Referred to as hell - but not hell as we normally think of hell. The painter is an "Unknown Russian Icon Painter (1500s)".
Holy Saturday, the day between the death of Christ and His resurrection. What happened to the soul of Christ during that time? The Tradition answers this question in the line of the Apostles Creed: “He descended to hell,” referring there not to the hell of the damned, but to what is called Abraham’s bosom or limbus patrum. According to the consensus of the Church Fathers, Christ went there to liberate those souls who had died in a state of grace, but were not yet able to enter heaven, because Christ had not opened the gates of heaven by His Passion and death.
Beautiful! Thank you for sharing! I love this art work and Holy Saturday in particular. I have always tried to imagine with a visual what Christ did in Hell with the souls waiting for him to open the gates. I love this icon. Thanks again!
Happy Holy Saturday.
Posted by: Jessica | Saturday, April 16, 2022 at 05:11 AM