What is the state of the souls of the dead until the general resurrection?
Since apostolic times, the Orthodox belief, expressed clearly in the liturgical texts, is that the souls of the righteous are in light and repose, with a foretaste of eternal blessedness. In the Scriptures, this place or state is called “Abraham’s bosom” (Luk 16:22; see Q167, Q373) or “Paradise” (Luk 23:43; see Q118, Q167); it is therefore fitting to avoid the term ‘Hades’ (not to be confused with Gehenna) for the abode of the righteous after the resurrection of Christ.
By contrast, the souls of the wicked are in a state of gloom, anticipating the final judgment. There is thus an immediate judgment of each person at the separation of soul and body, the ‘particular judgment’ (Heb 9:27; see Q607), although the full consequence of each life through the whole course of history is not yet complete, which is what the universal judgment will reveal to all. The term ‘Hades’ is most appropriately applied to the state of the unrighteous: “in hades, he lifted up his eyes, being in torment, and saw Abraham far off, and Lazarus in his bosom” (Luk 16:23); “the sea gave up the dead who were in it, and death and hades gave up the dead who were in them. They were judged, each one according to his works” (Rev 20:13). A gated prison that seemed impregnable (Mat 16:18; see Q252, Q257), Hades was conquered by the Lord of Glory, who shattered its gates by his divine resurrection. Therefore, the Church proclaims:
Let no one fear death, for the death of our Savior has set us free. The Lord has destroyed death by enduring it; the Lord vanquished Hades when he descended into it… Hades was embittered when it encountered You below: it was embittered, for it was abolished; it was embittered, for it was mocked… It grasped a corpse and met God; it seized earth and encountered heaven. O death, where is your sting? O Hades, where is your victory? (St John Chrysostom, Paschal Homily)
