Why we pray for the dead

The other day I heard someone asking the question "Why do the orthodox pray for the departed? And especially that their sins will be forgiven? It makes no sense!"

It certainly doesn't make sense when we look at things from a normal perspective. Because we usually think that life ends with death. But to the orthodox Christian, death is just the door to eternal life. We live on after death. It was our Lord Jesus who told Martha when she was weeping over her dead brother Lazarus, "I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live" (John 11:25). The second part of that verse is equally incredible - "And everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die." While these may sound like the raving words of a crazy person, to a Christian this is the assurance of the eternal life that the Lord Jesus had come to usher us into.

Every Christian believes in eternal life. But what it means or entails is not clear. The body is lifeless after death. So then how can you have life after death? Is it the person's soul or the spirit that is alive? Different denominations have different interpretations in this regard. After all, this is not new territory. Even ancient cultures and civilizations believed in life after death. For example, the Egyptians used to bury their kings in massive tombs with their belongings because they believed that these would be useful to their kings in the afterlife or the netherworld.

The best understanding of the Christian view on life after death can be seen in the parable that the Lord Jesus told about the rich man and the poor man Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31. There we see that the rich man is conscious in hell and able to talk to Father Abraham who is in a better place that is separated from the rich man's hell. He pleads with (or prays to) Father Abraham, asking him to send Lazarus to warn his brothers so that they can escape their brother's fate.

The Church Fathers taught us that the place where the righteous go immediately after death was Paradise. This was not heaven but a place where the righteous and those justified by their faith in Christ could rest there. There are many ancient icons which show this place inhabited by the penitent thief Dismas (to whom Christ said "Today you will be with me in Paradise) and Father Abraham in whose bosom many of the righteous souls like Lazarus rest. So it is a place of life and rest - a place where the righteous await the Final Judgement.

The question in this topic is of course, why we pray for the forgiveness of the dead? Praying for the dead souls was not something strange for the Jews in Jesus' time - for this custom is mentioned in the Book of Maccabees. But that is a long topic and maybe best reserved for another post. Here I want to stress on one thing - forgiveness is something that does not just end with this life. Many motivational speakers and counselors know this. That's why they stress that we must forgive our abusers even if they're dead and long gone, in order to get the healing and release we need.

St. Matthew gives us a clue in his gospel - "Whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the one to come.…" (Matthew 12:32). Here the Lord Jesus clearly tells his audience that there are sins that can be forgiven in the age to come!

This is why the orthodox Christians always pray for God's mercy upon the departed souls. We believe that God can forgive anyone at any time. Time is a construct that only created beings are limited by. God is beyond space and time. He is not limited by this age nor the age to come. So when it comes to forgiveness, there is no issue of 'when' for God. He will forgive if we ask Him.

And that is why we ask God to have mercy upon our dear departed. He will forgive their sins and have mercy on them in this age, and in the age to come.