| Purgatory
The subject is treated under these heads:
I. Catholic Doctrine
II. Errors
III. Proofs
IV. Duration and Nature
V. Succouring the Dead
VI. Indulgences
VII. Invocation of Souls
VIII. Utility of Prayer for the Departed
I. CATHOLIC DOCTRINE
Purgatory (Lat., "purgare", to make clean, to purify) in accordance with
Catholic teaching is a place or condition of temporal punishment for those
who, departing this life in God's grace, are, not entirely free from venial
faults, or have not fully paid the satisfaction due to their transgressions.
The faith of the Church concerning purgatory is clearly expressed in the
Decree of Union drawn up by the Council of Florence (Mansi, t. XXXI, col.
1031), and in the decree of the Council of Trent which (Sess. XXV) defined:
"Whereas the Catholic Church, instructed by the Holy Ghost, has from the
Sacred Scriptures and the ancient tradition of the Fathers taught in
Councils and very recently in this Ecumenical synod (Sess. VI, cap. XXX;
Sess. XXII cap.ii, iii) that there is a purgatory, and that the souls
therein are helped by the suffrages of the faithful, but principally by the
acceptable Sacrifice of the Altar; the Holy Synod enjoins on the Bishops
that they diligently endeavor to have the sound doctrine of the Fathers in
Councils regarding purgatory everywhere taught and preached, held and
believed by the faithful" (Denzinger, "Enchiridon", 983). Further than this
the definitions of the Church do not go, but the tradition of the Fathers
and the Schoolmen must be consulted to explain the teachings of the
councils, and to make clear the belief and the practices of the faithful.
Temporal Punishment
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
(Wis. x, 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" (Num., xx,
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 (II
Kings, xii, 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 (Matt., iii, 8; Luke, xvii, 3; iii, 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 faithful that 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.
Venial Sins
All sins are not equal before God, nor dare anyone assert that the daily
faults of human frailty will be punished with the same severity that is
meted out to serious violation of God's law. On the other hand whosoever
comes into God's presence must be perfectly perfectly pure for in the
strictest sense His "eyes are too pure, to behold evil" (Hab., i, 13). For
unrepented venial faults for the payment of temporal punishment due to sin
at time of death, the Church has always taught the doctrine of purgatory.
So deep was this belief ingrained in our common humanity that it was
accepted by the Jews, and in at least a shadowy way by the pagans, long
before the coming of Christianity. ("Aeneid," VI, 735 sq.; Sophocles,
"Antigone," 450 sq.).
II. ERRORS
Epiphanius (haer., lxxv, P.G., XLII, col. 513) complains that Acrius (fourth
cent.) taught that prayers for the dead were of no avail. In the Middle
Ages, the doctrine of purgatory was rejected by the Albigenses, Waldenses,
and Hussites. St. Bernard (Serm. lxvi in Cantic., P. L. CLXXXIII, col. 1098)
states that the so-called "Apostolici" denied purgatory and the utility of
prayers for the departed. Much discussion has arisen over the position the
Greeks on the question of purgatory. It would seem that the great difference
of opinion not concerning the existence of purgatory but concerning the
nature of purgatorial fire; still St. Thomas proves the existence of
purgatory in his dissertation against the errors of the Greeks, and the
Council of Florence also thought necessary to affirm the belief of the
Church on the subject (Bellarmine, "De Purgatorio," lib. I, cap. i). The
modern Orthodox Church denies purgatory, but is rather inconsistent in its
way of putting forth its belief.
At the beginning of the Reformation there was some hesitation especially on
Luther's part (Leipzig Disputation) as to whether the doctrine should be
retained, but as the breach widened, the denial of purgatory by the
Reformers became universal, and Calvin termed the Catholic position
"exitiale commentum quod crucern Christi evacuat... quod fidem nostram
labefacit et evertit" (Institutiones, lib. III, cap. v, 6). Modern
Protestants, while they avoid the name purgatory, frequently teach the
doctrine of "the middle state," and Martensen ("Christian Dogmatics,"
Edinburgh, 1890, p. 457) writes: "As no soul leaves this present existence
in a fully complete and prepared state, we must suppose that there is an
intermediate state, a realm of progressive development, (?) in which souls
are prepared for the final judgment" (Farrar, "Mercy and Judgment," London,
1881, cap. iii).
III. PROOFS
The Catholic doctrine of purgatory supposes the fact that some die with
smaller faults for which there was no true repentance, and also the fact
that the temporal penalty due to sin is it times not wholly paid in this
life. The proofs for the Catholic position, both in Scripture and in
Tradition, are bound up also with the practice of praying for the dead. For
why pray for the dead, if there be no belief in the power of prayer to
afford solace to those who as yet are excluded from the sight of God? So
true is this position that prayers for the dead and the existence of a place
of purgation are mentioned in conjunction in the oldest passages of the
Fathers, who allege reasons for succouring departed souls. Those who have
opposed the doctrine of purgatory have confessed that prayers for the dead
would be an unanswerable argument if the modern doctrine of a "particular
judgment" had been received in the early ages. But one has only to read the
testimonies hereinafter alleged to feel sure that the Fatliers speak, in the
same breath, of oblations for the dead and a place of purgation; and one his
only to consult the evidence found in the catacombs to feel equally sure
that the Christian faith there expressed embraced clearly a belief in
judgment immediately after death. Wilpert ("Roma Sotteranea," I, 441) thus
concludes chapt. xxi, "Che tale esaudimento", etc.,
Intercession has been made for the soul of the dear one departed
and God has heard the prayer, and the soul has passed into a place
of light and refreshment." "Surely," Wilpert adds, "such
intercession would have no place were there question not of the
particular, but of the final judgment.
Some stress too has been laid upon the objection that the ancient Christians
had no clear conception of purgatory, and that they thought that the souls
departed remained in uncertainity of salvation to the last day; and
consequently they prayed that thoese who had gone before might in the final
judgment escape even the everlasting torments of hell. The earliest
Christian traditions are clear as to the particular judgment, and clearer
still concerning a sharp distinction between purgatory and hell. The
passages alledged as referring to relief from hell cannot offset the
evidence given below (Bellarmine, "De Purgatorio," lib. II, cap. v).
Concerning the famous case of Trajan, which vexed the Doctors of the Middle
Ages, see Bellarmine, loc. Cit., cap. Viii.
Old Testament
The tradition of the Jews is put forth with precision and clearness in II
Maccabees. Judas, the commander of the forces of Israel, "making a
gathering...sent twelve thousand drachms of silver to Jerusalem for
sacrifice to be offered for the sins of the dead, thinking well and
religiously concerning the resurrection (For if he had not hoped that they
that were slain should rise again, it would have seemed superfluous and vain
to pray for the dead). And because he considered that they who had fallen
asleep with godliness, had great grace laid up for them. "It is therefore a
holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed
from sins" (II Mach., xii, 43-46). At the time of the Maccabees the leaders
of the people of God had no hesitation in asserting the efficacy of prayers
offered for the dead, in order that those who had departed this life might
find pardon for their sins and the hope of eternal resurrection.
New Testament
There are several passages in the New Testament that point to a process of
purification after death. Thus, Jesus Christ declares (Matt., xii, 32): "And
whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven
him: but he that shall speak against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be
forgiven him, neither in this world, nor in the world to come." According to
St. Isidore of Seveille (Deord. creatur., c. xiv, n. 6) these words prove
that in the next life "some sins wil be forgiven and purged away by a
certain purifying fire." St. Augustine also argues "that some sinners are
not forgiven either in this world or in the next would not be truly said
unless there were other [sinners] who, though not forgiven in this world,
are forgiven in the world to come" (De Civ. Dei, XXI, xxiv). The same
interpretation is given by Gregory the Great (Dial., IV, xxxix); St. Bede
(commentary on this text); St. Bernard (Sermo lxvi in Cantic., n.11) and
other eminent theological writers.
A further argument is supplied by St. Paul in I Cor., iii, 11-1,5: "For
other foundation no man can lay, but that which is laid; which is Christ
Jesus. Now if any man build upon this foundation, gold, silver, precious
stones, wood, hay stubble: Every man's work shall be manifest; for the day
of the Lord shall declare it, because it shall be revealed in fire; and the
fire shall try every man's work, of what sort it is. If any man's work
abide, which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any
man's work burn, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved, yet so
as by fire." While this passage presents considerable difficulty, it is
regarded by many of the Fathers and theologians as evidence for the
existence of an intermediate state in which the dross of lighter
transgressions will be burnt away, and the soul thus purified will be saved.
This, according to Bellarmine (De Purg., I, 5), is the interpretation
commonly given by the Fathers and theologians; and he cites to this eftect:
* St. Ambrose (commentary on the text, and Sermo xx in Ps. cxvii),
* St. Jerome, (Comm. in Amos, c. iv),
* St. Augustine (Comm. in Ps. xxxvii),
* St. Gregory (Dial., IV, xxxix), and
* Origen (Hom. vi in Exod.).
See also St. Thomas, "Contra Gentes,", IV, 91. For a discussion of the
exegetical problem, see Atzberger, "Die christliche Eschatologie", p. 275.
Tradition
This doctrine that many who have died are still in a place of purification
and that prayers avail to help the dead is part of the very earliest
Christian tradition. Tertullian "De corona militis" mentions prayers for the
dead as an Apostolic ordinance, and in "De Monogamia" (cap. x, P. L., II,
col. 912) he advises a widow "to pray for the soul of her husband, begging
repose for him and participation in the first resurrection"; he commands her
also "to make oblations for him on the anniversary of his demise," and
charges her with infidelity if she neglect to succour his soul. This settled
custom of the Church is clear from St. Cyprian, who (P. L. IV, col. 399)
forbade the customary prayers for one who had violated the ecclesiastical
law. "Our predecessors prudently advised that no brother, departing this
life, should nominate any churchman as his executor; and should he do it,
that no oblation should be made for him, nor sacrifice offered for his
repose." Long before Cyprian, Clement of Alexandria had puzzled over the
question of the state or condition of the man who, reconciled to God on his
death-bed, had no time for the fulfilment of penance due his transgression.
His answer is: "the believer through discipline divests himself of his
passions and passes to the mansion which is better than the former one,
passes to the greatest torment, taking with him the characteristic of
repentance for the faults he may have committed after baptism. He is
tortured then still more, not yet attaining what he sees others have
acquired. The greatest torments are assigned to the beleiver, for God's
righteousness is good, and His goodness righteous, and though these
punishments cease in the course of the expiation and purification of each
one, "yet" etc. (P. G. IX, col. 332).
In Origen the doctrine of purgatory is very clear. If a man depart this life
with lighter faults, he is condemned to fire which burns away the lighter
materials, and prepares the soul for the kingdom of God, where nothing
defiled may enter. "For if on the foundation of Christ you have built not
only gold and silver and precious stones (I Cor., 3); but also wood and hay
and stubble,what do you expect when the soul shall be separated from the
body? Would you enter into heaven with your wood and hay and stubble and
thus defile the kingdom of God; or on account of these hindrances would you
remain without and receive no reward for your gold and silver and precious
stones? Neither is this just. It remains then that you be committed to the
fire which will burn the light materials; for our God to those who can
comprehend heavenly things is called a cleansing fire. But this fire
consumes not the creature, but what the creature has himself built, wood,
and hay and stubble. It is manifest that the fire destroys the wood of our
transgressions and then returns to us the reward of our great works." (P.
G., XIII, col. 445, 448).
The Apostolic practice of praying for the dead which passed into the liturgy
of the Church, is as clear in the fourth century as it is in the twentieth.
St. Cyril of Jerusalem (Catechet. Mystog., V, 9, P.G., XXXIII, col. 1116)
describing the liturgy, writes: "Then we pray for the Holy Fathers and
Bishops that are dead; and in short for all those who have departed this
life in our communion; believing that the souls of those for whom prayers
are offered receive very great relief, while this holy and tremendous victim
lies upon the altar." St. Gregory of Nyssa (P. G., XLVI, col. 524, 525)
states that man's weaknesses are purged in this life by prayer and wisdom,
or are expiated in the next by a cleansing fire. "When he has quitted his
body and the difference between virtue and vice is known he cannot approach
God till the purging fire shall have cleansed the stains with which his soul
was infested. That same fire in others will cancel the corruption of matter,
and the propensity to evil." About the same time the Apostolic Constitution
gives us the formularies used in succouring the dead. "Let us pray for our
brethren who sleep in Christ, that God who in his love for men has received
the soul of the depart one, may forgive him every fault, and in mercy and
clemency receive him into the bosom of Abraham, with those who in this life
have pleased God" (P. G. I, col. 1144). Nor can we pass over the use of the
diptychs where the names of the dead were inscribed; and this remembrance by
name in the Sacred Mysteries--(a practice that was from the Apostles) was
considered by Chrysostom as the best way of relieving the dead (In I Ad
Cor., Hom. xli, n. 4, G., LXI, col. 361, 362).
The teaching of the Fathers, and the formularies used in the Liturgy of the
Church, found expression in the early Christian monuments, particularly
those contained in the catacombs. On the tombs of the faithful were
inscribed words of hope, words of petition for peace and for rest; and as
the anniversaries came round the faithful gathered at the graves of the
departed to make intercession for those who had gone before. At the bottom
this is nothing else than the faith expressed by the Council of Trent (Sess.
XXV, "De Purgatorio"), and to this faith the inscriptions in the catacombs
are surely witnesses.
In the fourth century in the West, Ambrose insists in his commentary on St.
Paul (I Cor., iii) on the existence of purgatory, and in his masterly
funeral oration (De obitu Theodosii), thus prays for the soul of the
departed emperor: "Give, O Lord, rest to Thy servant Theodosius, that rest
Thou hast prepared for Thy saints. . . . I loved him, therefore will I
fellow him to the land of the living; I will not leave him till by my
prayers and lamentations he shall be admitted unto the holy mount of the
Lord, to which his deserts call him " (P. L., XVI, col. 1397). St. Augustine
is clearer even than his master. He describes two conditions of men; "some
there are who have departed this life, not so bad as to be deemed unworthy
of mercy, nor so good as to be entitled to immediate happiness" etc., and in
the resurrection he says there will be some who "have gone through these
pains, to which the spirits of the dead are liable" (De Civ. Dei, XXI, 24).
Thus at the close of the fourth century not only (1) were prayers for the
dead found in all the Liturgies, but the Fathers asserted that such practice
was from the Apostles themselves; (2) those who were helped by the prayers
of the faithful and by the celebration of the Holy Mysteries were in a place
of purgation; (3) from which when purified they "were admitted unto the Holy
Mount of the Lord". So clear is this patristic Tradition that those who do
not believe in purgatory have been unable to bring any serious difficulties
from the writings of the Fathers. The passages cited to the contrary either
do not touch the question at all, or are so lacking in clearness that they
cannot offset the perfectly open expression of the doctrine as found in the
very Fathers who are quoted as holding contrary opinions (Bellarmine "De
Purg.", lib. I, cap. xiii).
IV. DURATION AND NATURE
Duration
The very reasons assigned for the existence of purgatory make for its
passing character. We pray, we offer sacrifice for souls therein detained
that "God in mercy may forgive every fault and receive them into the bosom
of Abraham " (Const. Apost., P. G., I col. 1144); and Augustine (De Civ.
Dei, lib. XXI, cap.xiii and xvi) declares that the punishment of purgatory
is temporary and will cease, at least with the Last Judgment. "But temporary
punishments are suffered by some in this life only, by others after death,
by others both noow and then; but all of them before that last and strictest
judgment."
Nature of Punishment
It is clear from the Liturgies and the Fathers above cited that the souls
for whose peace sacrifice was offered were shut out for the time being from
the sight of God. They were "not so good as to be entitled to eternal
happiness". Still, for them "death is the termination not of nature but of
sin" (Ambrose, "De obitu Theodos."); and this inability to sin makes them
secure of final happiness. This is the Catholic position proclaimed by Leo X
in the Bull "Exurge Domine" which condemned the errors of Luther.
Are the souls detained in purgatory conscious that their happiness is but
deferred for a time, or may they still be in doubt concerning their ultimate
salvation? The ancient Liturgies and the inscriptions of the catacombs speak
of a "sleep of peace", which would be impossible if there was any doubt of
ultimate salvation. Some of the Doctors of the Middle Ages thought
uncertainity of salvation one of the severe punishments of purgatory.
(Bellarmine, "De Purgat." lib. II, cap. iv); but this opinion finds no
general credit among the theologians of the medieval period, nor is it
possible in the light of the belief in the particular judgment. St.
Bonaventure gives as the reason for this elimination of fear and of
uncertainty the intimate conviction that they can no longer sin (lib. IV,
dist. xx, p.1, a.1 q. iv): "Est evacuatio timoris propter confirniationem
liberi arbitrii, qua deinceps scit se peccare non posse" (Fear is cast out
because of the strengthening of the will by which the soul knows it can no
longer sin), and St. Thomas (dist. xxi, q. i, a.1) says: "nisi scirent se
esse liberandas suffragia non peterent" (unless they knew that they are to
be delivered, they would not ask for prayers).
Merit
In the Bull "Exurge Domine" Leo X condemns the proposition (n. 38) "Nec
probatum est ullis aut rationibus aut scripturis ipsas esse extra statum
merendi aut augendae caritatis" (There is no proof from reason or Scripture
that they [the souls in purgatory] cannot merit or increase in charity). For
them "the night has come in which no man can labour", and Christian
tradition has always considered that only in this life can man work unto the
profit of his own soul. The Doctors of the Middle Ages while agreeing that
this life is the time for merit and increase of grace, still some with St.
Thomas seemed to question whether or not there might be some non-essential
reward which the souls in purgatory might merit (IV, dist. xxi, q. i, a. 3).
Bellarmine believes that in this matter St. Thomas changed his opinion and
refers to a statement of St. Thomas ("De Malo", q. vii, a. 11). Whatever may
be the mind of the Angelic Doctor, theologians agree that no merit is
possible in purgatory, and if objection be urged that the souls there merit
by their prayers, Bellarmine says that such prayers avail with God because
of merit already acquired "Solum impetrant ex meritis praeteritis quomodo
nunc sancti orando) pro nobis impetrant licet non merendo" (They avail only
in virtue of past merits as those who are now saints intercede for us not by
merit but by prayer). (loc. cit. II, cap. iii).
Purgatorial Fire
At the Council of Florence, Bessarion argued against the existence of real
purgatorial fire, and the Greeks were assured that the Roman Church had
never issued any dogmatic decree on tlils subject. In the West the belief in
the existence of real fire is common. Augustine in Ps. 37 n. 3, speaks of
the pain which purgatorial fire causes as more severe than anything a man
can suffer in this life, "gravior erit ignis quam quidquid potest homo pati
in hac vita" (P. L., col. 397). Gregory the Great speaks of those who after
this life "will expiate their faults by purgatorial flames," and he adds
"'that the pain be more intolerable than any one can suffer in this life"
(Ps. 3 poenit., n. 1). Following in the footsteps of Gregory, St. Thomas
teaches (IV, dist. xxi, q. i, a.1) that besides the separation of the soul
from the sight of God, there is the other punishment from fire. "Una poena
damni, in quantum scilicet retardantur a divina visione; alia sensus
secundum quod ab igne punientur", and St. Bonaventure not only agrees with
St. Thomas but adds (IV, dist. xx, p.1, a.1, q. ii) that this punishment by
fire is more severe than any punishment which comes to men in this life;
"Gravior est oinni temporali poena. quam modo sustinet anima carni
conjuncta". How this fire affects the souls of the departed the Doctors do
not know, and in such matters it is well to heed the warning of the Council
of Trent when it commands the bishops "to exclude from their preaching
difficult and subtle questions which tend not to edification', and from the
discussion of which there is no increase either in piety or devotion" (Sess.
XXV, "De Purgatorio").
V. SUCCOURING THE DEAD
Scripture and the Fathers command prayers and oblations for the departed,
and the Council of Trent (Sess. XXV, "De Purgatorio") in virtue of this
tradition not only asserts the existence of purgatory, but adds "that the
souls therein detained are aided by the suffrages of the faithful and
principally by the acceptable sacrifice of the altar." That those on earth
are still in communion with the souls in purgatory is the the earliest
Christian teaching, and that the living aid the dead by their prayers and
works of satisfaction is clear from the tradition above alleged. That the
Holy Sacrifice was offered for the departed was received Catholic Tradition
even in the days of Tertullian and Cyprian, and that the souls of the dead,
were aided particularly "while the sacred victim lay upon the altar" is the
expression of Cyril of Jerusalem quoted above. Augustine (Serm.. clxii, n.
2) says that the "prayers and alms of the faithful, the Holy Sacrifice of
the altar aid the faithful departed and move the Lord to deal with them in
mercy and kindness, and," he adds, "this is the practice of the universal
Church handed down by the Fathers." Whether our works of satisfaction
performed on behalf of the dead avail purely out of God's benevolence and
mercy, or whether God obliges himself in justice to accept our vicarious
atonement, is not a settled question. Suarez thinks that the acceptance is
one of justice, and alleges the common practice of the Church which joins
together the iving and the dead without any discrimination (De poenit.,
disp. xlviii, 6, n. 4).
VI. INDULGENCES
The Council of Trent (Sess. XXV) defined that indulgences are "most salutary
for Christian people" and that their "use is to be retained in the Church".
It is the common teaching of Catholic theologians that
* indulgences may be applied to the souls detained in purgatory; and
* that indulgences are available for them "by way of suffrage" (per modum
suffragii).
(1) Augustine (De Civ. Dei, XX, ix) declares that the souls of the faithful
departed are not separated from the Church, which is the kingdom of Christ,
and for this reason the prayers and works of the living are helpful to the
dead. "If therefore", argues Bellarmine (De indulgentiis, xiv) "we can offer
our prayers and our satisfactions in behalf of those detained in purgatory,
because we are members of the great body of Christ, why may not the Vicar of
Christ apply to the same souls the superabundant satisfaction of Christ and
his saints--of which he is the dispenser?" This is the doctrine of St.
Thomas (IV, Sent., dist. xlv, q. ii, a. 3, q. 2) who asserts that
indulgences avail principally for the person who performs the work for which
the indulgence is given, if the but secondarily may avail even for the dead,
if the form in which the indulgence is granted be so worded as to be capable
of such interpretation, and he adds "nor is there any reason why the Church
may not dispose of its treasure of merits in favour of the dead, as it
surely dispenses it in favour of the living".
(2) St. Bonaventure (IV, Sent., dist. xx, p. 2, q. v) agrees with St.
Thomas, but adds that such "relaxation cannot be after the manner of
absolution as in the case of the living but only as suffrage (Haec non tenet
modum judicii, sed potius suffragii). This opinion of St. Bonaventure, that
the Church through its Supreme Pastor does not absolve juridically the souls
in purgatory from the punishment due their sins, is the teaching of the
Doctors. They point out (Gratian, 24 q. ii, 2, can.1) that in case of those
who have departed this life judgment is reserved to God; they allege the
authority of Gelasius (Ep. ad Fausturn; Ep. ad. Episcopos Dardaniae) in
support of their contention (Gratian ibid.), and they also insist that the
Roman Pontiffs, when they grant indulgences that are applicable to the dead,
add the restriction "per modum suffragii et deprecationis". This phrase is
found in the Bull of Sixtus IV "Romani Pontificis provida diligentia", 27
Nov. 1447.
The phrase "per modum suffragi et deprecationis" has been variously
interpreted by theologians (Bellarmine, "De indulgentiis", p.137).
Bellarmine himself says: "The true opinion is that indulgences avail as
suffrage, because they avail not after the fashion of a juridical absolution
'quia non prosunt per modum juridicae absolutionis'." But according to the
same author the suffrages of the faithful avail at times "per modum meriti
congrui" (by way of merit), at times "per modum impetrationis" (by way of
supplication) at times "per modum satisfactionis" (by way of satisfaction);
but when there is question of applying an indulgence to one in purgatory it
is only "per modum suffragii satisfactorii" and for this reason "the pope
does not absolve the soul in purgatory from the punishment due his sin, but
offers to God from the treasure of the Church whatever may be necessary for
the cancelling of this punishment".
If the question be further asked whether such satisfaction is accepted by
God out of mercy and benevolence, or "ex justitia", theologians are not in
accord--some holding one opinion, others the other. Bellarmine after
canvassing both sides (pp. 137, 138) does not dare to set aside "either
opinion, but is inclined to think that the former is more reasonable while
he pronounces the latter in harmony with piety ("admodum pia").
Condition
That an indulgence may avail for those in purgatory several conditions are
required:
* The indulgence must be granted by the pope.
* There must be a sufficient reason for granting, the indulgence, and
this reason must be something pertaing to the glory of God and the
utility of the Church, not merely the utility accruing to the souls in
purgatory.
* The pious work enjoined must be as in the case of indulgences for the
living.
If the state of grace be not among the required works, in all probability
the person performing the work may gain the indulgence for the dead, even
though he himself be not in friendship with God (Bellarmine, loc. cit., p.
139). Suarez (De Poenit., disp. Iiii, s. 4, n. 5 and 6) puts this
categorically when he says: "Status gratiae solum requiritur ad tollendum
obicem indulgentiae" (the state of grace is required only to remove some
hindrance to the indulgence), and in the case of the holy souls there can be
no hindrance. This teaching is bound up with the doctrine of the Communion
of Saints, and the monuments of the catacombs represent the saints and
martyrs as interceding with God for the dead. The prayers too of the early
liturgies speak of Mary and of the saints interceding for those who have
passed from this life. Augustine believes that burial in a basilica
dedicated to a holy, martyr is of value to the dead, for those who recall
the memory of him who has suffered will recommend to the martyr's prayers
the soul of him who has departed this life (Bellarmine, lib. II, xv). In the
same place Bellarmine accuses Dominicus A Soto of rashness, because he
denied this doctrine.
VII. INVOCATION OF SOULS
Do the souls in purgatory pray for us? May we call upon them in our needs?
There is no decision of the Church on this subject, nor have the theologians
pronounced with definiteness concerning the invocation of the souls in
purgatory and their intercession for the living. In the ancient liturgies
there are no prayers of the Church directed to those who are still in
purgatory. On the tombs of the early Christians nothing is more common than
a prayer or a supplication asking the departed to intercede with God for
surviving friends, but these inscriptions seem always to suppose that the
departed one is already with God. St. Thomas (II-II:83:11) denies that the
souls in purgatory pray for the living, and states they are not in a
position to pray for us, rather we must make intercession for them. Despite
the authority of St. Thomas, many renowned theologians hold that the souls
in purgatory really pray for us, and that we may invoke their aid.
Bellarmine (De Purgatorio, lib. II, xv,) says the reason alleged by St.
Thomas is not at all convincing, and holds that in virtue of their greater
love of God and their union with Him their prayers may have great
intercessory power, for they are really superior to us in love of God, and
in intimacy of union with Him. Suarez (De poenit., disp. xlvii, s. 2, n. 9)
goes farther and asserts "that the souls in purgatory are holy, are dear to
God, love us with a true love and are mindful of our wants; that they know
in a general way our necessities and our dangers, and how great is our need
of Divine help and divine grace".
When there is question of invoking the prayers of those in purgatory,
Bellarmine (loc. cit.) says it is superfluous, ordinarily speaking, for they
are ignorant of our circumstances and condition. This is at variance with
the opinion of Suarez, who admits knowledge at least in a general way, also
with the opinions of many modern theologians who point to the practice now
common with almost all the faithful of addressing their prayers and
petitions for help to those who are still in a place of purgation. Scavini
(Theol. Moral., XI, n. l74) sees no reason why the souls detained in
purgatory may not pray for us, even as we pray for one another. He asserts
that this practice has become common at Rome, and that it has the great name
of St. Alphonsus in its favour. St. Alphonsus in his work the "Great Means
of Salvation", chap. I, III, 2, after quoting Sylvius, Gotti, Lessius, and
Medina as favourable to his opinion, concludes: "so the souls in purgatory,
being beloved by God and confirmed in grace, have absolutely no impediment
to prevent them from praying for us. Still the Church does not invoke them
or implore their intercession, because ordinarily they have no cognizance of
our prayers. But we may piously believe that God makes our prayers known to
them". He alleges also the authority of St. Catharine of Bologna who
"whenever she desired any favour had recourse to the souls in purgatory, and
was immediately heard".
VIII. UTILITY OF PRAYER FOR THE DEPARTED
It is the traditional faith of Catholics that the souls in purgatory are not
separated from the Church, and that the love which is the bond of union
between the Church's members should embrace those who have departed this
life in God's grace. Hence, since our prayers and our sacrifices can help
those who are still waiting in purgatory, the saints have not hesistated to
warn us that we have a real duty toward those who are still in purgatorial
expiation. Holy Church through the Congregation of Indulgences, 18 December
1885, has bestowed a special blessing on the so-called "heroic act" in
virtue of which "a member of the Church militant ofters to God for the souls
in purgatory all the satisfactory works which he will perform during his
lifetime, and also all the suffrages which may accrue to him after his
death" (Heroic Act, vol. VII ,292). The practice of devotion to the dead is
also consoling to humanity and eminently worthy of a religion which seconds
all the purest feelings of the human heart. "Sweet", says Cardinal Wiseman
(lecture XI), "is the consolation of the dying man, who, conscious of
imperfection, believes that there are others to make intercession for him,
when his own time for merit has expired; soothing to the afflicted survivors
the thought that they possess powerful means of relieving their friend. In
the first moments of grief, this sentiment will often overpower religious
prejudice, cast down the unbeliever on his knees beside the remains of his
friend and snatch from him an unconscious prayer for rest; it is an impulse
of nature which for the moment, aided by the analogies of revealed truth,
seizes at once upon this consoling belief. But it is only a flitting and
melancholy light, while the Catholic feeling, cheering though with solemn
dimness, resembles the unfailing lamp, which the piety of the ancients is
said to have hung before the sepulchres of their dead."
EDWARD J. HANNA
Transcribed by William G. Bilton, Ph.D.
In memory of Father George P. O'Neill
Former pastor of St. John the Baptist Church, Buffalo, N.Y.
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