CHAPTER 162

THE RESURRECTION OF THE DEAD AS AN ARTICLE OF FAITH

That we may give expression to our faith in the resurrection, we are instructed to say in the Apostles' Creed: "I believe . . . in the resurrection of the body." The word "body" was inserted not without reason: even in the age of the Apostles there were some who denied the resurrection of the body, and admitted no more than a spiritual resurrection, whereby a man rises from the death of sin. Therefore the Apostle, in II Timothy 2:18, has occasion to refer to certain individuals: "Who have erred from the truth, saying that the resurrection is past already, and have subverted the faith of some." To abolish this error, so that belief in the future resurrection may be professed, the Creed of the Fathers proclaims: "I look for the resurrection of the dead."