We have all mourned the loss of a loved one. We offer masses, recite the Rosary and offer alms to hasten their purification and lead them to heaven. After rejoicing with the Saints on November 1st, the Mother Church intercedes with Christ, for the suffering souls, still groaning in pain, awaiting Paradise. The Catechism of the Catholic Church defines purgatory as a purification so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven for those´who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified. (CC1030)
How long do we have to stay in Purgatory? Although its a complex subject, let us pursue the teachings of the Catholic Church and seek answers through the lives of Saints. Hell, Heaven and purgatory are beyond the prism of time. As Pope Benedict pointed out in his encyclical ‘Spe Salvi’, purgatory is a state of purification rather than a place. Although temporary, it might seem like an eternity. The primary objective of purgatory is to mature the soul for communion with God.
Offering masses for the dead began in the 5th century. However, it was St Odilo who instituted the November 2nd celebration as ‘All Souls’ Day’ in the 10th century. This practise later spread throughout Christendom. The Church prays for those who have fallen asleep in the Lord, for all Eucharistic masses it celebrates, but on 2nd November they are remembered in a very special way.
Saint Catherine of Genoa, the 15th century mystic compared purgatory to a hungry person seeking a loaf of bread. Purgatory is the pain of getting to the bread. The bread is of course Christ. Saint Nicholas de Tolentino, the 13th century Augustian friar who offered Panini Benedetti ( blessed sandwiches) to the sick is the patron of souls in Purgatory. One night while he was asleep, a soul named Friar Pellegrino de Osimo visited him from Purgatory.
The two were known to each other while Friar Pellegrino was alive. He begged Nicholas to celebrate a mass, so he could be freed from the torments. Since Nicholas was assigned to say the community mass, he said he could not offer the mass for his intention. Pellegrino pleaded with Nicholas to come along with him to witness the sufferings of those unfortunate souls who await his help. Nicholas saw a great sea of souls of all ages, gender and conditions. The monastery’s chief permitted him to celebrate the mass after hearing of his account. Seven days later, Pelligrino appeared again along with a multitude of souls that had been freed by his mass. During one mass he celebrated, Jesus Himself appeared to him and showed him the souls his Eucharistic celebration had released.
Saint Elizabeth of Portugal during her reign was deeply grieved by the premature and untimely death of her daughter Constance. A hermit told her that, Constance had appeared to him and had requested masses to be said for her for a period of one year to be released from purgatory. One year later, Constance appeared to her mother, clothed in a brilliant white robe and told her that she was about to enter heaven. Saint Frances of Rome in her vision saw the three stages of purgatory.The lowest was like a burning sea, the middle less rigourous and the highest level of purgatory is populated by those souls about to enter Paradise. One mystic confirmed that when we pray for a specific person who is in purgatory, they see us at that instant and are strengthened by the knowledge that we are praying for them.
Saint Teresa of Avila was once visited by a priest from purgatory. He revealed to her that he would remain in Purgatory until a mass was offered for him in the chapel, of an yet to be built Carmelite house. Saint Teresa sought permission from the bishop for a temporary chapel to be erected as it would take time for the church to be constructed. During mass, Saint Teresa saw a vision of the priest thanking her for her efforts. Purgatory has an unusual visitor. Mother Mary visits Purgatory to console and comfort the souls while they undergo purification. According to Catholic saints, St. Alphonsus de Liguori and St. Bernardine of Siena, Mary has the special power to shorten, assuage, or completely free souls from purgatory through her prayers and merits. Devotion to Our Lady of Mount Carmel and wearing the Brown Scapular is traditionally associated with her promise of special aid and deliverance from purgatory—particularly on the Saturday following death.
Our prayers are spiritually valuable to souls distant from the Good Lord. Every sinner has a future and every saint has a past. This November let us unite with the Universal Church as She intercedes for the release of a multitude of souls. Their prayers for us become meritorious after they enter heaven, and they will come to our aid when our time is through.
-Valessa Maria Quadros.