Notes - Ezekiel's afterlife ideals - sc.3;ch.8 / among the Living

        Up, breakfast and the paper, it is now mid-morning. After Carol talked to Kim, Kim suggested you switch to Dr. Ian Rodway, your old student, as he is an orthopedic surgeon with a specialty in ‘degenerative spine problems’. You have an appointment with him this next Wednesday morning at ten at his Sharonville/(Blue Ash) office.

         I feel better with the change. I can’t imagine Dr. Roberts would have anything to say other than what he did the last time. Dr. Ian may say the same thing and if so, then I have a second opinion some ten or twelve years later.

         You had lunch at Smash Burger once again; a new favorite as the burgers are good and you can get sweet potato fries and good veggies for sides. Presently you are at Natorp’s picking up flowers for new neighbors in your development; Carol is the flower volunteer lady (flowers paid for by the Lakeside Community Association).

         Home. You have begun scene three and have to focus on Ezekiel’s possible concept of his idealistic sense of heaven. You found material to choose from in Wikipedia. Focus on what you have below:

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Hebrew Bible

Main article: Heaven (Judaism)

In the Hebrew Bible the heavens, Shamayim, are the abode of YHWH Elohim. [The Tetragrammaton (from the Greek) means the ‘word’ of four letters: refers to the name of the God of Israel: YHWH.]

Rabbinical Judaism

Main article: Olam Haba

. . . The Torah has little to say on the subject of survival after death, but by the time of the rabbis two ideas had made inroads among the Jews: one, which is probably derived from Greek thought, is that of the immortal soul which returns to its creator after death; the other, which is thought to be of Persian origin, is that of resurrection.

Jewish writings (?) refer to a "new earth" as the abode of mankind following the resurrection of the dead. Originally, the two ideas of immortality and resurrection were different but in rabbinic thought they are combined: the soul departs from the body at death but is returned to it at the resurrection. This idea is linked to another rabbinic teaching, that men's good and bad actions are rewarded and punished not in this life but after death, whether immediately or at the subsequent resurrection. Around 1 CE, the Pharisees are said to have maintained belief in resurrection but the Sadducees are said to have denied it (Matt. 22:23).

Some scholars (?) assert that the Sheol mentioned in Isaiah 38:18, Psalm 6:5 and Job 7:7-10 was an earlier concept than Heaven, but this theory is not universally held.

The Mishnah has many sayings about the World to Come, for example, "Rabbi Yaakov said: This world is like a lobby before the World to Come; prepare yourself in the lobby so that you may enter the banquet hall."

Judaism holds that the righteous of all nations have a share in the World-to-come.

According to Nicholas de Lange, Judaism offers no clear teaching about the destiny which lies in wait for the individual after death and its attitude to life after death has been expressed as follows: "For the future is inscrutable, and the accepted sources of knowledge, whether experience, or reason, or revelation, offer no clear guidance about what is to come. The only certainty is that each man must die - beyond that we can only guess."

According to Tracey R. Rich of the website "Judaism 101", Judaism, unlike other world-religions, is not focused on the quest of getting into heaven but on life and how to live it.  (Wikipedia)

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Kabbalah Jewish mysticism

(Note: Not all Jews believe Kabbalah to be true; some even consider it to be very evil. Keep in mind that not all Jews believe in seven Heavens.)

Jewish mysticism recognizes Seven Heavens.

In order from lowest to highest, the seven Heavens are listed alongside the angels who govern them:

Shamayim: The first Heaven, governed by Archangel Gabriel, is the closest of heavenly realms to the Earth; it is also considered the abode of Adam and Eve.

Raquie: The second Heaven is dually controlled by Zachariel and Raphael. It was in this Heaven that Moses, during his visit to Paradise, encountered the angel Nuriel who stood "300 parasangs high, with a retinue of 50 myriads of angels all fashioned out of water and fire." Also, Raquia is considered the realm where the fallen angels are imprisoned and the planets fastened.

Shehaqim: The third Heaven, under the leadership of Anahel, serves as the home of the Garden of Eden and the Tree of Life; it is also the realm where manna, the holy food of angels, is produced. The Second Second Book of Enoch, meanwhile, states that both Paradise and Hell are accommodated in Shehaqim with Hell being located simply " on the northern side."

Machen: The fourth Heaven is ruled by the Archangel Michael, and according to Talmud Hagiga 12, it contains the heavenly Jerusalem, the Temple, and the Altar.

Machon: The fifth Heaven is under the administration of Samael, an angel referred to as evil by some, but who is to others merely a dark servant of God.

Zebul: The sixth Heaven falls under the jurisdiction of Sachiel.

Araboth: The seventh Heaven, under the leadership of Cassiel, is the holiest of the seven Heavens provided the fact that it houses the Throne of Glory attended by the Seven Archangels and serves as the realm in which God dwells; underneath the throne itself lies the abode of all unborn human souls. It is also considered the home of the Seraphim, the Cherubim, and the Hayyoth. (Wikipedia)

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         We will use parts from the above with Ezekiel. The Seven Heavens concept will be intuitively ‘seen’ by Ezekiel in a vision. It is important for Ezekiel to continue to have visions (in the story) while in HeavenOrHellBothOrNeither. Post. – Amorella.

       Moving on to supper time and the evening news programs. One of the important considerations in these books is this point:

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Jewish writings (?) refer to a "new earth" as the abode of mankind following the resurrection of the dead. Originally, the two ideas of immortality and resurrection were different but in rabbinic thought they are combined: the soul departs from the body at death but is returned to it at the resurrection. This idea is linked to another rabbinic teaching, that men's good and bad actions are rewarded and punished not in this life but after death, whether immediately or at the subsequent resurrection. (Wikipedia)

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         In the folklore and our books once the Dead are resurrected (in our case they successfully rebel after the second great rebellion that begins with Eisenhower’s farewell speech – the beginning of book six) a new earth is created by the Living with the counter-intuitive help of the Dead. The driving force of the New Way is service to/for the children who in turn will provide service to the elderly. The society is driven by personal service as money drives people today. That’s the meat of it.

         This is very romantic and idealistic, Amorella, with shades of Arthur’s Camelot in the wings. 

         In the books ‘service’ will be shown to be driven by practicality, by a bottom line of humanity, boy, not economics. – Amorella.

         I don’t think I could write such a piece with a straight face.

         You won’t. That’s the point. This is hangman’s humor, boy. – Amorella.

         Pretty depressing to think on.

         Think why that is, boy, and the books will speak for themselves for those willing to tackle who and what they are as individuals and as a species. – Amorella.

         I like the misery of it. Such a hollow sense of sick humor brings the gift of a large silent smile.

         All by keeping your mouth shut. That’s the dream – we’ll see how it plays if and when the books are completed. – Amorella.

         I think I might lose the few reader I have with this.

         You are writing not to win or lose readers, boy, you and I are writing the books because an imaginary angel once asked you: “Who Are You?” The books and blog are an honest a response as any as you could write while among the Living. Post. – Amorella.