Thomas Aquinas, Summa Theologiae

Objection 1: It would seem that Christ did not open the gate of heaven to us by His Passion. For it is written (Prov. 11:18): "To him that soweth justice, there is a faithful reward." But the reward of justice is the entering into the kingdom of heaven. It seems, therefore, that the holy Fathers who wrought works of justice, obtained by faith the entering into the heavenly kingdom even without Christ's Passion. Consequently Christ's Passion is not the cause of the opening of the gate of the kingdom of heaven.

Objection 2: Further, Elias was caught up to heaven previous to Christ's Passion (4 Kgs. 2). But the effect never precedes the cause. Therefore it seems that the opening of heaven's gate is not the result of Christ's Passion.

Objection 3: Further, as it is written (Mt. 3:16), when Christ was baptized the heavens were opened to Him. But His baptism preceded the Passion. Consequently the opening of heaven is not the result of Christ's Passion.

Objection 4: Further, it is written (Mic. 2:13): "For He shall go up that shall open the way before them." But to open the way to heaven seems to be nothing else than to throw open its gate. Therefore it seems that the gate of heaven was opened to us, not by Christ's Passion, but by His Ascension.

On the contrary, is the saying of the Apostle (Heb. 10:19): "We have confidence in the entering into the Holies"---that is, of the heavenly places---"through the blood of Christ."

I answer that, The shutting of the gate is the obstacle which hinders men from entering in. But it is on account of sin that men were prevented from entering into the heavenly kingdom, since, according to Is. 35:8: "It shall be called the holy way, and the unclean shall not pass over it." Now there is a twofold sin which prevents men from entering into the kingdom of heaven. The first is common to the whole race, for it is our first parents' sin, and by that sin heaven's entrance is closed to man. Hence we read in Gn. 3:24 that after our first parents' sin God "placed . . . cherubim and a flaming sword, turning every way, to keep the way of the tree of life." The other is the personal sin of each one of us, committed by our personal act.

Now by Christ's Passion we have been delivered not only from the common sin of the whole human race, both as to its guilt and as to the debt of punishment, for which He paid the penalty on our behalf; but, furthermore, from the personal sins of individuals, who share in His Passion by faith and charity and the sacraments of faith. Consequently, then the gate of heaven's kingdom is thrown open to us through Christ's Passion. This is precisely what the Apostle says (Heb. 9:11,12): "Christ being come a high-priest of the good things to come . . . by His own blood entered once into the Holies, having obtained eternal redemption." And this is foreshadowed (Num. 35:25,28), where it is said that the slayer* "shall abide there"---that is to say, in the city of refuge---"until the death of the high-priest, that is anointed with the holy oil: but after he is dead, then shall he return home."

Reply to Objection 1: The holy Fathers, by doing works of justice, merited to enter into the heavenly kingdom, through faith in Christ's Passion, according to Heb. 11:33: The saints "by faith conquered kingdoms, wrought justice," and each of them was thereby cleansed from sin, so far as the cleansing of the individual is concerned. Nevertheless the faith and righteousness of no one of them sufficed for removing the barrier arising from the guilt of the whole human race: but this was removed at the cost of Christ's blood. Consequently, before Christ's Passion no one could enter the kingdom of heaven by obtaining everlasting beatitude, which consists in the full enjoyment of God.

Reply to Objection 2: Elias was taken up into the atmospheric heaven, but not in to the empyrean heaven, which is the abode of the saints: and likewise Enoch was translated into the earthly paradise, where he is believed to live with Elias until the coming of Antichrist.

Reply to Objection 3: As was stated above (Question 39, Article 5), the heavens were opened at Christ's baptism, not for Christ's sake, to whom heaven was ever open, but in order to signify that heaven is opened to the baptized, through Christ's baptism, which has its efficacy from His Passion.

Reply to Objection 4: Christ by His Passion merited for us the opening of the kingdom of heaven, and removed the obstacle; but by His ascension He, as it were, brought us to the possession of the heavenly kingdom. And consequently it is said that by ascending He "opened the way before them."

Articulus 5

Argumentum 1

Ad quintum sic proceditur. Videtur quod christus sua passione non aperuerit nobis ianuam caeli.

Dicitur enim Proverb. XI, seminanti iustitiam merces fidelis.

Sed merces iustitiae est introitus regni caelestis. Ergo videtur quod sancti patres, qui operati sunt opera iustitiae, fideliter consecuti essent introitum regni caelestis, etiam absque christi passione. Non ergo passio christi est causa apertionis ianuae regni caelestis.

Argumentum 2

Praeterea, ante passionem christi, elias raptus est in caelum, ut dicitur IV Reg. II.

Sed effectus non praecedit causam. Ergo videtur quod apertio ianuae caelestis non sit effectus passionis christi.

Argumentum 3

Praeterea, sicut legitur Matth. III, christo baptizato aperti sunt caeli.

Sed baptismus praecessit passionem. Ergo apertio caeli non est effectus passionis christi.

Argumentum 4

Praeterea, Mich. II dicitur, ascendit pandens iter ante eos.

Sed nihil aliud videtur pandere iter caeli quam eius ianuam aperire. Ergo videtur quod ianua caeli sit nobis aperta, non per passionem, sed per ascensionem christi.

Sed Contra

Sed contra est quod apostolus dicit, Heb. X, habemus fiduciam in introitu sanctorum, scilicet caelestium, in sanguine christi.

Corpus

Respondeo dicendum quod clausio ianuae est obstaculum quoddam prohibens homines ab ingressu. Prohibebantur autem homines ab ingressu regni caelestis propter peccatum, quia, sicut dicitur Isaiae XXXV, via illa sancta vocabitur, et non transibit per eam pollutus.

Est autem duplex peccatum impediens ab ingressu regni caelestis.

Unum quidem commune totius humanae naturae, quod est peccatum primi parentis. Et per hoc peccatum praecludebatur homini aditus regni caelestis, unde legitur Gen. III quod, post peccatum primi hominis, collocavit deus cherubim, et flammeum gladium atque versatilem, ad custodiendam viam ligni vitae.

Aliud autem est peccatum speciale uniuscuiusque personae, quod per proprium actum committitur uniuscuiusque hominis. Per passionem autem christi liberati sumus non solum a peccato communi totius humanae naturae, et quantum ad culpam et quantum ad reatum poenae, ipso solvente pretium pro nobis, sed etiam a peccatis propriis singulorum qui communicant eius passioni per fidem et caritatem et fidei sacramenta. Et ideo per passionem christi aperta est nobis ianua regni caelestis.

Et hoc est quod apostolus dicit, Heb. IX, quod christus, assistens pontifex futurorum bonorum, per proprium sanguinem introivit semel in sancta, aeterna redemptione inventa.

Et hoc significatur Num. XXXV, ubi dicitur quod homicida manebit ibi, scilicet in civitate refugii, donec sacerdos magnus, qui oleo sancto unctus est, moriatur, quo mortuo, poterit in domum suam redire.

Ad 1

Ad primum ergo dicendum quod sancti patres, operando opera iustitiae, meruerunt introitum regni caelestis per fidem passionis christi, secundum illud Heb. XI, sancti per fidem vicerunt regna, operati sunt iustitiam, per quam etiam unusquisque a peccato purgabatur quantum pertinet ad emundationem propriae personae. Non tamen alicuius fides vel iustitia sufficiebat ad removendum impedimentum quod erat per reatum totius humanae creaturae. Quod quidem remotum est pretio sanguinis christi. Et ideo ante passionem christi nullus intrare poterat regnum caeleste, adipiscendo scilicet beatitudinem aeternam, quae consistit in plena dei fruitione.

Ad 2

Ad secundum dicendum quod elias sublevatus est in caelum aereum, non autem in caelum empyreum, qui est locus beatorum. Et similiter nec Henoch, sed raptus est ad Paradisum terrestrem, ubi cum elia simul creditur vivere usque ad adventum Antichristi.

Ad 3

Ad tertium dicendum quod, sicut supra dictum est, christo baptizato aperti sunt caeli, non propter ipsum christum, cui semper caelum patuit, sed ad significandum quod caelum aperitur baptizatis baptismo christi, qui habet efficaciam ex passione ipsius.

Ad 4

Ad quartum dicendum quod christus sua passione meruit nobis introitum regni caelestis, et impedimentum removit, sed per suam ascensionem nos quasi in possessionem regni caelestis introduxit.

Et ideo dicitur quod ascendens pandit iter ante eos.