Nov 2nd - Poor Souls in Purgatory

 

Nov. 2^nd is All Souls Day, the day we remember and pray for the poor souls in purgatory. The word Trinity is not in the bible, but the Holy Trinity is in the bible, Jesus said, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit”.

The word purgatory is not in the bible, but the doctrine of purgatory is in the bible. We read in Holy Scripture: The book of Maccabees also states, “Turning to supplication, they prayed that the sinful deed might be fully blotted out.” "It is a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead, that they may be loosed from sins."

“Thus (Judas Maccabees) made atonement for the dead that they might be freed from this sin.” (2 Maccabees 12:42-46)

St. Paul in his letter to the Corinthians states, “He himself will be saved, but as one fleeing from fire.” (1 Corinthians 3:15)

Jesus mentions purgatory in the Gospel of Matthew, “Settle with your opponent quickly while on the way to court with him. Otherwise, your opponent will hand you over to the judge, and the judge will hand you over to the guard, and you will be thrown into prison. Amen, I say to you, you will not be released until you have paid the last penny.” (Matthew 5:25-26)

The book of Revelation describes why there is purgatory. It states, “But nothing unclean will enter [heaven], nor any[one] who does abominable things or tells lies. Only those will enter whose names are written in the Lamb’s book of life.” (Rev 21:27).

St. Augustine said this about purgatory. He said, “The pain and suffering in purgatory is greater than any pain one can suffer on earth.”

Just imagine for a moment, what would be the greatest pain and sufferings in this life. Slowly being crushed to death, being burned in a fire, and yet, the pain and suffering of purgatory is greater than these.

With regard trying to go to heaven, we shouldn’t settle for a statement like this, “I will be happy if I just make it to purgatory.” St. Teresa of Avila corrected others who had this attitude. She said, “How sweet will death be, for the person, who has fully repented of all personal sins and can leap over purgatory.”

Who then would want to go to purgatory? There is a book written by Fr. Paul O’ Sullivan called “How to Avoid Purgatory”. Here is a portion of what he has to say.

He said, “The reason why we have to pass through Purgatory after death is that we have committed sins and have not made satisfaction for them. Every individual sin must be expiated—in this life or the next! Not even the slightest shadow of sin or evil can enter the all-holy presence of God. The graver, the more frequent the sins, the longer will be the period of expiation and the more intense pain. Even after sin, God, in His infinite goodness places at our disposal many easy and efficacious means by which we may considerably lessen our term of expiation, or even entirely cancel it.” Here are ways to Avoid Purgatory:

1. Remove the cause– Sin. Therefore we should avoid deliberate venial sin, break off bad habits and make a strong resolution to not sin. And most importantly avoid Mortal Sin.

2. Penance — Make satisfaction for our sins. We do this by offering little mortifications and practice self-denial. We need to avoid selfishness and avoid constantly choosing our likes over our dislikes. “Daily acts of self-restraint, of patience with others, of kindness to others and the exact fulfillment of duty are splendid penances and a great aid to happiness.”

3. Suffering– by bearing patiently what we cannot avoid. “every pain and sorrow and disappointment in this life lessons our suffering in Purgatory and also brings us happiness and glory in heaven.”

4. Frequent Confession, Holy Communion and daily attendance at Mass. Confession wipes away our sins, fills us with horror of sin and strength to overcome sin. “In Holy Communion, we receive the God of infinite mercy and love, the God of all sanctity, who comes expressly to pardon our sin and help us to sin no more.” “The Mass is identical with the Sacrifice of Calvary in its essence, in its value in the graces it bestows.” By attending and participating at Mass, we can apply all these oceans of graces to our souls, and that not once, but every day.

5. Ask God to Give You the Grace to Avoid Purgatory– We should pray expressly everyday of our life that God will free us from Purgatory.

6. Resignation of Death. “They say that when a sick person becomes aware that he is dying and offers to God his death with perfect resignation, it is very likely that he will go straight to heaven.”

7. Last Rites (Last Anointing, the Apostolic Pardon and Last Communion)- “Extreme Unction, if devoutly received, prepares the dying Christian for immediate entrance into heaven.”

8. Always wish to do God’s Will.

9. Pray for Souls in Purgatory everyday.

10. Daily Visit the Blessed Sacrament. “Kneeling in the presence of Jesus with eyes fixed on the Tabernacle, sure that He is looking at us, let us for a few minutes repeat some little prayer like these, “My Jesus, give me a happy death.”

11. Wear the Brown Scapular. (Three conditions: practice chastity, wear the scapular, daily recite the Rosary) The scapular has two promises. First, “Whoever dies wearing this scapular shall not suffer eternal fire”. “and the Sabbatine privilege, “I, the Mother of Grace, shall descend on the Saturday after their death, and whomsoever, I shall find in Purgatory, I shall free.”

12. Indulgence– There are two kinds of indulgences, partial and plenary. They can be either offered for our self or a soul in purgatory. (Requirements: Confession 8 days before or after. Receive Holy Communion. Pray for Our Father, Hail Mary for the Pope. One must be free from all attachment to sin) Here are some ways to gain a Plenary Indulgence: Visit Blessed Sacrament for at least 30 min. Read Scripture for 30 min. Make the Way of the Cross. Recite the Rosary in Church or in a group or as a family.

And what can we do to help the poor souls of purgatory to gain heaven?

To bring refreshment to the souls in purgatory and shorten their time, we can offer the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass for them. The Mass is the greatest prayer and most efficacious way to free souls from purgatory. The primary purpose of the Mass is to atone for our sins. We can offer Masses on special days of our beloved faithful departed. For example, some offer Masses on the anniversary of their death, or on what was traditionally their birthday, or a their wedding day.

We can also offer up our Holy Communions for particular souls. We can pray personal prayers for them, especially the rosary. We can also offer up our works, sacrifices and sufferings for particular souls. We can also obtain indulgences for them as well. The ancient practice of sprinkling holy water to relieve their suffering is noteworthy as well.

With the help of the Blessed Virgin Mary, today and throughout the month of November dedicated to the poor souls of purgatory, let us pray for them especially the rosary, and offer sacrifices and works, for a deceased loved one, and let's not forget the most powerful means to free a soul from purgatory, by offering the sacrifice of the Mass for their holy souls.

May perpetual light shine upon them-- and may the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God, rest in peace!