The Four Last Things
Thirty First Sunday in Ordinary Time (A)
The month of November begins with two important holy days – the Feast of All Saints and then the Commemoration of All Souls.
These two holy days have a long history and deep cultural significance. All Saints is also known as All Hallows and the evening before is known as Halloween.
All Souls is also known in some cultures as the Day of the Dead and is commemorated with special rituals in cemeteries.
These two holy days link the Church here on earth with the saints in heaven and the souls in purgatory. It reminds us that the Church has three components, the pilgrim Church on earth, the Church triumphant in heaven, and the Church suffering in purgatory.
There are bonds that exist between all three. During the month of November we, the Church on earth, are encouraged to remember and pray for the Church in purgatory, we know it as the Month of the Holy Souls.
This month also invites us to contemplate what the Catholic tradition calls the “Four Last Things” – death, judgement, heaven and hell.
This month of November is an appropriate time to contemplate these truths associated with our final destiny.
The first we contemplate is the reality of death. We all will die and so we will all have to face death. The spiritual maxim – memento mori (remember, you must die) – is not a morbid thought, but it invites us to recall that life is short and we should prepare for our death.
We should live life with death in mind. Every time we say the Hail Mary we ask the Mother of God to pray for us now … “and at the hour of our death”.
It is a salutary thought to consider that we will die. It is right and good to pray for and desire a good death. The Lord devoted a number of parables to the need to be prepared for death for we know neither the day nor the hour.
The second of the four last things is judgement. There will be a final reckoning as each of us face the judgement seat of God.
On many occasions in the Gospels the Lord speaks of the judgement that will come to each of us. Perhaps there is no clearer picture painted than that of the parable describing the separation of the sheep and goats, given in Matthew 25.
Catholic tradition speaks of two judgements: the particular judgement which occurs immediately after death.
Thus, we find in the Letter to the Hebrews these words, “It is appointed for men to die once and after that will come judgement” (Heb 9:27). The Church teaches:
“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 Church gives the name purgatory to this final purification of the elect, which is entirely different from the punishment of the damned (CCC 1030).”
Following the particular judgement is the prospect of purgatory, because there is a need for a purification of our souls before we can enter heaven.
Those in purgatory are saved, they are destined for heaven, and our prayers for them can hasten their entry into heaven.
There will be a general judgement at the end of the world when, as we say in the creed, Jesus “will come to judge the living and the dead”. After the final judgment, we will go either to heaven or to hell for all eternity.
Heaven is fullness of communion with God. Pope John Paul II commented that heaven “is neither an abstraction not a physical place in the clouds, but a living, personal relationship with the Holy Trinity (Address 21 July 1999).
The Catholic Catechism adds, “Heaven is the ultimate end and fulfilment of the deepest human longings, the state of supreme, definitive happiness” (CCC 1024).
The other eternal option is hell. Pope St John Paul II offered this teaching:
“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 every from joyful communion with him. It is precisely this tragic situation that Christian doctrine explains when it speaks of eternal damnation or hell (ibid).”
He adds that hell 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” (ibid).
Eternal damnation remains a real possibility. However, this is not to be the cause of unnecessary anxiety or despair, but rather a healthy reminder that we must choose the path to eternal life.
We must say ‘yes’ to God, ‘yes’ to goodness. In the First Eucharist Prayer, the Church prays on behalf of us all, “Father accept this offering from your whole family, … save us from final damnation, and count us among those you have chosen”.
The Christian life is one of hope. We believe that salvation has been won for us. Christ has conquered death and in his resurrection is the promise of our own rising from the dead.
However, redemption nevertheless remains an offer of salvation which each of us must freely accept. We have a choice to make.
In the month of November, it is appropriate to contemplate the Four Last Things. It is a time for us to contemplate and pray about our eternal salvation.
As we were reminded in the gospel today, we humble ourselves before the one God and Father and our prayer can be that which our Lady taught the children at Fatima: “O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all souls to heaven, especially those who most need thy mercy”.
Archbishop Julian Porteous
Sunday, 5 November 2023