A Sermon Preached by Rev. Fr. Bernard Uttley, OSB, on November 9, 2012
The entire month of November is dedicated to the remembrance of the poor suffering souls in Purgatory. As we know, the holy souls in Purgatory are completely unable to alleviate their sufferings in any way. But God, in His goodness and loving mercy, has made us who are still “in the flesh” almost all-powerful in their regard, for we have the ability to relieve them of some, or all, of their sufferings by our prayer and penance. It is good to meditate on the sufferings of Purgatory, which we know are more painful than anything that we can suffer here on earth, but perhaps it is even more beneficial for us to know that we need not go there at all.
Does God Desire Us to Suffer in Purgatory?
It is within our power to bypass Purgatory entirely and go straight to heaven. To many, this sounds presumptuous. They think that it is practically impossible to avoid Purgatory and that all of us must inevitably pass through that realm of purifying pain and punishment. But this is not necessarily so, for this would be at variance with the all-merciful and all-loving plan of our Blessed Savior. God became Man and died for our sins precisely to give us a perfect redemption from sin and the effects of sin. He desires that we leave this life entirely purified. What a shame it would be if we were to have to wait to see God, not only after many years here on earth, but perhaps after many years, decades, or centuries of suffering in Purgatory. No, God does not desire this for us, His beloved children. No matter what degree of sanctity God has called us to, He does not desire that any of us should suffer in the purifying flames of Purgatory. As St. Therese tells us: “You do not have enough confidence; you have an excessive fear that offends God. Do not fear the pains of Purgatory, but rather desire to escape them in order to give pleasure to God, Who imposes them so reluctantly. Be very sure that you will not go to Purgatory as long as you seek to please God in everything and have an unshakeable confidence that at every moment He purifies you in His love and will not leave one trace of sin in you.”
Unfortunately there are many people who have acquiesced to the idea that they will inevitably go to Purgatory and that it would be practically impossible to escape a rather long and painful duration there. “I’ll be lucky if I even make it to Purgatory,” they say, or “I’ll be satisfied if I escape hell,” or “I’ll be happy to make it to Purgatory.” It is precisely this attitude, perhaps more than any other reason, which will land such people in Purgatory, if not in hell itself. Such an attitude, so unworthy of a true child of God, dampens hope in the mercy and goodness of God and His willingness to aid us. It also stifles serious effort to live a deep spiritual life so as to avoid Purgatory altogether, or at least to drastically shorten its duration.
How Can You Live Your Life to Please God and Grow in Love for Him?
Actually, such an attitude really implies bad will, or at least ignorance of God’s merciful love. Our Divine Savior has generously provided us with abundant, easy, and efficacious means which will, if generously used, sufficiently purify and sanctify our soul here on earth so as to have no need of purification after death. He will, through the merits of His Precious Blood, which was lovingly shed for our salvation, give us the necessary grace and strength to either avoid sin, or, because we are weak, to satisfy for any sins which we may have committed. The merciful love of God, no matter how weak we are or how sinful our past may be, is capable of making us saints fit for heaven. Therefore, to say: “When I get to Purgatory,” really implies, “I do not really intend on making full use of these means of purification and sanctification. Rather, I intend on abusing divine grace, neglecting prayer, and avoiding penance, mortification and sacrifice. I am going to live my life, not so much to please God and grow ever deeper in love with Him, but to please myself without, hopefully, seriously ‘displeasing’ Him.” Or perhaps more often, such a statement implies, “I’m such a weak, miserable wretch that I doubt God’s mercy and goodness are great enough to wipe away all my sins.” It is this attitude, therefore, which will hinder the workings of God’s Merciful Love within our soul more than any other reason. We need not go to Purgatory at all, but if we do, it will be because we want to go there, not because we have to. We will kick ourselves for having failed to take advantage of God’s mercy in this life.
Life is like an arrow that is shot at a target; one must aim high, for gravity will inevitably drag the arrow down, causing it to hit below the target. Aiming straight for heaven and striving to live so as to bypass Purgatory altogether, is not presumption — it is merely wanting what God wants. He desires this far more than we do.
Many people have the idea that the only way to make satisfaction for our debt of sin is by extraordinary sufferings or penances. Without these, they think, it would be futile to hope to bypass Purgatory. But this is not so. It is not the intensity of sufferings, as such, that purify us and make us pleasing in God’s sight. It is love which does this — love for Him burning in our hearts. Love is a consuming fire. This is why St. John of the Cross wrote: “It is of the highest importance that the soul should be well exercised in love, so that, being rapidly consumed, she will tarry but a short time here below and quickly attain to the vision of God face to face.” A soul totally in love with God, which is what a saint is, will have no need, or fear, of Purgatory. “How could He cleanse in the flames of Purgatory souls consumed with the fire of divine love?” asks St. Therese. The answer is: He could not — there would be nothing left for the fire of Purgatory to do. And St. Therese tells us: “The chief plenary indulgence which is within the reach of everybody, and can be gained without the ordinary conditions, is that of charity, which covers a multitude of sins.”
As for the sufferings in Purgatory, we must remember that they are completely without merit. Only during this life can we increase our love for God and merit eternal reward. On this whole subject about avoiding Purgatory, I must keep coming back to St. Therese of the Child Jesus, and I will close with several quotes from her. She writes: “I cannot fear Purgatory. I know I do not merit to enter even into that place of expiation with the Holy Souls, but I also know that the fire of Love is more sanctifying than the fire of Purgatory. I know that Jesus could not wish useless suffering for us, and He would not inspire me with the desires I feel, were He not willing to fulfill them.”
A religious who approached St. Therese at the time of her last illness wrote in a letter to her family: “When we go to see her, we find her much changed, very thin. But she is always calm and has a pleasant word. She sees death coming with joy and does not experience the least fear. When we spoke to her about Purgatory for ourselves, she said: ‘Oh! How you trouble me, you do a great injury to God in believing that you will go to Purgatory. When we love there can be no Purgatory. Listen to how far your confidence must extend! It must make you believe that Purgatory was not made for you, but only for those who have forgotten Merciful Love or who have doubted its purifying power. Jesus is blind to the faults of those who are endeavoring to respond to this love. He counts only on the fire of love which covers all sins, and above all on the fruits of His perpetual sacrifice. Yes, in spite of your little infidelities, you can hope to go straight to heaven. God desires it more than you do, and He will certainly give you what you hoped for from His mercy. It is this confidence and abandonment which He will reward. Since He understands your weakness, His divine justice has arranged to cope with it. While relying on this assurance, take care that He does not lose love.’”
St. Therese of Lisieux: “I cannot fear Purgatory. I know I do not merit to enter even into that place of expiation with the Holy Souls, but I also know that the fire of Love is more sanctifying than the fire of Purgatory.”
St. Therese found joy and trust in God’s justice
Elsewhere, in a letter to a missionary, she continues this thought: “I realize one must be pure to appear before the God of all-holiness, but I know also that the Lord is infinitely just. This justice which terrifies so many souls is the very basis of my joy and trust. Justice consists not only in exercising severity in punishing the guilty, but also in recognizing right intentions and rewarding virtue. I expect as much from the justice of God as from His mercy. He is compassionate and merciful, long-suffering and plenteous in mercy. For He knows our weakness. He remembers that we are but dust. As a father has compassion on his children, so the Lord has compassion on us! … That, Brother, is my idea of the justice of God. My way is all trust and love, and I don’t understand souls who are afraid of such a loving Friend.” To Sister Febronie, who defended the rights of divine justice, Therese had once stated: “My Sister, you want God’s justice, you will get God’s justice. The soul receives exactly what it expects from God.”
–Taken from the Reign of Mary Quarterly Magazine, Issue 156
