page_title: Aerial toll house
section_title: Teaching
hierarchical_section_title: Aerial toll house / Teaching
caption_attribution_description: English: Devils at an aerial toll house, Rila monastery fresco. "At left is the accompanying angel, and beside him the Christian soul. At right are demons holding scrolls showing the sins examined at that tollhouse. The white inscription at top center reads; МЫТАРСТВО Г Muitarstvo 3 (remember that Cyrillic letters can be used as numbers). Muitarstvo means "tollhouse" (plural мытарства — muitarstva). So this illustration depicts Tollhouse #3. The word on the red demon's scroll — СРАМОСЛОВИЕ (Sramoslovie) tells us he is checking for obscene speech, and the grey demon's scroll reads for foolish speech — БУЕСЛОВИЕ — (Bueslovie)." (source)
context_page_description: Historically, in the Eastern Orthodox Church, aerial toll houses are held by some to be traversed by the soul after death. This teaching says that "following a person's death the soul leaves the body, and is escorted to God by angels. During this journey the soul passes through an aerial realm, which is inhabited by wicked spirits. The soul encounters these demons at various points referred to as toll-houses where the demons then attempt to accuse it of sin and, if possible, drag the soul into hell."
  In some forms, the teaching is taught in hagiographical and other spiritual texts from quite early in the history of the Church, but it has never been formally promulgated by any ecumenical council. A number of the Orthodox saints, modern elders and theologians have openly endorsed it, but some theologians and bishops, starting from the last century, have condemned it as heretical and gnostic in origin. The content is somewhat similar to that propounded by John Climacus in The Ladder of Divine Ascent.
context_section_description: The most detailed account of the aerial toll-houses is found in the hagiography of Basil the New, found in the Lives of Saints for 26 March (according to some E. Orthodox calendars, but not all), though some believe this Basil to be mistakenly attributed for this date, and believe the account to be heretical and spurious. In this rendering, Theodora, spiritual student of Basil, appeared to another student, the pious and holy layman Gregory. According to the story, Gregory had prayed to God and asked him to inform them of what happened to Theodora after her death. God answered his prayers (according to this account) by sending Theodora herself to Gregory; and told him, in great detail, about her journey through the toll houses.
  According to Theodora's teaching, every Christian has a demon who tempts him or her.  These demons keep a record of every sin of thought or action they succeed in tempting a person to commit, though repented sins are erased from the demonic records.  On the third day after the soul separates from the body, according to this account, it is carried by angels towards Heaven. On the way, souls must go past twenty aerial toll-houses. Each toll house is populated by demons devoted to particular sins. At each toll-house, demons demand that souls "pay" for their sins by giving an account of compensatory good deeds. If the soul is unable to compensate for a sin, the demons take it to hell.
caption: Demons showing a soul its sins at the third aerial toll house. Fresco of the Rila Monastery.
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