Religion Historian Jeffrey Burton Russell

Heaven Is A Place On Earth

Jeffrey Burton Russell is professor of history, emeritus, at the University of California, Santa Barbara and the author of a five-volume history of the concept of the Devil. Before participating in a panel on what depictions of the afterlife say about a culture, he talked about his own vision of heaven on earth—and why he doesn’t think he can do much to help himself get there.

Q:

What’s the last thing you bet on?


A:

I went to a slot machine in Las Vegas and got 17 cents back; that was good …


Q:

What teacher or professor, if any, changed your life?


A:

A professor in Belgium named Halkan was my mentor in graduate school. He was a wonderful man, a hero of the resistance—helping Jews escape from Belgium to England. He was a wonderful mentor both in terms of his personal life and activities, and was a very kindly teacher. I loved him.


Q:

What good deed in your life is most likely to get you into heaven?


A:

I don’t think any deeds get anybody into heaven. It’s got to be divine grace; it’s got to be God-given.


Q:

What’s the most overrated thing about Santa Barbara?


A:

The mountains, because they’re dry most of the time. Our creeks are very sporadic.


Q:

If you could go back to college today, what would you major in?


A:

I’d probably still major in history but I’d probably consider philosophy, and I’d also consider physics.


Q:

What’s your favorite church in the world?


A:

I think the cathedral at Chartres. A great French cathedral.


Q:

Do you know any poetry by heart?


A:

I have a very bad memory.


Q:

What’s your favorite condiment?


A:

Olive oil.


Q:

What’s the last thing that made you laugh?


A:

Your questions.


Q:

Where’s your paradise on earth?


A:

My own personal paradise on earth would be a quiet lake in the Sierra Nevada surrounded by pine trees, with little breezes going through the trees and rippling through the lake, and I’d just be there on a comfortable chair forever and ever.


*Photo by Aaron Salcido.