The Purgatory Trap

St. Michael the Archangel and the Souls in Purgatory

 The trap of Purgatory is too many souls rely on Purgatory as the destination of their soul after death, and slap God in the face by not trusting in His mercy, and do not seek Heaven.  They use Purgatory as their "backup plan" and as a result lead lukewarm lives, saying to themselves that in an exchange for just doing the "minimum" faith requirement, thinking that when they die they will just have to spend a few years in Purgatory and then eventually end up in Heaven.

Whether we spend time in Purgatory is at God's discretion, not ours.  

The greatest misuse of Purgatory is that many Catholics do not fear God because of Purgatory.

Those that hang their hopes on Purgatory are already among the lukewarm and possibly among those heading to the second death. Jesus will spit those out of His mouth that have failed to make every effort to follow Jesus and heaven, NOT Purgatory.  

Catholics that rely on the sacraments to get them into Purgatory are greatly misusing those sacraments, even the last sacrament, the Anointing of the Sick.   Yes, the sacraments are for our purification and strengthening, but we are then to use this strengthening to take the gift we are given in the Holy Eucharist to the world that never receives it.  We become a walking talking Monstrance for the world.  This is for all non- Catholics, former Catholics, Atheists, etc.  

Monstrance with Eucharist

Story of Two Catholics:

The First:  
One Catholic, had not practiced the Catholic faith very often, and had many sins.   By God's grace a Catholic Priest came and gave this person Extreme Unction before death.  God will always honor the hands of the Priest and the sacraments he administers, so by the power of God, through the sacrament, the persons sins where forgiven.  However, because this person died soon after the sacrament was administered, there was not the opportunity for the person to repair the damaging affects of their sin.  The damaging affects of the sin would be carried by those this person sinned against.  God is perfect and just.  He will use the burden carried by those who are affected by this persons sin for that person's purification and to lead them to heaven.  

So is it right that the person who died, leaving behind heavy burdens for others to carry, be allowed to come into heaven?  It is totally at God's mercy and discretion, and by His justice, a soul might still enter heaven, but God will require us to pay every farthing.  By His perfect justice the soul might need to undergo purification at God's discretion, ergo the flames of purification, Purgatory. 

"...two thirds of them will be cut off and perish, and one third will be left. I will bring the one third through the fire; I will refine them as one refines silver, and I will test them as one tests gold."  Zechariah 13:8-9. 

The greatest mistake people make when they read scripture is to think that the Old Testament is in the past and no longer relevant.    If Jesus came to fulfill the Old Testament, and He is eternal, then what is said in the Old Testament still testifies to truth, but a truth of eternity and heaven, so if it testifies of eternity, God is teaching us of our eternal destination.  

The Second:  
The second Catholic went to Church every Easter and Christmas and went to Confession once a year.  There was no charity in this person's heart of anyone but themselves and the minimum requirement they thought they needed to do to get into Purgatory.   Because this person does not use the gifts of the Sacraments to keep him from being worldly, this person skirts mortal sin, and eventually falls into it.  This person is then deceived thinking they can wait till the Easter requirement for Confession.   God sends many warnings to this person through people around him to repent, but if this person dies in their sin they will face eternal suffering.  If they were able to receive the last Sacrament before death, God WILL honor the hands of the Priest and forgive this person's sin, but this person will be in the lowest part of Purgatory, suffering the same fires as those in Hell possibly till the end of time.  

Read the scripture above..."...two thirds of them will be cut off and perish, and one third will be left."  This should put fear in all of our hearts... 2/3 will go to eternal punishment!  

“Enter through the narrow gate;for the gate is wide and the road broad that leads to destruction, and those who enter through it are many. How narrow the gate and constricted the road that leads to life. And those who find it are few."  
Matthew, 7: 13-14. 

Anointing of the Sick

I tell you the truth:  There are many souls in Purgatory, that without the grace of God given through the Anointing of the Sick before their death would be in eternal damnation now.  

We must not think our sin is small, but see that even the smallest sin can totally separate us from God as God's justice decides.  If you think your sin is small, then you are constantly slapping God in the face as He is suffering on the Cross.  If we truly love God we should fear ALL sin as hurting the one we love.  If we slap someone and then say, "Oh, forgive me." the person may well forgive us, but if we slap them 10,000 times and say, "Oh forgive me.", with no intention in our hearts to really stop slapping them, then we do not fully love the one to whom we are seeking forgiveness.  

Is Purgatory real?  Yes.  When we deny Purgatory we call Jesus a liar.   " But whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven in this world or the next."  Matthew 12:32.  There IS a place of purification as God deems to use it for souls that have not been perfected for heaven.  

However, do not hope for Purgatory, but rather fear Hell and strive diligently by pouring your life out for others so that you may enter Heaven. 

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This blog post was inspired by a Protestant Minister and is dedicated to him:  Larry Conley. 

Catholics and Protestants

There is no room in the new economy of God for Arrogant Catholics.

We are arrogant about our faith with Protestants, and even arrogant among our selves as we have the Latin Mass click who thinks there's is the only Holy Mass.  Somehow their Mass is 'better' than any other.  

Catholics who are arrogant have no clue what it means to truly be a Catholic.  

The demon LOVES to see these squabbles!    

The Catholic is for the OTHER, not for themselves, that mean's everyone.  There is no Holy Mass greater than another, for it is the same Jesus in the Holy Eucharist, and the same Jesus offered to God.    Is the Latin Mass beautiful, yes.  Is it awesome to kneel and receive Holy Communion, yes, but these are gifts, we have no "rights" to them. 

I had a friend of mine see that I wear a chapel veil to Holy Mass, (New Mass, not in Latin), and she said, "Oh, I wear one of those when I go to Latin Mass."   I truly wondered if she knew why a woman wore a chapel veil.  A woman in this life has been given so many graces by God, sometimes a chapel veil is needed to place over the head in submission and say to God, "I submit to you my God and my King."  The chapel veil is not a uniform, it is an act of love and submission before God, no matter if the Holy Mass is in Latin or in the vernacular. 

The Holy Mass, Latin or New, is an opportunity for the Catholic to plead before the throne of God for the salvation of our brethren.   Also, this is a unique opportunity to even take Holy Communion for those who are not in attendance.  

If our hearts truly love, than we know what wonderful gift we have in the Holy Eucharist, and want to share it with others.  But how do we share this with our Protestant brethren?  

The answer is Mary.  Like the Virgin Mary, the graces that a Catholic has are to pass through them to those who would never receive such graces in this life.  

If we receive the Holy Eucharist, the body, blood, soul and divinity of Christ at Mass, then the piece of the Sacred Heart we have received longs to not only purify us but to be poured out through us for others.  

I have been to many Churches of my Protestant brethren,  and at all of them I felt unwelcome, or somehow 'dirty' for being Catholic.  Some of this is obvious demeaning statements, sometimes it is a look or other subtle means of communication.   In all of these Churches the message was obvious, that I needed conversion from my faith to theirs and quick.  I kept silent and endured this, but I came to realize that in very few Protestant Churches is the overt Catholic (I wear a Rosary and a Miraculous Medal) going to be welcomed.  

We should go anyway.  

A Catholic, confessed, having gone to Holy Mass and taken Holy Communion for the Protestants they are visiting are then called to take the Jesus they received to the midst of their Protestant brethren.  Not in competition, but in love and service.   

We are Catholic, we are responsible for our brothers, and we are called to go get them.  Not even overtly, but sometimes silently.  Sometimes wearing the Rosary and Miraculous Medal is all I needed to do to be the witness that He wanted me to be.  

Now is the time for them to come home.