An Insight on Purgatory

The main intention of this blog will be not to debate about the fact of the existence of Purgatory, however, I will be discussing and simplifying purgatory to those who wish to know about it.

What is Purgatory?

Well, I am quite sure that most of us have come across this term quite often most probably during our catechism classes or as stories from our grandparents.

In quite simple terms, purgatory is place where the people who die in God's love or people who have accepted Jesus as our Lord and saviour and have accepted his friendship but have still had sins of lesser faults (the guilt of venial sin)which have not been repented for in the mortal life; undergo further purification through suffering so that every possible stain is removed from the soul and that the gates of heaven will be opened for the soul to enter the joy of heaven. For scripture says "Nothing unclean will enter heaven" - Revelation 21 : 27

I have used the word 'suffering' as a process of purifying the soul in purgatory. So, why do we suffer in purgatory? An answer to this is found directly in 1st Corinthians chapter 3 verses 11 to 15 "For no one can lay any other foundation than the one which we already have - Jesus Christ. Now anyone who build on that foundation may use gold, silver, jewels, wood , hay or straw. But there is going to come a time time of testing at the judgment day to see what kind of work each builder has done. Everyone's work will be put through the fire to see whether o\r not it keeps its value. If the work survives the fire, the builder will receive a great reward. But if the work is burned up, the builder will suffer great loss. THE BUILDERS THEMSELVES WILL BE SAVED, BUT LIKE SOMEONE ESCAPING THROUGH A WALL OF FLAMES."   

Yes, purgatory assures the soul, the promise of heaven however, the soul will have to undergo a purification through the  cleansing fire; a temporal punishment to have any spot or stain completely removed and the soul be purified.

Formulation of the Doctrine of Purgatory

The holy mother church revisited this doctrine especially at the Councils of Trent and Florence. This doctrine was formulated based on the concept of the purifying fire before the final judgment. "And whoever says a word against the Son of man will be forgiven; but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come" - Matthew 12 : 32 

"Therefore he made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin." 2nd Maccabees 12 : 46

In the 1st verse mentioned above, we see that there are references to made to Purgatory. Jesus states that anyone who sins or blasphemes against the holy spirit will not be forgiven either in this earthly life or the life after death. We are certain that only a sinless person enters heaven however if the person has blots and stains of the soul he must undergo purification in the age to come.

Common misinterpretations of Purgatory

Many of our Christian brethren, both catholic and protestant alike misconceive purgatory to be a second chance given by God to reach heaven. This misconception is a false understanding of the doctrine. Once dead, our eternity is sealed and there is no second chance. I have mentioned that only people who die in God's love, grace and friendship will be assured of heaven however, if a person still impure dies with a notion of this second chance instead of accepting God's friendship through the works of charity and other penitential acts; his fate is sealed at death accordingly by God.

I hope this blog was easy and understandable. Also, if you read this blog, I kindly request you to give a moment everyday for the souls in purgatory by reciting the prayer below:

"Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son,
Jesus, in union with the masses said throughout the world today,
for all the holy souls in purgatory, for sinners everywhere,
for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home
and within my family". Amen.

References: - The Holy Bible

- The catechism of the catholic church

The Great Service Of Light

The Great Vigil of Easter (also called the great service of light), when observed is the first service of Easter. It is celebrated at a convenient time between the sunset on Holy Saturday and sunrise of Easter Morning. The Easter Vigil is one that showcases the faithful's eagerness in anticipation of Christ's resurrection and in welcoming Our risen Christ; The Light Of The world.

"And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying "Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God." Revelation 12 : 10

This age old tradition and concept of a vigil dates back to the early church when Christianity had taken a basic shape. Up to the 6th century AD, the vigil would go on from Saturday night until day break. By the 10th century AD it prolonged as far as Easter Sunday afternoon. However by the middle ages the tradition of Easter vigil was lost due to an unstable practice that was changing with time and was celebrated as early as on Holy Saturday afternoon.

Then how is it that the tradition was brought back and we now observe the vigil on Holy Saturday night?? Well, In the year 1955 the Vatican officially announced that it was right that the vigil should be held on the sunset of the Holy Saturday

Here is the exact of the 1955 Vatican reform issued by the Holy See:

“In the middle ages various causes conspired to bring them forward earlier and earlier into the day, so that eventually they became morning functions, impairing the earlier harmony with the accounts given in the Gospel narratives. This disharmony was most glaring on the Saturday, which became liturgically the day of Resurrection instead of that day’s eve, and, liturgically again, from a day of darkest mourning became a day of light and gladness.”

Now that we know a little history of how the vigil came into being, lets deep dive into the  order of the vigil. Shall we??

The vigil of the Roman Catholic church consists of 4 main parts:

1. Blessing of the Easter Candle:

Before the start of the vigil, the lights of the church are turned off and the priest (main celebrant) greets the other celebrants and deacons and proceeds towards the main bon fire which is kept outside the church to bless and in lighting of the paschal candle.  Well, I'm guessing that by now you have pictured the Easter candle therefore, I'll spare an explanation of how the candle looks like and proceed further.!

What does the paschal candle symbolize?

The Paschal candle represents Christ, the Light of the World.

The pure beeswax of which the candle is made represents the sinless Christ who was formed in the womb of His Mother. The wick signifies His humanity, the flame, His Divine Nature, both soul and body.

In kindling new fire and lighting the paschal candle, we are reminded that Christ came as a light shining in darkness (John 1:5).

The main celebrant then prepares the Easter candle by inserting 5 incense grains into the candle. (As shown in the picture below)

The 5 grains represent the 5 wounds suffered by Jesus namely:

The three nails that pierced his hands and feet, the spear thrust into his side, and the thorns that crowned his head.

As these grains are being placed the celebrant identifies the other symbols etched on the candle:

1.The cross is always the central symbol, most clearly identifying it as the Paschal candle

2.The Greek letters alpha and omega signify that God is the beginning and the end (from the Book of Revelation)

3.The current year represents God in the present amidst the congregation( as shown in the picture which is 2013)

After the blessing of the paschal candle the Priest (or Deacon) takes the candle and, three times during the procession to the altar, lifts it high and sings alone "Christ our light" to which the people respond "Thanks be to God".

After the second such response all the people light their candles with a flame taken from the Easter Candle. With this, it is in a matter of a few minutes after which the entire church illuminates with the tiny drops of candle light of the entire congregation. The sight is indeed spectacular and filled with grace. A very familiar picture that comes to mind is the incident of the Pentecost.

"Then, what looked like flames or tongues of fire appeared and settled on each of them. And everyone present was filled with the Holy Spirit and began speaking in other languages as the Holy Spirit gave them this ability" Acts ch 2 : 3-4

Exultet

After the Easter candle is rested up on the mantle set up for the purpose, the entire congregation rises up to rejoice and in proclaiming Christ's light by taking part in a an age old proclamation sung with great joy and elegance; The Exultet

During the next 15 minutes, a deacon (or a priest, or a lay cantor if need be) intones the Exultet; one of the most evocative and poetic hymns of praise in all liturgy.

For a beautiful traditional version with included sheet music, you may click on the youtube video link below:

The text of the Exultet can be found in the website listed below:

Exultet Text

2. Liturgy Of The Word

The end of the Exultet concludes the 1st part of the service and begins the second part which is The liturgy of the word. This part is a collection of seven readings taken from the old testament (2 readings from Genesis, 1 Exodus, 2 from Isiah, 1 Baruch and the last reading from Ezekiel) after every reading a responsorial psalm is recited or sung . Although there are seven readings, a congregation may choose to have a minimum of 3 readings only. In the church where I go to, we have only three readings.

After the readings, a special prayer is said followed by the Gloria. This will be the first Gloria that has been sung since before Lent with an exception of Maundy Thursday and the solemnities that occur during lent. 

Following the Gloria is the opening mass prayer after which follows the Epistle of the Romans. Towards conclusion of the liturgy the priest reads the Gospel of Christ's resurrection and lastly the  Easter homily.

3. Christian Initiation and Renewal of Baptismal Vows

This beautiful part of the service gives us Catholics a chance to renew our baptismal vows once a year. The renewal of our baptismal promises enables us start a new and detest Satan and all his empty promises. In other words Christ's resurrection gives us new life. I will not be explaining the entire procedure but here are the prayers offered during this part of the service.

Invitation

Litany of the Saints

Blessing of the Water

Renunciation of Sin

Anointing with the Oil of Catechumens

Profession of Faith

Baptism

4. Liturgy Of The Eucharist

The vigil ends with the celebration of Eucharist (Mass) as usual and at the end the priest gives the final blessing and dismissal to which the people respond 'Thanks be to God, Alleluia , Alleluia'

The intention of this blog is to provide a better insight of the Easter Vigil. Also, do not forget to take a candle with you for the vigil.  Hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed typing it.

Have a blessed  and prayerful Holy week!!