Household Tales · Chapter
The Peasant in Heaven explained
A poor pious peasant and a rich lord both arrive at the gates of heaven.
What happens
A poor pious peasant and a rich lord both arrive at the gates of heaven. Saint Peter lets the rich man in first with great celebration, while the peasant is left waiting. When the peasant is finally admitted, he is welcomed affectionately but without music or singing. He questions the apparent partiality, and Saint Peter explains that poor peasants come to heaven daily, but a rich man appears only once in a century.
Themes in this chapter
Virtue Rewarded and Vice Punished
The peasant's piety is acknowledged by his entry into heaven, but the story highlights the rarity of rich men being saved, suggesting a critique of worldly wealth.
Social Class and Marriage
The disparity in heavenly reception between the rich lord and the poor peasant underscores the theme of social class, though marriage is not directly addressed.
Characters to notice
- St. Peter
Gatekeeper of heaven who admits the rich man first and later explains the lack of celebration for the peasant.
- the poor man
A poor pious peasant who dies and arrives at heaven, only to be initially overlooked by Saint Peter.
- the rich man
A very rich lord who is admitted to heaven with rejoicing, an event that occurs only once in a hundred years.
Key passages
“Then said Saint Peter, 'By no means, thou art just as dear to us as anyone else, and wilt enjoy every heavenly delight that the rich man enjoys, but poor fellows like thee come to heaven every day, but a rich man like this does not come more than once in a hundred years!'”
Saint Peter reassures the peasant that he is equally loved and will receive the same joys, explaining that poor people arrive frequently, whereas a rich person's entry is exceedingly rare.
This explains the apparent favoritism and reinforces the moral about the difficulty for the wealthy to enter heaven.