they have been dis- cussed anew.