Comfort In The Last Things

Don’t ever think we’re the first people who have been chosen to live through terrible times.  Read history and you’ll quickly discover that there were very few times during its long course when things ran smoothly and all was well with the world.  I’d even venture to say that there was never such a time, and that if we ever hope to achieve a perfect world, the only fulfillment of our desires will be in the perfect kingdom of heaven.  Our world is as God has always known it would be, with mankind exercising his free will for both good and evil.

St. Paul talks about his own times in today’s Epistle to the Philippians.  He points out to the citizens of Philippi the diametric opposition between those who are Christians and who live in the world, and those who are not, who live for the world.  He tells them, weeping he says, that these worldly men and women are the enemies of the cross of Christ.  And he makes no bones about reminding them of their end, which is, simply put, destruction.

In this month of November we turn our attention to the Four Last Things, Death, Judgment, Heaven and Hell.  It is the month of the Holy Souls, and we pray, more diligently than ever, for those suffering in Purgatory.  But we must also remember the other three things, the souls in heaven, the souls in hell, and the souls on earth, including our own, that will soon be judged.  We are in the process of celebrating the souls in heaven, the saints of the Church Triumphant, during this Octave of All Saints.  But we must also bring to mind, no matter how reluctantly, the souls in hell.  These are the souls whose end Paul warned about, whose “end is destruction.”  Just as we hold up the example of the saints in heaven that we might follow in their footsteps, so too must we hold up the example of the condemned souls in hell, precisely so that we will not follow in their footsteps.  In this sense, they are just as important to us as the saints although in a completely different way.  We might even conclude that their example is more influential in our lives—fear is very often a more violent emotion than hope, and the very thought of the despair of the damned is often enough to drive away even the strongest of temptations.  This should be the greatest fear of our lives, and we surely must want to avoid damnation above all other desires.

While we try, and sometimes very hard, we can’t seem to stop making mistakes along the way.  Sometimes these are errors of judgment, other times a deliberate choice to do the wrong thing.  But whatever we do wrong, we comfort ourselves with the thought that we can pick ourselves up again, we can undo some of the damage we have caused.  We generally are given a second chance and we rely on this to give us comfort in our sinning.  No matter how terrible the sins we commit, we’re still alive, still able to confess our sins to the priest, still able to get back in God’s good graces and save our soul.  However, and this is a difficult and even horrifying thing to do, we should close our eyes now and again and imagine the possibility of a sudden and unprovided death, and that thud of despair that comes with our final Judgment and condemnation.  At that instant we will have the full realization that there is nothing, absolutely nothing we can do to reverse course.  We can no longer undo the evil we have done.  We can no longer enjoy any hope at all that there will ever be an end to the most terrible torments of mind and body we have ever imagined.  There’s nothing else left but to despair.  Utter despair like we’ve never felt before, but will now be with us always.

This is why St. Paul weeps when he tells the Philippians about these enemies of the Cross whose end is destruction.  And we too, as we witness the apparent triumph of evil everywhere we look, must also, surely, be driven to weeping for the poor ignorant sinners of the world who have been abandoned by their popes and bishops and priests, left to wallow in their lust for material pleasures and possessions, plunging themselves in a desperate grasp for all the things that will inexorably drag them down to hell.  They are to be pitied, certainly, but more than that.  The conversion of sinners is one of the intentions of Holy Church for which we must pray whenever we seek to gain an indulgence.  It is something that we must always seek to bring about by our prayers, the turning away from sin by our fellow men, the return of the prodigal son to his Father in heaven.  This is what makes the angels rejoice, this is what is most pleasing to God.

Death, Judgment, Heaven and Hell.  Scary stuff, no doubt, four things we don’t like to think about too often.  But it’s November, the nights are getting longer and we are drawn more easily during the hours of darkness to dwell on this darker side of our faith.  It is not in vain that we do so, providing we think about it with the right frame of mind.  These are the dark thoughts that are meant to keep us from being complacent in our lukewarm attitude to God.  These are the thoughts that are meant to encourage, not frighten us, inspire us to love God more and love our own petty wants and desires less.  When we think about our death and judgment, let’s make sure we keep ourselves in a position to do so with peace and tranquility.   By maintaining our state of grace and practicing a godly lifestyle we may be confident in our hopes for heaven and free from any fears of hell.

Let’s not forget the souls of our neighbors also, and that we should share St. Paul’s horror at the thought that so many are heading to destruction.  It’s a sad sight to behold, and we are reminded of our Lord’s command to love our neighbor, to do whatever we can to turn these sinners around, so that they may avoid the destruction that awaits them and bring joy to the angels of heaven.

Welcome to the month of November.  It’s a tough one if we approach it as we should.  But if we do, it’s a month more than any other that will bring us peace of soul.