Eschatology

The Last Things: Death, Judgment, Heaven, Hell, Purgatory, and the Second Coming

Class Notes — March 7th | All Bible verses: Revised Standard Version Catholic Edition

I. Death

A. What is Death?

The Church describes death in three places in the Catechism simply as the separation of the soul from the body (CCC 624, 650, 997). This definition, while precise, leaves much of the mystery untouched -- it does not address the physical or medical manifestations of death. The medical definition of death itself shifts over time, sometimes in accord with agendas (e.g., organ harvesting). Near-death experiences (Lazarus was in the tomb 4 days; Christ stays 3 days intentionally) further complicate easy definitions. Our working definition for this class: death = separation of the soul from the body.

Death as we define it should be distinguished from the constructive and destructive forces of nature (CCC 310). Before the Fall, there was no death for the human person -- not for animals or plants in the broader ecological sense. St. Thomas: a tiger eating a rabbit is natural and not a result of the Fall. God's plan involves the appearance and disappearance of certain beings; this is not the same as human death caused by sin. The key: humans did not die prior to the Fall.

B. Where Did Death Come From?

de fide: Death is punishment for sin. Adam and Eve's original sin brought death to all their descendants. This is a defined dogma -- no argument. The dominion God gave humanity over creation was tied to the integrity of body and soul working together; the Fall broke this.

If Adam and Eve had not sinned: impassibility (inability to suffer) and immortality (inability to die) would have been sustained through their right relationship with God. A falling rock, a tiger -- they would have had the wisdom and dominion to avoid or command these things.

C. Is Death Natural?

Two senses: Given that man is a composite of matter and soul (unlike God who is limitless pure spirit), death could be called 'natural' in a limited sense. But this misses the fuller picture: we are the type of creatures meant to be plugged into God. Just as a fish is naturally in water, our natural state is union with God. The preternatural gifts of immortality and impassibility were sustained by that right relationship.

Special note (Ott 501): In the case of those justified by grace, death loses its penal character and becomes a mere consequence of sin. For Jesus Christ and Mary, on account of their freedom from original sin, death was neither punishment nor mere consequence -- but natural given human composite nature.

The transfigured resurrected body will far surpass Adam and Eve's pre-Fall state -- the preternatural gifts are not a ceiling but a floor.

D. Universality of Death [de fide]

Adam's sin harmed all descendants: Everybody dies. Defined dogma.

Possible exceptions (not defined):

• Enoch (Heb 11:5; Gen 5:24; Sir 44:16): Taken up by God without dying.

• Elijah (2 Kgs 2:11; 1 Mac 2:58): Taken up in a chariot of fire. Possibly not yet in the Beatific Vision -- St. Thomas argues he is in the cosmos, not heaven per se, and may return as a witness at the Second Coming.

• Those alive at the Second Coming (1 Cor 15:51-52; 1 Thes 4:15-17): Those who survive the final persecution will not die but be transformed and caught up to meet the Lord. St. Thomas Summa II 81Q3 RO1 entertains this.

E. At Death, the Time for Merit (or Demerit) Ends [sententia certa]

A certain truth of the Church -- and one with growing pastoral urgency. A popular notion, even among faithful Catholics, is that after death Christ reviews your life and gives you a second chance to choose the good. This has never been taught and is false. The time to merit or move toward Christ is now, in this breath, this life.

Two dangers: Avoid despair (the lie that your sins are too great) AND presumption (the lie that your choices don't matter, everyone gets saved in the end).

On suicide: The Catechism notes that by means known to Christ alone, a person may have repented in their final moment (e.g., the bridge jumper who realizes mid-fall). This is not a second chance after death -- it is still within the definition of the moment of death.

New Universalism: A growing view in parishes -- sometimes (wrongly) attached to Divine Mercy devotion -- that everyone gets saved after death. This is not Catholic teaching. Terms: universalism = the idea that all rational creatures are ultimately saved. Related false notion: apokatastasis (see Hell).

Scripture: John 9:4: The day is life, the night is death -- no one can work in the night. Gal 6:7-10: Whatever a man sows, that he will reap.

F. Particular Judgment

Immediately after death, by divine sentence, the eternal fate of the deceased is decided [sententia fidei proxima -- not defined per se, but presupposed by defined dogma about heaven, hell, and purgatory].

Eternal outcomes: Heaven or Hell. Purgatory is a transient state on the way to heaven -- not a third eternal option.

Benedictus Deus (Pope Benedict XII, 1336): Souls of those who die in actual mortal sin go to hell immediately after death. Souls of the just who are free from all sin and temporal punishment go immediately to heaven and see the divine essence face to face, without any mediating creature, with an intuitive vision. CF 2307 Dh 1002.

II. Heaven

A. Heaven is a Permanent State

Once in heaven, it cannot be lost. [de fide] Free will remains -- it is necessary for love -- but the blessed are confirmed in love. The analogy: I don't need a law to keep me from killing my wife because I love her. In heaven, you will not even have the inclination toward evil; you have been purified of it. The devil has no access or influence in heaven. Angels were not created in the beatific vision -- they too were tested. The good angels chose to serve; the bad angels said 'I will not serve.' We will be confirmed in love, not subject to the same test.

B. Immediate Vision of God -- The Essential Happiness of Heaven

The joy of heaven is the immediate, unmediated, face-to-face vision of God. Not through mountains, not through a spouse -- those are fingerprints, God-winks. In heaven, having been purified, we see God directly and every conceivable purified joy is fulfilled to an abundance beyond words (ineffable).

To see God will require a grace from God that opens us to a capacity we do not now possess -- like needing the right sense organ to perceive Him.

Benedictus Deus (1336): The souls of the just see the divine essence with an intuitive vision, face to face, without the mediation of any creature. This vision produces beatitude and eternal life. Faith and hope (as theological virtues) cease, as their object is now directly possessed. This vision continues without interruption until the Last Judgment, and forever after. CF 2306 Dh 1000-1001.

Flat tires analogy: We are so used to driving on flat tires that we have forgotten there is supposed to be air in them. God will only accept cars with air in the tires -- indeed, wings. We sell ourselves short about what heaven is and what holiness is required.

C. Accidental Blessedness of Heaven [sententia communis]

In addition to the essential happiness (the immediate vision of God), there is an accidental happiness -- real additional joy flowing from created goods. This is important pastorally because people often do not know this.

• Communion of Saints: We will be in the company of all the angels and saints.

• Reunion: We will be reunited with family and friends who have died. (Anthony shared looking forward to being reunited with his uncle and lost children.)

• Conversation with Our Lady and the saints -- e.g., being able to talk with Mother Mary, meet Saint Joseph.

• Bodily Resurrection: In association with the Second Coming, we will receive our bodies back -- transfigured, superior to Adam and Eve's pre-Fall bodies, patterned on the risen Christ.

(Ott 506) This accidental happiness comes from community of life with Christ in His human form, with Mary, angels, and saints; from reunion with earthly loved ones; from knowledge of God's works; and from the glorification of the resurrected body.

D. Degrees of Perfection in Heaven [de fide]

There are degrees of perfection granted to the just in heaven, proportioned to each one's merits. This is a defined teaching of the Church.

Important: these degrees will cause no envy, rivalry, jealousy, or sadness. Each person will be filled to their capacity and fully satisfied. The image: you can glory in the rays of the sun without desiring to be the sun. If Anthony makes it to heaven and sees Mary, he will think 'She is awesome, she is beautiful' -- not 'I wish I had done better.' Because he will have come to the fulfillment of his own perfection.

Shot glass / milk truck analogy: You want God to break you open as wide as possible. If you come with a shot glass, your shot glass will be filled and you will be satisfied. But Mother Teresa's vessel is a milk truck. Let the Lord expand your capacity now.

One Queen: There is one Queen of Heaven and Earth -- Mary. That this should not surprise us in a hierarchy of heaven. We run to her now with special veneration because she is unique among all the saints.

Scriptural support: Matt 16:27 (repays every man according to his works); 1 Cor 3:8 (each shall receive wages according to labor); 2 Cor 9:6 (he who sows in blessing reaps blessings). Council of Trent, Session 6, Canons XXXII-XXXIII: the justified truly merit increase of grace, eternal life, and increase of glory.

Decree for the Greeks (1439): Souls see the triune God, yet one person more perfectly than another according to the difference of merits. Dh 1305.

III. Hell

A. Entry into Hell [de fide]

The souls of those who die in the condition of personal mortal sin enter hell immediately -- no second chances. This is defined dogma. Many Catholics today disbelieve in hell's existence, permanence, or their own possibility of going there.

Love requires free will: Denying hell takes away free will and therefore takes away love. If everyone ends up in the same place regardless of choices, choices mean nothing. A god who forces all into union with himself -- whether they want it or not -- is a tyrant, not a God of love. We are like gods in that we can defy the purpose for which we were created. That is powerful. Take it seriously.

Testimony of Judas: Scripture provides strong indications that Judas is in hell. Jesus calls him 'the son of perdition' (Jn 17:12), says 'it would have been better for that man if he had not been born' (Matt 26:24) -- which only makes sense if he did not repent and reach heaven. In Acts 1:24-25, Peter says Judas 'turned aside to go to his own place.' Hell is our own place, chosen by us.

Benedictus Deus: Souls who die in actual mortal sin go down to hell immediately after death and suffer the pain of hell. CF 2307 Dh 1002.

Athanasian Creed (5th c.): Those who have done evil go to eternal fire. 'This is the Catholic faith. Unless one believes it faithfully and firmly he cannot be saved.'

Jesus' words: Matt 5:29; Matt 10:28; Mark 9:43; Matt 5:22; Rev 21:8.

B. Hell is Permanent [de fide]

Hell is not a transient state. This is defined. Two false notions:

• Annihilationism: after suffering, souls are annihilated. False.

• Apokatastasis (Greek: 'restoration'): the ultimate salvation of all creatures including the damned and the devil. Taught by Origen and dabbled by Gregory of Nyssa. False. Falls into the sin of presumption. Not Church teaching.

Caput Firmiter (4th Lateran, 1215): The reprobate will receive perpetual punishment with the devil. The elect will receive everlasting glory with Christ.

The souls in hell, according to medieval and modern theologians, desire self-annihilation -- partly as a final defiance of God, partly because of the intensity of suffering. They cannot achieve it. That is hell.

Is hell a place or a state? Both, in a sense. Currently it is primarily a state. When the damned receive their bodies back at the general judgment, there will be a materiality and we can speak of it as a place as well.

C. Principal Punishment of Hell: Pain of Loss [CCC 1035]

The principal punishment of hell is eternal separation from God -- the exclusion from the beatific vision. This means missing the entire point of our existence. We miss what we long for and only God can satisfy.

God is still keeping souls in hell in existence -- He is the only one who can. The separation is not spatial proximity but devoid of unity. 'I can be right next to you and not be united with you at all.'

D. Secondary Punishment: Pain of Sense

The Church has not absolutely defined the nature of this punishment, but it has been a consistent part of tradition. St. Thomas speaks of a physical fire to which spirits are bound -- a physical fire different from ordinary fire (a philosophical puzzle: how to bind an immaterial thing to a material thing). The imagery of fire in hell is pervasive in Scripture and absolutely legitimate to preach.

When the damned receive their bodies back at the general judgment, their suffering increases -- the pain attacks not only the soul but the body as well.

E. Punishment Proportionate to Guilt [sententia communis]

A commonly taught thought: the punishment of the damned is proportionate to each one's guilt -- analogous to the degrees of glory in heaven. Not a defined statement, but grounded in Matt 11:22 (stricter judgment for Chorazin than Tyre and Sidon). 2nd General Council of Lyons (1274): souls go to hell 'to be punished with different punishments.'

Key to Latin abbreviations used in the outline: de fide = article of faith (defined dogma); sententia certa = certain knowledge (natural conclusion from defined doctrine); sententia communis = common teaching (commonly held but not defined).

IV. Purgatory

A. Definition and Entry [de fide]

The souls of the just which, in the moment of death, are burdened with venial sins or temporal punishment due to sins, enter purgatory. Purgatory is a transient state -- everyone there will reach heaven. The eternal options are heaven or hell; purgatory is the cleaning mechanism to get to heaven.

Entry conditions: venial sin still on the soul at death, OR temporal punishment (debt) for sins still owed even after confession. Even if there is no venial sin, temporal debt can still require purgatory.

Abode of the Dead (pre-Christ): Before Christ opened heaven, the abode of the dead had three compartments: (1) Hell proper -- the damned, always there forever; (2) Limbo of the Fathers (Abraham's Bosom) -- the just who merited heaven but the gates were closed due to Adam's sin; (3) Purgatory -- souls oriented to God but needing purification, who after cleansing went to the Limbo of the Fathers. Christ's salvific work opened heaven and emptied the Limbo of the Fathers.

When did purgatory begin? The Catechism of the Council of Trent speaks of purgatory existing 'from the beginning' -- i.e., from when it was first needed, presumably with the death of the first human.

B. Scriptural and Conciliar Foundation

2 Mac 12:42-49: Judas Maccabeus collects money for a sin offering for fallen soldiers who died wearing pagan tokens. 'If he were not expecting those who had fallen would rise again, it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead.' Prayer for the dead presupposes a state in which prayer can help.

Matt 12:32: Some sins will not be forgiven 'in this age or in the age to come' -- implying that some can be forgiven in the age to come.

1 Cor 3:13-15: Each man's work will be tested by fire. 'If any man's work is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved -- but only as through fire.' (This passage led one class member, a convert, to accept purgatory without difficulty.)

2nd General Council of Lyons (1274): Souls truly repentant who die in charity but have not fully satisfied for sins are cleansed by purgatorial penalties after death. The faithful living can help them through the Mass, prayers, alms, and other works of piety. CF 26 Dh 856.

Council of Trent, Session 25 (1563): Direct refutation of Luther, who denied expiation from sins (grace alone). The Church teaches purgatory by the Holy Spirit, Sacred Scripture, and Tradition. CF 2341 Dh 1820.

St. Thomas (Commentary on the Sentences): God's sanctity demands only completely pure souls enter heaven (Rev 21:27). God's justice demands remaining punishments be removed. But God's love forbids casting souls united to Him into hell. Therefore an intermediate purgatorial state of limited duration must exist.

C. Nature of Purgatory's Punishment

1. Pain of Loss

Temporary exclusion from the beatific vision. However -- and this is key -- on the grounds of the particular judgment already made, the poor souls know with certainty they will reach heaven. They know they are children and friends of God and long intensely for that union. The certainty of eventual union makes the temporary separation all the more painful.

Images:

• A bird that can see the vast wilderness it was made to fly through, but is trapped in a cage -- bashing against the bars because it knows that is where it belongs.

• The night before your wedding -- you cannot sleep because you are separated from the one you are waiting to be united with. The suffering of longing.

• You have made the team but are not first string. You must train, be strengthened, be cleansed. This is the gift of purgatory.

2. Pain of Sense (possibly)

Many Latin Fathers, scholastics, and theologians assume a physical fire based on 1 Cor 3:15. However, out of consideration for the Eastern churches (who reject purifying fire), the official Council declarations speak only of 'purifying punishments' and do not define a purifying fire. The East-West split limited how explicitly the West could define this.

D. Purgatory on Earth and Suffrage for the Dead

Because of the communion of saints, the living can suffer for those in purgatory and offer suffrage: the Mass, prayers, alms, works of piety. The anointing of the sick makes this explicit -- suffering united with Christ merits one's own salvation, reduces temporal punishment, and benefits the whole Church.

The good thief (pastoral note): When Protestants cite the good thief ('Today you will be with me in paradise') to deny purgatory, note: the good thief continued to suffer after Jesus died -- his legs were broken, he died in agony. He lived out a purgatory on earth on the cross. The Lord's promise was fulfilled; the thief's suffering continued afterward. The good thief does NOT disprove purgatory.

E. Purgatory Will Not Continue After the General Judgment [sententia communis]

A common teaching: purgatory ends at the Last Judgment. Reasoning: the universal persecution of the just that precedes the Second Coming will itself function as a purifying suffering. Those in purgatory at that time will be released due to their suffering. Those persevering through the tribulation will not need it. The survivors of the tribulation go directly to heaven.

V. Second Coming of Christ

A. Christ Will Come Again in Glory [de fide]

At the end of the world, Christ will come again in glory. Defined. Affirmed in both the Apostles' Creed and Nicene Creed. 'In glory' means it will be unmistakable and visible to all -- not hidden as at the Incarnation. No laundromat, no Volkswagen. He will come and everyone will recognize Him. Matt 16:27; Luke 9:26.

B. The Time of the Second Coming is Unknown to Men [sententia certa]

Beware of those who claim to know. They don't. If you encounter someone in spiritual direction or pastoral care who claims to know the date of the Second Coming, treat it as a warning sign -- you are likely in deeper waters. The pastoral and spiritual implications of this certainty: live as if it could be now; do not presume on the delay.

C. Signs of the Second Coming

1. Preaching of the Gospel to the Whole World (Matt 24:14)

The gospel must reach the entire world. This does not mean the Second Coming immediately follows -- it is a necessary condition, not an immediate trigger. Whether this has been fulfilled is genuinely ambiguous (e.g., isolated Amazon tribes).

2. Conversion of the Jews (Rom 11:25-32)

When the full number of Gentiles has entered the kingdom, all of Israel will be converted. Not necessarily the political nation-state, but the Jewish people as a spiritual nation. St. Paul saw a time of pardon and amnesty for the Gentiles while Israel has a partial blindness -- but when the Jews convert en masse through God's direct intervention, Christ's coming is near. If you have Orthodox Jewish friends in Jerusalem who all become Catholic in a week -- go to confession immediately.

3. A Great Apostasy -- Many Faithful Will Fall Away (Matt 24:4-5; 2 Thes 2:3)

A massive falling away from the faith. The Jews are coming in; the Catholics are leaving. Father Ripperger: unless given a special grace, one may fall away. How to get that grace? Live in the white martyrdom now -- moving from knowing about God to knowing Him, to loving Him, to trusting Him, to surrendering to Him daily. If you are rowing, putting out into the deep, letting Him be your Pilot rather than co-pilot, the grace machine will not shut down. (That is a point of hope, not presumption.)

The great apostasy will involve a religious deception -- an apparent solution to human problems offered at the price of apostasy from the truth. The catechism (CCC 675): 'The supreme religious deception is that of the Antichrist, a pseudo-messianism by which man glorifies himself in place of God.' Example: embryonic stem cell research -- apparent cures, but requiring the death of a child. Don't put politics in place of God (CCC 676).

4. Appearance of the Antichrist (2 Thes 2:3-4; 2 John 1:7)

A human personality -- man or woman -- endowed with preternatural gifts and the power of Satan. Will work apparent miracles and lead many astray. May come with a political regime or religious movement. Will have supernatural knowledge (e.g., knowing what you ate last Tuesday) and apparent healings. Even healing can come from Satan as a mode of credibility. 'So scary guy, and one of those reasons to fear.'

5. Great Persecution (Matt 24:9)

Universal persecution of the just. The faithful will be hunted, slain, destroyed. There will be no place to hide. Worse than the Nazi Holocaust in its universality. Pray for the grace to suffer well. The silver lining: this persecution functions as purification (see Purgatory section above), and Christ is coming down the pike.

6. Natural Catastrophes (Matt 24:29)

Sun darkened, moon failing, stars falling, powers of heaven shaken. On top of everything else.

D. Jesus Will Judge the Living and the Dead -- General / Final Judgment [de fide]

Affirmed in both Creeds. Those still alive at the Second Coming who have not died will be judged on their merits to that point -- for them, it serves as their particular judgment as well.

The Judgment of History: Every action of every rational being -- human and angel -- and all its consequences, as they have flowed through history, will be disclosed. And crucially, how God has woven His grace through those actions for the benefit of those who love and trust Him will also be revealed.

St. Teresa of Avila: This will not be an occasion of embarrassment for those in union with God -- it will be an occasion for an unending hymn of praise. Seeing how God used even Anthony's failures to build his wife's holiness, for example.

Confession does NOT blot out history: Confession removes guilt and frees from hell -- but does not erase the historical fact of the action. The history remains and God will be glorified through it. God forgets in the sense that He will not use it to condemn you or smack you upside the head -- but metaphysically God cannot 'forget' anything. The sin is forgiven; the history is redeemed.

Acts 10:42: Christ is 'ordained by God to be judge of the living and the dead.'

CCC 678-679, 682: The Last Day will bring to light the conduct of each one, the secrets of hearts, and the culpable unbelief that counted God's grace as nothing. Our attitude to our neighbor discloses acceptance or refusal of grace. By rejecting grace in this life, one already judges oneself. Christ acquired the right to judge by His cross.

VI. Bodily Resurrection of the Dead

A. All the Dead Will Rise Again on the Last Day With Their Bodies [de fide]

Stated in the Apostles' Creed and the Athanasian Creed. Many Catholics do not know this; others reject it because they loathe their own bodies (a pastoral issue you will encounter -- possibly rooted in harm or a distorted self-image).

B. The Same Body, Numerically [de fide]

The dead will rise with numerically the same bodies they had on earth. 'Numerically' does not mean every exact cell (the body's cells replace every ~7 years). It means enough of your own physical matter to make you recognizable as you -- your specific body is what is raised and what matters to God. This body, joined to your soul, is precious and cherished to God; you will get it back. (Ott 519: a relatively small share suffices for identity.)

Pastoral note: Some people reject the resurrection because they hate their own bodies. This is a potential pastoral issue -- possibly rooted in abuse, trauma, or a distorted self-image. This may connect to Manichaean dualism (the error that matter is evil). The Church affirms the goodness of the body.

C. A Transfigured Body -- Patterned on the Risen Christ [sententia certa]

Phil 3:21; 1 Cor 15:42-44. The body will be transfigured -- superior to Adam and Eve's pre-Fall state, superior to anything we currently experience. St. Thomas argues the resurrection body matures to natural perfection -- possibly at the age of ~33, though the Church does not define this.

Four Properties of the Glorified Body:

• Impassibility: Inability to suffer, become sick, or die. Rev 21:4. The reason: the perfect subjection of the body to the soul. Because the soul is confirmed in love, the body follows. Adam and Eve had a version of this; we will have it supersized.

• Subtlety: A spiritualized nature -- but NOT a ghost or ethereal body. The materiality is real. The body is not dissolved into spirit; it is perfected. Be alert to anyone suggesting otherwise -- it may be Manichaean dualism.

• Agility: The capacity of the body to obey the soul with greatest ease and speed of movement. Think yourself somewhere and be there. The risen Christ appeared suddenly in the midst of His disciples (John 20:19, 26) and vanished from the road to Emmaus (Luke 24:31). This is what agility means.

• Clarity: Free from all deformity, filled with beauty and radiance. Matt 13:43: 'The just shall shine as the sun in the kingdom of their Father.' The model: Christ's Transfiguration on Tabor. Scars of martyrdom may remain as glorious trophies, not causing pain -- per St. Thomas. Christ kept His wounds (John 20:27). The Church is ambiguous on details (e.g., Down syndrome).

VII. The End of the World and Its Renewal

A. The Present World Will Be Destroyed [sententia certa]

The world as we know it will be destroyed on the last day. Matt 24:35; 1 Cor 7:31; 2 Pet 3:10. Whether the fire of 2 Peter is literal fire or a mode of expression, the Church does not define. This reality should foster a healthy detachment from this world: use it to get to heaven; do not cling to it.

B. The Present World Will Be Restored [sententia certa]

The visible universe is destined to be transformed and restored to its original state -- indeed, better than the original, because it will serve glorified bodies rather than pre-Fall ones. 'So that the world itself, restored to its original state, facing no further obstacles, should be at the service of the just, sharing their glorification in the risen Jesus Christ.' (CCC 1047)

Revelation's vision: Heaven descends and Earth is exalted. The two touch and blend. It will literally be heaven on earth -- not two separate places with different quality levels. It will be one unified experience and reality. (Isaiah 65:17; Rom 8:18-25; Rev 21:1)

Rom 8:18-25: All creation groans awaiting redemption -- creation itself will be liberated from the bondage to decay and transported into the freedom of the glory of the children of God. St. Thomas (Supplemental 91, 1 and 3): with the transfiguration of the human body, the other bodies will also experience corresponding transfiguration.

VIII. Supplemental: Between the Ascension and the Second Coming

A. The Current Era -- The Age of the Spirit

We are in the third and final era: the Age of the Father (OT), the Age of the Son (Incarnation through Ascension), the Age of the Spirit (the Church, Pentecost to Second Coming). We are living in the end times now (CCC 673).

Christ's Incarnation returns history back to liturgy, back to the Father. The Fall sent history spiraling -- finding new and more horrible ways to deprave and kill each other. Christ reorients human history so that it can become liturgical -- a way back to the Father through the ministry of the Church. If you become ordained, you are a hierarchical minister of that mechanism. You are a target. You already have been.

Christ seated at the right hand of the Father (CCC 664, 662): Inaugurating His everlasting Kingdom and priestly office in the heavenly liturgy. The right hand is the hand of power -- whoever sits at the right hand can restrain it from judgment. Seated = a sign of peace. When a king rises, it may mean war. Christ is currently seated, allowing the wheat and the weeds to grow together, offering time for repentance.

Mary seated at Christ's right hand: Whoever sits at the right hand can restrain the hand of judgment. Rev 3:21 applies to her as well as to the saints. She intercedes for us in that position of honor and power.

The Mass: While the Mass continues to be offered on every Catholic altar, Christ renews His sacrifice in a non-bloody way, offering grace so that people can appropriate it and be matured into the saints they are supposed to be. The hymn of the Gloria at Mass is a type of the liturgy of history. This is the great opportunity we have right now.

B. Why the Delay? (CCC 674)

The Church must wait for Israel to convert (CCC 674). Israel's partial blindness allowed the Gentiles a chance to enter. When the full number of Gentiles is in and Israel converts, that signals the coming of the Lord. The Jews have a continuing role in the economy of salvation -- they are people of the covenant. Their 'full inclusion' in the Messiah's salvation remains somewhat mysterious (CCC 674; Rom 11:12-26; Acts 3:19-21; Eph 4:13; 1 Cor 15:28).

We pray for the Second Coming in every Our Father ('Thy kingdom come') and at every Mass (Marana tha -- 'Come, Lord Jesus!'). We hasten it by our prayer and fidelity.

C. The Church's Ultimate Trial (CCC 675-677)

Before the Second Coming the Church will pass through a final trial shaking the faith of many believers. The mystery of iniquity will be unveiled in the form of a religious deception. The Antichrist is a pseudo-messianism -- man glorifying himself in place of God (CCC 675). The Antichrist's deception begins every time the messianic hope is claimed to be realizable within history without God (CCC 676). Millenarianism (condemned): the expectation that Christ will return to reign physically on earth for 1,000 years with temple sacrifices restarted. Not Catholic.

Two possible Catholic positions on Revelation 20:

• Augustine: Revelation 20 refers to the era of the Church, in which Jesus is already ruling as King.

• Irenaeus, Justin Martyr, Lactantius: The Church will enjoy a Sabbath rest at the end of time (the lion lying with the lamb, etc.). These are possible Catholic positions; chiliastic millennialism (Christ reigns in the flesh for literal 1,000 years) is condemned.

The Kingdom will be fulfilled not by a historic triumph of the Church through progressive ascendancy, but by God's victory over the final unleashing of evil (CCC 677). The general judgment IS a 'finding' in legal proceedings -- not God sending people to hell, but God revealing and ratifying the choices people have already made.

D. Memento Mori -- A Practical Spiritual Note

St. Francis de Sales recommends a four-day meditation: Day 1 on your death; Day 2 on your judgment; Day 3 on heaven; Day 4 on hell. This reorients everything and reveals how meaningless the 10 AM dental appointment really is. Blaise Pascal: if people truly understood what was at stake with the Second Coming, they would live very differently.

The Pascal's Wager reality: God will not be mocked. There is a reckoning coming. This is not to inspire scrupulosity or despair, but to make use of this great time of amnesty and pardon that we are currently in. Christ is seated, waiting, offering grace. Do not waste it.

Class Notes — March 7th | Eschatology | Diaconate Formation