A History of Heaven: The Singing Silence

by Jeffrey Burton Russell

Book Overview

Well-known for his historical accounts of Satan and hell, Jeffrey Burton Russell here explores the brighter side of eternity: heaven. Dispensing with the clich images of goodness that can make even heaven seem unbearable, the author stimulates our imagination with a history of how the joy of paradise has been conceived by writers, philosophers, and artists for whom heaven was an imminent reality. Russell not only explores concepts found among the...

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0691011613
• ISBN13: 9780691011615
• Release Date: March 1997
• Publisher: Princeton University Press
• Length: 256 Pages
• Weight: 1.18 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 7.8" x 10.0"

Customer Reviews

A perfectly rapturous lecture series

Russell seems to lecture in a rapture of joy on the subject of heaven. While explaining the history of spiritual dreams he remains perfectly scholarly, but thrilled by his subject. We see him before the class, proclaiming humanity's ultimate visions of life: "Heaven is the state of being in which all are united in love with one another and with God. It is an agapé, a love feast. Whenever less than the whole world is loved, with all the creatures in it, whenever anyone or anything is excluded from love, the result is isolation and retreat from heaven. Heaven is the community of those whom God loves and who love God." (p. 5)

A perfectly rapturous lecture series

Russell seems to lecture in a rapture of joy on the subject of heaven. While explaining the history of spiritual dreams he remains perfectly scholarly, but thrilled by his subject. We see him before the class, proclaiming humanity's ultimate visions of life: "Heaven is the state of being in which all are united in love with one another and with God. It is an agapé, a love feast. Whenever less than the whole world is loved, with all the creatures in it, whenever anyone or anything is excluded from love, the result is isolation and retreat from heaven. Heaven is the community of those whom God loves and who love God." (p. 5) -author of Correcting Jesus