o
far as the cleansing of the individual is concerned. Nevertheless the
faith and righteousness of no one of them sufficed for removing the
barrier arising from the guilt of the whole human race: but this was
removed at the cost of Christ's blood. Consequently, before Christ's
Passion no one could enter the kingdom of heaven by obtaining
everlasting beatitude, which consists in the full enjoyment of God.

Reply Obj. 2: Elias was taken up into the atmospheric heaven, but not
in to the empyrean heaven, which is the abode of the saints: and
likewise Enoch was translated into the earthly paradise, where he is
believed to live with Elias until the coming of Antichrist.

Reply Obj. 3: As was stated above (Q. 39, A. 5), the heavens were
opened at Christ's baptism, not for Christ's sake, to whom heaven was
ever open, but in order to signify that heaven is opened to the
baptized, through Christ's baptism, which has its efficacy from His
Passion.

Reply Obj. 4: Christ by His Passion merited for us the opening of the
kingdom of heaven, and removed the obstacle; but by His ascension He,
as it were, brought us to the possession of the heavenly kingdom. And
consequently it is said that by ascending He "opened the way before
them."
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SIXTH ARTICLE [III, Q. 49, Art. 6]

Whether by His Passion Christ Merited to Be Exalted?

Objection 1: It seems that Christ did not merit to be exalted on
account of His Passion. For eminence of rank belongs to God alone,
just as knowledge of truth, according to Ps. 112:4: "The Lord is high
above all nations, and His glory above the heavens." But Christ as
man had the knowledge of all truth, not on account of any preceding
merit, but from the very union of God and man, according to John
1:14: "We saw His glory . . . as it were of the only-Begotten of the
Father, full of grace and of truth." Therefore neither had He
exaltation from the merit of the Passion but from the union alone.

Obj. 2: Further, Christ merited for Himself from the first instant of
His conception, as stated above (Q. 34, A. 3). But His love was no
greater during the Passion than before. Therefore, since charity is
the principle of merit, it seems that He did not merit exaltation
from the Passion more than before.

Obj. 3: Further, the glory of the body comes from the glory of the
soul, as Augustine says (Ep. ad Dioscor.). But by His Passion Christ
did not merit exaltation as to the glory of His soul, be