OCR Text |
Show f.; Purgatory and Indulgences j (Catholic Observer, London, Ont.) A recent cablegram from Madrid states that a certain professor, Joseph Bro'nta of that city, has made in all seriousness a statement the purpose of which is to prove mathematically that there cannot can-not be any souls in purgatory needing our prayers. It is almost needless to say that in making bis calculations the professor shows an utter ignorance of Catholic doctrine on the subjects of purgatory, prayers for the dead and indulgences. The gist of Ids statement is found in the following extract from the dispatch referred to, which is dated Aug. S: "According to the Catholic Church,. members of that institution only are sent to purgatory. There are 15,000,000 of Catholics, among whom 10,125 deaths occur daily. One-half of that number are condemned to Hades on account of their sins. Of the other half, sixty-three are angelic enough to go to heaven direct, while 5,000 are booked for Purgatory. Pur-gatory. But here the Holy Church interferes. Pope Pio Xono granted a complete indulgence wherby a good Catholic may rescue 535 souls out of purgatory. pur-gatory. Therefore if only ten Christians acquire this indulgence daily, this would be equivalent t releasing all the souls condemned to purgatory day by day, with 350 to spare." He then declares that thousands of people .gain this indulgence every day, besides numerous other indulgences by which the pains of from ten to one hundrd years of purgatory are remitted. Thus, according ac-cording to the professor, the inference gained must be sufficient in number to release 150,000 souls from purgatory for every 5,000 who go there, and "if a poor soul arrives at the gates to do penance, the guardian angel stationed there gives it a splendid surprise by sending it to heaven by the most direct route, explaining that some friend or stranger, at any rate, some good Catholic, freed it beforehand by powerful prayer." Our surprise is that the Madrid correspondent of the press should think it worth his while to send over the cable such a farrago of nonsense, which he ought to know, is not justified by any teachings of the Catholic Church. 1. In the first place, the Catholic Church does not declare, as. the professor indicates, that ouly those belonging to the Church (exteriorly) go to purgatory. 2. The total number of Catholics in the world is about 250,000,000, not 150,000,000. 3. We can have no accurate data regarding the number of souls who go directly 'to heaven or to purgatory or hell daily. On this point, however, we admit that within certain lirnit3 of uncertainty it would be allowable to make a reasonable hypothesis hypo-thesis for the purpose of arriving at a truth, if the professor's other data were reasonable or true, which they are not. 4. Pope Pius IX never issued an indulgence with the assurance that it would release 535 souls daily from purgatory. Xo Pope ever could or did. give such an assurance. This statement, which is the foundation for all Professor Bronta's calculations, calcula-tions, being proved false, all his theory tumbles to the ground. 5. There is no indulgence issued with the absolute ab-solute assurance of the liberation of a soul from purgatory, though it must be said that the merits of Christ and of His saint3 are sufficient to deliver thousands of souls daily. To what extent these merits, especially those of Christ which are of indefinite in-definite value, are actually applied for the remission remis-sion of sins, and of the punishment due to sin, we have no means of knowiu-r. This ImM among the mysteries which arc knuwi, ,.h. r''!".aia and thus the whole computation , ," j. """I, Bronta is dissipated to the wimU. ' '" 'r : The Catholic Church believe-. t!i;i! a penalty to be undergone for sin, cvi .,,-r have been forgiven as to their uili ,Hi, ,''r'' punishment duo to then;. Tin-. j.,,..;,x ;-'7!:''' " this case was death, wa., ulfcrcd ',,v ,',.! !U ? ents, and continues to be MihYn-d ,v ?!;, '','' !'llr" rr even after the sin was forgiven a- t., t v '' was endured by the Israelites, v.h,, ,llUJ,',' against God, and were obli-d i- vai:-i,.r ;;, ' it lands for forty years, so that the nm:minvrl j T: all die there, and only tln ir chiLiren o ., ,J,j the land '-flowing with milk and hlllM.v." w l,;, ' , ' : had promised to the nation. Thi- iiuiiJ.-,, ,,! '"' c also inflicted after the sin ws forgive-;. ''b Over this temporal punishment. ,lUl. .,, , Pope has control, whereas t S'. 1', -t, ... ' Head of the Church. Christ pave j.i'.v.-er :,, l,;u"' loose the bonds which delay our udtui-,;.,., "r heaven. ' "'" It is for the purpose of remit tin-punishment tin-punishment of sin, in part r emj--. s ;,.",'' Pope isues indulgences. We kn-w '!;.: V'"' dulgences are ratified in heaven. 1,-riiU, j, acts with the authority transmitted :V.-., St r't' but we do not know the exact exieni p. vv,;;,. t ' are applied to the souls in purgatory. .,, .j",' fore, we, do good works for their beia-r;?. '; to God in His infinite mercy to .,t i;,. ,;i value at which He estimated t!' m. ""' jj An indulgence granted for ;t -.-.:,.. i(r; j whether of years or days, does if.; ;... u tf" Bronta pretends, that the pains of : . 1 1 r ; ; r, , r v diminished for that term. Ir -12: tbr tC are issued as an equivalent: for -.-rrr j8 , ,,,1 penances which have hen ordered ,v ( !U1.V to be imposed 011 penitents for I he1 1 ;,,. t(,'rjj on account of certain sins. Thrty av- f..r,.n,v'j ' a term of days or years of earthly. i:d ; ,,f gatorial penance. From these exph.n.e ;, j, ' n; be readily seen that Professor p,i. :;?;" ., l !nu:i' tions are as malicious as thv nrc ;:lw-''.!. We must here also remark aii..;!;.- ,,:!ir f which the professor is in error: It is not known to what extent anv e! )sarv :. 'diligence is gained by any individual per.-n'wi,' performs the conditions. To gain a plenary indulgence ct;m.T.-.vjv j, necessary to give up all affection for v.-.;; .,, well as mortal sins, and it is impos-ihle to .-f;m,ro how many persons attain this very complete pr-.it-encc. This is a matter known op.ly to (Jo,!. nn,j uij estimates thereof made by man mu-- b f ;;na.-t:.--d and fallacious. To those persons. thcrcf...--. v-!.- fulfill the physical and mental condition, e;y.ii.;:. ated as necessary for the gaining of the it:. i vi!rr a plenary indulgence will become part!:i! if r,.-fall r,.-fall short of the detestation of all in whVn L quired for the attainment of the desired ran. ja its fulness. |