Sam Gamgee and Simon of Cyrene: the Journey to Mount Doom

Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus carry the cross

The Fifth Station of the Cross: Simon of Cyrene helps Jesus Carry His Cross:

As they led him away they took hold of a certain Simon, a Cyrenian, who was coming in from the country; and after laying the cross on him, they made him carry it behind Jesus. (Lk 23:26)

In the Lord of the Rings, the Chapter III of Return of the King depicts how Sam Gamgee helped Frodo carry the Ring to Mount Doom.  It begins with Sam’s realization of his mission:

“So that was the job I felt I had to do when I started,” thought Sam: “to help Mr. Frodo to the last step and then die with him?  Well, if that  is the job, then I must do it.”

…But even as hope died in Sam, or seemed to die, it was turned to a new strength.  Sam’s plain hobbit-face grew stern, almost grim, as the will hardened in him, and he felt through all his limbs a thrill, as if he was turning into some creature of stone and steel that neither despair nor weariness nor endless miles could subdue.

Mount Doom is the volcano where the One Ring was forged by Sauron himself.  Mount Doom is Mount Calvary.  On top is the cross–the sign of the most cruel persecution that the Roman Empire devised against its enemies–the slow painful death akin to what the Mouth of Sauron described of to Gandalf before the Black Gates:

“He was dear to you, I see.  Or else his errand was one that you did not wish to fail? And now he shall endure the slow torment of years, as long and slow as our arts in the Great Tower can contrive, and never be released, unless maybe when he is changed and broken, so that he may come to you and you shall see what you have done.  This shall surely be unless you accept my Lord’s terms.”  (Black Gate Opens, Return of the King)

At the end of the crucifixion, the criminals’s feet are broken, killing them.

Frodo is resolved to carry the Ring to Mount Doom in the same way as Christ is resolved to carry the cross to Mount Calvary.  Christ prayed in the Garden of Gethsemane:

“My Father, if it is not possible that this cup pass without my drinking it, your will be done!” (Mt 26:42)

Frodo also refused Sam’s offer to carry the Ring in his behalf:

“No, no, Sam.  But you must understand.  It is my burden, and no one  else can bear it.  It is too late now, Sam dear.  You can’t help me in that way again.  I am almost in its power now.  I could not give it up, and if you tried to take it I should go mad.”

But neither Frodo nor Christ  have the strength to carry their mission.  Christ already suffered much before his carrying of the cross: he was scourged and crowned with thorns.  And so is Frodo.  He was speared by an Orc Captain, stabbed by a Nazgul blade on his shoulder, and bitten by Shelob.  But it was the Ring that brought him much pain:

Sam guessed that among all their pains he bore the worst, the growing weight of the Ring, a burden on the body and a torment to his mind.  Anxiously Sam had noted how his master’s left hand would often be raised as if to ward off a blow, or to screen his shrinking eyes from a dreadful Eye that sought to look in them.  And sometimes his right hand would creep to his breast, clutching, and then slowly, as the will recovered mastery, it would be withdrawn.

So the Roman asked Simon of Cyrene to carry the cross.  Sam, in his turn, because he cannot carry the Ring himself, carried Frodo on his back with the Ring on Frodo’s neck:

“Come, Mr. Frodo!” he cried.  “I can’t carry it for you, but I can carry you and it as well.  So up you get! Come on, Mr. Frodo dear!  Sam will give you a ride.  Just tell him where to go, and he’ll go.”

As Frodo clung upon his back, arms loosely about his neck, legs clasped firmly under his arms, Sam staggered to his feet; and then to his amazement he felt the burden light.  He had feared that he would have barely strength to lift his master alone, and beyond that he had expected to share in the dreadful dragging weight of the accursed Ring.  But it was not so.  Whether because Frodo was so worn by his long pains, wound of knife, and venomous sting, and sorrow, fear, and homeless wandering, or because some gift of final strength was given to him, Sam lifted Frodo with no more difficulty than if he were carrying a hobbit-child pig-a-back in some romp on the lawns or hayfields of the Shire.  He took a deep breath and started off. (Mount Doom, The Return of the King)

How the walls of Jericho and Orthanc fell

The story of the fall of the walls of Orthanc was narrated by Pippin:

I thought that they had been really roused before; but I was wrong.  I saw what it was like at last.  it was staggering.  They roared and boomed and trumpeted, until stones began to crack and fall at the mere noise of them.  Merry and I lay on the ground and stuffed our cloaks into our ears.  Round and round the rock of Orthanc the Ents went striding and storming like a howling gale, breaking pillars, hurling avalanches of boulders down the shafts, tossip up huge slabs of stone into the air like leaves.  The tower was in the middle of a spinning whirlwind. (Two Towers p. 190)

This story recalls the fall of the walls of Jericho.  The Lord said to Joshua:

I have delivered Jericho and its king into your power. Have all the soldiers circle the city, marching once around it. Do this for six days, with seven priests carrying ram’s horns ahead of the ark. On the seventh day march around the city seven times, and have the priests blow the horns. When they give a long blast on the ram’s horns and you hear that signal, all the people shall shout aloud. The wall of the city will collapse, and they will be able to make a frontal attack. (Jsh 6:2-5)

The Fellowship of the Ring leaves Rivendell on Christmas day: the Mission of Christ and Frodo to Mount Doom

In the Appendix B of the Return of the King, we learn that the Company of the Ring leaves Rivendell at dusk.  The day was December 25, 3018 of the Second Age.  Before the company set out, Elrond spoke his last word:

The Ring-bearer is setting out on the Quest to Mount Doom.  On him alone is any charge laid; neither to cast away the Ring, nor to deliver it to any servant of the Enemy nor indeed to let any handle it, save members of the Company and the Council, and only then in gravest need. (Fellowship of the Ring, p. 315)

Frodo reached Mt. Doom about three months after on March 25, 3019, the day of the Fall of Sauron and the beginning of the Third Age.

Jesus Christ was born in the world in Dec 25, 1.  This is the winter solstice, the darkest day of the year.  Jesus, the light of the world, was born to dispel the darkness of sin:

The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light; upon those who dwelt in the land of gloom a light has shone…. For a child is born to us, a son is given us; upon his shoulder dominion rests. They name him Wonder-Counselor, God-Hero, Father-Forever, Prince of Peace. His dominion is vast and forever peaceful, From David’s throne, and over his kingdom, which he confirms and sustains By judgment and justice, both now and forever. (Is 9:1-6)

Just as Frodo journeyed to Mount Doom in 3 months, Christ’s journey to Calvary is also characterized by the number 3.  Christ lived his hidden life for 3 decades, preached for 3 years, and died at 3:00 p.m.  On Frodo’s neck is the One Ring of Sauron.  On Christ’s shoulders are the sins of the world: “Behold the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world.”  Frodo symbolically died on Mount Doom, an Eagle bore him away, and the Third Age began.  Christ died on the cross on Mount Calvary, and on His side flowed blood and water.  And so we pray:

You died, Jesus, but the source of life gushed forth for souls
and the ocean of mercy opened up for the whole world.
O Fountain of Life, unfathomable Divine Mercy, envelop the whole world and empty Yourself out upon us.

O Blood and Water, which gushed forth from the Heart of Jesus
as a fountain of mercy for us, I trust in You.

Holy God, Holy Mighty One, Holy Immortal One,
Have mercy on us and on the whole world. (3 times)

JESUS, King of mercy, I trust in You!

Amen

Biblical numerology in the birthday party of Bilbo and Frodo: 111 and 33

In the “Long Expected Party” we read:

Bilbo was going to be eleventy-one, 111, a rather curious number, and a very respectable age for a hobbit (the Old Took himself had only reaced 130); and Frodo was going to be thirty three, 33, an important number: the date of his ‘coming of age’. (Fellowship of the Ring, p. 22)

Christ died at the age of 33.  Just as Christ carried the cross in his 33rd year, Frodo also carried his cross–the One Ring.  Christ was wrapped in linen cloth and placed on the Sepulchre; Bilbo was wrapped in spider silk in Shelob’s lair.  The ‘resurrection’ of Frodo ushered the Third Age of Gondor.  The Resurrection of Christ ushered the Third Age–the Age of the Gentiles, the Age of the Church.

The number 333 is the symbol of the Holy Trinity.  As Our Lady spoke to Fr. Gobbi:

The number 333, indicates the divinity. Lucifer rebels against God through pride, because he wants to put himself above God. 333 is the number which indicates the mystery of God. He who wants to put himself above God bears the sign, 666, and consequently this number indicates the name of Lucifer, Satan, that is to say, of him who sets himself against Christ, of the Antichrist.

What does Bilbo’s 111 years mean?  If Lucifer wants to be greater than God and makes his mark as the 666, Bilbo recognizes that he is not a God nor a Wizard nor an Elf Lord nor a King of Gondor but a mere hobbit.  So his number is 111.  This is the reason why the Ring has no lust for domination that it can amplify, as what happened to the Ring-wraiths.  This holds true for Frodo as well, and even Gollum.  But the 111 may have another meaning: the One Ring.  If the angels praise the Holy Trinity by singing, “Holy, holy, holy”, the lore of the Ring also repeats the ‘One Ring’ thrice:

One Ring to rule then all, One Ring to find them, One Ring to bring them all and in the darkness bind them…

The number 111 + 33 = 144, which is one Gross (Fellowship of the Ring, p. 29).  The number 144 = 12 x 12.  In the Bible, 12 is the number of the sons of Jacob (Israel) and that of the Apostles.  The 12 sons of Jacob begot the Israelite nation.  The 12 apostles begot the Church.  Their sum is 24 = 12 + 12, which is the number of elders around the throne of God (Rev 4:4).

The line of Nimloth the Fair and the Shoot of Jesse

The finding of the sapling of the Eldest of the Trees in the barren slopes is a metaphor for the finding the race of Elendil in the barren wilderness outside of Gondor:

Then Aragorn turned, and there was a stony slope behind him running down from the skirts of the snow; and as he looked he was aware that alone there in the waste a growing thing stood.  And he climbed to it, and saw that out of the very edge of the snow there sprang a sapling tee no more than three foot high.  Already it had put forth young leaves long and shapely, dark above and silver beneath, and upon its slender crown it bore one small cluster of flowers whose white petals shone like the sunlit snow.

Then Aragorn crid: ‘Ye! Utuvienyes!  I have found it!  Lo!  here is a scion of the Eldest of Trees!  But how comes it here?  For it is not itself yet seven years old.’

And Gandalf coming looked at it, and said: ‘Verily this is a sapling of the line of Nimloth the fair; and that was a seedling of Galathilion, and that a fruit of Telperion of many names, Eldest of Trees.  Who shall say how it comes here in the appointed hour?  But this is an ancient hallow, and ere the kings failed or the Tree withered in the court, a fruit must have been set here.  For it is said that, though the fruit of the Tree comes seldom to ripeness, yet the life within may then lie sleeping through many long years, and none can foretell the time in which it will awake.  remember this.  For if ever a fruit ripens, it should be planted, lest the line die out of the world.  Here it has lain hidden on the mountain, even as the rade of Elendil lay hidden in the wastes of the North.  Yet the line of Nimloth is older far than your line, King Elessar.’ (Return of the King, p. 270)

In a similar way, Prophet Isaiah foretold the coming of the Messiah, the heir of the throne of David, as a shoot from the stump of Jesse:

But a shoot shall sprout from the stump of Jesse, and from his roots a bud shall blossom.  The spirit of the LORD shall rest upon him: a spirit of wisdom and of understanding, A spirit of counsel and of strength, a spirit of knowledge and of fear of the LORD,  and his delight shall be the fear of the LORD. Not by appearance shall he judge, nor by hearsay shall he decide, But he shall judge the poor with justice, and decide aright for the land’s afflicted. He shall strike the ruthless with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked. Justice shall be the band around his waist, and faithfulness a belt upon his hips. (Is 11:1-5)

The Shoot of Jesse is Christ.  It is on him that the Holy Spirt rested on the River Jordan.  Just as Aragorn traces his kingship to the line of Elendil, so does Christ trace his kingship in the line of David:

Obed became the father of Jesse, Jesse the father of David the king. David became the father of Solomon, whose mother had been the wife of Uriah. Solomon became the father of Rehoboam, ….. Eleazar became the father of Matthan, Matthan the father of Jacob, Jacob the father of Joseph, the husband of Mary. Of her was born Jesus who is called the Messiah.

Thus the total number of generations from Abraham to David is fourteen generations; from David to the Babylonian exile, fourteen generations; from the Babylonian exile to the Messiah, fourteen generations. (Mt 1:1-17)

But unlike Aragorn, Jesus’s true father is not his foster father Joseph, but God the Father Himself.  Before Abraham was, Jesus is.  “In the beginning was the Word, the Word was with God, the Word was God” (Jn 1:1).  Indeed, Jesus posed the following question to the Pharisees:

“What is your opinion about the Messiah? Whose son is he?” They replied, “David’s.” He said to them, “How, then, does David, inspired by the Spirit, call him ‘lord,’ saying: ‘The Lord said to my lord, “Sit at my right hand until I place your enemies under your feet”‘? If David calls him ‘lord,’ how can he be his son?” No one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day on did anyone dare to ask him any more questions. (Mt 22:42-46)

Radagast the Brown and St. Francis of Assisi

Concerning Radagast the Brown, Gandalf said:

Radagast is, of course, a worthy Wizard, a master of shapes and changes of hue; and he has much lore of herbs and beasts, and birds are especially his friends. (Fellowship of the Ring, p. 288)

This passage reminds us St. Francis of Assisi, who is usually depicted as wearing a brown habit.  Francis loves animals.  The first Christmas Nativity scene is his invention.  He arranged statues of the Holy Family, the Shepherds, and the three Kings as we do today, but complete with real sheep, ox, and ass.  He would even talk to animals.  He once made a pact with a wolf not the terrorize the village of Gubbio.  In return, the villagers will give the wolf food everyday.  St. Francis also made a pact with the dogs not to harm the wolf.  But of all animals, St. Francis is known for his love for birds.  During one of his trek with his companions, there were birds on the trees on both sides of the road.  St. Francis asked leave from his companions to preach to his beloved birds.  The birds surrounded him and he spoke to them:

My sister birds, you owe much to God, and you must always and in everyplace give praise to Him; for He has given you freedom to wing through the sky and He has clothed you… you neither sow nor reap, and God feeds you and gives you rivers and fountains for your thirst, and mountains and valleys for shelter, and tall trees for your nests. And although you neither know how to spin or weave, God dresses you and your children, for the Creator loves you greatly and He blesses you abundantly. Therefore… always seek to praise God. (Wikipedia)

Gondor’s custom of looking westward before meals: Gloria Patri and the Salvation History

The men of Gondor has the following custom before meals:

Before they ate, Faramir and all his men turned and faced west in a moment of silence.  Faramir signed to Frodo and Sam that they should do likewise.

‘So we always do,’ he said, as they sat down: ‘ we look towards Numenor that was, and beyond to Elvenhome that is, and beyond Elvenhome and will ever be.  Have you no such custom at meat?  (Two Towers p. 320)

Was, is, will ever be.  These words recall the prayer Gloria Patri or the Glory Be to the Father:

Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, as it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever.  Amen.

The Numenorians divide their history only into three ages.  The First Age is the Age of the Elves which ended with the overthrow of Morgoth.  The Second Age is the Age of the Numenorians which ended with the overthrow of Sauron, and the taking of the One Ring.  The Third Age is the War of the Ring which later ended with the destruction of the Ring and the crowning of Aragorn.  Saruman refers to these ages  as the Elder Days, the Middle Days, and the Younger Days.  He said to Gandalf:

The Elder Days are gone.  The Middle Days are passing.  The Younger Days are beginning.  The time of the Elves is over, but our time is at hand: the world of Men, which We must rule.  But we must have power, power to order all things as we will, for that good which only the Wise can see. (Fellowship of the Ring pp. 290-291)

For Catholics, salvation history is also divided into three ages.  The First Age is the Age of God the Father, which is the Old Testament.  The Second Age is the Incarnation of Christ, God the Son, which is told in the Gospels.  The Third Age is the Age of the Holy Spirit and of the Church, starting from the Feast of Pentecost.  This is narrated in the Acts of the Apostles.  The Third Age shall end with the Second Coming of Christ as King who will judge both the living and the dead.

Elvish Lembas and Eucharistic Fasting: the story of Blessed Alexandrina Maria da Costa

Near the end of their journey to Mt. Doom, Frodo and Sam fed on lembas alone:

The lembas had a virtue without which they would long ago have lain down to die.  It did not satisfy desire, and at times Sam’s mind was filled with the memories of food, and the longing for simple bread and meats.  And yet this waybread of the Elves had a potency that increased as the travellers relied on it alone and did not mingle it with oother foods.  It fed the will, and it gave strength to endure, and to master sinew and limb beyond the measure of mortal kind.

The Elvish lembas is a type or figure for the Holy Eucharist.  After the priest pronounce the consecration of the bread and wine at mass, they cease to be bread and wine.  What appears to be bread and wine are truly the body and blood of Christ.  This mystery is called Transubstantiation, which is described in the Catechism of the Catholic Church as follows:

1376 The Council of Trent summarizes the Catholic faith by declaring: “Because Christ our Redeemer said that it was truly his body that he was offering under the species of bread, it has always been the conviction of the Church of God, and this holy Council now declares again, that by the consecration of the bread and wine there takes place a change of the whole substance of the bread into the substance of the body of Christ our Lord and of the whole substance of the wine into the substance of his blood. This change the holy Catholic Church has fittingly and properly called transubstantiation.”²⁰⁶

1377 The Eucharistic presence of Christ begins at the moment of the consecration and endures as long as the Eucharistic species subsist. Christ is present whole and entire in each of the species and whole and entire in each of their parts, in such a way that the breaking of the bread does not divide Christ. ²

Because Catholics receive truly the Body and Blood of Christ during Communion, it is fitting that before they receive Christ, they must fast:

For many centuries it was the practise of those who were to receive the Holy Eucharist to fast from midnight.  With the changing cirumstances of modern society, and the advent of evening Masses, Pope Pius XII modified the fast in 1953, stipulating that solid food could be taken up to three hours before communion.  (Baronius Roman missal 1962, p. 101)

In the 1983 Code of Canon Law, the fasting was relaxed to one hour:

Anyone intending to receive the Most Holy Eucharist must abstain from all food and drink (with the sole exception of water and medicine) for at least one hour before Holy Communion. (Baronius Roman Missal 1962, p. 101)

There are saints who ate nothing except the Holy Communion. One of these is Blessed Alexandrina Maria da Costa who was declared blessed last April 25, 2004. Our Lord told her:

“Keep me company in the Blessed Sacrament. I remain in the tabernacle night and day, waiting to give my love and grace to all who would visit me. But so few come. I am so abandoned, so lonely, so offended…. Many…do not believe in my existence; they do not believe that I live in the tabernacle. They curse me. Others believe, but do not love me and do not visit me; they live as if I were not there… You have chosen to love me in the tabernacles where you can contemplate me, not with the eyes of the body, but those of the soul. I am truly present there as in Heaven, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity.”

…

“You will not take food again on earth. Your food will be my Flesh; your drink will be my Divine Blood

…

“You are living by the Eucharist alone because I want to prove to the world the power of the Eucharist and the power of my life in souls.” (Unity Publishing)

Blessed Alexandrina died on 13th October 1955, having received nourishment only from Holy Communion for more than thirteen years. This is what the medical report said:

“Her abstinence from solids and liquids was absolute during all that time. We testify also that she retained her weight, and her temperature, breathing, blood pressure, pulse and blood were normal while her mental faculties were constant and lucid and she had not, during these forty days, any natural necessities…The laws of physiology and biochemistry cannot account for the survival of this sick woman…” (Unity publishing)

Galadriel’s three locks of hair and the relics of the saints

Galadriel asked Gimli what gift he would like to have.  Gimli said none.  But Galadriel insisted.  So Gimli named his gift:

‘There is nothing, Lady Galadriel,’ said Gimli, bowing low and stammering. ‘Nothing, unless it might be– unless it is permitted to ask, nay, to name a single strand of your hair, which surpasses the gold of the earth as the stars surpass the gems of the mine. I do not ask for such a gift. But you commanded me to name my desire.’

The Elves stirred and murmured with astonishment, and Celeborn gazed at the Dwarf in wonder, but the Lady smiled. ‘It is said that the skill of the Dwarves is in their hands rather than in their tongues,’ she said; ‘yet that is not true of Gimli. For none have ever made to me a request so bold and yet so courteous. And how shall I refuse, since I commanded him to speak? But tell me, what would you do with such a gift?’

‘Treasure it, Lady,’ he answered, ‘in memory of your words to me at our first meeting. And if ever I return to the smthies of my home, it shall be set in imperishable crystal to be an heirloom of my house, and a pledge of good will between the Mountain and the Wood until the end of days.’

Three locks of hair encased in an imperishable crystal.  This reminds us of the relics of the saints.

According to the Catholic Encyclopedia,

The word relics comes from the Latin reliquiae (the counterpart of the Greek leipsana) which already before the propagation of Christianity was used in its modern sense, viz., of some object, notably part of the body or clothes, remaining as a memorial of a departed saint.

Catholics treasure relics.  When St. Polycarp of Smyrna died, the people of Smyrna took care of his body:

We took up his bones, which are more valuable than precious stones and finer than refined gold, and laid them in a suitable place, where the Lord will permit us to gather ourselves together, as we are able, in gladness and joy, and to celebrate the birthday of his martyrdom. (Catholic Encyclopedia)

Many relics are encased in crystal, like that used by Gimli for Galadriel’s hair:

A reliquary (also referred to as a shrine or by the French term chasse) is a container for relics. These may be the physical remains of saints, such as bones, pieces of clothing, or some object associated with saints or other religious figures. The authenticity of any given relic is often a matter of debate; for that reason, some churches require documentation of the relic’s provenance.

A philatory is a transparent reliquary designed to contain and exhibit the bones and relics of saints. Another form of reliquary is called a monstrance. This style of reliquary has a viewing portal by which to view the relic contained inside.

The Catholic teaching on the veneration of relics is given by the Council of Trent (Sess. XXV), which enjoins its bishops and pastors to instruct their flock as follows:

The holy bodies of holy martyrs and of others now living with Christ—which bodies were the living members of Christ and ‘the temple of the Holy Ghost’ (1 Corinthians 6:19) and which are by Him to be raised to eternal life and to be glorified are to be venerated by the faithful, for through these [bodies] many benefits are bestowed by God on men, so that they who affirm that veneration and honour are not due to the relics of the saints, or that these and other sacred monuments are uselessly honoured by the faithful, and that the places dedicated to the memories of the saints are in vain visited with the view of obtaining their aid, are wholly to be condemned, as the Church has already long since condemned, and also now condemns them.” (Catholic Encyclopedia)

St. Wenceslaus, Aragorn, and Christ: the Army of the Dead

Last September 28 is the Feast of the St. Wenceslaus (907-935 A.D.), the Good King Wenceslaus, patron Saint of Bohemia and parts of the Czech Republic.  St. Wenceslaus is the subject of many legends (Wikipedia):

There are many legends about King Wenceslaus. An old one claims a huge army of knights sleep inside Blaník, a mountain in the Czech Republic. The knights will wake and under the command of St. Wenceslaus will help the Motherland when it is in ultimate danger (see also King in the mountain legends).

There is a similar great legend in Prague which says that when the Motherland is in danger or in its darkest times and close to ruin, the equestrian statue of King Wenceslaus in Wenceslaus Square will come to life, raise the army sleeping in Blaník, and upon crossing the Charles Bridge his horse will stumble and trip over a stone, revealing the legendary sword of Bruncvík. With this sword, King Wenceslaus will slay all the enemies of the Czechs, bringing peace and prosperity to the land.

These legends are similar to the summoning of Aragorn of the Army of the Dead, as prophesied by Malbeth the Seer, in the days of Averdui, last king at Fornost (Return of the King, pp. 43-44):

Over the land there lies a long shadow,
westward reaching wings of darkness.
The Tower trembles; to the tombs of kings
doom approaches. The Dead awaken;
for the hour is come for the oathbreakers:
at the Stone of Erech they shall stand again
and hear there a horn in the hills ringing.
Whose shall the horn be? Who shall call them
from the grey twilight, the forgotten people?
The heir of him to whom the oath they swore.
From the North shall he come, need shall drive him;
he shall pass the Door to the Paths of the Dead.

Christ, the King of the Living and of the Dead, also went to the Paths of the Dead and preached the Good News to those who died, awaiting the messiah.  As stated in the Catechism of the Catholic Church:

632 The frequent New Testament affirmations that Jesus was “raised from the dead” presuppose that the crucified one sojourned in the realm of the dead prior to his resurrection.478 This was the first meaning given in the apostolic preaching to Christ’s descent into hell: that Jesus, like all men, experienced death and in his soul joined the others in the realm of the dead. But he descended there as Savior, proclaiming the Good News to the spirits imprisoned there.

633 Scripture calls the abode of the dead, to which the dead Christ went down, “hell” – Sheol in Hebrew or Hades in Greek – because those who are there are deprived of the vision of God.480 Such is the case for all the dead, whether evil or righteous, while they await the Redeemer: which does not mean that their lot is identical, as Jesus shows through the parable of the poor man Lazarus who was received into “Abraham’s bosom”:481 “It is precisely these holy souls, who awaited their Savior in Abraham’s bosom, whom Christ the Lord delivered when he descended into hell.”482 Jesus did not descend into hell to deliver the damned, nor to destroy the hell of damnation, but to free the just who had gone before him.483

634 “The gospel was preached even to the dead.”484 The descent into hell brings the Gospel message of salvation to complete fulfilment. This is the last phase of Jesus’ messianic mission, a phase which is condensed in time but vast in its real significance: the spread of Christ’s redemptive work to all men of all times and all places, for all who are saved have been made sharers in the redemption.

635 Christ went down into the depths of death so that “the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live.”485 Jesus, “the Author of life”, by dying destroyed “him who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and [delivered] all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong bondage.” Henceforth the risen Christ holds “the keys of Death and Hades”, so that “at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth.”