At his Sermon on the Mount Jesus Christ said: “For if you love those who love you, what recompense will you have? Do not tax collectors do the same?... So be perfect, just as your heavenly Father is perfect.” Mt. 5:46-48. And we hear in today‟s Gospel that we should love the Lord our God with ALL our heart, ALL our soul, ALL our mind, ALL our strength, and our neighbor as ourself.
To enter into the fullness of heaven we have to be made perfect, that is, purified from all sin and attachment to sin: the sins of commission and omission. Thus, we pray for our deceased loved ones who we hope died in the state of grace, that is, without any unconfessed mortal sin on their soul, but who still need to make reparation for the damage their sins have caused to their soul and to their relationships.
Although we are called to give ourselves and our gifts and talents completely to God for his glory and the salvation of souls, only some people will love God and give everything, like the martyrs, and thus be brought to the fulness of heaven immediately.
Most of us practicing the Christian faith will have to be purified in purgatory because of our attachment to earthly things at the expense of our relationship to Jesus Christ and his Church, and those who are materially or spiritually poor.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church (paragraph, #1030) states: “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.”
(CCC, #1031) “The Church gives the name „Purgatory‟ to this final purification of the elect, which is entirely different from the punishment of the damned …As for certain lesser faults, we must believe that, before the Final Judgment, there is 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. (Mt 12, 32) From this sentence we understand that certain offenses can be forgiven in this age, but certain others in the age to come.”
Thank God Jesus Christ gives us the opportunity to show mercy even after our brothers and sisters have died in the Lord. When the Lord gave the power of the Keys to Kingdom to St. Peter, the rock on which Jesus would build his Church, the Lord said to him, “Whatever you bind on earth will be bound in heaven, whatever you loose on earth will be loosed in heaven.” Cf. Mt. 16:16-19
As the Vicar of Christ on earth the Pope has the power to write the guidelines to help those in Purgatory, where the fiery love of God, over time, purifies people of their sins. Yet, we can reduce that time for them and for ourselves by seeking indulgences which helps us to become holier.
An “indulgence” is the remission of temporal punishment due to sin of which has already been forgiven, assuredly in the Sacrament of Confession. A “plenary indulgence” (complete remission) can be applied to oneself or to a deceased person once a day, for 21 days, by doing the following:
Make a good confession (good for 21 days);
Receive the Eucharist in the state of grace on the day of doing the indulgent work;
Pray for the Pope‟s intentions: Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be;
Complete the indulgent work such as praying a family Rosary, reading Sacred Scripture for 30 minutes, or praying the Rosary before the tabernacle.
And, the most difficult step, be detached from all sin, even venial sin. Every time sin and selfishness comes to mind, you must detest it. This, of course, means that we need to share our material and spiritual gifts with the poor.
You can apply this plenary indulgence to yourself or to someone who has died. Also, you may ask that deceased person to pray for you and your intentions. In this manner we share in the spiritual treasury of the mercy of Christ who is Lord of all the members of the Church.
The partial completion of the above obtains a partial indulgence from the Lord and his Church. This work to help release the poor souls in purgatory takes much faith, hope and charity, because we do not see immediate results. The Catechism of the Catholic Church (CCC) helps us to understand this great and merciful gift:
#1475: In the communion of the saints, “a perennial link of charity exists between the faithful who have already reached their heavenly home, those who are expiating their sins in purgatory and those who are still pilgrims on earth. Between them there is, too, an abundant exchange of all good things. In this wonderful exchange, the holiness of one profits others, well beyond the harm that the sin of one could cause others. Thus, recourse to the communion of saints lets the contrite sinner be more promptly and efficaciously purified of the punishment of sin.
#1476: We call these spiritual goods of the communion of saints the Church‟s treasury, which is “not the sum total of the material goods which have accumulated during the course of the centuries. On the contrary the „treasury of the Church‟ is the infinite value, which can never be exhausted, which Christ‟s merits have before God. They were offered so that the whole of mankind could be set free from sin and attain communion with the Father. In Christ, the Redeemer himself, the satisfactions and merits of his Redemption exist and find their efficacy.”
#1477: “This treasury includes as well the prayers and good works of the Blessed Virgin Mary. They are truly immense…. In the treasury, too, are the prayers and good works of all the saints, all those who have followed in the footsteps of Christ the Lord and by his grace have made their lives holy and carried out the mission the Father entrusted to them. In this way they attained their own salvation and at the same time cooperated in saving their brothers in the unity of the Mystical Body.”
Let us rejoice in God‟s mercy and help the material and spiritual poor, especially during this month of November as we remember our deceased loved ones by praying for them and visiting their grave sites.
Peace through Jesus Christ and the Blessed Virgin Mary,
Fr. Thomas McCabe
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