Purgatory
All Souls Day
Beloved in the Lord,
In the year 590AD, a monk named Justus lived at St. Andrew’s Monastery in Rome. Justus was a doctor and did his best using his knowledge to care for the monks. Now it happened that he himself became very ill and needed help. He sent a brother to his cell to get some medicine, but there the brother noticed 3 gold pieces that Justus had hidden there. Well, the monks took vows of poverty; this was a serious sin, so they went and told St. Gregory about it. He was really upset, because he expected the monks to take their vows seriously. Fortunately, Justus was very sorry for what he had done, and he repented of his sin a great deal before he died.
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After his death, Pope Gregory was filled with concern for Justus who would surely be in Purgatory for a long time. He insisted that the Holy Mass be offered for Justus for 30 days in a row. At the end of those 30 days, Justus appeared in a vision to his friend and told him, ‘I have just received pardon and release from Purgatory because of the Masses said for me.’
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Friends in Christ, today is All Souls Day, it is the day in which we particularly pray for those who have died, who may still be in Purgatory.
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Holy Scripture assures us that in order to be in heaven you have to be holy. The Book of Hebrews says: ‘Strive…for that holiness without which no man will see God.'[i] The Book of Revelation says nothing unclean shall ever enter heaven.[ii] To be in union with God, one must be perfect. Unless a person is a Saint on earth, he or she is not yet ready to be in heaven.
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Yes, God-willing we have confessed our mortal sins and are justified and saved by the Blood of Christ – in the ‘State of Grace – but the temporal punishment due to our sins remains.
The neighbor can forgive me for breaking his window with my baseball, but I still have to pay for it to be repaired.
The addict, who is sorry and forgiven by his family, still needs to go through a lot of painful change to be purified of his sins. A lot of change.
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We know this is true for one clear reason: because the Church has always prayed for the dead; if those who died are in heaven, they need no prayers; if they are in hell, prayers do no good. So why have prayers always been offered for our departed loved ones? Because there is another place of purification that we call Purgatory.
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Jesus says, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny. St. Paul says our works will be evaluated at the end of our life. ‘fire, he says, will assay the quality of our works,’ the works that are good will receive a reward, those that burn we will lose any reward, but we will ‘be saved as through fire,’ he says.
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Our Lord said that sins against the Holy Spirit can’t be forgiven in the next life, but other sins can.
And so people who die need prayers to help them be purified of their sins.
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Praying for the dead is clearly found in the Holy Scriptures. In the Book of Macabees, after a battle, they found amulets around the necks of dead soldiers – this was a sin of superstitious practices.
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What did their friend do? He immediately made a collection to send to Jerusalem to have prayers offered in the temple for his friends so that they could be forgiven. It says, ‘he acted in a very excellent and noble way…thus he made atonement for the dead that they might be freed from this sin.’ 2 Mac 12
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Every person must pray daily, for sure, what kind of a Catholic does not pray? No Catholic. But within those daily prayers, there should be a list of names: children, parents, sick relatives, friends in trouble, and…..those who have died. ‘Lord, look with favor on grandma, on Joe, on Laura and Edward – forgive and heal them of their sins; in your mercy bring them to heaven.’
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I was speaking at a wake service some time back, and I told the folks that you have to be perfect to get into heaven, but the trouble is, none of us are perfect, so we all want to be prayed for when we die. The decease’s wife was nodding her head, she said ‘yes! yes! yes!’
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It is the greatest act of charity to pray for those in Purgatory. Those souls can’t help themselves, they are unable to merit, so they rely on us. Many times, people come to the rectory and ask to have a Mass said for their loved one. I always see such love there, in that action. A Mass offered is the best way to help them to reach heaven.
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When St. Francis de Sales’ friends died, he never grew weary of speaking fondly of them and asking other to pray for them. He said that we do not sufficiently remember our dead or speak of them. We turn away from that conversation as if from a sad story, but we should be recalling their needs and their lives.[iii]
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A Plenary Indulgence obtained for a loved one in Purgatory can get them to heaven. For 8 days now, one can obtain a Plenary Indulgence for a poor soul by visiting a cemetery and saying a prayer for that person.
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Let’s today and this week, really give our heart to those who need our prayers.
St. Catherine of Genoa said that Purgatory is incomparably painful because we see all the horror of our sins, yet it is also very joyful, because God is with us there, and we are learning to endure his truth and his light.[iv]
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But if those in Purgatory are consoled by our prayers, even more are they helped by the Mother of God.[v] Mary once spoke to St. Bridget and said, ‘I am the Mother of all those in purgatory.’ St. Alphonsus says that the Blessed Virgin herself goes occasionally to that place to visit and comfort her children.
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But if we are determined to be faithful children of Jesus Christ, and Mary, why can we not hope to go straight to heaven by leading a holy life – without even going to Purgatory?
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[Entrusted to the prayers of St. Mary Magdalene]
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[i] Heb 12:14
[ii] See Rev 21:27
[iii] Quoted from an article by Susan Tassone: Consoling Thoughts on Purgatory from a Saint Who saw beyond Suffering
[iv] Catholic Christianity, by Peter Kreeft, p. 149.
[v] Glories of Mary, pp. 232, 235.
All Saints & All Souls
School Mass
Dear young people of St. John Vianney school, today is All Hallows Eve, also called Halloween. It means that it is the day we prepare for All Saints Day, tomorrow. That’s what All-Hallows-Eve, Halloween, really means.
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Tomorrow is All Saints Day and Sunday is All Souls Day. All Saints Day, we remember the great saints that have already succeeded in getting to heaven, such as St. Alphonsus, St. Bernadette, St. Francis, St. Maria Goretti, & St. John Vianney –
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But we also remember the not-so-famous saints who made it to heaven. People we love who have died, maybe grandparents or an uncle or a friend; if they are up in heaven by now, then they are also saints. A saint is anyone who makes it to heaven, so we all want to be saints.
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On Sunday we will have All Souls Day; that is the day that we pray especially for people who have died but who have not made it to heaven yet.
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If a person dies and is not fully in love with God, living a holy life, then they are purified before they go to heaven, and we call that Purgatory: the place to be purified. I imagine if a person’s soul is in Purgatory, they have to think about their sins and how they could have been a better Christian in this life.
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When my brother was bad, my mother told him to go to his room to think about what he had done, I don’t know if your parents say that. But I think Purgatory must be like going to your room; you have to think about your sins and be sorry for them, and you can come out and go to heaven when God says so.
When I was young, if I asked mom, ‘Mom, don’t you think Joe has been in his room long enough? Can’t he come out now?’ ‘Well, mom might say, ‘ok, since you asked, he can come out early.’
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If we pray to God, to allow someone we love to be finished with Purgatory, then God will let them out early! But Purgatory is not just like being punished, it’s a time to be healed from all the bad effects of sins.
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The great thing is, when a person is purified of their sins and gets to go to heaven, they are now called Saints, and that is what we want to be. We are having a saints party tonight downstairs; you have to dress up as a saint and be with a parent at the party.
But not only dress as saints, we are all supposed to become saints!
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St. Thomas Aquinas’ sister asked him one time, ‘Thomas, how can I become a saint?’ He said, ‘Just decide to do it.’
If we try to be very good, to love Jesus and pray – do God’s will all the time –
then we will be great, we will be happy, and we won’t even go to Purgatory, but straight to heaven.
All Hallow’s Eve
Friends in Christ, we are approaching two important days in the Liturgical year; All Saints Day and All Souls Day, when we honor the Saints in heaven, and pray for those who have not yet reached heaven. Before these sacred days, we find this secular holiday of Halloween tomorrow. Literally, ‘All Hallows Eve,’ which means the evening before All-Hallows-Day. Some claim to know the roots of Halloween with certitude, but if we look into it, we find that it is not entirely clear how it originated.
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In the early Church, major feasts always had a vigil on the day before the feast. So, the Vigil, All Saints Day, and All Souls day were together part of what was called All-Hallow-Tide.
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As far back as the 15th century is found the custom of baking and sharing ‘soul-cakes’ for the dead. These cakes were filled with sweet spices or raisins, and topped with the mark of a cross. They were traditionally set out with glasses of wine as an offering for the dead. During All-Hallow-Tide, children would go from door to door asking people for ‘soul-cakes,’in exchange for praying and singing for the people’s dead. One of the songs the children sang was:
A soul! a soul! a soul-cake!
Please good Missis, a soul-cake!
An apple, a pear, a plum, or a cherry,
Any good thing to make us merry.
One for Peter, two for Paul
Three for Him who made us all.
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In some places it was believed that wandering souls left the cemeteries for a macabre festival before departing for heaven.
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So this could be one of the streams which gave us such a strange thing as Halloween; but the other might be the Celts of Ireland. The pagan festival of Samhain was in late October in Ireland.[i] It was seen as a time, when the spirits or fairies could more easily come into our world. Spirits of dead relatives were thought to come, and places were set at table for them. Superstition and magic were part of that pagan time. Later, some went house to house in disguises, asking for food, or threaten mischief if they weren’t received.
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So the origin of tomorrow’s secular tradition is uncertain, but what IS certain, is that many of the dead need our prayers, and would like to enter heaven and become saints. It is also certain that there is a war on for souls waged by the demons. St. Paul says today, ‘our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the evil spirits, therefore, put on the armor of God.
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So let us put on the armor of God, and also in the coming days, pray for our beloved dead.
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[i] That may be why Pope Gregory IV moved All-Saints from May 13th to November 1st, to go against that pagan festival, this is unknown.
St. Simon and St. Jude
Friends in Christ, today is the feast of St. Simon and St. Jude, who were of the original 12 apostles. St. Jude, the patron of hopeless causes, was also known as Thaddeus.
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A very old book tells us of a legend connected with St. Jude; according to this legend, in the days that Jesus walked the earth, there was a king who lived in the city of Edessa. This king sent a letter to Jesus, and in it he said:
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‘To Jesus the good Savior, greetings. I have heard about you and the cures you do, that you make people well without medicine or herbs, and that with a word you cause the blind to see, the lame to walk, and the dead to live again. Having heard all this, I have decided that you have come down from heaven; you are the Son of God. For this reason I ask you, to be kind enough to come and cure me. I have also learned that some are plotting to kill you. Then come here with me in this city, it is large enough for both of us. Sincerely, the King of Edessa.’
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Jesus is said to have written to the King saying that he was not able to come, but that after he had Ascended, he would send one of his disciples to cure him.
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Having received this news, the king decided to send a painter to paint a picture of Christ. But when the artist came to Jesus, his face was so bright, that he could not see clearly, to make the portrait. Therefore, Jesus took a cloth, and pressed it to his face to make an image for him.
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Ancient writers also tell us, that the letter written by our Lord to the king had such power, that if at any time a hostile tribe attacked Edessa, a child stood on top of the city gate and read the letter, and the enemy would flee.
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After Christ’ Ascension, St. Jude was that apostle sent to the King as the Lord had promised. The king saw in St. Jude’s face such a marvelous splendor, that he said: truly you are a disciple of the Son of God. St. Jude told him: If you believe in the Son of God, you will obtain all that your heart desires. He touched the king’s face with the letter from Christ, and he was completely cured.
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Now whether this legend is accurate, it IS true, that Simon and Jude did go on to preach the gospel in many lands, including Iran; there they confronted pagans and superstition and sin, and by dramatic miracles converted many to the Faith.
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Out of envy, they were martyred. St. Jude was killed with an axe, and St. Simon was sawed in two.
Lust
Friends in Christ, in the 1st reading today, St. Paul speaks against immorality and impurity. ‘Be sure of this, he says: no immoral or impure person has any inheritance in the Kingdom of God.
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When he speaks of impurity, he is speaking about lust. Lust is one of the 7 deadly sins.
Thomas Aquinas says[i] that lust is to indulge in unlawful sexual pleasures. Sexual love is meant for marriage, and in the pure and good context of marital love, the sexual power is very good. But how easily this power can be misused.
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Lust is a disordered use of our sexual power. St. Thomas speaks of various types of sins of lust. Among these, are fornication, adultery, seduction, and unnatural vice.
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Fornication is the unlawful use of sex by unmarried men or women; it is a mortal sin for two reasons. First, it is a dreadful lie. A man or woman says with their body, ‘I give myself totally to you.’ But they may not be around next week or next year, because there is no marriage covenant. These actions are therefore a big lie; it is to use another person for gratification, with no commitment.
The other wrong here, is that children have a right to be conceived in a permanent relationship of parents; so fornication is to play around with the real, potential lives of children. We see the great damage today of this sin, many children without married parents. St. Thomas also reminds us that kisses and touches that are lustful are mortal sins as well.
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He also rightly says, that whatever happens in one’s sleep or in dreams cannot be sinful, since we have no control over our will. However, there could be fault in our waking actions – what we watch or listen to, which could prompt evil dreams.
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Adultery is a sin far worst than fornication, because it violates not only chastity, but is also a gross violation of justice against the true spouse of the person. It is an open attack on the other spouse, and it is also a sin against the common good – we see all the damage it is doing to society.
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Finally, St. Thomas speaks of ‘Unnatural vice.’ Unnatural vice would include impure actions with self or between two people of the same sex. Notice that he does not call this ‘unnatural sex,’ but ‘unnatural vice,’ because unnatural actions are not sex at all; they are perversions of the gift of sexuality.
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Lust is one of the 7 Deadly, or ‘Capital’ sins. But the virtue we really want, is purity. If our heart and our actions are pure, then we will, as St. Paul says, ‘Be children of the Light.’
[i] Tour of the Summa
Pride
Latin Mass: Feast of Christ the King
Friends in Christ, Today, in the traditional calendar, is the Feast of Christ the King. In the Gospel of St. Mark, Our Lord asked the Apostles, ‘who do you say that I am?’ This is the question that continues to vex the world to this day. Who is Jesus Christ? Is he the King, or not. This question as we read was on the mind of Pontius Pilate as well: ‘Who are you Jesus?’ ‘Are you a king?’ St. Paul will declare to the world: that at the name of Jesus every knee should bend….and every tongue proclaim that Jesus Christ is Lord.
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Now we would all here say that Jesus is Lord, for sure. But if we examine ourselves, we may find that there are times when he is not really our Lord and King.
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The first sin of Adam and Eve was that of pride: ‘You will be like gods,’ said the serpent. This temptation, to be a rival to God is the sin of Pride.
Pride in the world today, almost seems to be a virtue.
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I’ve noticed the change in sports for example. Years ago, if a Walter Payton or other player scored a touchdown, the player then showed reserve and humility, handing the ball to the Ref, as if to say, ‘I’m just one member of the team doing my job.’
Today, everyone’s a hotdog, pumping fists in the air, jumping around, as if it’s all about them. It seems that pride is considered a virtue today.
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But for all of us, pride has a way of slipping in, no one is free of it. In his book Mere Christianity, C. S. Lewis[i] says that pride is one sin that everyone loathes when they see it in another, but hardly recognize it in themselves. No fault makes us more unpopular, and no fault is harder to see in ourselves, than pride.
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Impurity, anger, greed, drunkenness, are nothing in comparison to pride. Pride leads to every other vice, it is the sin by which we put ourselves on the throne instead of Jesus Christ.
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Now pride is essentially competitive. If we wish to see pride in ourselves, look for our competitive spirit, which can be very subtle. How angry do I get when someone snubs me, or patronizes me, or refuses to give me credit? If I get angry, I have pride.
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Each person’s pride is in competition with the others. I wanted to be the center of attention, but someone else was. I am angry. Pride. I really like that certain necklace, I really want it; is it because we appreciate it’s design, or is it because with it, I will outshine others? People are not proud of being rich, or smart, or good-looking; they are proud of being RICHER, SMARTER, MORE good-looking than others. Pride is competitive.
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Pride can even creep into the spiritual life, to make our religion false. I am praying secretly in my room, but I could be thinking in the back of my mind, ‘Few people probably pray as much as I do.’ I give alms anonymously to the poor. Good. But I may feel in my heart that few others give in such a way as myself.
The competition of pride can be very subtle. There are loud and arrogant men full of the pride of vainglory, but their quiet spouse who is convinced of her moral superiority could be guilty of greater pride.
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A Harvard psychologist says, The neurotic[ii] person is living a life of extreme self-centeredness. The very nature of the neurotic disorder is tied to pride. If the person is hypersensitive, resentful, or fault-finding, he may be afraid of looking bad in competitive situations. If the person is chronically indecisive, he is showing fear that he may do the wrong thing and be discredited. If he is over-scrupulous and self-critical, he may be fishing for the praise of others. ‘Therefore, he says, most neuroses are rooted in the sin of pride.
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Ironically, it is sometimes as a result of God’s blessings and our success, that pride comes. Recall in the scriptures, how Uzziah succeeded so wonderfully as a good king. He sought the Lord, and listened to his spiritual director, Zechariah. But then as he became famous and successful, he stopped trusting in God and trusted in himself. Pride ruined him.[iii]
Uzziah’s mistake was to forget who the real KING is: the Lord. Too often we wish to put ourselves on his throne, and lord ourselves over others.
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Power is what pride really enjoys. Power over others is what makes a person feel superior. A boss who loves his power, or the school bully who lives for power.
A woman who uses her beauty to manipulate her admirers, who enjoys ‘turning heads,’ is often not driven at all by her sexual instinct, but by power and pride.
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Pride is the main cause of misery in the world, not the other sins.
Vanity for example, is a child of pride, but it is not the worst. The vain person wants praise and admiration too much, but the vain person at least cares what other people think. The person full of the blackest pride, looks down on others so much, that he doesn’t even care what they think, he knows he is superior. This is diabolical. Such black pride may even act as a check on vanity: he thinks: ‘I am a superior person, and such a superior person does not give in to vanity.’
Other vices and sins come through our animal nature, but pride comes through our spiritual nature, it is more deadly.
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Again, C. S. Lewis asks the question: ‘How is it, that people who are eaten up with pride, can say they believe in God?’ It is because their “god” is not really Christ the King. Their idea of God is false. Their invented God sits up there and approves of them, approves of their superiority and wonderfulness.
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A test for us to see if we are delusional with pride, is to ask if our religion makes us feel superior to others. And to ask ourselves if we are not sometimes proud; if we say that we are not, then we can be sure that we are.
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Of course the antidote to pride is humility, and we need look no further for an example of humility, than the Blessed Virgin.
When Jesus was teaching one day in a house, although she is the mother, Mary did not presume to enter and interrupt, ‘instead it says, she remained outside.
Mary, help us to be more humble, and make your Son truly the King of our life.
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[Entrusted to the prayers of St. John Vianney]
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[i] Many quotes and ideas here are from C. S. Lewis, ‘Mere Christianity,’ chapter 8.
[ii] 4. Gordon Allport, quoted in Solomon Schimmel, The Seven Deadly Sins, p. 28.
[iii] Good ideas on this subject from on-line article: Pride and Humility, by Thomas A. Tarrants, C. S. Lewis Institute
The Holy Rosary
Friends in Christ. in the city of Aragona, a beautiful girl named Alexandra was loved by two men. Through jealousy, they fought and killed each other. The enraged relatives in return, killed the poor girl, cut off her head and threw it down a well.
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A few days later, St. Dominic was passing by that place, and inspired by the Lord, he called to the well: ‘Alexandra, come forth;’ immediately the head of the girl came forth, placed itself on the edge of the well, and asked Dominic to hear her confession. He did, and then gave her Holy Communion; a large number of people were there to see this miracle.
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Then Dominic asked her, ‘why do you think God gave you this last chance, this way?’ Alexandra said, when she was beheaded she was in the state of mortal sin, but that because she was in the habit of praying the Rosary, Mary preserved her so that she could confess.
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Friends, the Holy Rosary is one of the best of all devotions. So many, through the Rosary, have obtained the grace to turn from sin, fight their temptations, and safely reach heaven.[i]
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Pope Pius V, one of the greatest Popes never allowed even the busiest affairs of the Church to stop him from his daily Rosary. St. Charles Borromeo was also faithful to the Rosary, despite the enormous responsibilities he had.
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The list of saints is nearly endless who used and recommended the Rosary. St. Francis Xavier, by the mere touch of his beads restored health to sick people.
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The Rosary is a meditation. It is not just to recite the prayers. It is to ponder the Mysteries of our Salvation. We can pray it on our knees or while taking a walk; we can pray the Rosary sitting or while we are driving. There are long rosaries, car rosaries, and finger rosaries.
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Heretics have tried to stop this devotion over the centuries; the secularism of the 1960’s tried to stamp out all devotions, especially the Rosary. But it tenaciously holds as the devotion of the Church most treasured by people.
The Rosary is prayed by truck drivers and pipe-fitters, professional men and women, mothers and fathers, the elderly and the sick, and it is the family prayer of many homes. The Holy Rosary is the best way to stay close to the Gospel in the course of our busy day.
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We can follow the example of St. Stanislaus Kostka; it is said that when he recited the rosary he seemed to be speaking face to face with Mary; when asked one day by a priest how much he loved Mary, he answered, what can I say? She is my mother.
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[i] The Mirror of Priests, p. 120-130.
St. Anthony Mary Claret
Friends in Christ, today is the Feast of St. Anthony Mary Claret. St. Anthony was born in Spain in 1807, and grew up doing manual labor with his father; but he decided to become a priest, and having worked as a pastor, he was sent to Rome and worked for the Propagation of the Faith. Here the importance of missionary work would get into his bones.
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Returning to his homeland, he spent a good deal of time as a priest in country life, giving talks in the small, rural towns. He was often giving conferences for the diocesan priests, and he wrote over 150 books.
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The Order he founded is called the Missionary Sons of the Immaculate Heart of Mary; but it is more commonly known as the Claritians. Anthony Claret frequently visited the Missions he founded, and even became bishop of Santiago, in Cuba. He spoke out forcefully and often against slavery of the Africans which sadly, was beginning to take root.
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His zealous work stirred up much opposition in the anti-clerical mood of the period, as had happened previously in Spain. No fewer than 15 attempts were made on his life, and at Holguín his cheek was slashed from ear to chin by an assassin’s knife.
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In 1869 he was in Rome, preparing for the First Vatican Council. He was sent into exile at the insistence of the Spanish Ambassador, and died under house arrest at the age of 63
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Let us today read from his own writings. He says this:
Driven by the fire of the Holy Spirit, the apostles traveled throughout the earth. Inflamed with the same fire, missionaries today travel to the ends of the earth to proclaim the word of God.
And to us also, the love of Christ urges us to run and be lifted up on the wings of holy zeal for the gospel. I say this to you:
The one who burns with the fire of divine love is a son of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, And wherever he goes, he desires and works with all his strength to inflame people with the fire of God’s love. Such a person rejoices in poverty, welcomes hardships, laughs at false accusations, and rejoices in anguish.
The child of Mary thinks only of how he might follow Christ and imitate him in his prayers, his labors, and his sufferings. One who is such a child, cares always and only, for the glory of God, and the salvation of souls.
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– from the writings of St. Anthony Mary Claret –
Jesus’ Divinity
School Mass:
Dear students of St. John Vianney,
Week after week, and every Sunday, we are hearing the Holy Gospels read at Mass. The Gospel tells the story of the great thing that has happened to our world: that God the Son has come down from heaven, to be born like us, live our life with us, and then save us from our sins. How has he saved us from our sins? By dying on the cross and rising from the dead.
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Jesus Christ is true God and true Man. He was conceived in Mary by the Holy Spirit, and that shows that he is God. He had a real Mother like us, and that shows that he is Man.
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