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Heaven is Fullness of Communion with God
Heaven as the fullness of communion with God was the
theme of the Holy Father's catechesis at the General
Audience of 21 July 1999. Heaven "is neither an
abstraction not a physical place in the clouds, but
a living, personal relationship with the Holy Trinity.
It is our meeting with the Father which takes place
in the risen Christ through the communion of the Holy
Spirit," the Pope said.
1. When the form of this world has passed away, those
who have welcomed God into their lives and have sincerely
opened themselves to his love, at least at the moment
of death, will enjoy that fullness of communion with
God which is the goal of human life.
As the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches, "this
perfect life with the Most Holy Trinity this communion
of life and love with the Trinity, with the Virgin Mary,
the angels and all the blessed is called "heaven'.
Heaven is the ultimate end and fulfilment of the deepest
human longings, the state of supreme, definitive happiness"
(n.1024).
Today we will try to understand the biblical meaning
of "heaven", in order to have a better understanding
of the reality to which this expression refers.
2. In biblical language "heaven"", when
it is joined to the "earth", indicates part
of the universe. Scripture says about creation: "In
the beginning God created the heavens and the earth"
(Gn 1:1).
Heaven is the transcendent dwelling-place of
the living God
Metaphorically speaking, heaven is understood as the
dwelling-place of God, who is thus distinguished from
human beings (cf. Ps 104:2f.; 115:16; Is 66:1). He sees
and judges from the heights of heaven (cf. Ps 113:4-9)
and comes down when he is called upon (cf. Ps 18:9,
10; 144:5). However the biblical metaphor makes it clear
that God does not identify himself with heaven, nor
can he be contained in it (cf. 1 Kgs 8:27); and this
is true, even though in some passages of the First Book
of the Maccabees "Heaven" is simply one of
God's names (1 Mc 3:18, 19, 50, 60; 4:24, 55).
The depiction of heaven as the transcendent dwelling-place
of the living God is joined with that of the place to
which believers, through grace, can also ascend, as
we see in the Old Testament accounts of Enoch (cf. Gn
5:24) and Elijah (cf. 2 Kgs 2:11). Thus heaven becomes
an image of life in God. In this sense Jesus speaks
of a "reward in heaven" (Mt 5:12) and urges
people to "lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven"
(ibid., 6:20; cf. 19:21).
3. The New Testament amplifies the idea of heaven in
relation to the mystery of Christ. To show that the
Redeemer's sacrifice acquires perfect and definitive
value, the Letter to the Hebrews says that Jesus "passed
through the heavens" (Heb 4:14), and "entered,
not into a sanctuary made with hands, a copy of the
true one, but into heaven itself" (ibid., 9:24).
Since believers are loved in a special way by the Father,
they are raised with Christ and made citizens of heaven.
It is worthwhile listening to what the Apostle Paul
tells us about this in a very powerful text: "God,
who is rich in mercy, out of the great love with which
he loved us, even when we were dead through our trespasses,
made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have
been saved), and raised us up with him, and made us
sit with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus,
that in the coming ages he might show the immeasurable
riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ
Jesus" (Eph 2:4-7). The fatherhood of God, who
is rich in mercy, is experienced by creatures through
the love of God's crucified and risen Son, who sits
in heaven on the right hand of the Father as Lord.
4. After the course of our earthly life, participation
in complete intimacy with the Father thus comes through
our insertion into Christ's paschal mystery. St Paul
emphasizes our meeting with Christ in heaven at the
end of time with a vivid spatial image: "Then we
who are alive, who are left, shall be caught up together
with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air;
and so we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort
one another with these words" (1 Thes 4:17-18).
Sacramental life is anticipation of heaven
In the context of Revelation, we know that the "heaven"
or "happiness" in which we will find ourselves
is neither an abstraction nor a physical place in the
clouds, but a living, personal relationship with the
Holy Trinity. It is our meeting with the Father which
takes place in the risen Christ through the communion
of the Holy Spirit.
It is always necessary to maintain a certain restraint
in describing these "ultimate realities" since
their depiction is always unsatisfactory. Today, personalist
language is better suited to describing the state of
happiness and peace we will enjoy in our definitive
communion with God.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church sums up the Church's
teaching on this truth: "By his death and Resurrection,
Jesus Christ has "opened' heaven to us. The life
of the blessed consists in the full and perfect possession
of the fruits of the redemption accomplished by Christ.
He makes partners in his heavenly glorification those
who have believed in him and remained faithful to his
will. Heaven is the blessed community of all who are
perfectly incorporated into Christ" (n. 1026).
5. This final state, however, can be anticipated in
some way today in sacramental life, whose centre is
the Eucharist, and in the gift of self through fraternal
charity. If we are able to enjoy properly the good things
that the Lord showers upon us every day, we will already
have begun to experience that joy and peace which one
day will be completely ours. We know that on this earth
everything is subject to limits, but the thought of
the "ultimate" realities helps us to live
better the "penultimate" realities. We know
that as we pass through this world we are called to
seek "the things that are above, where Christ is
seated at the right hand of God" (Col 3:1), in
order to be with him in the eschatological fulfilment,
when the Spirit will fully reconcile with the Father
"all things, whether on earth or in heaven"
(Col 1:20).
To the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors the Holy
Father said:
I extend a special welcome to the young people taking
part in the Forum of the European Youth Parliament,
as well as to the St Vincent Ferrer Chorale from Kaohsiung,
Taiwan, and the Taiwanese Native Folklore Group, accompanied
by Cardinal Shan. Upon all the English-speaking visitors
and pilgrims, especially those from England, Scotland,
Korea, Taiwan, Canada and the United States, I invoke
the grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ. May you
have a happy and blessed summer!
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Hell is the State of Those who Reject God
At the General Audience of Wednesday, 28 July 1999,
the Holy Father reflected on hell as the definitive
rejection of God. In his catechesis, the Pope said that
care should be taken to interpret correctly the images
of hell in Sacred Scripture, and explained that "hell
is the ultimate consequence of sin itself... Rather
than a place, hell indicates the state of those who
freely and definitively separate themselves from God,
the source of all life and joy".
1. God is the infinitely good and merciful Father.
But man, called to respond to him freely, can unfortunately
choose to reject his love and forgiveness once and for
all, thus separating himself for ever from joyful communion
with him. It is precisely this tragic situation that
Christian doctrine explains when it speaks of eternal
damnation or hell. It is not a punishment imposed externally
by God but a development of premises already set by
people in this life. The very dimension of unhappiness
which this obscure condition brings can in a certain
way be sensed in the light of some of the terrible experiences
we have suffered which, as is commonly said, make life
"hell".
In a theological sense however, hell is something else:
it is the ultimate consequence of sin itself, which
turns against the person who committed it. It is the
state of those who definitively reject the Father's
mercy, even at the last moment of their life.
Hell is a state of eternal damnation
2. To describe this reality Sacred Scripture uses a
symbolical language which will gradually be explained.
In the Old Testament the condition of the dead had not
yet been fully disclosed by Revelation. Moreover it
was thought that the dead were amassed in Sheol, a land
of darkness (cf. Ez. 28:8; 31:14; Jb. 10:21f.; 38:17;
Ps 30:10; 88:7, 13), a pit from which one cannot reascend
(cf. Jb. 7:9), a place in which it is impossible to
praise God (cf. Is 38:18; Ps 6:6).
The New Testament sheds new light on the condition
of the dead, proclaiming above all that Christ by his
Resurrection conquered death and extended his liberating
power to the kingdom of the dead.
Redemption nevertheless remains an offer of salvation
which it is up to people to accept freely. This is why
they will all be judged "by what they [have done]"
(Rv 20:13). By using images, the New Testament presents
the place destined for evildoers as a fiery furnace,
where people will "weep and gnash their teeth"
(Mt 13:42; cf. 25:30, 41), or like Gehenna with its
"unquenchable fire" (Mk 9:43). All this is
narrated in the parable of the rich man, which explains
that hell is a place of eternal suffering, with no possibility
of return, nor of the alleviation of pain (cf. Lk. 16:19-3
1).
The Book of Revelation also figuratively portrays in
a "pool of fire" those who exclude themselves
from the book of life, thus meeting with a "second
death" (Rv. 20:13f.). Whoever continues to be closed
to the Gospel is therefore preparing for 'eternal destruction
and exclusion from the presence of the Lord and from
the glory of his might" (2 Thes 1:9).
3. The images of hell that Sacred Scripture presents
to us must be correctly interpreted. They show the complete
frustration and emptiness of life without God. Rather*
than a place, hell indicates the state of those who
freely and definitively separate themselves from God,
the source of all life and joy. This is how the Catechism
of the Catholic Church summarizes the truths of faith
on this subject: "To die in mortal sin without
repenting and accepting God's merciful love means remaining
separated from him for ever by our own free choice.
This state of definitive self-exclusion from communion
with God and the blessed is called 'hell'" (n.
1033).
"Eternal damnation", therefore, is not attributed
to God's initiative because in his merciful love he
can only desire the salvation of the beings he created.
In reality, it is the creature who closes himself to
his love. Damnation consists precisely in definitive
separation from God, freely chosen by the human person
and confirmed with death that seals his choice for ever.
God's judgement ratifies this state.
We are saved from going to hell by Jesus who
conquered Satan
4. Christian faith teaches that in taking the risk
of saying "yes" or "no", which marks
the human creature's freedom, some have already said
no. They are the spiritual creatures that rebelled against
God's love and are called demons (cf. Fourth Lateran
Council, DS 800-801). What happened to them is a warning
to us: it is a continuous call to avoid the tragedy
which leads to sin and to conform our life to that of
Jesus who lived his life with a "yes" to God.
Eternal damnation remains a real possibility, but we
are not granted, without special divine revelation,
the knowledge of whether or which human beings are effectively
involved in it. The thought of hell — and even
less the improper use of biblical images — must
not create anxiety or despair, but is a necessary and
healthy reminder of freedom within the proclamation
that the risen Jesus has conquered Satan, giving us
the, Spirit of God who makes us cry "Abba, Father!"
(Rm. 8:15; Gal. 4:6).
This prospect, rich in hope, prevails in Christian
proclamation. It is effectively reflected in the liturgical
tradition of the Church, as the words of the Roman Canon
attest: "Father, accept this offering from your
whole family ... save us from final damnation, and count
us among those you have chosen".
To the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors, the
Holy Father said.
I am pleased to greet the English-speaking pilgrims
and visitors present at today's audience, especially
those from England, Scotland, Nigeria, Hong Kong and
the United States of America. I wish you a pleasant
visit to Christian Rome and I invoke upon you the grace
and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
*[Note: The original Italian says, "(Più
che) More than a place, hell indicates..." This
suggests correctly that although hell is not essentially
"a place," rather the definitive loss of God,
confinement is included. Thus, after the general resurrection
the bodies of the damned, being bodies not spirits,
must be in "some place," in which they will
receive the punishment of fire.] return to text
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Purgatory Is Necessary Purification
Before we enter into full communion with God, every
trace of sin within us must be eliminated and every
imperfection in our soul must be corrected
At the General Audience of Wednesday, 4 August 1999,
following his catecheses on heaven and hell, the Holy
Father reflected on Purgatory. He explained that physical
integrity is necessary to enter into perfect communion
with God therefore "the term purgatory does not
indicate a place, but a condition of existence",
where Christ "removes ... the remnants of imperfection".
1. As we have seen in the previous two catecheses,
on the basis of the definitive option for or against
God, the human being finds he faces one of these alternatives:
either to live with the Lord in eternal beatitude, or
to remain far from his presence.
For those who find themselves in a condition of being
open to God, but still imperfectly, the journey towards
full beatitude requires a purification, which the faith
of the Church illustrates in the doctrine of "Purgatory"
(cf. Catechism of the Catholic Church, n. 1030-1032).
To share in divine life we must be totally
purified
2. In Sacred Scripture, we can grasp certain elements
that help us to understand the meaning of this doctrine,
even if it is not formally described. They express the
belief that we cannot approach God without undergoing
some kind of purification.
According to Old Testament religious law, what is destined
for God must be perfect. As a result, physical integrity
is also specifically required for the realities which
come into contact with God at the sacrificial level
such as, for example, sacrificial animals (cf. Lv 22:
22) or at the institutional level, as in the case of
priests or ministers of worship (cf. Lv 21: 17-23).
Total dedication to the God of the Covenant, along the
lines of the great teachings found in Deuteronomy (cf.
6: 5), and which must correspond to this physical integrity,
is required of individuals and society as a whole (cf.
1 Kgs 8: 61). It is a matter of loving God with all
one's being, with purity of heart and the witness of
deeds (cf. ibid., 10: 12f.)
The need for integrity obviously becomes necessary
after death, for entering into perfect and complete
communion with God. Those who do not possess this integrity
must undergo purification. This is suggested by a text
of St Paul. The Apostle speaks of the value of each
person's work which will be revealed on the day of judgement
and says: "If the work which any man has built
on the foundation [which is Christ] survives, he will
receive a reward. If any man's work is burned up, he
will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but
only as through fire" (1 Cor 3: 14-15).
3. At times, to reach a state of perfect integrity
a person's intercession or mediation is needed. For
example, Moses obtains pardon for the people with a
prayer in which he recalls the saving work done by God
in the past, and prays for God's fidelity to the oath
made to his ancestors (cf. Ex 32: 30, 11-13). The figure
of the Servant of the Lord, outlined in the Book of
Isaiah, is also portrayed by his role of intercession
and expiation for many; at the end of his suffering
he "will see the light" and "will justify
many", bearing their iniquities (cf. Is 52: 13-53,
12, especially vv. 53: 11).
Psalm 51 can be considered, according to the perspective
of the Old Testament, as a synthesis of the process
of reintegration: the sinner confesses and recognizes
his guilt (v. 3), asking insistently to be purified
or "cleansed" (vv. 2, 9, 10, 17) so as to
proclaim the divine praise (v. 15).
Purgatory is not a place but a condition of
existence
4. In the New Testament Christ is presented as the
intercessor who assumes the functions of high priest
on the day of expiation (cf. Heb 5: 7; 7: 25). But in
him the priesthood is presented in a new and definitive
form. He enters the heavenly shrine once and for all,
to intercede with God on our behalf (cf. Heb 9: 23-26,
especially, v. 24). He is both priest and "victim
of expiation" for the sins of the whole world (cf.
1 Jn 2: 2).
Jesus, as the great intercessor who atones for us,
will fully reveal himself at the end of our life when
he will express himself with the offer of mercy, but
also with the inevitable judgement for those who refuse
the Father's love and forgiveness.
This offer of mercy does not exclude the duty to present
ourselves to God, pure and whole, rich in that love
which Paul calls a "[bond] of perfect harmony"
(Col 3: 14).
5. In following the Gospel exhortation to be perfect
like the heavenly Father (cf. Mt 5: 48) during our earthly
life, we are called to grow in love, to be sound and
flawless before God the Father "at the coming of
our Lord Jesus with all his saints" (1 Thes 3:
12f.). Moreover, we are invited to "cleanse ourselves
from every defilement of body and spirit" (2 Cor
7: 1; cf. 1 Jn 3: 3), because the encounter with God
requires absolute purity.
Every trace of attachment to evil must be eliminated,
every imperfection of the soul corrected. Purification
must be complete, and indeed this is precisely what
is meant by the Church's teaching on purgatory. The
term does not indicate a place, but a condition of existence.
Those who, after death, exist in a state of purification,
are already in the love of Christ who removes from them
the remnants of imperfection (cf. Ecumenical Council
of Florence, Decretum pro Graecis: DS 1304; Ecumenical
Council of Trent, Decretum de iustificatione: DS 1580;
Decretum de purgatorio: DS 1820).
It is necessary to explain that the state of purification
is not a prolungation of the earthly condition, almost
as if after death one were given another possibility
to change one's destiny. The Church's teaching in this
regard is unequivocal and was reaffirmed by the Second
Vatican Council which teaches: "Since we know neither
the day nor the hour, we should follow the advice of
the Lord and watch constantly so that, when the single
course of our earthly life is completed (cf. Heb 9:
27), we may merit to enter with him into the marriage
feast and be numbered among the blessed, and not, like
the wicked and slothful servants, be ordered to depart
into the eternal fire, into the outer darkness where
"men will weep and gnash their teeth' (Mt 22: 13
and 25: 30)" (Lumen gentium, n. 48).
6. One last important aspect which the Church's tradition
has always pointed out should be reproposed today: the
dimension of "communio". Those, in fact, who
find themselves in the state of purification are united
both with the blessed who already enjoy the fullness
of eternal life, and with us on this earth on our way
towards the Father's house (cf. CCC, n. 1032).
Just as in their earthly life believers are united
in the one Mystical Body, so after death those who live
in a state of purification experience the same ecclesial
solidarity which works through prayer, prayers for suffrage
and love for their other brothers and sisters in the
faith. Purification is lived in the essential bond created
between those who live in this world and those who enjoy
eternal beatitude.
To the English-speaking pilgrims and visitors the Holy
Father said:
I am pleased to greet the English-speaking visitors
and pilgrims present at today's Audience, especially
those from England, Ireland, Indonesia, Hong Kong, Japan
and the United States. Upon all of you I invoke the
grace and peace of our Lord Jesus Christ. Happy summer
holidays to you all!
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Taken from:
L'Osservatore Romano
Weekly Edition in English
Heaven: 28 July 1999, 7
Hell: 4 August 1999, 7
Purgatory: 11/18 August, 7
L'Osservatore Romano is the newspaper of the Holy See.
The Weekly Edition in English is published for the US
by:
The Cathedral Foundation
L'Osservatore Romano English Edition
320 Cathedral St.
Baltimore, MD 21201
Subscriptions: (410) 547-5315
Fax: (410) 332-1069
lormail@catholicreview.org
Encyclopedia of Catholicism from HaperCollins. Editor
Richard P. McBrien. HarperCollins Publishers. New York,
NY. © 1995.
Catechism of the Catholic Church: Second Edition. United
States Catholic Conference—Liberia Editrice Vaticana.
©1997.
Scripture quotations are from the New Revised Standard
Version of the Bible, ©1989 by the Division of
Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches
of Christ in the USA.
Perkins, Pheme. Reading the New Testament: Second Edition.
Paulist Press. New York, N.Y./Mahweh, N.J. ©1988.
Dues, Greg. Catholic Customs and Traditions: Revised
and Expanded. Twenty-Third Publications. Mystic, CT.
©1992.
Boadt, Lawrence. Reading the Old Testament: An Introduction.
Paulist Press. New York, N.Y./Mahweh, N.J. ©1984.
Martos, Joseph. Doors to the Sacred: A Historical Introduction
to the Sacraments. Ligouri/Triumph. Ligouri, MO. ©1991.
McKenzie, John L. Dictionary of the Bible. MacMillan
Publishing Company. New York, NY. ©1975.
Archive of Articles by Wayne Talbot:
March
18 Article
April
15 Article
April
1 Article
May
6 Article
The
mission of St. Thomas More's Adult Education program
begins with a belief in the Good News of Jesus Christ.
Adult Religious Education is to proclaim the Gospel
brought to us in Scripture, understand Catholic teaching,
dialogue, and to share our common values in a respectful
community. We, as adults, are the primary educators
of faith and so we need to understand what we believe
and why we believe so that we can better communicate
our faith to the world. As a People of God we know that
our faith is expressed in our daily life through word
and action.
There
are small faith-sharing groups
of 10-12 people that happen at different points of the
year. We encourage anyone who wants to be a part
of a small community to join and even lead these groups.
They meet in the homes of the leaders and are good ways
to openly discuss individual faith experiences. Please
call the parish offices for times and topics if you
want to lead a small group or join one.
The
small faith-sharing group is modeled after the early
communities of the Church. These groups met in the houses
of the believers and broke bread and shared the stories
of faith with one another. These small communities kept
the faith alive and expressed their beliefs in their
everyday lives. The small faith communities are not
a separate community but they are linked to the whole
Church by their involvement in parish life.
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