Wis. 18:6-9; Ps. 33:1, 12, 18-22; Heb. 11: 1-2, 8-19; Lk. 12:32-48

“Where is that in the bible?”  Many non-Catholics question the church’s position on purgatory.  They ask “where is that in the bible?”  Purgatory is in the Old and the New Testament as a just judge comes to ensure the cleansing of our baptismal robes in our call to sanctity. Listen to these words, “That servant who did not make preparations nor act in accord with his will shall be beaten severely; and the servant who was ignorant of his master’s will but acted in a way deserving of a severe beating shall be beaten only lightly.”  Who is God speaking to, the sinner who died without faith in hell or to the ones he says “All these died in faith”?  Satan is the master of the fallen, Jesus is the Master of the redeemed. There is no doubt that justice belongs to God and he promises a time of atonement.  Jesus died for our sins yet when was the last time we went to confession to seek forgiveness of our sin?  If this night our life is demanded of us what then? 

The Catechism teaches in #1030 “All who die in God’s grace and friendship but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.”  The bible tells us in the book of Maccabees (2 Mac. 12:43-44) to atone for the dead through prayer “for if he were not expecting the fallen to rise again, it would have been useless and foolish to pray for them in death” yet even in the Old Testament we have Maccabeus talking a collection to send to Jerusalem for “an expiatory sacrifice” for the dead soldiers.  We are reminded how important it is to offer Masses for the dead and pray for them in atonement of their sins.  Yet how often in a funeral do we hear of purgatory?  Focus is given to being in heaven as our hope which is the final destiny but not necessarily a straight ticket. 

“Much will be required of the person entrusted with much, and still more will be demanded of the person entrusted with more” reminds us of the one sin we often fail to recognize.  It is the sin of omission.  The ten commandments have a focus on what “you shall not” but Jesus comes to fulfill what we shall be called to do.  There is a truth of accountability in God’s justice for all.  When will it be demanded if not now?   It comes at death in the purging of our sins in a state of purification called purgatory. 

Just as the more we give the greater the reward the less we serve the greater the sin by God’s commandment.  Charity is God’s call for justice and the sign of our love of God.  Wisdom says, “Your people awaited the salvation of the just”.  The just are the “holy children of the good” doing the will of the Father offering sacrifice of charity.  Charity is a sign of faith a “realization of what is hoped for and evidence of things not seen”.  Faith is the awareness that our time is coming when we will be before God and he recognizes his own in the love we offered in obedience just as Abraham did.  Our obedience is to respond to the call to serve.  We are a people of faith and we know our Father’s will, are we preparing ourselves by acting according to his will or is purgatory our next stop?

Why settle for purgatory when we are called to be saints? The opportunity to be charitable is constantly around us?  It begins in the home.  Husbands and wives when we get upset, frustrated, or even disappointed with each other what do our children witness in our behavior?  We can respond in outbursts, anger, criticism, blame or in charity express our concern, disappointment, and our desire for something greater of each other.  When we see our children picking on each other using language we ourselves say is it simply kids misbehaving or are they already following down a path that justifies being uncharitable.  Love is patient, kind, generous, charitable and at times a difficult challenge.  Our heart cries out “If you only knew what I have to live with!”  Our goal is to get each other to heaven so don’t simply live with it, make it better.  It begins by working on ourselves and we will see the impact our life can have on others. 

One thing is certain that a just God knows the degree of our sinfulness, our understanding, and our will to be just, loving, charitable, and merciful.  Dante speaks of purgatory as the place we go to get our baptismal robes cleaned.  The stains we carry are the stains we have not confessed.  It is a sure sign of heaven coming, an inheritance delivering us from the death of sin we carry.  Today that sin can be confessed and our sacrifice is to “avoid the near occasion” of sin yet when we fail, we have a loving Father ready to reconcile us back to him. 

Finally, where is the “evidence of things not seen”?  It is there on the cross and in the resurrection of Jesus.  For all who give evidence by their testimony, Jesus is alive.  “Stay awake and be ready!”  The Son of Man is coming and it is in the bible, in the Mass, and in our hearts.