Heaven: A History

By Bernhard Lang and Colleen McDannell

Book Overview

What do Christians believe they will experience after a virtuous life? What will an eternity in the hereafter be like? In this copiously illustrated, lively book, Colleen McDannell and Bernhard Lang describe and interpret the ways in which believers--from biblical authors to medieval mystics, from Jesus to present-day religious thinkers--have pictured Heaven, not just in doctrine but also in poetry, art, literature, and popular culture. In so doing, they shed new light on both the private and public dimensions of western culture. This second edition includes a substantial new preface relating the book to changing views of life after death in the new century.

Praise for the earlier edition:

" A] fascinating new study. . . . It is a rich and provocative subject and the authors use it as a springboard from which to examine shifting attitudes toward man and God, within the Judeo-Christian tradition."--Michiko Kakutani, New York Times
"The next best thing to going."--Carlin Romano, Philadelphia Inquirer

"Heaven: A History offers a whistlestop tour, thoroughly researched and engagingly written, of the extraordinary things Christians and others have believed about life after death. . . . A compendium of fascinating finds from the past."--John Barton, London Review of Books

"A fascinating survey of Western culture and a delightful tour of the histories of art, literature and theology."--Christian Century

"Heaven: A History provides a rich opportunity for theological reflection. This book can help in constructing a language for the hereafter that will encourage the best hopes of the living and, heaven knows, perhaps guide the reader to a vision of eternal bliss."--St. Anthony Messenger

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0300091079
• ISBN13: 9780300091076
• Release Date: September 2001
• Publisher: Yale University Press
• Length: 448 Pages
• Weight: 0.96 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.1" x 7.6" x 5.1"

Customer Reviews

Your pick of post-mortal destinations.

"Heaven: A History" is an excellent account of the varied & always-changing beliefs of Christian afterlife. Written in a clear language with fine scholarhip by scholars. Essentially chronological, Chapter One is titled "The Dawn of Heaven" & discusses Semite & Hellenistic Jewish beliefs as they existed at the time of Jesus. The final Chapter 10, "Heaven in Modern Christianity." looks at fundamentalist, Mormon, Catholic, liberal, existentialist & mainstream conceptions. The book ends with a short, thoughtful essay of summation & 40 pages of fine print notes.Other chapters are: Jesus & the Christian Promise; Irenaeus & Augustine on our Heavenly Bodies; Medieval Promises; The Pleasures of Renaissance Paradise; God at the Center: Protestant & Catholic Reformers; Swedenborg & the Emergence of Modern Heaven; Love in the Heavenly Realm; Eternal Motion: Progress in the Other World.Especially intriguing is how our concepts of heaven reflect our ideals & hopes in Earthly life. Christian Heaven is hardly static. It has something for everyone, from estatic, egoless communion with the Divine Spirit, to endless angelic songs of praise, to the middle class family unit in a perfected state. & yes, Grandpa sitting on a cloud watching over us.Some denominations make claims as to the definitive knowledge of our post-mortal destination. Others leave it up to the believers. The point is, dying is the most intimate experience we will ever know, so we seek reassurance where & how we can, with scripture, faith, reason & tradition; from the Bible, from Dante's poetry, from Paul Tillich's theology; from Jack Chick's cartoons. Indeed, here is one House with many mansions. The writing in this book is easily 5 stars. Knocked down to 4 for lack of a good bibliography or color illustration. The black & whites are excellent choices.