In the Old Testament, the holy prophet Elijah resurrected the son of the widow of Sarepta, and a dead man was resurrected by touching the bones of the holy prophet Elisha (2 Kings 13:21). The following pagan instances can be cited as parallels to Samuel’s summoning of Saul’s soul from hell.
All humanity knows the immortality of the soul, and consequently, its afterlife. But paganism understood and imagined the location of the souls of the dead, or the afterlife itself, in different ways.
It recognized both heaven—an afterlife for good, kind souls—and hell—a abode for evil spirits. Pagans recognized the appearance of the souls of the dead to the living, and the living were therefore in constant communion, union, and communication with the inhabitants of the afterlife, that is, with their deceased relatives and friends. According to crude, uneducated peoples, souls live a bestial life, appearing to those living who fear even to remember them. Departed souls, like ghosts, wander everywhere at night and dwell in crevices, chasms, mountains, groves, and even the sun and stars. They thirst for human blood and are vanquished by sacrifices, prayers, and incantations. The learned Greek philosopher and alchemist Democritus, who wrote “Physics and Mysticism,” says that his teacher died before he could give him a full course of study. He then resorted to incantations and, summoning his teacher’s shade from the underworld, conversed with it about science. The teacher told him that all wisdom lay within one of the temple’s columns, and Democritus found the following three sayings there:
“Nature is born in nature.
Nature conquers nature.
Nature commands nature.”
(Magazine “Northern Star,” 1878, No. 2, p. 29).
Homer, in the eleventh book of the Odyssey, paints a picture of Odysseus summoning the souls of the departed from the underworld:
I drew my bronze sword and dug with it
A deep pit, a cubit wide and long,
I poured three libations for the dead I had summoned:
The first with a honey mixture, the second with fragrant wine,
The third with water and barley flour, I sprinkled over everything.
…having made these invocations to the dead,
I myself slaughtered a ram and a ewe over the deep pit,
Black blood poured into it, and a crowd of
the souls of the departed, rising from the dark abyss of Erebus, flocked in. I drew my sharpened sword and sat before the pit,
to prevent the lifeless shades of the departed from approaching
the blood, until Tiresias, who had questioned me, gave me an answer.
Soon the image of Tiresias appeared before him; Odysseus allowed him to drink blood, then Tiresias gave him the desired answer.
Concerning the other shades, Tiresias said to Odysseus:
That one of the lifeless shades, to whom you allow blood
Will speak to you wisely, but silently
Will withdraw from you, whom you do not allow to come near blood.
Odysseus’s filial love for his dead mother, summoned to earth:
Carried away by my heart, I longed to embrace my mother’s departed soul.
Three times I stretched out my hands to her, yearning for love,
Three times she slipped between my hands
A shadow or a dream…
The Babylonians, when summoning human souls from the afterlife, as stated in the surviving Arabic translation of the ancient Babylonian work “On Agriculture,” lit a fire and threw various incense into it, reciting mysterious incantations. In the rising smoke, the spirit materialized before them, becoming completely solid and impenetrable. The Chaldeans believed that the souls of the dead lived underground, without blood or vital heat, and that incantations could summon them and compel them to reveal their future destiny to the living.
In the New Testament, it is primarily from the afterlife—Elijah from paradise, Moses from hell—that they appeared to the Savior during His transfiguration on Mount Tabor, in the presence of three witnesses: Peter, James, and John (Luke 9:28–32).
At the moment of Christ’s death, the resurrected dead preached the Resurrection of Christ. From the words of St. Matthew (27:52) clearly shows that those resurrected were saints, and that there were many of them. Some ancient Church teachers believed that the patriarchs and prophets were resurrected at this time, especially those who were related in the flesh to Jesus Christ, such as Abraham, Tabitha, or those who served as prototypes of Him: Jonah, Melchizedek, and others. Others believed that it is difficult for those long dead to be recognized, and therefore the resurrected saints were among those who had recently died, such as Simeon the God-Receiver, Anna the Prophetess, and Joseph the Betrothed.
It can also be added that only those buried in the vicinity of Jerusalem were resurrected. An ancient tradition says that the rocks where the tombs were located broke apart only near Jerusalem. The so-called First Gospel of Nicodemus refers to the resurrection of the two sons of Simeon the God-Receiver (The Lord’s Passover, Paskha, Athonite edition, 1869, p. 31). Apostle Peter, at the request of mourning widows in Joppa, resurrected their deceased benefactress (Acts 9:40, 41).
The Apostle Thomas was destined to preach the Gospel in India.
He was terrified at the thought of having to travel to such wild lands. The Lord appeared to him, comforted him, and promised to be with him. Thomas set out.
On the way, he met a wealthy merchant named Aban, who had been sent by the Indian king Gundaphorus to Palestine to find an excellent architect to build a royal palace similar to the palaces of the Roman Caesars. Aban explained the reason for his journey, and Apostle Thomas posed as the architect. Avan was delighted, and they set off for India together. Upon arrival, Avan introduced the king to the desired architect. Gundafor expressed to the apostle his desire for a magnificent palace similar to those in Rome, and Thomas volunteered to build one. This was the agreement.
The apostle received a large amount of gold and silver for the construction. The king traveled to other parts of India. The apostle began preaching the Gospel and teaching the people the Christian faith, generously distributing alms to all those in need. Almost two years later, the king sent to inquire about the palace’s construction. Thomas replied that only the palace’s roof remained to be completed, and he received a considerable sum of money for this. Finally, the king was firmly informed that no palace was being built, and that the strange Thomas was only teaching the people the new faith and distributing the royal treasure to the poor. Upon arriving home, the king was indeed convinced that no construction had been or was being carried out. He immediately ordered Thomas and Avan to be arrested and imprisoned, intending to subject them to a cruel execution. At this time, the king’s brother, hearing of Gundaphor’s sorrow, fell gravely ill and sent word to the king that he was unable to bear the king’s grief and had fallen so ill that it seemed he would have to part with life. The sick man soon died. Then the king forgot his grief caused by the Apostle Thomas, but grieved and wept inconsolably over the death of his beloved brother. An angel of God showed the soul of the deceased all the heavenly mansions and, going through all the mountain villages, pointed out many wondrous, bright chambers of the righteous. Of all the chambers, one was especially beautiful. Then the angel asked the soul, “In which chamber would you wish to live?” The soul, looking at this magnificent chamber, replied, “If I were permitted to live in even a corner of this chamber, I would desire nothing more.”
“No!” replied the angel who led the way. “You cannot live in this chamber; it belongs to your brother! The strange Thomas built it for him with the gold he received from your brother to build him a royal house.”
Then the soul said, “I beg You, Lord, let me go to my brother, and I will buy this chamber from him, for he does not know its beauty, and then I will return here again.” The angel returned the soul to the body, and the dead man arose. As if awakening from sleep, he first commanded that his brother be called.
The king, hearing that his brother had risen, rejoiced and did not delay in coming. Seeing his brother truly alive, the king was beside himself with joy. The risen one began to speak: “King! I know for certain that you love me, your brother, and I know how bitterly you wept for me! “I know, good king and brother, that you would not hesitate to give even half your kingdom to redeem me from death! Isn’t that true?”
“You know my love for you, and you were not mistaken in your hope,” replied the king. The risen one continued: “If you truly love me so, then I ask of you one gift, and may you not refuse me!” The king replied: “All that is in my realm, I give to you, my beloved brother,” and confirmed his promise with an oath. Then the risen one continued: “Give me your palace, which you have in heaven, and in exchange, take all my wealth!”
Hearing this request, the king paused, remained silent for a long time, and finally asked: “What kind of palace do I have in heaven?” “You have such a palace prepared in heaven,” continued the risen one, “the likes of which you cannot imagine, and the likes of which you have never seen or can see in all the universe.” This palace was built for you by Thomas, whom you hold in prison. I saw your palace, marveled at its indescribable beauty, and longed to inhabit at least some corner of it, but the angel who showed me all that is heavenly said, “You cannot live in it, for it belongs to your brother; the strange Thomas created it for him.” I begged the angel to let me go to you to purchase this palace. So, if you love me, give it to me, and take all my possessions for yourself.”
Then the king rejoiced doubly: both at his brother’s resurrection and at the palace Thomas had built for him in heaven. He said to the risen one, “Beloved brother! I swore not to spare you anything on earth within my power and authority, but I did not swear that I have a palace in heaven. If you, too, desire such a palace in heaven, then this builder is with me; “He will build a similar chamber for you.” After this, the Apostle Thomas was ordered to be brought from prison. The king himself came out to meet him and, falling at his feet, asked forgiveness for having sinned against him in ignorance. Then the Apostle Thomas thanked God, baptized both brothers, and taught them the Christian faith. And the resurrected Thomas, through many alms, also created for himself an eternal abode in heaven.
