Path: utzoo!utgpu!news-server.csri.toronto.edu!rpi!zaphod.mps.ohio-state.edu!usc!rutgers!aramis.rutgers.edu!athos.rutgers.edu!christian From: dfausett@zach.fit.edu ( Donald W. Fausett) Newsgroups: soc.religion.christian Subject: Apostles' Creed Message-ID: Date: 23 Jun 91 01:16:40 GMT Sender: hedrick@athos.rutgers.edu Organization: Florida Institute of Technology, ACS, Melbourne, FL Lines: 43 Approved: christian@aramis.rutgers.edu Last Sunday, I attended a Presbyterian (USA) church service in which the minister mentioned that Jesus had spent three days preaching in Hell. After the service, I asked my wife if she knew what that comment referred to. She said that she thought it was based on the Apostles' Creed. After a brief search, she found a statement of the Apostles' Creed. Surely enough, it contains the following: "I believe in God the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth: And in Jesus Christ his only Son, our Lord; who was crucified, dead, and buried; he descended into hell; the third day he rose again from the dead; he ascended into heaven, and sitteth on the right hand of God the Father Almighty; from thence he shall come to judge the quick and the dead. "I believe in the Holy Ghost; the holy Catholic Church; the communion of saints; the forgiveness of sins; the resurrection of the body; and the life everlasting. Amen." Perhaps this is an FAQ (frequently asked question), if so, please forgive me, and point me in the right direction. Is the phrase, "he descended into hell", based on scripture? Is it generally interpreted literally, or is it interpreted as being synonymous with "continued in the state of the dead, and under the power of death"? How many churches (denominations) invoke the Creed as an article of faith? (I think that the eastern orthodox churches do not.) Thank you for any comments or discussion. -- Don Fausett [As far as I know, no denominations emphasize this belief, but just about everybody uses the Apostles' Creed, and it's there. At the very least it emphasizes the reality of Christ's death. The footnote in the text used by the PCUSA ("continued in the state of death") seems to be trying to limit the meaning to that. However it is also connected with something called "the harrowing of hell", wherein Christ, being unjustly sent to hell because he was bearing our sins, broke out of it, and in the course of doing so, freed people from its power. The Biblical reference is I Pet 3:19ff and 4:6. Exactly who he brought with him in his escape from hell is something Christians don't agree on. It varies depending upon your approach, from OT patriarchs who were destined to be saved, but couldn't be until they had a chance to accept Christ, to just about everyone. --clh]