The Harrowing of Hell_-_Blue

The Harrowing of Hell (lat. Descensus Christi ad Inferos) is a doctrine in Christian theology referenced in the Apostles’ Creed and the Athanasian Creed (Quicumque vult) that states that Jesus Christ “descended into Hell”. The lack of explicit scriptural references to Christ’s descent to the underworld has given rise to controversy and differing interpretations. As an image in Christian art, the harrowing is also known as the Anastasis (a Greek word for “resurrection”), considered a creation of Byzantine culture and first appearing in the West in the early 8th century.

The Greek wording in the Apostles’ Creed is κατελθόντα εἰς τὰ κατώτατα, (“katelthonta eis ta katôtata”), and in Latin descendit ad inferos. The Greek τὰ κατώτατα (“the lowest”) and the Latin inferos (“those below”) may also be translated as “underworld”, “netherworld”, or as “abode of the dead.” The phrase then becomes Christ “descended to the dead.”

The word “harrow” comes from the Old English hergian meaning to harry or despoil and is seen in the homilies of Aelfric, ca. 1000. The term Harrowing of Hell refers not merely to the idea that Christ descended into Hell, as in the Creed, but to the rich tradition that developed later, asserting that he triumphed over inferos, releasing Hell’s captives, particularly Adam and Eve, and the righteous men and women of Old Testament times.