by Rosalind Shoopmann
1. People can enter into Heaven alive.
1.1. There are many examples of this in history.
1.1.1. The prophet Elijah was swept up by a divine whirlwind (2 Kings 2:11).
1.1.2. Narada informs Vaishampayana that he is the first to enter into Heaven in a physical form
as a result of personal merit (The Mahabharata 17.3).
1.1.2.1. The Mahabharata also depicts others entering into Heaven alive through invitation by
the gods.
1.1.2.2. Narada’s phrasing implies that these methods of ascension are not limited to those named
specifically within The Mahabharata.
1.1.3. Philostratus suggests that Apollonius of Tyana escaped his imprisonment by physically
entering into the Fields of Elysium alive (Live of Apollonius 8.30).
1.2. My uncle Edgar is possibly another example of this from my own life.
1.2.1. His body was never found (“Wildfire Claims Seven Lives; Several Still Missing.” The San
Jose Mercury Herald. 3 July 1994).
1.2.2. Although it is difficult to imagine somebody like Edgar sitting among the elect, God’s
grace is necessarily always unmerited (Augustine, The Enchiridion on Faith, Hope, and
Love 8.27).
1.2.2.1. God’s grace is as frightening as it is beautiful.
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Rosalind Shoopmann currently lives in Los Angeles, where she is pursuing a PhD at UCLA. Her work has appeared in Contemporary Verse 2, Boats Against the Current, Imposter Review, and elsewhere. You can find her website at www.rosalindshoopmann.com, but only if you remember the second N in "Shoopmann."
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