[Note to readers: This essay was written many years ago, shortly after my reception into the Catholic church. It remains here as a testimony to my life’s journey, and is not intended to urge anyone to adopt any particular religious worldview. As my thoughts and opinions are constantly evolving and may not be identical with my past or future thoughts, each reader is encouraged to be brave in finding inspiration from all sources in order to find the best paths in his/her life journey.]
On Purgatory
Do you not know that the saints will judge the world?
And if you are to judge the world, are you not competent to judge trivial cases?
Do you not know that we will judge angels?
How much more the things of this life!
First letter of St Paul to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 6:2)
The Spirit himself testifies with our spirit that we are God’s children. Now if we are children, then we are heirs—heirs of God and co-heirs with Christ, if indeed we share in his sufferings in order that we may also share in his glory.
Letter of St Paul to the Romans (Romans 8:16-17)
Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me. (Matthew 25:34-36)
To the one who is victorious, I will give the right to sit with me on my throne, just as I was victorious and sat down with my Father on his throne. Whoever has ears, let them hear what the Spirit says to the churches. (Revelation 3:21-22)
A lot of people think that Purgatory is a concept invented by the Catholic church to scare and intimidate people, since it is not explicitly mentioned in the Bible, and was formerly misused to (allegedly) scare people into buying Indulgences. But if we really stop to think logically about life and our desires, we will understand that Purgatory is a very logical and sensible concept.
What is Heaven? Even atheists, or non religious people, express the belief that their loved ones go to a better place after they die. So it is possible to analyze the universal desire, belief and concept of Heaven logically, irrespective of religion or culture. So what is Heaven? What is the primary characteristic of Heaven? One might say that Heaven is a place of pleasure, a pleasure palace. But a further analysis reveals that while everybody believes Heaven to be pleasurable, the concept of Heaven as a mere pleasure palace would make it extremely boring and unappetizing in the long run. Morten Tyldum’s film “Passengers” (starring Chris Pratt and Jennifer Lawrence) illustrates this concept perfectly: Trapped in a pleasure palace without any human contact, Jim (played by Chris Pratt) quickly got bored and longed for company. Not even the android bartender Arthur could satisfy his desire for companionship.
So, then, everybody with a rational mind agrees: Heaven is a Kingdom of Love. And what is the core essence of Love? Certainly, love is pleasurable, but one can have pleasure without love (as the aforementioned example illustrates). The core essence of Love is communion: It is the conviction and knowledge that one is perfectly accepted, cherished, and understood; it is the ability to develop one’s full potential in an atmosphere of true, complete and perfect understanding, of mutual love. Such love is seldom, if ever, achieved in our modern world.
The reason is ironic: Our advanced technology has made instant pleasure and gratification more and more accessible to everyone. We want to get what we want (be it food, services, pleasure, friendships or love) as fast as possible, with as little waiting time or delay as possible. However, as civilization advances, human beings have also become more and more complex: Our desires and characters are not easy to understand. In order to truly know, cherish, understand and love another human being, a lot of time and devotion is needed. Oftentimes, in order to truly understand and cherish another person, one needs to sacrifice one’s time, craving for other forms of instant pleasure, and truly focus one’s energy, affection and mental powers to think about the good of the other. Very few people are willing to make this sacrifice! There are too many other choices, too many forms of instant pleasure available, that the notion of truly knowing, cherishing, understanding and loving another human being seems boring and lame. As a result, many people reduce love to simple hanging out, or the showing off and presenting of expensive gifts, without ever truly taking the time or fidelity to understand the other person’s personality, desires, longings and potential. This is why a lot of romances that seemed to be so lavish and romantic in the beginning turned sour very quickly: The willingness to consistently set aside one’s prejudices and point of view to truly understand, cherish and love the other person has never been there. No wonder such “love stories” are short lived.
So, ironically, our modern world has made true love much rarer and less accessible. True love—the kind that is patient and kind, that is not envious or boastful; that is not arrogant or rude, that does not insist on its own way, is not easily irritable or resentful, that bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, and endures all things[1]—this kind of love is quickly becoming extinct! And yet, this is the kind of love that ALL of us longs for, years for, hopes for. And this is the kind of Love that forms the essence of Heaven. So let us analyze more closely, what the essence of true Love is.
If the essence of true Love is perfect communion, then it must be based on the conviction that ALL human beings are equally unique, precious, lovable, and beautiful. Each and every one of us is unique and has infinite worth. ALL of us are equally worthy of esteem, devotion, love and respect, for we are all unique and priceless. Although this idea is beautiful in theory, in reality very few people can practice it (those who do practice it are usually revered as saints and holy people). Why is that? Why is practicing love—universally agreed on as the greatest good, universally longed for, hoped for and fought for—so very hard? Let us analyze this in a logical manner.
One reason why practicing true Love has become monumentally difficult is prejudice. Human beings have always been plagued by prejudice—one group feels superior to another, thus making true Love impossible. Prejudice can be based on race, gender, social class, wealth, physical beauty, etc.; in fact, the list is endless. And yet, one has only begun to scratch the surface—WHY is prejudice a universal plague of human civilization? Ever since the beginning of history, people have always idolized some people while looking down on others, thus tarnishing Love and making it inaccessible to their fellow men. In order to be considered worthy of acceptance and esteem, many people feel that they must “distinguish themselves” from “the common folk”, either by taking pride in their wealth, beauty, social standing or irreproachable moral conduct. So let us analyze further the reason for this universal plague of prejudice, which from the earliest days of civilization has made true Love impossibly difficult to practice and enjoy.
The reason is very simple: Ever since time immemorial, man is cursed with two natures. The constant battle between these two natures is what causes all kinds of human misery in the planet. What are these two natures, which constantly battle one another? The first one is our physical body, which is no different from that of any other species or living organism. We, as living organisms, are bound to decay and die. Even now, we have to wage a constant battle against disease, disrepair and decay: Why else do we need to nourish ourselves and take enough rest every day? Why must we wash ourselves regularly and brush our teeth upon waking up in the morning? If we do not do these things, the telltale signs of decay, disrepair and disease will manifest itself to ourselves and those around us, in the form of unpleasant odors, physical weakness and malaise, etc. This is also the reason why we tend to look down on those who work “menial jobs”, especially those tasked with the cleaning of dishes, buildings and toilets. We do not wish to have to constantly witness these signs of decay, disrepair and putrefaction that is the destiny of all living organisms, and thus we tend to look down on those whose job consists of dealing with these unpleasant realities on a daily basis. Human beings have always revolted against their own nature, for in their hearts is contained another nature, divorced from this world of decay—the desire and yearning for eternity, for perfection, for Heaven. How immense are our desires! We desire to be loved, to be happy, to be cherished, and to enjoy these for all eternity. When we are happy, we want it to last forever, and are savagely angry, disappointed and disconsolate when this happiness is taken away from us. Why is fate unjust? We rage against it, we deem it to be unfair. We may deem “God” to be unfair. We perceive it to be our right to be happy and content for all eternity, to be infinitely cherished and loved, in spite of the reality of decay and death evident in our bodies as living organisms. Oh, what a contradiction it is to be a human being!
Many historians, psychologists and anthropologists give one single reason for the ubiquity of religions and spiritual beliefs in the history of human civilization: Confronted with their own helplessness and mortality, human beings need a Superman (or many Supermen) in the form of God, gods or goddesses, who can be invoked and supplicated in times of need. On the surface, the Christian religion is no different: It believes in a God who created this world and controlled everything that is happening in it. The first clause of the Nicene Creed (which is professed by nearly all Christian denominations) confirms it:
I believe in one God, the Father Almighty, Maker of heaven and earth, and of all things visible and invisible[2].
But there the similarity ends. No other religion believes in an omnipotent, immortal God who abases Himself to the extent that Christ did. In Roman times, crucifixions took place regularly; these were the most shameful and painful punishments available, reserved for the lowest of beings (in fact, all Roman citizens were guaranteed a quick death by the sword). The fact that this Christ lived in poverty and died such a shameful death was a stumbling block to many. What kind of fools could worship such a God[3]? And yet, this is precisely where the beauty and attractiveness of Christianity can be found. The sufferings of Christ—who Christians believe to be God Himself—are always called His Passion, and never simply his sufferings. And He did not merely suffer for a few hours and then escape to Paradise to observe this world in merry ignorance, no! He has pledged, on the eve of His Passion, to make us the very members of His Body, to share the lot of all who come to Him until the End, or rather the Consummation, of Time. That is why, when our Lord appeared to Saul, He didn’t say, “Saul, why are you persecuting my followers?” (I am so angry at you!) Rather, He said, “Saul, Saul, why do you persecute me? I am Jesus, whom you are persecuting[4].”
As Scriptures testify:
In bringing many sons and daughters to glory, it was fitting that God, for whom and through whom everything exists, should make the pioneer of their salvation perfect through what he suffered. Both the one who makes people holy and those who are made holy are of the same family. So Jesus is not ashamed to call them brothers and sisters.[5]
Since the children have flesh and blood, he too shared in their humanity so that by his death he might break the power of him who holds the power of death—that is, the devil— and free those who all their lives were held in slavery by their fear of death. For surely it is not angels he helps, but Abraham’s descendants. For this reason he had to be made like them, fully human in every way, in order that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in service to God, and that he might make atonement for the sins of the people. Because he himself suffered when he was tempted, he is able to help those who are being tempted.[6]
And again:
When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne[7].
Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father; take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world. For I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.’[8]
God Himself, sick, thirsty and needing help! What a depth of abasement! He became a poor, helpless infant, and through His Passion took upon Himself the sufferings and helplessness of all men, so that we may share in His glory and eternal inheritance. Saints and angels alike have wondered in amazement at such Love.
He said, “I thirst[9].”
St Therese de Lisieux observed:
The same God, Who declares that He has no need to tell us if He be hungry, did not disdain to beg a little water from the Samaritan woman. He was athirst, but when He said: “Give me to drink,” He, the Creator of the Universe, asked for the love of His creature. He thirsted for love[10].
Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, the late Archbishop of New York also made a similar observation:
Our Blessed Lord reaches the communion of His Mass when out from the depths of the Sacred Heart there wells the cry: “I thirst.” This was certainly not a thirst for water, for the earth is His and the fullness thereof … When they offered Him a drink, He took it not. It was another kind of thirst which tortured Him. He was thirsty for the souls and hearts of men. … The very fact that it was expressed in the most poignant of all human sufferings, namely, thirst, was the measure of its depth and intensity[11].
The very fact that the Omnipotent God considers us worth all the ills and sufferings of mankind tells us of the nature and depth of His Love. In our modern world, people are accustomed to seeing others as mere objects: Some are objects of admiration or emulation, others are simply amusing objects of observation, still others are objects of disdain and dislike. It’s not worth it to invest too much in a single human being. “Love” becomes nothing more than a social contract: If it gives me pleasure and enjoyment, and doesn’t cost me too much, I’ll go for it. It is unsurprising, therefore, that more and more people feel unloved, lonely, worthless and unwanted. This kind of Love—the Love preached by the Christian God—is mind blowing, an excessive extravagance. It seems to be too good to be true. As the late Archbishop Luis M. Martinez wrote in his book “When God is silent”:
God’s love has all the characteristics of the love we idealize in our ardent dreams, for we all dream; it so becomes the human heart to dream. Yes, we want to be loved with a deep, tender, consuming love. Half measures do not satisfy us, nor do they satisfy elect souls destined for intimate union with God, those souls tortured by the insatiable desires of love. Now, let me assure you of this: Jesus loves us more, infinitely more, than we desire, more than we dare to dream of. Sometimes our dreams seem bold, almost absurd; nevertheless, they are far below reality. …
In comparison with our smallness, infinite love must necessarily be an excess. Yet, how difficult to convince souls that God so loves them. If they could be convinced, how many anxieties would be alleviated.[12]
Nowhere is the juxtaposition of Divine Omnipotence and abject helplessness so evident than in the Eucharist. The Eucharist (a seemingly simple, plain, silent and helpless “piece of bread”) is usually exhibited in a monstrance, an ornate, gold-plated vessel that contrasts sharply with the simplicity and plainness of the bread itself. This is my Body, given for you[13], He once said. Not only that, by virtue of our faith in His Love, we are now the very members of His Body. After all, no one ever hated their own body, but they feed and care for their body, just as Christ does the church— for we are members of his body[14].
What, then, shall we say in response to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son, but gave him up for us all—how will he not also, along with him, graciously give us all things? Who will bring any charge against those whom God has chosen? It is God who justifies. Who then is the one who condemns? No one. Christ Jesus who died—more than that, who was raised to life—is at the right hand of God and is also interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword?[15]
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am convinced that neither death nor life, neither angels nor demons, neither the present nor the future, nor any powers, neither height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God that is in Christ Jesus our Lord[16].
For this reason I kneel before the Father, from whom every family in heaven and on earth derives its name. I pray that out of his glorious riches he may strengthen you with power through his Spirit in your inner being, so that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith. And I pray that you, being rooted and established in love, may have power, together with all the Lord’s holy people, to grasp how wide and long and high and deep is the love of Christ, and to know this love that surpasses knowledge—that you may be filled to the measure of all the fullness of God[17].
It is this Love, therefore, that is the heart of Christianity. For it is Love that drives Him to abase Himself so; to be ever patient, ever knocking on the doors of our hearts. And all for what? To have communion with us for all Eternity! To be co-heirs with us of Divine Glory[18]. What an extravagant, excessive, mind-blowing Love!
Behold, He said, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me[19]. How peculiar is this King of kings! He stood at the door and knocked, as if he were a simple traveller begging for lodging. If He had tapped into His omniscience, He would certainly have known who would have answered His knock and when. And then He could have knocked at certain doors and not at others, or send some of His servants to knock for Him until the door is about to be opened, so that He wouldn’t have to stand there knocking and waiting for a long time, His hair drenched by the dew of the night[20]. And yet, He didn’t do any of this. He uses his own bare, calloused hands to knock at the door of each of our hearts, and each of His knocks is filled with faith, hope and love. He has faith in us long before we had faith in Him; He hopes for our return to His embrace long before we learned to hope in Him. What kind of Love is this?
It is the Love of Christ. And it is the very same Love with which we’re supposed to love our fellowmen. As the Lord himself has said:
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.”[21]
How impossible is that to do, unless we spend our lives in communion with Him, fixing our eyes on Him alone, loving Him with all our heart, mind, soul and strength?[22]
Now, by this time you might wonder, what does any of this have to do with Purgatory?
Well, my dear friends, the logic is very simple.
Suppose I am told today that I have been appointed to be the mayor of city C for a term of five years. Now, of course I’m going to freak out! For one thing, I’ve never had any experience in governing; I know nothing about the administration, history, population or needs of city C. In short, I’m not prepared to be mayor and will surely do a very poor job at it, unless I’m given some time to prepare myself.
Now, my dear friends, in the Kingdom of Heaven we’ll have our inheritance[23], and our responsibilities will be big. Very, very big. Amongst other things, we will have authority over the nations[24] and be responsible for the judging of immortal angels[25]. And we will have these responsibilities not just for a few years, but for all eternity, for in Heaven, Time will have reached its consummation. No longer will we be bored or feel the ticking of the clock, for there will be no distance in Heaven. No longer will there be an abyss between what we desire and what we have to face, between the “superficial us” and the “real us”, between us and our fellowmen, or between us and God. That is why, another term for Heaven is Consummation; the Bible describes it as a Royal Wedding between God and His people[26]. Everything that impedes and chokes in this world is caused by this separation, this distance between what is Everlasting and what is mortal, which in itself is caused by the Fall of men. But it is not so in Heaven. We shall have authority not merely of petty earthly territory, but of whole dominions in the Cosmos, the greatness and vastness of which can only be equaled by the greatness, tenderness, and vastness of God’s Love for us.
Here I am reminded of C.S. Lewis’ rendering of Heaven in his allegorical book The Chronicles of Narnia, The Last Battle:
But for them it was only the beginning of the real story. All their life in this world and all their adventures in Narnia had only been the cover and the title page: now at last they were beginning Chapter One of the Great Story which no one on earth has read: which goes on for ever: in which every chapter is better than the one before.
Now, my friends, if we are heirs to such a great and everlasting inheritance, with such gigantic responsibilities, what must we do to prepare ourselves? Must we not live in constant communion with our King, so as to know His will, as well as our specific mission and calling in life[27]? Must we not endeavor to learn from Him[28], who is meek and humble of heart, so as to be able to love as He does? Otherwise, how can we be transformed into His divine likeness, with ever-increasing glory[29]?
The truth is, most believers live their lives with eyes, minds and hearts fixed on this world’s passing and vain standards. They envy one another and compare themselves to one another, easily becoming discontent when they feel that their lot is less splendid than that of others. How easily do we forget Him, who has loved us so much so as to give His own self to us! He has given us His own body, blood, heart, mind and Spirit, and has spared nothing in the lavishing of His divine and infinite Love. But how easily do we forget Him and His gift of Himself for us!
After a lifetime of forgetting the love of Christ, many believers die unprepared. Despite having a measure of goodwill in their hearts, they are unprepared to exercise authority with Christ and reign over the nations right away. Therefore, they need to be prepared and purified for a time before they can be ready to exercise their heavenly duties and receive their everlasting inheritances. For are we not heirs of God and co-heirs of Christ[30]? Shall we not exercise our royal authority side by side with the King of kings and Lord of lords? Indeed, we shall. Do we want to do that unprepared and unpurified, my dear brothers and sisters? Of course not! Therefore, there is a place called Purgatory[31], in which the flames of divine Love purify us and prepare us for that divine and everlasting inheritance.
By the grace of God,
Maria Thérèse Audrey YU Jia Hui
Shanghai, PRC, June 28, 2017.
[1] 1 Corinthians 13:4-7
[2] https://www.ccel.org/creeds/nicene.creed.html
[3] 1 Corinthians 1:23
[4] Acts 9:4-5
[5] Hebrews 2:10-11
[6] Hebrews 2:14-18
[7] Matthew 25:31
[8] Matthew 25:34-36
[9] John 4:6-7, 19:28
[10] Saint de Lisieux Thérèse. “The Story of a Soul (L’Histoire d’une Âme): The Autobiography of St. Thérèse of Lisieux / With Additional Writings and Sayings of St. Thérèse.” iBooks.
[11] Venerable Fulton J. Sheen. Calvary and the Mass: A Missal Companion. Middletown: Aeterna Press, 2015. Print.
[12] Excerpt From: Luis M. Martinez. “When God is Silent.” iBooks.
[13] Matthew 26:26, Mark 14:22, Luke 22:19, John 6:48-58.
[14] Ephesians 5:29-30
[15] Romans 8:31-35
[16] Romans 8:37-39
[17] Ephesians 3:14-19
[18] Romans 8:16-17
[19] Revelation 3:20
[20] Song of songs 5:2
[21] John 13:34-35
[22] Mark 4:18-19, 12:30-31; Luke 10:27, 21:34; Hebrews 3:1, 12:2-3; Colossians 3:1-4.
[23] Ephesians 1:11-23; Colossians 1:10-14, 3:23-24; 1 Peter 1:3-5.
[24] 2 Timothy 2:12; Revelation 2:26-27, 3:21, 5:10, 22:5
[25] 1 Corinthians 6:2-3
[26] Revelation 21:1-4
[27] Romans 12:2
[28] Matthew 11:29
[29] 2 Corinthians 3:18
[30] Romans 8:17
[31] Link to this section of the Catechism of the Catholic church:
http://www.vatican.va/archive/ccc_css/archive/catechism/p123a12.htm