I read this today, and Purgatory has been on my mind since my Nana died.
I mean, everyone was consoling everyone in my family with "She's in Heaven now" and "She's reunited with her husband." And so everyone was comforted by these statements because everyone is Protestant.
Everyone except me, that is.
Little Catholic ol' me who boo-hoo-ed the entire funeral because no one could say anything to comfort me. Sure, my Nana's Earthly suffering had ended, but what next? More than likely, she went to purgatory. And purgatory is no Heaven. And in some ways, it might be worse than Earth depending upon how one lived her life.
I don't think she was baptized. So did she go directly to Hell? Surely, a just God would not send a woman who so fervently believed in Jesus to Hell. So did she experience baptism of desire?
If she did, she made it to Purgatory at least. How much time will she have to spend there? Will she be held to the same standards as a Catholic? Did any of her time on Earth, any of her suffering earn her some indulgences since she may or may not have been familiar with the idea of redemptive suffering? Will some of her sins be automatically forgiven and her time lessened if she had a mental disorder that caused her to commit sins?
And who will pray for her release from Purgatory besides little ol' me? Certainly no one else in my family. And what of my grandfather, an upstanding man, a good father, and a Methodist minister? What of him? Is he in Purgatory too?
But other people can pray others in general out of Purgatory, right?
Very rarely do situations remind me of bible verses, but I can't help but think of 1 Corinthians 13:11
And then I noticed it's the same chapter as popular love/wedding/theological virtues scriptures.
I can't help but feel I'm being told something here, but I can't make sense of it.
Either I'm too tired, too spiritually inexperienced, or too sinful to understand.
Or maybe some combination of the three.
But I used to like the idea of Purgatory before I became Catholic.
Now it really bothers me.
Still, I'll pray for my Nana, and all the dead.
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Oh J, I'm so sorry. I can't answer all of these questions-but I do know that if a mental disorder caused any of her actions then they wouldnt even be considered sinful, much less need to be forgiven. We must have full intellect and intent to commit a sin.
ReplyDeleteI was once told by a sweet little nun that we shouldn't worry about those in Purgatory (pray for them yes, worry-no) because they WANT to be purified for God. It's a cleansing by fire, yes, but they WANT to go through it because they want to be perfect before entering heaven. That always helped me.
And yes, she receives the prayers of all Catholics who are praying for the souls in Purgatory-not just yours specifically. I will pray for her too!