We are Christians. As Christians, our goal is eternal life in Heaven, not Purgatory. Although Purgatory exists, that does not make it our goal. Kiko Arguello never denied the existence of Purgatory. Like the Apostle Paul, Kiko wants us to focus on Heaven.....because that is the prize.....that is our goal.....that is what we strive for. Who here strives for Purgatory? Even the souls in Purgatory have their eyes and hope set on Heaven. Because our eyes and hope are also set and focused on Heaven, this is why we should not weep for the dead because our brothers and sisters are NOT dead. They are alive. As Kiko Arguello stated (the bold is mine):
“For the person who believes in Jesus Christ, death is like falling asleep. You go to bed and you fall asleep without knowing when. That is how you will die, like falling asleep. That is why the Church calls the dead “those who have fallen asleep in the Lord.” You die as if you are falling asleep and you awake in the resurrection. In an instant you pass from this world to glory, whether or not millions of years have gone by. This is why we Christians do not weep for our dead as the pagans do, for our brothers and sisters who die are alive.”
It was clear that Kiko Arguello was speaking about "a person who believes in Jesus Christ". All the holy saints in Heaven believe in Jesus Christ and are alive, so why weep? All the souls in Purgatory believe in Jesus Christ and are also alive, looking toward Heaven with hope in their hearts. These souls are not dead, so why weep? All our brothers and sisters in Purgatory are alive because God is a God of the living. He is not a God of the dead. Furthermore, Purgatory is temporary like the Earth. The only difference is that the souls in Purgatory are already guaranteed salvation in Heaven at the end. The pilgrims on earth, on the other hand, do not have that guarantee. Therefore, we must continue to persevere in our faith and press on, focusing on the prize (eternal life in Heaven) otherwise we lose sight, go astray, and may end up in Hell.
At the cross, Jesus also told the repentant thief: “Truly I tell you, today you will be with me in paradise.” (Luke 23:43).
Paradise is a synonym for Heaven. According to Father Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary:
:
PARADISE. A synonym for Heaven. Jesus spoke of it in his promise to the good thief on the Cross (Luke 23:43). In only two other places in Scripture is it used in place of Heaven. There is a reference to “the tree of life set in God’s paradise” (Revelation 2:7). Paul wrote about a man in Christ “caught up into paradise” (II Corinthians 12:4). (Etym. Greek paradeisos, park, the Garden of Eden, paradise; from Persian pairidaēza, an enclosure.)Even the Catechism of the Catholic Church defined "Paradise" as Heaven, not Purgatory (the bold is mine):
CCC 1053 "We believe that the multitude of those gathered around Jesus and Mary in Paradise forms the Church of heaven, where in eternal blessedness they see God as he is and where they are also, to various degrees, associated with the holy angels in the divine governance exercised by Christ in glory, by interceding for us and helping our weakness by their fraternal concern" (Paul VI, CPG § 29).
So, Jesus told Dismas that he would be with him in Heaven TODAY. From tradition, we know that this repentant thief is St. Dismas. He is a holy saint, and his memorial day is March 25th. Christ said to Dismas, "TODAY, you will be with me in Paradise." His act of faith has saved him. So, brothers and sisters let us continue to keep our eyes and heart on the prize, which is Heaven, not Purgatory.
The final destination for the suffering souls in Purgatoy is Heaven. How unfortunate that JW emphasized more on Purgatory and criticize the priests who speak about Heaven during funerals.
ReplyDeleteDear Anonymous at 9:06 am,
DeleteYes, it is true that the final destination of the souls in Purgatory is Heaven. Salvation in Heaven is already assured them or should I even say....canonization is already assured them after their purification. Our prayers for the souls in Purgatory helps expedite their purification.
The priests who spoke of Heaven during those funerals are words reminding us that Heaven is the prize we should focus on because that is really where our hope is in. Our hope was never in Purgatory.
Philippians 3:14 "I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus"
The jungle emphasize a lot on Purgatory because they believe that only martyrs can go straight to Heaven and none of them are willing to be martyrs. So, they place more hope in Purgatory because they know at the end of their suffering will be heaven. It's like a student contented to get a D grade because in the end he knows he can still graduate with a passing D. So, he doesn't aim for the higher grade.
DeleteDear Anonymous at 9:46 am,
DeleteMartyrs who died for their faith in Jesus Christ indeed go straight to Heaven. Is it possible to go straight to Heaven without being a martyr? Apparently so because St. Dimas was with God in Paradise on the day he died, and he was not a martyr. He was the good thief who repented. According to a Catholic website:
3- It’s a place to avoid. Nevertheless, it can be avoided, and the saints have repeatedly encouraged us to make our Purgatory on earth.
Fr. Paul O’Sullivan gives the following advice for avoiding Purgatory (How to Avoid Purgatory):
avoid sin
do penance
accept suffering
frequent confession and Communion
pray with faith and perseverance
prepare for death: “Eternal Father, from this day forward, I accept with a joyful and resigned heart the death it will please You to send me, with all its pains and sufferings.”
gain indulgences
It’s advice that makes saints … even in this life. As Fr. Garrigou-Lagrange reminds us: Attaining sanctity on earth is possible—and normal—for everyone.
https://aleteia.org/2018/11/02/the-saints-tell-us-what-purgatory-is-actually-like/
One of the advice given above is to avoid sin, which is impossible for humans....but possible ONLY with God. With God, all things are possible. It is only with God's grace that one can walk like Christ.
I would also like to add that Pope Francis also said that it is possible to live a holy life. According to the Umatuna:
ReplyDeleteNo plaster saints: God gives grace to live holy lives, pope says:
"Holiness is both “a gift and call,” the pope told the crowd. God grants people the grace needed to be holy, but one must respond to that grace freely.
“Let us walk toward that ‘holy city’ where our brother and sister saints await us,” he said. “It’s true, we can tire because of the bumpiness of the road, but hope gives us the strength to get going.”
https://umatuna.org/news/world/no-plaster-saints-god-gives-grace-to-live-holy-lives-pope-says/
As one can see, even the Pope calls attention to Heaven rather than to Purgatory when he stated, "Let us walk to that 'holy city'......" Regardless of how bumpy the road may be, our hope is in Heaven, not Purgatory.
Rohr is wrong in criticizing the priests during funerals. All Saints Day and All Souls Day would be the appropriate time to bring in the topic of Purgatory, but not in a funeral. I don't think the priests are canonizing the dead person, but bringing some consolation to the family and friends. As Diana said, our hope is Heaven. And if a priest says that one day, we will meet our loved ones at the feast table in Heaven during a funeral, that's not a false statement. At end of the world, there will only be Heaven and Hell, and our loved ones in Purgatory will be in Heaven too. Purgatory will cease to exist in the end.
ReplyDelete