The Modern Misunderstanding of Mercy

On this blog, in several posts, I have written about the neo-religion of psychology as ruining people's awareness of sin. This idea is not new, and some prominent people in the 1970s, '80s and '90s wrote about this problem. One can follow the tags for my notes on this problem.

The worst expression of this would be the denial of personal responsibility for sin because of circumstances.

But, a nuance on the false religion of psychology seems to come up in conversations more with the Gen-Xers than with the Boomers.

This false idea involves the great misunderstanding of God's Mercy.

For most people who want to discuss sin and mercy, the idea of mercy seems to be that God excuses one from sin because of a set of circumstances, emotional problems, history, or even genetics.

Not so.

The CCC helps us realize, first of all, how sin is actually defined.


II. THE DEFINITION OF SIN

1849 Sin is an offense against reason, truth, and right conscience; it is failure in genuine love for God and neighbor caused by a perverse attachment to certain goods. It wounds the nature of man and injures human solidarity. It has been defined as "an utterance, a deed, or a desire contrary to the eternal law."121

1850 Sin is an offense against God: "Against you, you alone, have I sinned, and done that which is evil in your sight."122 Sin sets itself against God's love for us and turns our hearts away from it. Like the first sin, it is disobedience, a revolt against God through the will to become "like gods,"123 knowing and determining good and evil. Sin is thus "love of oneself even to contempt of God."124 In this proud self- exaltation, sin is diametrically opposed to the obedience of Jesus, which achieves our salvation.125

1851 It is precisely in the Passion, when the mercy of Christ is about to vanquish it, that sin most clearly manifests its violence and its many forms: unbelief, murderous hatred, shunning and mockery by the leaders and the people, Pilate's cowardice and the cruelty of the soldiers, Judas' betrayal - so bitter to Jesus, Peter's denial and the disciples' flight. However, at the very hour of darkness, the hour of the prince of this world,126 the sacrifice of Christ secretly becomes the source from which the forgiveness of our sins will pour forth inexhaustibly.

III. THE DIFFERENT KINDS OF SINS

1852 There are a great many kinds of sins. Scripture provides several lists of them. The Letter to the Galatians contrasts the works of the flesh with the fruit of the Spirit: "Now the works of the flesh are plain: fornication, impurity, licentiousness, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, anger, selfishness, dissension, factions, envy, drunkenness, carousing, and the like. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things shall not inherit the Kingdom of God."127

1853 Sins can be distinguished according to their objects, as can every human act; or according to the virtues they oppose, by excess or defect; or according to the commandments they violate. They can also be classed according to whether they concern God, neighbor, or oneself; they can be divided into spiritual and carnal sins, or again as sins in thought, word, deed, or omission. The root of sin is in the heart of man, in his free will, according to the teaching of the Lord: "For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, fornication, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a man."128 But in the heart also resides charity, the source of the good and pure works, which sin wounds.

and

868 Sin is a personal act. Moreover, we have a responsibility for the sins committed by others when we cooperate in them:

- by participating directly and voluntarily in them;

- by ordering, advising, praising, or approving them;

- by not disclosing or not hindering them when we have an obligation to do so;

- by protecting evil-doers.

1869 Thus sin makes men accomplices of one another and causes concupiscence, violence, and injustice to reign among them. Sins give rise to social situations and institutions that are contrary to the divine goodness. "Structures of sin" are the expression and effect of personal sins. They lead their victims to do evil in their turn. In an analogous sense, they constitute a "social sin."144

What we have now in America and in many Western countries are structures of sin, "legal moralism" as I wrote days ago.

Sin is in the will, not in the emotions, which psychology falsely teaches. Sin may be of a less or more culpability, but never completely without culpability. There are too many so-called healing ministries which attempt to "heal" sin, when in reality, one must decide not to sin.

Can trauma or abuse, for example, lead to sin? Yes, but even if one's will is weak, one can choose not to sin.

God always gives one enough grace not to sin.

Here is St. Paul on this subject:

Romans 5 Douay-Rheims

5 Being justified therefore by faith, let us have peace with God, through our Lord Jesus Christ:

2 By whom also we have access through faith into this grace, wherein we stand, and glory in the hope of the glory of the sons of God.

3 And not only so; but we glory also in tribulations, knowing that tribulation worketh patience;

4 And patience trial; and trial hope;

5 And hope confoundeth not: because the charity of God is poured forth in our hearts, by the Holy Ghost, who is given to us.

6 For why did Christ, when as yet we were weak, according to the time, die for the ungodly?

7 For scarce for a just man will one die; yet perhaps for a good man some one would dare to die.

8 But God commendeth his charity towards us; because when as yet we were sinners, according to the time,

9 Christ died for us; much more therefore, being now justified by his blood, shall we be saved from wrath through him.

10 For if, when we were enemies, we were reconciled to God by the death of his Son; much more, being reconciled, shall we be saved by his life.

11 And not only so; but also we glory in God, through our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom we have now received reconciliation.

12 Wherefore as by one man sin entered into this world, and by sin death; and so death passed upon all men, in whom all have sinned.

13 For until the law sin was in the world; but sin was not imputed, when the law was not.

14 But death reigned from Adam unto Moses, even over them also who have not sinned after the similitude of the transgression of Adam, who is a figure of him who was to come.

15 But not as the offence, so also the gift. For if by the offence of one, many died; much more the grace of God, and the gift, by the grace of one man, Jesus Christ, hath abounded unto many.

16 And not as it was by one sin, so also is the gift. For judgment indeed was by one unto condemnation; but grace is of many offences, unto justification.

17 For if by one man's offence death reigned through one; much more they who receive abundance of grace, and of the gift, and of justice, shall reign in life through one, Jesus Christ.

18 Therefore, as by the offence of one, unto all men to condemnation; so also by the justice of one, unto all men to justification of life.

19 For as by the disobedience of one man, many were made sinners; so also by the obedience of one, many shall be made just.

20 Now the law entered in, that sin might abound. And where sin abounded, grace did more abound.

21 That as sin hath reigned to death; so also grace might reign by justice unto life everlasting, through Jesus Christ our Lord.

Psychological problems do not justify us, Faith does.

And, God's Mercy does not make excuses for our sins so that we "get off the hook". God's Mercy shows us the depth of our sins, shows us the Justice which would demand reparation, or even hell, and then, forgives us, not because we are worthy, or emotionally damaged, or ill, or poor, or abandoned, but because Christ died for each one of us.

Mercy comes flowing out of the Blood of the Lamb of God on the Cross, not from psychological explanations of sin.

Sin is in the will-whether one has a formed conscience, or an ill-formed concscience, sin comes from a decision.

Of course, it can be much more difficult for those who have been wounded in any way to become saints. But, this woundedness makes for great saints, not for little ones.

God allows the woundedness in order for His Own Glory to shine forth.

Mercy is not based on excuses, but on God's tremendous love of the sinner.

Only those who face their own sins, daily, will become saints.

Such is the way of perfection... To face one's woundedness is part of carrying the Cross. To not sin while carrying this cross is sheer grace, and the need for God's Providence, Mercy, and Justice.

to be continued...

but I am having severe problems with the Net and may not be able to blog for the rest of the day...

Misunderstandings about Purgatory, Still

A quick posting...

While most Catholics simply do not believe in Purgatory, it seems that there are some who simply do not understand the two-fold reasoning behind this teaching of the Church.

And, yes, it still is a teaching.

First of all, in the CCC, we read this and let me comment in blue:

III. THE FINAL PURIFICATION, OR PURGATORY

1030 All who die in God's grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.

So, the first reason given in the Catechism is that purgation of sin and imperfections is necessary before one goes to heaven. "Only the perfect see God." If we allow God, or if it is God's will that we experience purgation on earth, so much the better, as then, we gain more merit for heaven.

1031 The Church gives the name Purgatory to this final purification of the elect, which is entirely different from the punishment of the damned.⁶⁰⁶ The Church formulated her doctrine of faith on Purgatory especially at the Councils of Florence and Trent. The tradition of the Church, by reference to certain texts of Scripture, speaks of a cleansing fire:⁶⁰⁷

As for certain lesser faults, we must believe that, before the Final Judgment, there is a purifying fire. He who is truth says that whoever utters blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will be pardoned neither in this age nor in the age to come. From this sentence we understand that certain offenses can be forgiven in this age, but certain others in the age to come.⁶⁰⁸

Note that some things can be forgiven now, most things, in fact. But, one must also make reparation, in other words, be punished, for sins committed. This is the second reason for Purgatory.  Punishment is a consequence, and purification is the taking away not only of the consequences, but the reasons for the sins one's commits, things like the predominant fault. (See series). Under the selections from the CCC, is one from the Catholic Encyclopedia, which explains the need to undergo temporal punishment due to sin.

1032 This teaching is also based on the practice of prayer for the dead, already mentioned in Sacred Scripture: "Therefore [Judas Maccabeus] made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin."⁶⁰⁹ From the beginning the Church has honored the memory of the dead and offered prayers in suffrage for them, above all the Eucharistic sacrifice, so that, thus purified, they may attain the beatific vision of God.⁶¹⁰ The Church also commends almsgiving, indulgences, and works of penance undertaken on behalf of the dead:

Let us help and commemorate them. If Job's sons were purified by their father's sacrifice, why would we doubt that our offerings for the dead bring them some consolation? Let us not hesitate to help those who have died and to offer our prayers for them.⁶¹¹

That temporal punishment is due to sin, even after the sin itself has been pardoned by God, is clearly the teaching of Scripture. God indeed brought man out of his first disobedience and gave him power to govern all things (Wisdom 10:2), but still condemned him "to eat his bread in the sweat of his brow" until he returned unto dust. God forgave the incredulity of Moses and Aaron, but in punishment kept them from the "land of promise" (Numbers 20:12). The Lord took away the sin of David, but the life of the child was forfeited because David had made God's enemies blaspheme His Holy Name (2 Samuel 12:13-14). In the New Testament as well as in the Old, almsgiving and fasting, and in general penitential acts are the real fruits of repentance (Matthew 3:8; Luke 17:3; 3:3). The whole penitential system of the Church testifies that the voluntary assumption of penitential works has always been part of true repentance and the Council of Trent (Sess. XIV, can. xi) reminds the faithfulthat God does not always remit the whole punishment due to sin together with the guilt. God requires satisfaction, and will punish sin, and this doctrine involves as its necessary consequence a belief that the sinner failing to do penance in this life may be punished in another world, and so not be cast off eternally from God. from the CE

Would it not easier, and would we not gain more merit in heaven for accepting purgatory on earth, both as punishment and purification? This would mean doing penance now.

The Blame Game Part Three

I found out today from one of my friends of psychology generation that she had a school psychologist in the 1960s. WOW!

Needless to say, Catholic schools did not have school psychologist. I was amazed when I heard that public schools had these so early.

So, the damaging rot came into the schools exactly in the generation I call that of psychology. Can one imagine these kids growing up in a hot-house atmosphere of being  examined for psychological reasons for acting up, which in days earlier would have resulted in being refused cookies and milk, or staying in for recess, or having a note sent home to dad, and then, oh-oh.

Sin disappeared from the consciousness and conscience to the extent that kids were not allowed to suffer from consequences, which would have taught them natural law philosophy from little on.

One breaks something, one sweeps it up and pays for it. One causes a person to suffer, one apologizes. One steals something, one must not only give it back but do restitution for the sin.

One of the members of the generation of psychology did not know, even though he has been a Catholic all his life, and goes to daily Mass, that purgatory was punishment due to sin. Until our recent discussion, he had no idea that sin had consequences past the confessional box, or that one did not get into heaven unless one was purified.

It never occurred to him that sin had consequences beyond this life, and, as a NO Catholic, in his mid-50s, he claims that he has never heard any teaching from the pulpit on purgatory, except on All Souls' Day--sermons which were vague and confusing.

The priest of his parish is probably a member of the generation of psychology.

Some seminaries in America have psychologists and even psychiatrists on staff to meet with the young men on a regular basis. Some men actually see this counselor more often than they do their spiritual director, who may come from "off campus" only once a month.

We have fallen for this false religion of psychology, using it to explain sin, rather than teaching and forming the conscience through examination and reflection.

After several discussions recently with members of the generation of psychology, I have to admit I am ready to throw up my hands in frustration and walk-away from an entire group of people, who honestly believe they have never chosen sin.

Sigh....I think this cultural shift was a great victory for the evil one and part of the psywars, about which I have written in the past.

Enough, already...if one does not think one is sinning, but merely unhappy because of emotional upheaval owing to those actions of some who sinned against them, one will never take responsibility for one's own salvation-something we all must do, begging God for the grace of conversion, change, and final perseverance.

Allowing Sin and Allowing Suffering

There are two thoughts concerning imperfections and sin in a good Catholic. The prevailing idea of Garrigou-Lagrange and some of the saints, including St. John of the Cross, is that one can move away from venial sin, overcome imperfections, and even transcend concupiscence, with the help of God's grace.

Some priests today believe that it is possible to stop sinning venially and even move from being tempted by certain things through purification of the mind, memory, understanding and imagination, so that one is practically free of concupiscence.

However, some saints, in particular, St. Teresa of Avila, believe that one sins venially until death.

Some saints believe temptation is a trial of greatly virtuous people.

Why the difference in perspective has concerned me until recently, when a very simple thought came to mind.

No two people are alike in their spiritual journey and, although the saints give us guidelines and provide examples from their own lives, no two saints are the same. All persons have a unique way in coming to holiness.

The key thought is this--and I put it in the form of a question. How does one learn humility and stay humble?

Three saints give us examples of how differently God works in the soul.

These are the three Teresas.

First, moving from the latest, modern day Teresa is Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, Mother Teresa.

It is a well-known fact, shared by a priest who was close to her, that Mother Teresa was in the Dark Night of the Soul for fifty years.

For fifty years, this saint lived on Faith and not consolation, not moving out of purgation and the long days of the Hidden God until almost immediately before her death, when she came into Illumination and Union, exhibiting a great peace.

Fifty years of purgation and the lack of the consolation of seeing things with the Eyes of God, not transcending her predominant fault until right before death, shows that this way was for her, a life of humility, but a humility of waiting on God and grace.

The length of time does not necessarily mean that Mother Teresa was a greater sinner than the other two Teresas, but that this is how God wanted her to become holy--through the suffering of self and the lack of consolation.

In other words, her life was one of sheer faith in God.

St. Therese of Lisieux is the second Teresa, but one who experienced, in a short life, Purgation, Illumination and Union, but also a time of intense suffering of temptations right before she died.

That she was tempted severely in the last months of her life has been shown by her request that the pain killers left in her room be removed at night so that she would not be tempted to suicide.

Her long days of pain were devoid of consolation from God. She could not even receive the Eucharist for many months before her death because of her physical condition.

But, one perceives no sin, only deep suffering, possibly for the intercession for sinners, rather than a suffering for purgation. Few are holy enough to offer themselves to God for love and suffer for others after Illumination and Union. But, this seems to have been her way--her "unfelt joy" but with complete confidence in God's Love.

St. Therese is one of those "meteor saints", young ones given tremendous graces of all three stages of the spiritual life as young people, only to suffer for others at the end, in a union with the Crucified Christ, in a pure state of sharing the Passion of Christ after great, graces of insight, illumined soul and oneness with God. Elizabeth of the Trinity would be another example of this type of holy life. Both these young Carmelites were called to sinless lives but still suffered for others, not for their own sins, but moving beyond purification to sheer intercessory union with Christ the Bridegroom in the mysterious union of the Cross in purity and sinlessness. St. Therese's profound humility allowed her to live in this role of intercessor in a most Christ-like fashion of purity and suffering.

St.Teresa of Avila provides us with another example of great suffering at the end of her life, but again, writing of being in the last great stage of holiness while on earth, the Unitive State, experiencing ecstasy, while claiming that it was possible to sin even venially after such dramatic and intense graces of oneness with God.

It seems to me that her way of staying humble was to have weaknesses even after unity. St. Teresa does not state that she, indeed, sinned venially after this life of the highest prayer one can experience on earth, but she states it is possible to do so. If God allows someone at this level of holiness to sin venially, it is for the greater good of revealing one to one's self in humility, the humility of weaknesses.

One should never compare one's self with others in the life of grace. Looking at the "cloud of witnesses" which make up the Church Triumphant, one sees the variety of graces played out in the lives of the saints.

But, God allows one to sin, not that He causes sin, but that He allows it for His greater glory, remains a mystery of both suffering and purgation.

The Pope Emeritus said one time that  “Holiness does not consist in never having erred or sinned. Holiness increases the capacity for conversion, for repentance, for willingness to start again, and, especially, for reconciliation and forgiveness. . . Consequently, it is not the fact that we have never erred but our capacity for reconciliation and forgiveness which makes us saints."

This idea makes us realize two things: one, that one must be willing to start over again and seek out God's mercy and never despair; and, two that some saints live in such an awareness of their sinfulness that they never sin again. Once reconciliation with God and the deep awareness of one's need for Christ's Sacrifice in order for one to be saved, the acceptance of the Passion in each individual soul, some saints live in such constant love and humility as to never sin again. Some are brought back to their nothingness by venial sin, or even the inability to move away from their predominant fault until just before death.

In other words, once one realizes the depth and breadth of one's sins, once one actually lives a humble life completely, one relies only on God's grace and not on one's own gifts or strength, being totally dependent on God for all things. Repentance is a daily task, conversion of heart, mind, soul, a daily job, and there can be no rest from the fight against the flesh, the devil and the world until death.

And, this brings me to one more point. Temptation comes from these three sources--the demons, the world, and self-love.

One can fall into venial sin, entertain temptations of the mind through each of these three sources of evil.

The first, the flesh, is one's own weakness. Not to commit venial sins and to overcome even concupiscence reveals that one has overcome one's self-love and is living a life of purity. John of the Cross must be one of the main examples of this grace.

The second, the devil, including his cohorts, will always be a possible source of sin until death, which is why all Christians should pray for the grace of final perseverance. The fight for the soul even at death can only be overcome with God's help. This is a lesson learned from the Little Flower, St. Therese.

The third, the world, was not such an issue for the three Teresas, as they removed themselves from the world by responding to God's call to enter Carmel, or in the case of Mother Teresa, to start a new order. But, she was in the world more than Little Therese. St. Teresa of Avila, as the head of a new order, also had to deal with worldly issues more than Little Therese.

We cannot judge a level of holiness or even a level of humility in persons. We cannot even judge suffering, as suffering is not quantifiable. What is great suffering for one person may not be so for another, and so on. The stigmatists, perhaps the most obvious of saints who suffer horrible pain, also experienced joy in being in union with Christ in His Passion. One cannot say, for example, that St. Padre Pio suffered more than Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, or that St. Therese of Lisieux suffered more than St. Teresa of Avila. These types of comparisons are based on judgments not in keeping with understanding the spiritual life, but a materialistic sort of approach to holiness, which is not only unhelpful, but inappropriate.

Each person created by God has a different way to holiness. One saint may struggle with sin all his life, while another may live in a unity of love and peace. The temperament of an individual, a personality or character created and formed by God's graces determines how that person becomes holy. God's grace and Providence determines the way to holiness for each individual.

Allowing sin in a person's life may be one way God brings a person to the depths of humility and self-knowledge. St. Paul's words haunt us on this concept of suffering through failings after prayer, and great grace.

He is teaching us never to give up, always to rely on God, and to fight evil within ourselves,as well as outside of ourselves.

I am reminded of the growing evil in this world and the growing activity of demonic influences. The absolute necessity for all Christians must be complete dependence on God. Once a person has come to rely on Divine Providence completely, all movement from sin becomes possible. God needs saints, but holiness begins with self-knowledge and true humility.

Romans 7:14-25

14 For we know that the law is spiritual; but I am of the flesh, sold into slavery under sin. 15 I do not understand my own actions. For I do not do what I want, but I do the very thing I hate. 16 Now if I do what I do not want, I agree that the law is good. 17 But in fact it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me. 18 For I know that nothing good dwells within me, that is, in my flesh. I can will what is right, but I cannot do it. 19 For I do not do the good I want, but the evil I do not want is what I do. 20 Now if I do what I do not want, it is no longer I that do it, but sin that dwells within me.
21 So I find it to be a law that when I want to do what is good, evil lies close at hand. 22 For I delight in the law of God in my inmost self, 23 but I see in my members another law at war with the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my members. 24 Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death? 25 Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with my mind I am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh I am a slave to the law of sin.

Spe Salvi Seven

The Pope Emeritus has much to say about suffering and hope. Perhaps to some, suffering and hope seem contradictory, but suffering actually leads to real hope, not false optimism or fantasy.

36. Like action, suffering is a part of our human existence. Suffering stems partly from our finitude, and partly from the mass of sin which has accumulated over the course of history, and continues to grow unabated today. 

Suffering comes from our humanity, Original Sin, and personal sins. We cannot avoid it and still be authentic human beings. Justice demands that we try and help those who are suffering either physically, or spiritually-hence the corporal and spiritual works of mercy all are called to do.

Sadly, Catholics are less likely to be really involved in either. Why this is, can only be sin, the sin of complacency.

Certainly we must do whatever we can to reduce suffering: to avoid as far as possible the suffering of the innocent; to soothe pain; to give assistance in overcoming mental suffering. These are obligations both in justice and in love, and they are included among the fundamental requirements of the Christian life and every truly human life. Great progress has been made in the battle against physical pain; yet the sufferings of the innocent and mental suffering have, if anything, increased in recent decades. Indeed, we must do all we can to overcome suffering, but to banish it from the world altogether is not in our power. This is simply because we are unable to shake off our finitude and because none of us is capable of eliminating the power of evil, of sin which, as we plainly see, is a constant source of suffering. 

The age-old question of why suffering has been answered-we all have free will. Many people choose evil, as I see daily, even in this small neighborhood.  Only God has the ability to end suffering by ending sin. But, to Him, our free wills are sacred. And, we do make daily choices for good or for evil.

Only God is able to do this: only a God who personally enters history by making himself man and suffering within history. We know that this God exists, and hence that this power to “take away the sin of the world” (Jn 1:29) is present in the world. Through faith in the existence of this power, hope for the world's healing has emerged in history. It is, however, hope—not yet fulfilment; hope that gives us the courage to place ourselves on the side of good even in seemingly hopeless situations, aware that, as far as the external course of history is concerned, the power of sin will continue to be a terrible presence.

Keeping our eyes on Christ, especially on the Passion and Resurrection, give us hope. But, we hope in eternal life, not merely comfort zones on earth. We hope for salvation.

37. Let us return to our topic. We can try to limit suffering, to fight against it, but we cannot eliminate it. It is when we attempt to avoid suffering by withdrawing from anything that might involve hurt, when we try to spare ourselves the effort and pain of pursuing truth, love, and goodness, that we drift into a life of emptiness, in which there may be almost no pain, but the dark sensation of meaninglessness and abandonment is all the greater.

To me, it is frightening how many people just drift, just follow the paths of least resistance to sin instead of embracing suffering. Life is hard, period, and for those of us who suffer willingly, graces follow.

 It is not by sidestepping or fleeing from suffering that we are healed, but rather by our capacity for accepting it, maturing through it and finding meaning through union with Christ, who suffered with infinite love. 

Blessed John Henry Cardinal Newman wrote that a man knows how to suffer and accepts suffering. One can see the problem of too many "boys" who refuse to accept and take on suffering-not wanting to move out in courage and take responsibility for life.

In this context, I would like to quote a passage from a letter written by the Vietnamese martyr Paul Le-Bao-Tinh († 1857) which illustrates this transformation of suffering through the power of hope springing from faith. “I, Paul, in chains for the name of Christ, wish to relate to you the trials besetting me daily, in order that you may be inflamed with love for God and join with me in his praises, for his mercy is for ever (Ps 136 [135]). The prison here is a true image of everlasting Hell: to cruel tortures of every kind—shackles, iron chains, manacles—are added hatred, vengeance, calumnies, obscene speech, quarrels, evil acts, swearing, curses, as well as anguish and grief. But the God who once freed the three children from the fiery furnace is with me always; he has delivered me from these tribulations and made them sweet, for his mercy is for ever. In the midst of these torments, which usually terrify others, I am, by the grace of God, full of joy and gladness, because I am not alone —Christ is with me ... 

I asked a priest to pray for me a few days ago as I have to move again and do not know where. I have four weeks here. The priest wrote to me and said, "You are not alone.." No, I am not, although I have no persons helping me with permanency which is also freedom. 

Christ is with me, but the suffering Christ, the Christ Who sees my desires and needs and suffers with me, in me, around me. The Cross becomes my focus. I can only pray to rest in God, even if my rest is at the foot of the Cross.

How am I to bear with the spectacle, as each day I see emperors, mandarins, and their retinue blaspheming your holy name, O Lord, who are enthroned above the Cherubim and Seraphim? (cf. Ps 80:1 [79:2]). Behold, the pagans have trodden your Cross underfoot! Where is your glory? As I see all this, I would, in the ardent love I have for you, prefer to be torn limb from limb and to die as a witness to your love. O Lord, show your power, save me, sustain me, that in my infirmity your power may be shown and may be glorified before the nations ... 

The martyrs give us courage. If they could endure out of love, would not God help me endure out of love?

Beloved brothers, as you hear all these things may you give endless thanks in joy to God, from whom every good proceeds; bless the Lord with me, for his mercy is for ever ... I write these things to you in order that your faith and mine may be united. In the midst of this storm I cast my anchor towards the throne of God, the anchor that is the lively hope in my heart”

God never asks the impossible. Therefore, if He puts us in tremendous suffering, He wills us grace as well. This martyr shares his grace with us.

[28]. This is a letter from “Hell”. It lays bare all the horror of a concentration camp, where to the torments inflicted by tyrants upon their victims is added the outbreak of evil in the victims themselves, such that they in turn become further instruments of their persecutors' cruelty. This is indeed a letter from Hell, but it also reveals the truth of the Psalm text: “If I go up to the heavens, you are there; if I sink to the nether world, you are present there ... If I say, ‘Surely the darkness shall hide me, and night shall be my light' —for you darkness itself is not dark, and night shines as the day; darkness and light are the same” (Ps 139 [138]:8-12; cf. also Ps 23 [22]:4). Christ descended into “Hell” and is therefore close to those cast into it, transforming their darkness into light. Suffering and torment is still terrible and well- nigh unbearable. 

The Harrowing of Hell is a credal belief-"He descended into hell". Hell did not all of the sudden become clean and bright, joyful and glorious for Christ's descent.  No, He went down to lead those who had waited for His Redemptive Action on the Cross to free them.

So, too, we wait and hope, wait and hope.

Yet the star of hope has risen—the anchor of the heart reaches the very throne of God. Instead of evil being unleashed within man, the light shines victorious: suffering—without ceasing to be suffering—becomes, despite everything, a hymn of praise.

A grateful and generous heart finds praise amidst suffering. Sometimes this praise is merely being with Christ on Golgotha, just being, silent, watching, waiting.

38. The true measure of humanity is essentially determined in relationship to suffering and to the sufferer. This holds true both for the individual and for society. A society unable to accept its suffering members and incapable of helping to share their suffering and to bear it inwardly through “com-passion” is a cruel and inhuman society. 

Our own nation lets women and men kill their Down's Syndrome children in the womb, in order to avoid suffering. Our own nation is moving towards euthanasia, in order to avoid taking care of the suffering. The poor are ignored and the homeless made illegal in order for people to avoid seeing and responding to suffering.

Many nations have become cruel. Another name for this approach is utilitarianism. If a person seems useless, kill them, says the utilitarian. Society only wants the strong, the rich, the beautiful. But, this attitude creates a false paradise. 

Yet society cannot accept its suffering members and support them in their trials unless individuals are capable of doing so themselves; moreover, the individual cannot accept another's suffering unless he personally is able to find meaning in suffering, a path of purification and growth in maturity, a journey of hope. 

Here it is..the great theme of this blog...purification and maturity only come through suffering.

Why are there so many Peter Pans and Peter Pams? Because these people run away from suffering. Women know that if a man cannot suffer when they are dating, that man is not marriage material. Waiting is love.

Why are there so many men and women who refuse to get married, make commitments, have children, endure illness in others and so on? Because they refuse to take on suffering. To choose to really love is to choose to die to self.

Indeed, to accept the “other” who suffers, means that I take up his suffering in such a way that it becomes mine also. Because it has now become a shared suffering, though, in which another person is present, this suffering is penetrated by the light of love. 

In America, suffering isolates people, because most people do not want to reach out of their comfort zones in order to share with someone else's suffering. 

This is why so many of us who suffer find ourselves alone. We become invisible.

The Latin word con-solatio, “consolation”, expresses this beautifully. It suggests being with the other in his solitude, so that it ceases to be solitude. Furthermore, the capacity to accept suffering for the sake of goodness, truth and justice is an essential criterion of humanity, because if my own well-being and safety are ultimately more important than truth and justice, then the power of the stronger prevails, then violence and untruth reign supreme. 

Why do those who refuse to stand up for Truth hate those who do? Because deep down inside, they know they are avoiding suffering and they do not want to be reminded of this. Solitude becomes the life of too many people who suffer because there are no consolers.

Truth and justice--first. Seeking security and safety leads to great sin-deceit, lust, fear, avarice...then a nation loses its soul.

Truth and justice must stand above my comfort and physical well-being, or else my life itself becomes a lie. 

Daily I see and meet people living lies. Their entire lifestyle is one of deceit. They lie because they refuse to face justice and truth.

Deceit leads to greater sins of addiction to porn, fantasy, lust, and most obviously here in the States, avarice. If one cannot ever be uncomfortable, one will lose one's soul. 

In the end, even the “yes” to love is a source of suffering, because love always requires expropriations of my “I”, in which I allow myself to be pruned and wounded. Love simply cannot exist without this painful renunciation of myself, for otherwise it becomes pure selfishness and thereby ceases to be love.

Benedict has just summarizes the entire perfection series in one paragraph.

"Love simply cannot exist without this painful renunciation of myself, for otherwise it become pure selfishness and thereby ceases to be love."

Adultery, sodomy, graft, abortion, contraception, and all mortal sins come from pure selfishness.

To love is to be wounded, to be open to pain. If one is not, one will never experience real love. Never...and never is a long time.

to be continued...

Heaven, Hell, Purgatory and Time--Part Two Hell

Yesterday, I wrote about hell...more today regarding time in hell. Basically, it is eternal, and not subject to solar time or the time of purgatory, which has an end and is of a different type of time, as seen in the last post. 

Here is the other post yesterday on hell.

http://supertradmum-etheldredasplace.blogspot.com/2015/04/a-realization-of-hell.html

We are in the state of the "way", writes Garrigou-Lagrange. Death is the state of termination.

I have heard many Catholics tell me someone can repent after death. No...this has never been the teaching of the Church. Death ends all choices. It ends the journey, the way.

One leaves solar time and enters into another state of time, either heaven, hell, or purgatory. 
Maybe a short definition of hell from Garrigou-Lagrange is necessary before getting to time in hell.

Hell signifies properly the state of the damned souls, of demons first, then of men who die in the state of mortal sin and are consequently condemned to suffer eternally. Secondly, it signifies also the place where condemned souls are detained.

This is a problem today-the denial that people go to hell if they are in mortal sin.

Those who teach that there are no people in hell are, simply, heretics. One should be concerned for their souls.

Here is the great Dominican on this:

The existence of hell was denied in the third century by Arnobius who, following the Gnostics, held that those who are reprobated are also annihilated. This error was renewed by the Socinians of the sixteenth century. In ancient times, further, the Origenists, especially in the fourth century, denied the eternity of punishment in hell, because they held that all the reprobate, angels and men, would finally be converted. This error was taken up again by liberal spirits, particularly among the Protestants. The rationalists say the eternity of suffering is in contradiction to the wisdom of God, to His mercy, and to His justice. They imagine that suffering must be proportioned to the time necessary for committing the fault, and not to the gravity of the perpetual state wherein the soul finds itself after it has left the world with grievous and unrepented sin.

The Athanasian Creed and many councils affirm as a dogma of faith the existence of heaven, the eternity of punishment, both of loss and of pain, and likewise the inequality of suffering proportioned to the gravity of the faults committed and left unrepented.

So far, so good. One may look at Garrigou-Lagrange's book for all the Scriptural references to hell, as that is not the focus of this post.

I shall return to the question of justice again, but want to move on to time in hell.

Here is Garrigou-Lagrange again:

... if beatitude, the recompense of the just, is eternal, it is surely right that the suffering due to obstinate malice should also be eternal. One is the recompense for merit, the other the punishment for demerit. As eternal mercy shines forth on one side, so the splendor of eternal justice shines on the other. St. Paul says: "What if God willing to show His wrath (or to avenge His justice) and to make His power known, endured (or permitted) with much patience vessels of wrath, fitted for destruction, that He might show the riches of His glory on the vessels of mercy, which He has prepared unto glory?" [238] Since justice, like mercy, is infinite, each demands to be manifested in a duration without limit.

Moving towards understanding time in hell...

Medicinal suffering ordained for the correction of those who are guilty, is indeed temporary. But death and lifelong imprisonment are punitive sufferings, not meant for the correction of him who is thus punished. They become medicinal, indeed, but only for others, who are thus turned away from crime. In this sense hell has saved many souls. The fear of hell is the beginning of wisdom. [246] 

An objection: Pain, being contrary to nature, cannot be eternal. St. Thomas answers: "Pain is contrary to the soul's nature, but it is in harmony with the soul as soiled by unrepented mortal sin. As this sin, being a permanent disorder, lasts forever, the pain due to the sin will also last forever." [247] 

Time in hell is time in eternity.

St. Thomas [248] proceeds: Eternal punishment manifests God's inalienable right to be loved above all else. God, good and merciful, has His delight, not in the suffering of the damned, but in His own unequaled goodness. The elect, beholding the radiance of God's supreme justice, are thereby led to thank Him for their own salvation. "God, [249] willing to show His wrath and to make His power known, endured with much patience vessels of wrath, fitted for destruction, that He might show the riches of His glory in the vessels of mercy which He hath prepared unto glory." [250] 

Infinite goodness is the source both of mercy and of justice: of mercy, because it is essentially self-communicative, of justice, because it has an inalienable right to be loved by all creatures.

This is what I learned in my moment of particular judgment in 2011. 

What created hell? God's justice, God's power, God's wisdom, God's love. Such is Dante's inscription on the gate of hell:

Through me the way into the doleful City, through me the way into the pain eternal, through me the way to people lost to pity. Justice did move Creator mine supernal, made me that power divine by evil hated, wisdom supreme and first love sempiternal. [251] 

I allow a description before returning to time..
Let Lacordaire conclude: "Had justice alone created the abyss, there might be remedy. But it is love, the first love sempiternal, which made hell. This it is which banishes hope. Were I condemned by justice, I might flee to love. But if I am condemned by love, whither can I turn?

"Such is the fate of the damned. Love, that gave His blood for them -- this Love, this same Love, must now curse them.

"Just think! 'Tis God who came down to you, who took on your own nature, who spoke your language, healed your wounds, raised your dead to life. 'Tis God who died for you on a cross. And shall you still be permitted to blaspheme and mock, to enjoy to the full your voluptuousness? No. Deceive not yourselves: love is not a farce. It is God's love which punishes, God's crucified love. It is not justice that is without mercy it is love. Love is life or death. And if that love is God's love, then love is either eternal life or eternal death." [252] 

The dogma of hell shows us the immense depths of the human soul, absolute distinction between evil and good, against all the lies invented to suppress this distinction. It shows us also, by contrast, the joys of conversion and eternal beatitude.

The Latin word, damnum, which we translate by "loss," signifies damage. The pain of loss means the essential and principal suffering due to unrepented sin. This pain of loss is the privation of the possession of God, whereas that of sense is the effect of the afflictive action of God. The first corresponds to guilt as turning away from God, whereas the second corresponds to guilt as turning toward something created. [253]

We note, in passing, that infants who die without baptism do not feel the absence of the beatific vision as a loss, because they do not know that they were supernaturally destined to the immediate possession of God. We speak here only of that pain of loss which is conscious, which is inflicted on adults condemned for personal sin, for mortal sin unrepented. Let us see in what it consists, and what is its rigor.

....
Besides the pain of loss hell inflicts also a pain of sense. We shall speak here of the existence of this pain, of what it is according to Scripture, of the nature of the fire in hell, and of its mode of action. [276]

The pain of loss is clearly affirmed in the Gospel: "Rather fear Him that can destroy both soul and body in hell." [277] The existence of this pain follows, as St. Thomas [278] says, from the truth that mortal sin not only turns man away from God, but turns him also to a created good preferred to God. Mortal sin, therefore, deserves a double suffering, first, the privation of God, secondly, the affliction which comes from creatures. The body, too, which has taken part in sin and has found in sin a forbidden joy, must share the suffering of the soul.

In what does the pain of sense consist? Scripture [279] tells us by describing hell as a dark prison, as a place of tears and gnashing of teeth. Further, it speaks of fire and sulphur. [280] 

In these descriptions two connected ideas always recur; that of imprisonment, and the pain of fire. Theologians insist as much on the one as on the other, because each explains the other. We read: [281] "The king said to the waiters: Bind his hands and feet and cast him into the exterior darkness. There shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.... The hell of unquenchable fire." [282] 

OK back to time...but one must understand that the fire of hell is corporeal, not merely spiritual. This changes the definition of fire, as well as time, for the soul in hell, as opposed to the soul in purgatory.

The common doctrine is that the fire of hell is a real fire. This view is based on the accepted position in the interpreting of Scripture, that is, we are to admit metaphorical language only when comparison with other passages excludes the literal sense, or when literal sense involves an impossibility. [283] Neither of these two conditions is here realized. In this sentence, "Depart from Me, you cursed, into everlasting fire which was prepared for the devil and his angels," [284] the entire context demands a realistic interpretation. As the good go to eternal life, so you go to the fire prepared for the demon and his angels. This fire punishes, [285] not only souls, but also bodies. [286] The apostles [287] too speak with the same realism. St. Peter [288] takes as type of punishment in hell that fire which fell from heaven on Sodom and Gomorrah. The metaphorical interpretation, wherein the fire is a figure of chagrin or remorse, is contrary to the obvious sense of Scripture and tradition.

The Fathers generally, with the exception of Origen and his disciples, speak of a real fire, which they compare to terrestrial fire, or even to corporeal fire. Thus St. Basil, St. Chrysostom, St. Augustine, St. Gregory the Great. [289] A. Michel, [290] after a long examination of these texts, concludes: "When the Fathers simply affirm traditional belief, they speak without hesitation of a hell of fire. But when they discuss the difficult question of this fire's mode of action, we can notice some hesitation in their thought."

This fire, says St. Thomas, [291] is a corporeal fire, of the same nature as fire on earth, differing from it only accidentally, since it has no need of terrestrial fuel. It is dark, without flame, lasts forever, burns bodies without destroying them. [292] 

Its Mode of Action
How can corporeal fire cause pain in a soul separated from its body, or in pure spirits like the demons? Theologians answer in general: "It can do this as an instrument of divine justice, just as the sacraments, for example, the water of baptism, produce in the soul that spiritual effect which is grace. Those who have scorned the sacraments, instruments of God's mercy, suffer the instruments of divine justice.

Like the matter of the sacraments, the fire of hell produces a spiritual effect as well as being real.

Theologians here divide into two camps, as they do for the sacraments, some maintaining a physical causality, others only a moral causality. A moral cause, like prayer, which we address to someone to persuade him to act, does not produce directly the effect desired, it only inclines the agent capable of producing the act to realize it. If it be thus with the fire of hell, it would not produce effectively that which is attributed to it. The effect would be simply and solely produced by God.

Thomists, on the other hand, and with them many other theologians, maintain here, as in the case of the sacraments, a physical, instrumental causality, exercised by the fire of hell on the souls of the condemned. It is difficult indeed to explain its mode of action. St. Thomas [293] and his best commentators hold that the fire of hell receives from God power to afflict the condemned spirits. The fire ties and binds them, hinders their activity, somewhat like paralysis or intoxication. This subjection to a corporeal element is a great humiliation for immaterial beings. This explanation is in harmony with the texts of Scripture [294] which describe hell as a prison where the damned are retained against their will.

Retained against one's will for all time is punishment, indeed.

But how can this fire, after the general resurrection, burn the bodies of the damned without consuming them? That it does so is affirmed by tradition and Scripture. [295] St. Thomas [296] holds that the bodies of the damned, though they are incorruptible and unalterable, still suffer in some special fashion, as, for example, the sense of hearing suffers from hearing a high, strident voice, or as the taste suffers from a bitter flavor. [297] 

Difficulty in explaining how this fire acts, is not a reason for denying the reality of that action. Even in the natural order it is difficult to explain how exterior objects produce in our senses an impression, a representation in the psychological order, which surpasses brute matter. Hence it is not surprising that preternatural effects should be still more difficult to explain.

The pain of sense, as all tradition affirms, is not the principal pain. That which is essential in the state of damnation is the privation of God Himself, and the immense void which this privation causes in the soul, a void which manifests by contrast the plenitude of life everlasting, of which the present meritorious life is the prelude. [298]

So, just as a person chooses to stay in mortal sin for years, and years, and years while on earth, the punishment of hell mirrors that obstinacy. I have skipped much on pain here, but one can look at the link for more information at the bottom of the page.

 A very probable position, upheld by many theologians, is that God will not let die in sin those who have committed only one mortal sin, especially if there is a question of a sin of frailty. Final impenitence would thus be restricted to inveterate sinners. As St. Peter says: "God dealeth patiently for your sake, not willing that anyone should perish, but that all should return to penance." [308] God moves men to conversion. Hell is the pain of obstinacy. [309] 

We cannot understand eternity, the foreverness of hell or heaven. We cannot understand the corporeal pain or the spiritual pain which accompanies the endless time of hell. 

Pope Benedict XII, in 1336, in Benedictus Deus, clarified the state of souls in heaven or hell, particular and final judgment. The souls are in heaven or hell, but not the bodies until the Second Coming, the Final, General Judgment.

On the Beatific Vision of God

Benedictus Deus
Constitution issued by Pope Benedict XII in 1336

By this Constitution which is to remain in force for ever, we, with apostolic authority, define the following: According to the general disposition of God, the souls of all the saints who departed from this world before the passion of our Lord Jesus Christ and also of the holy apostles, martyrs, confessors, virgins and other faithful who died after receiving the holy baptism of Christ- provided they were not in need of any purification when they died, or will not be in need of any when they die in the future, or else, if they then needed or will need some purification, after they have been purified after death-and again the souls of children who have been reborn by the same baptism of Christ or will be when baptism is conferred on them, if they die before attaining the use of free will: all these souls, immediately (mox) after death and, in the case of those in need of purification, after the purification mentioned above, since the ascension of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ into heaven, already before they take up their bodies again and before the general judgment, have been, are and will be with Christ in heaven, in the heavenly kingdom and paradise, joined to the company of the holy angels. Since the passion and death of the Lord Jesus Christ, these souls have seen and see the divine essence with an intuitive vision and even face to face, without the mediation of any creature by way of object of vision; rather the divine essence immediately manifests itself to them, plainly, clearly and openly, and in this vision they enjoy the divine essence . Moreover, by this vision and enjoyment the souls of those who have already died are truly blessed and have eternal life and rest. Also the souls of those who will die in the future will see the same divine essence and will enjoy it before the general judgment.

Such a vision and enjoyment of the divine essence do away with the acts of faith and hope in these souls, inasmuch as faith and hope are properly theological virtues. And after such intuitive and face-to-face vision and enjoyment has or will have begun for these souls, the same vision and enjoyment has continued and will continue without any interruption and without end until the last Judgment and from then on forever.

(On hell and the general judgment)

Moreover we define that according to the general disposition of God, the souls of those who die in actual mortal sin go down into hell immediately (mox) after death and there suffer the pain of hell. Nevertheless, on the day of judgment all men will appear with their bodies "before the judgment seat of Christ" to give an account of their personal deeds, "so that each one may receive good or evil, according to what he has done in the body" (2 Cor. 5.10).

So, there is a mysterious moment in time, the Second Coming of Christ, the Final or Last Judgment, when the bodies of all will be joined to the souls, which have already, if the persons were dead, been in heaven or hell. Purgatory ends.

The distinction of the time between the particular judgment and the final one is the topic of the next post in this three part series as it deals with time in heaven and time in hell.

to be continued...

 




 

Compunction Five-The Loss of the Beatific Vision 2

There are several misunderstandings among some Catholics regarding those in heaven. Those blissful souls in heaven cannot mourn for us, cannot cry. There is no unhappiness in heaven.

Those in heaven enjoy the happiness each person was created to have. But, those is hell are full of the regret that they did not become the person God created them to be--His son or daughter forever happy with Him in heaven.

Pray for those who are in mortal sin. Pray for those who have left the Church. Do penance for unbaptized adults and children who fall so easily prey to Satan.  

This lack of the vision of God is the destiny of the unrepentant.
 To realize, in some measure, how great this pain of loss is, we should bear in mind that we have been created by God to be forever happy. This love of happiness, this yearning for it, which every one of us feels in his heart, will never be destroyed, not even in Hell. During this life men, impelled by this desire and blinded by passion, seek happiness in riches, in honours, in sensual gratification. These vain images of happiness deceive us so long as our soul is united with our body. But after the soul has severed her connection with the body, all these false, fleeting pleasures disappear, and she becomes aware that God alone is the source of all happiness, and that she can find happiness solely in the possession of Him. 

I would think that seeing all the opportunities for grace and virtue which one passed up while on earth would be some of the pain of hell. Self-knowledge, and the Knowledge of Divine Things, including the Beauty of God as beyond one's grasp forever would be the worst pain of all.

No longer deceived by false appearances, no longer blinded by passion, she perceives clearly the ineffable, ravishing beauty of God and His infinite perfections ; she sees His infinite power in creating the world, His infinite wisdom in governing it, His excessive love for her in be coming man, in dying for her, in giving Himself to her as the food of her soul in the Blessed Sacrament, in destining her to share His own happiness forever in Heaven. This knowledge of the grandeur, of the goodness and loveliness of God will remain deeply impressed on her for all eternity. She will also see the justice of the punishments which God inflicts forever in Hell upon all those who do not keep His commandments. 

Unfulfilled desire is the lot of the damned.  We are only happy in God.

Then the reprobate soul, yearning after happiness, and feeling irresistibly drawn to God, who alone can make her happy, endeavours to rush to God with all the impetuosity of her nature, in order to behold Him, to enjoy Him, to be united to Him; but she finds herself repelled with infinite force from God, and hated by Him on account of her sins. Were all the riches, honours and pleasures of the world now offered to that soul, she would turn away from them, and would even curse them all, for she yearns for God alone, and can be happy only in God. 

The reprobate soul in Hell, spurred on by frightful pains, looks about her for some alleviation, for some word of comfort; but not even a sympathizing look greets her, for she is surrounded by cruel devils and bitter enemies. Not meeting with any compassion where she is, she raises her eyes to Heaven, and beholds it so beautiful, so enchanting, so delightful, so full of true happiness. She remembers that she was created and destined to enjoy its bliss, and now, in the midst of her most excruciating pains, she longs for its pleasures with a still more indescribable yearning, and makes extraordinary efforts to go there, but she cannot leave her abode of torment.   

Trapped in suffering forever...but, now, we can repent, we can change.

Now is the time for contrition, mortification, reparation, new life through the sacraments of the Church.

We only have the "now".

No one in Heaven seems to take any notice of her.  She sees the throne that God, in His goodness, had prepared for her, now occupied by someone else ! There is no longer any room for her in Heaven. She beholds there some of her relatives, of her companions and acquaintances; but they do not heed her. She beholds all the elect in Heaven full of joy and gladness. They do not even sympathize with her, but as the Psalmist sings, "the just will rejoice when he shall see the revenge" (Ps. Ivii. ii).

In vain the reprobate soul calls on the Saints, on the Blessed Virgin and on our Divine Saviour Himself. She feels drawn to God by an irresistible impulse, and understands that God alone can quench her thirst for enjoyment and make her happy. She longs to see and possess Him; she repeatedly endeavours to spring towards Him, but she feels herself repulsed by Him with invincible force; she beholds herself the object of Divine wrath, of the Divine anathema. She is aware that her case is hopeless, and that she shall never be admitted into the mansions of the blessed, or leave the abode of endless misery.

Despair seizes her; she utters the most fearful imprecations against God and the elect, against Heaven, against herself, her parents, her companions, against all creatures. All Hell resounds with her horrid blasphemies, and she becomes, in her ravings, an object of terror to all the other reprobates. 


Such is the loss of God...the tormented become tormentors to others.

One more post on compunction....

Compunction Four-On The Loss of The Beatific Vision 1

Staying with the same source, one reads that the loss of seeing God is the worst punishment of all--lost Love, lost Beauty, lost Innocence, lost Peace...all that is Good and Wonderful lost forever.

Yet of all these pains, that which gives the keenest anguish is being deprived of the vision of God. It will never be given to the damned to behold the Divine countenance. This pain will far outweigh all the other torments of which we have spoken. 

It is impossible for mortal man to understand how this can be so great an affliction for the damned. 

Yet such is the teaching of the Fathers ; they all maintain that there is nothing which the lost bewail so bitterly as being shut out forever from the vision of God. Whilst we live in this world, we think but little of the vision of God, and what it would be to us to be deprived of it eternally. This arises from the bluntness of our perception, which prevents us from comprehending the infinite beauty and goodness of God, and the delight experienced by those who behold Him face to face. But after death, when we are freed from the trammels of the body, our eyes will be opened, and we shall at least to some extent perceive that God is the supreme and infinite Good, and the enjoyment of Him our highest felicity. 

...

Imagine loving the most Beloved Person of all and never being able to see Him. We crave to be loved and to love. We rarely understand that Who we crave is the Trinity.

St. Bonaventure bears witness to this, when he says: "The most terrible penalty of the damned is being shut out forever from the blissful and joyous contemplation of the Blessed Trinity." Again, St. John Chrysostom says: "I know many persons only fear Hell because of its pains, but I assert that the loss of the celestial glory is a source of more bitter pain than all the torments of Hell." 

No Beauty, no Awe, no completeness...

The evil one himself was made to acknowledge this, as we read in the legends of Blessed Jordan, at one time General of the Dominican Order. For when Jordan asked Satan, in the person of one who was possessed, what was the principal torment of Hell, he answered: "Being excluded from the presence of God." "Is God then so beautiful to look upon?" Jordan inquired. And on the devil replying that He was indeed most beautiful, he asked further: "How great is His beauty?" "Fool that thou art," was the rejoinder, "to put such a question to me! Dost thou not know that His beauty is beyond compare?" "Canst thou not suggest any similitude," Jordan continued, "which may give me to some extent at least an idea of the Divine beauty?" Then Satan said: "Imagine a crystal sphere a thousand times more brilliant than the sun, in which the loveliness of all the colors of the rainbow, the fragrance of every flower, the sweetness of every delicious flavour, the costliness of every precious stone, the kindliness of men and the attractiveness of all the Angels combined; fair and precious as this crystal would be, in comparison with the Divine beauty, it would be unsightly and impure." 

No Perfection, no Sweetness, no Proportion, no Light...

"And pray," the good monk inquired, "what wouldst thou give to be admitted to the vision of God?" And the devil replied: "If there were a pillar reaching from earth to Heaven, beset with sharp points and nails and hooks, I would gladly consent to be dragged up and down that pillar from now until the Day of Judgment, if I could only be permitted to gaze on the Divine countenance for a few brief moments." 

to be continued....more later