Tuesday 1 April 2008

Oh hell

As the Feast of Divine Mercy has come and gone Fr Dwight has some concerns which I think are valid. Far too many people are not at all concerned that God is a Just Judge. The message of Divine Mercy is NOT, God is a big softie and so long as we are nice all will be well. The message clearly states that those who do not throw themselves on the Mercy of Christ will have to face His justice-and that has hell as a very real possibility.
Those who do love Christ's Divine Mercy do so because we are all too aware of sin in our lives and in the lives of people we love.

Thinking you have a "Get Into Heaven Free" card-as my sister calls it, is very likely a bad idea.
It goes with that little rhymn:
Mr Smith was very good
He went to church each Sunday
But Mr Smith-he went to hell
for what he did on Monday.

Many of us have friends and family who we see are far from God and we are worried about them. it isn't easy to say-or face up to-but some of the people we care about might very well end up in hell. I am sure most of us would not want to see even our enemies end up with such a fate. The tradgetdy is beyond comprehension; that a person made in the image and likeness of God could so shun that image as to turn from Him forever and suffer the misery of eternal hatred.
I pray all the time for a friend who I fear for who died in bad circumstances. I pray for two people who I can't say I love, but I still don't want them to end up in hell; they abused their children.
I have a friend who seems not so much to be agnostic (and miserable) but actually afraid of God. She's had two abortions.
Another who has lapsed from her Catholic faith-after a horrible 'Catholic' upbringing and later an abortion.
The list goes on.
I don't want any of these people to have to face God's justice; I pray for His Mercy.
It's because sin is so real, Satan is there and hell is waiting that we turn to God's Mercy.
Frankly the people I know who don't believe in hell don't believe in mercy either.

3 comments:

Cathy said...

Very correct, and very right of you to pray for those people.


God is infinite mercy; we cannot fathom the scope of His forgiveness.

Being infinite mercy also means He is also justice personified.
And justice means that some people are hellbound.
GOD doesn't send anyone to hell.

We send ourselves there.

Good post. I will pray for your friends tonight as well.

Marie said...

"Let no soul fear to come to Me, even though its sins be as scarlet."

A person receives mercy when they ask for it AFTER they realise their sins and how it has wounded THEM. Our sins do not wound God they wound us and remove us from the orbit of God's Love. Not because God's Love is lacking but because our love was lacking through sin.

I have written many times in different posts on my blog.

Sin is NOT a feeling it IS a choice.

But, there is a remedy sincere contrition and Confession.

I cannot say who goes to Heaven and who goes to hell that is God's Role. But what I can say is that God's Mercy is real as real as His Justice and it is those who love God who will atone for the sins of many. St. Edith Stein understood this.

A really excellent post WhiteStoneNameSeeker:)Very thought provoking. Let us not presume on God's Mercy as if it were a lollie shop but instead recognise His Majestic Love in forgiving us.

Peace to you:)

Your friend,

Marie:)

gemoftheocean said...

"Frankly the people I know who don't believe in hell don't believe in mercy either."

What an interesting observation!