Picture of Purgatory

Reflections on the resurrection of the righteous

11/04/2019

Luke 14:12-14 On a sabbath Jesus went to dine at the home of one of the leading Pharisees. He said to the host who invited him, "When you hold a lunch or a dinner, do not invite your friends or your brothers or sisters or your relatives or your wealthy neighbors, in case they may invite you back and you have repayment. Rather, when you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid at the resurrection of the righteous."

In the month of November both the Book of Nature and the Book of Scripture invite us to meditate on the end of earthly life and the hope of heavenly life. We watch the lovely tree leaves falling and the world falling asleep; likewise, we blessed cemeteries yesterday and prayed for those who had fallen asleep in Christ. In the gospel today, Jesus talks about “the resurrection of the righteous,” and I would like to offer you three reflections on that resurrection of the righteous, since it seems both Nature and Scripture beckon us to do it.

The first point: a few years ago my uncle passed away in New Delhi, India and my parents and returned for the funeral Mass. The Indian tradition required that after a funeral Mass, the family should invite the poor neighbors to their home for a feast in honor of the deceased. But what often happens, though, is only the family and friends attend and the poor are neglected. My parents decided, therefore, that instead we would go to a leper colony run by Mother Teresa’s Sisters and feed the people there, which we did for lunch. My parents also made a generous donation to the ministry of the Sisters.

That tradition is rooted in today’s gospel from Luke 14, where Jesus taught: “When you hold a banquet, invite the poor, the crippled, the lame, the blind; blessed indeed will you be because of their inability to repay you. For you will be repaid in the resurrection of the righteous.” But notice the pivotal point: that act of charity was not for our benefit, but rather for my uncle’s. In other words, we prayed God would apply that act of charity to my uncle’s list of good deeds and usher him out of purgatory more promptly, so he might more speedily enjoy the resurrection of the righteous.

Second point: Do you ever wonder what really happens in purgatory? Certainly, it is a place of purgation and purification and preparation for entry into heaven. In addition, I would like to suggest this analogy, in order to give you a “picture of purgatory.” I believe all the dead in purgatory are undergoing “seminary training” in order to become priests and nuns in heaven. In heaven, therefore, everyone will be a priest or a nun. We know that on earth the fundamental focus of priests and nuns is to love God and neighbor, and we achieve that objective primarily by not being married.

St. Paul taught in 1 Corinthians 7:32, “An unmarried man is anxious about things of the Lord, how he may please the Lord.” A few verses later, the Apostle adds this for ladies: “An unmarried woman or virgin is anxious about the things of the Lord, so that she may be holy in both body and spirit.” In purgatory, therefore, we will be purified from worldly anxieties so we can be anxious about the things of the Lord” and please him. In Matthew 22, Jesus adds his own weight to this analogy of purgatory as seminary, saying: “At the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage but are like the angels in heaven.” In other words, if you’ve ever wondered: “What would it be like to be a priest or a nun?” well, you will find out in purgatory, where human marriage will give way to divine marriage between Jesus and his Bride, the Church. Ironic as it may sound, purgatory is simultaneously seminary preparation and marriage preparation. We will be both celibate toward human persons, but married to the divine Person, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity, Jesus Christ, the Word made Flesh.

Here’s the third point: have you been keeping up with the latest synod of bishops and laity that Pope Francis has convoked in Rome? The purpose of the synod is to discuss issues of evangelization and ecology. But the headlines have been hijacked by the controversial topic of allowing married deacons become ordained priests. Now, to be clear, priestly celibacy is a tradition that slowly evolved over the first 600 years of Church history, and finally became normative and normal about 1, 000 years ago. It is a discipline not a doctrine and therefore it can be changed. The Holy Father would be acting fully within his apostolic authority if he modified that discipline, especially in the Amazon region rather than universally.

But personally, I hope he does not do that. Why? When we lose the celibate priesthood, we lose our picture of purgatory as preparation for heaven. Every Sunday when we attend Mass we see a celibate priest preaching the Good News and feeding Christ’s flock with the Lord’s own Body and Blood. But because he is celibate, he does even more than that: he gives every parishioner who stops to reflect deeply a preview of coming attractions, a picture of purgatory. In other words, beholding a celibate priest at the altar every Christian could say with confidence: “Someday I will be like Fr. John.” That picture of purgatory, and future heavenly glory, is what Amazonia would lose if the Holy Father relaxes the discipline of celibacy.

That’s what I believe Jesus means when in Luke 14 he refers to the “resurrection of the righteous.” And now you know what people are doing in purgatory.

Praised be Jesus Christ!