Four last things
In Christian eschatology, the Four Last Things or four last things of man (Latin: quattuor novissima[1]) are Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell, the four last stages of the soul in life and the afterlife.[2][3] They are often commended as a collective topic for pious meditation; Saint Philip Neri wrote, "Beginners in religion ought to exercise themselves principally in meditation on the Four Last Things."[4] Traditionally, the sermons preached on the four Sundays of Advent were on the Four Last Things.[5]
The 1909 Catholic Encyclopedia states "The eschatological summary which speaks of the 'four last things' (death, judgment, heaven, and hell) is popular rather than scientific. For systematic treatment it is best to distinguish between (A) individual and (B) universal and cosmic eschatology".[6] Pope John Paul II wrote in 1984 that the "judgment" component encompasses both particular judgment and general judgment.[7]
Books
Numerous theologians and Christian apologists have written on the Four Last Things; published accounts include:
- Cordiale quattour novissimorum (15th century) attributed to Gerardus de Vliederhoven and to Denis le Chartreux ; translated into French by J. Mielot and thence into English as Cordiale, or Four Last Things by Anthony Woodville, 2nd Earl Rivers in 1479[8]
- The Four Last Things (1522) by Thomas More; published posthumously
- The Four Last Things: Death, Judgment, Hell, and Heaven (1631) by Robert Bolton; published posthumously in 1639[9]
- The four last things : death, judgment, hell, heaven by Martin of Cochem[10]
- Four Last Things (1649) by William Sheppard, whose preface supported the Rump Parliament against the Presbyterians[11][12]
- Sinnliche Beschreibung der vier letzten Dinge ("A Sensuous Representation of the Four Last Things") (1675) by Angelus Silesius
- Four Last Things–Death, Judgment, Heaven, and Hell (1691) by William Bates[13]
- Myfyrdodau bucheddol ar y pedwar peth diweddaf ("Devout musings on the four last things") (1714) by John Morgan
- Thoughts upon the Four Last Things (1734) by Joseph Trapp[14]
- Four discourses on the four last things (1751) by Thomas Greene
- The Four Last Things (1960) by Harry Williams
Reginald Garrigou-Lagrange's L'eternelle vie et la profondeur de l'ame (1947) has been published in English as Life Everlasting: A Theological Treatise on the Four Last Things: Death, Judgement, Heaven, Hell (1991); however, the sections are "Soul immensity in our present life", "Death and judgement", "Hell", "Purgatory", and "Heaven".[15]
Artworks
The Four Last Things are a common theme of artistic and literary works as well as theological works.
| Work | Type | Creator | Year | Notes | Refs |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| The Seven Deadly Sins and the Four Last Things | Painting | Hieronymus Bosch | c.1500 | ||
| Christ painting the Four Last Things in the Christian Heart | Engraving | Anton Wierix | 1585 | One of 18 copperplate engravings published as Cor Iesu amanti sacrum | [16][17] |
| "One Thing is Needful, or Serious Meditations upon the Four Last Things" | Poem | John Bunyan | 1683 | [18] | |
| "The Four Last Things" (German: Die vier letzten Dinge) | Sculpture | Anton Neu, based on ideas from the Asam brothers | 1751 | Stucco cartouches in the vestibule of Weltenburg Abbey chapel | [19] |
| "The Four Last Things" | Sculpture | Joseph Stammel | c.1760 | In Admont Abbey | [20] |
| "The Four Last Things" | Oratorio | Joseph Leopold Eybler | 1810 | German title Die vier letzten Dinge; HV 137 | [21] |
| "Die letzten Dinge" | Oratorio | Louis Spohr | 1826 | ||
| Cantata of the Last Things of Man | Cantata | Ladislav Vycpálek | 1920–22 | Czech title Kantáta o posledních věcech člověka | [22] |
| The Four Last Things | Poetry collection | Madeleva Wolff | 1959 | Poems with theological themes | |
| Unfinished | Film | Harry Everett Smith | 1990s | Intended as his masterwork | |
| "Die vier letzten Dinge (Quasi una Sinfonia da Requiem)" | Symphony | Horst Lohse | 1996–97 | For organ and orchestra | [23] |
References
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External links
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Wikimedia Commons has media related to The Four Last Things. |
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- ↑ Cox, Michael, editor, The Concise Oxford Chronology of English Literature, Oxford University Press, 2004, ISBN 0-19-860634-6
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