ELEVENTH BYZANTINE ROSARY MYSTERY....The Resurrection of Christ

OrthodoX do not speak of purgatory and hell, but only of the place of the dead. Hell is where Jesus descended, as we profess in the Creed, and broke down the doors that held the dead there - taking them to Heaven. Some remained in the place of the dead for continued purification, but some others for an eternal death. In the West we use the word "hell" only for the latter. That means Orthodox do believe in purification, but state it in the ancient way - as the abode of the dead. When we look at the Resurrection icon we see Adam and Eve being lifted out of their Tombs, past the broken doors of the place of the dead and into the realm of eternal life. Those dark tombs keep the corruption of sin and death, as the Life and Light of Christ lift us up to our forever home. For the whole created world, this is the icon of salvation and re-creation. For us individually, it is the ultimate adventure into God's heart, forever new and ever deepening. Christ is Risen like the sun, and will never set - because He is the True Light that comes down to us from the Father of Lights. What His Eternal Light will give us and expose for us in our new Home in the Heart of the Trinity is beyond all we can imaghine. Jesus, risen from the dead, take me by the hand and raise my life out of the tomb of dead works, up to work that breathes Eternal LIfe in You!