So, all these souls are said to have “lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years. But the rest of the dead lived not again until the thousand years were finished. This is the first resurrection.” (Rev 20:4-5). They are distinguished by this from all the “other” of mankind. It is absolutely clear that “lived” — εζησαν — does not mean the resurrection in the body, which is to take place for all at the end of this age. It was the souls that came to life as incorporeal, being separated from the body, and this “first resurrection” does not return their corporality to them. … What then can be the change in the souls, which is expressed in the fact that they “came to life”? The “soul” — and in the exact sense as the soul and spirit in their inseparability — is immortal, therefore it remains alive in the afterlife. Both the Old and the New Testament testify to this sufficiently. However, this life of the soul outside the body is obviously flawed, and besides, it can differ according to its afterlife destiny. It is in Revelation that in this respect there are absolutely special, deliberate evidence of an afterlife, immortality not as a state of fainting, but also life continuing in its content with participation even in the earthly destinies of mankind, as is clear from a number of relevant texts (see above). “Lived” must therefore be understood in the general context of the entire teaching of Revelation on the afterlife. It is never, in any of its states, a complete death, but at most only a swoon of life, from which souls awaken in varying degrees, according to the state of each. Therefore, the “first resurrection” means the greatest degree of life of the dead and their participation in the life of the living. This fullness is active, energetic, it is defined as participation in the earthly reign with Christ, and this obviously means their earthly service and action. What it is expressed in and how it is accomplished is not revealed to us, it is a mystery of the future, which does not lend itself to premature disclosure in general and remains inaccessible to us or does not need such disclosure.

Of course, one general question remains here, which in similar cases arose before us and above: will this event — the first resurrection of the saints — be known to those who are on earth? We obviously cannot give a confident answer to this question due to the lack of data of revelation and corresponding human experience. However, a number of suggestive reflections incline us to a positive answer regarding that special, exclusive image of the “communio sanctorum”, which is the “first resurrection”. If in the experience of the Church regarding the life of the saints we recognize a tangible closeness to us of the afterlife, all the more so here it manifests itself in the spiritual transparency of the world, in which — let's not forget — there is no poisonous breath of Satan, and at the same time, Christ approached with His “lived” saints. This signifies a completely new epoch in the life of the Church, insofar as a partial overcoming of death takes place here. That is why it is called “the first resurrection.” This signifies a completely new epoch in the life of the Church, insofar as a partial overcoming of death takes place here. That is why it is called “the first resurrection.” Between the mortal life of this world and the future age of resurrection, a certain intermediate state finds a place for itself, in which earthly life is united — at least for the elect — with life after death, so that on the basis of this state a new life arises, unknown to us now. Judging by the fact that it comes after the overthrow of Satan, this very possibility is connected with the beneficent consequences for the world with which it accompanies. The action of Satan in the world hitherto, obviously, prevented this connection, established the border between both worlds, the earthly and the afterlife. The intermediate state of the first resurrection, obviously, differs from the universal, hence, the second resurrection. The latter expression does not appear directly in Revelation, but is suggested by the parallel expression: “the second death.” The “first” resurrection is absent from other New Testament books. This expression constitutes the exclusive property of Revelation, together with its other features. This, of course, should not detract from the prophetic power and authenticity of this insight, since it is contained in one of the last, final chapters of the last New Testament book, as well as all its significance. It cannot be passed in silence and unnoticed, or else be lost in some kind of bewildered muttering, but must be accepted in all its force and dogmatic content with inclusion in the general system of Christian doctrine.

According to the text of Revelation, this first, and in this sense, anticipatory resurrection is inextricably linked with the participation of those “who came to life” in the reign with Christ for a thousand years. Just as the first resurrection precedes the general resurrection, so the coming of the Kingdom of Christ in the world is preceded by the thousand-year reign of the saints on earth. And this last, inasmuch as it is connected with the first resurrection, is thereby also assimilated a certain intermediate, afterlife-terrestrial character. Similarly, in the case of the Apostle Paul (1 Cor 15:22-25), the reign of Christ in the world takes place in a certain sequence and, so to speak, gradually, even with a hint that can be associated with the doctrine of the first resurrection: “For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet.” The entire Revelation is devoted to depicting this reign of Christ in the world, for which, however, the last, final act will be the millennium kingdom of the saints with Christ, their blessed destiny. They are delighted in the special (sixth) Makarism of Revelation: “Blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection: on such the second death hath no power, but they shall be priests of God and of Christ, and shall reign with him a thousand years” (Rev 20:6). Participation in the first resurrection is expressed primarily in the fact that the “second death” has no power over them.

We believe in the efficacy of the prayer of the saints, offered for us here and there, and — heart trembling — we entrust our life to the care of the love and prayer of those close to us.

The Apocalypse reveals in all its profundity this active participation of the deceased in our life through their prayers; and the priceless symbol of the «first resurrection» and of the thousand-year kingdom speaks to us of something even greater. Those who have «come back to life» in the first resurrection, that is, those abiding now with a soul but without a body, are called … to reign with Christ for a thousand years.