General resurrection and eternal life
- F14.1 Resurrection of the same flesh (high)
- F14.2 Eternal life is knowing and beholding God: consensus from Era II (high)
- F14.3 The wicked as well as the righteous will be raised bodily for judgement: consensus from Era II (high)
From the study it came from: Agree on the intermediate state, resurrection and final judgement; diverge on prayers for the dead and purification, which the fathers practise without clear Scripture basis.
Two separate measures, shown side by side; neither is combined with the other (confidence-weighted, out of 4; counts show how many of this doctrine's 3 questions each rests on; ⚠ marks coverage more than 10 points below the median, a less certain rank). This doctrine is first-order (tier weight 3). How scoring works · Scripture and tradition · Glossary · Every score with its citation
Closeness to Scripture
Closeness to the fathers
Charts: closeness to the fathers by question, and timeline
- c. 177 Athenagoras F14.3
- c. 180 Irenaeus F14.2
- c. 205 Tertullian F14.1
- c. 205 Tertullian F14.3
- c. 415 Augustine F14.3
- 1646 Westminster Confession Presbyterian
- 1672 Confession of Dositheus Orthodox
F14 · General resurrection and eternal life
The resurrection of the body and the life everlasting.
Tier: First-order (scoring weight 3). How the tiers were set: theological triage. Method: conventions. Traditions’ sources: confessional sources.
In short
At the end, the dead will be raised in their bodies — the righteous and the wicked alike — to eternal life with God or to judgement. Scripture teaches this (1 Cor 15; John 5:28–29; Acts 24:15), and the fathers from Athenagoras and Tertullian on insist that the same flesh rises, including for the unjust. All nine traditions confess it. Intermediate state details are T09; the nature of final punishment is T10.
Plan
Question: F14.1: is the resurrection of the same flesh? Scripture: 1 Cor 15; John 5:28–29; Dan 12:2. Fathers: Tertullian, Resurrection of the Flesh 1; Irenaeus on the flesh. F14.2: is eternal life communion with God, beholding him (John 17:3; Irenaeus IV.20.7)? F14.3: will the wicked also be raised for judgement, not only the righteous (John 5:28–29; Acts 24:15; Dan 12:2; Rev 20:12–13; Athenagoras; Tertullian; Augustine)? Judgement criterion is F13.3; intermediate state is T09; final punishment is T10.
Questions
- F14.1 Resurrection of the flesh (was
afterlife/L4) - F14.2 Is eternal life communion with God, beholding him?
- F14.3 Will the wicked also be raised for judgement (not only the righteous)?
Verdicts and trace
Weighed under the source-proximity principle: Scripture first, then the father eras I–IV.
F14.1 · Resurrection of the flesh
| Question | Verdict | Confidence | Reasoning | Key sources | Scripture (benchmark) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F14.1 | Resurrection of the same flesh | High | F14.1.1 · F14.1.3 weighing | tertullian-aft-s3 | F14.1.4: high |
F14.2 · Is eternal life communion with God, beholding him?
| Question | Verdict | Confidence | Reasoning | Key sources | Scripture (benchmark) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F14.2 | Eternal life is knowing and beholding God: consensus from Era II | High | F14.2.1 · F14.2.3 weighing | irenaeus-f14x-s1 | F14.2.4: high |
F14.3 · Will the wicked also be raised for judgement (not only the righteous)?
| Question | Verdict | Confidence | Reasoning | Key sources | Scripture (benchmark) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| F14.3 | The wicked as well as the righteous will be raised bodily for judgement: consensus from Era II | High | F14.3.1 · F14.3.3 weighing | athenagoras-f14-s1 · tertullian-f14-s1 · augustine-f14-s1 | F14.3.4: high |
Post-750 development
Which of this doctrine’s questions each tradition stays closest to, or departs from. Each row links to the tradition’s notes; exact scores and bases are in the reasoning.
| Tradition | Closest to the fathers on | Departs or sharpens on |
|---|---|---|
| Catholic | F14.1, F14.2, F14.3 | — |
| Orthodox | F14.1, F14.2, F14.3 | — |
| Oriental Orthodox | F14.1, F14.2, F14.3 | — |
| Lutheran | F14.1, F14.2, F14.3 | — |
| Anglican | F14.1, F14.2, F14.3 | — |
| Presbyterian | F14.1, F14.2, F14.3 | — |
| Reformed Baptist | F14.1, F14.2, F14.3 | — |
| General Baptist | F14.1, F14.2, F14.3 | — |
| Anabaptist | F14.1, F14.2, F14.3 | — |
Overall verdict
All nine confess the resurrection of the flesh (F14.1), eternal life as communion with God (F14.2), and the raising of the wicked as well as the righteous for judgement (F14.3). Intermediate state is T09; nature of final punishment is T10; judgement criterion is F13.3.
Verification status
AC XVII, WCF XXXII–XXXIII, 1689 31–32 and Dordrecht XVIII verified for general resurrection of just and unjust; F14.2 confessional cites as before. Shared afterlife plan notes retained below for legacy L1–L5 context.
Plan, overall verdict and verification status of the former afterlife category (shared with the other doctrines that came from it)
Afterlife: intermediate state, purification, prayers for the dead, resurrection, final state
Method and conventions: docs/conventions.md. Reasoning: afterlife reasoning.
1. Plan
Questions: L1 intermediate state; L2 prayers for the dead; L3 purification; L4 resurrection; L5 eternal torment vs. annihilation vs. restoration (one question, per the project scope). Sources: Tertullian, Soul 7, Corona 3, Res. 1; Passion of Perpetua; Cyril of Jerusalem, Myst. 5; Augustine, Enchiridion, City of God XXI; Ignatius; Irenaeus; Origen, De Princ.; Gregory of Nyssa; Arnobius; Constantinople 553. Planned but not yet read: Epitaph of Abercius; Gregory the Great, Dialogues IV.41; Augustine, Confessions IX.13 (Monica); Basil; Justin, 1 Apol. 8.
2. Verdicts and trace
Weighed under the source-proximity principle: Scripture first, then the father tiers T1–T4. Verdict changes are listed in docs/proximity-changes.md.
3. Post-750 development
4. Overall verdict
Orthodox closest (L1–L4 match without over-definition; L5 majority A, with tolerance of a minority hope). Catholic is very close but defines purgatory further. Lutheran and Presbyterian match on L1, L4 and L5, and depart on prayers for the dead and purification. Confidence: medium–high.
5. Verification status
- Verified: all entries above; Trent XXV; Dositheus 18; WCF XXI.4, XXXII.1, XXXIII.2.
- To verify: Abercius; Gregory the Great, Dialogues; Augustine, Confessions IX.13 and Enchiridion 69; the XXI.17 “very many” wording; the formal status of the 553 anathemas; Rufinus’s editing of Origen; Smalcald Articles; Apology XXIV; Florence; the αἰώνιος lexical debate; LSB English.