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We are Not All Judged the Same

Posted on July 29, 2025 by Father Joe

While we tend to give the emphasis to human freedom and choice; God’s justice and mercy also hinges upon divine election. This is not fate or a crude Calvinism where God hates sinners and predestines them to hell. St. Augustine would speak of the just being predestined to glory. How it works remains a mystery. But we trust that God is good and his justice is fair and right.

When it comes to the matter of justification before God, many might compare themselves to others but with a smug confidence in their superior standing. That is just not how divine judgment works. Mindful of the parable about the pharisee and the publican (Luke 18:10-14), we are not saved in isolation from those around us.

The believer must care about the spiritual status of those around him, particularly those who are his charges. Giving scandal to the faith or bringing harm to the “little ones” can be particularly damning. Indifference to the poor and the oppressed brings harsh judgment upon those who might ordinarily be viewed as pious or devout (Mark 9:42).

The realm of mortal sin includes both the violation of the laws of God and precepts of the Church, as well as the commission of acts that are always and everywhere objectively wrong. Following the testimony of Scripture, there are both mortal and venial sins, depending upon the severity of the objective matter. However, the gravity of sin is also a subjective issue. If one is ignorant of a wrong then one cannot be guilty of its commission. Those who have not reached the age of reason cannot sin. Those who are delusional or have suffered the loss of reasoning are likewise no longer culpable for what they do. Also, one cannot accidentally commit sin. By definition, sin requires both an objective wrong, awareness of its severity, and free volition in its commission.

The teachings of Pope Francis about spiritual accompaniment have stirred much soul searching. As a community of faith it makes sense that we must journey with one another. Those in ministry have a sacred duty to walk with others. But I have become increasingly troubled by the commentary about this accompaniment. It seems nonsensical that we might remain silent about wrongs or about the deadly threat of perdition. True love would save souls, not just make people feel better about living in sin. Those in irregular unions, i.e. adulterous second bonds, may attend Mass, care for their households and nurture their children. But can we dismiss the warning of Christ about divorce? Serious sin can be tender and caring, but it is still wrong. Why do we focus on the replacement family and so often forget about the abandoned spouse and children? We should rightly urge annulments when there are obvious grounds and prospects of healing for messy situations; but we must not be presumptuous about the invalidity of broken bonds or the positive status of subsequent unions. I well understand how our hearts can go out to those in same-sex unions, particulaly when they are faithful in church attendance and toward one another; but can we really indirectly affirm or even remain quiet about a sin that Scripture deplores as most deadly? St. Paul lists it among the sexual sins that forfeit one’s place in the kingdom (Romans 1:26-32). We can affirm love but not sin. We can expand the meaning of family but never in a way that undermines the plan of God in marriage between one man and one woman that is open to the generation of new human life. Again, accompaniment is important, but what if we are walking in the wrong direction? Do we go to hell for friendship sake? That is not true solidarity. It could also happen that sinners wrong in conscience might be judged lightly, while those who knew better but withheld correction, might find themselves damned. The more one is given, the more for which one is accountable. Indeed, two might commit the same sin, but because of subjective liability, one earns purgation and heaven and another merits hell. As I said, judgment is real but it is not always clear and simple. Deathbed repentence and conversion is possible. A priest has the power to steal a soul from Satan even at the last moment of mortal life.

Ringleader, henchmen, or bystander, Christ can save whom he wills. How will God judge those who lead others into sin? Enablers and accomplices are also guilty of sin. We need to model the faith and life of a Christian disciple and walk the road trod before us by the saints. If we want heaven then we must witness to Christ and his Church. Silence or embarrassment about Christ is deadly.

Do we routinely curse and take God’s name in vain?
Do we neglect the Mass and the community of faith?
Have we placed idols before God in our life?
Are our families neglected or parents forgotten?
Are children baptized and raised in the faith?
Do we routinely tell lies and violate the truth?
Have we received stolen goods?
Are we culpable for supporting abortion?
Have we compelled the use of contraception?
Do we excuse fornication and cohabitation?
Have we respected and been faithful to marriage bonds?
Have we applauded same-sex unions?
Has immodest dress or flirtation led others into sin?
Do we patronize blasphemous and lewd media?
Have we neglected the confession of sin and pardon?

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The Reciprocity of Mercy

Posted on July 29, 2025 by Father Joe

Matthew 6:14-15 echoes the admonition in the Lord’s Prayer that we will be forgiven by God just as we forgive others. Charity and mercy are the keys to the door of heaven. But it must be properly understood. I have heard ministers preach upon this subject in a wrong-headed manner. It is not a bargaining with God. We have nothing with which we can bargain. Salvation is always a gift and cannot be merited apart from Christ. The secret is not in the deal but with transformation. If we forgive as Christ does then the Father will recognize his Son in us. Jesus pleads for us on the Cross, asking the Father to forgive us as sinners, arguing that we really do not know what we are doing. Jesus dies not for the innocent but for the guilty. If we want to take advantage of this mercy then we must imitate Jesus. That is how we show that we are kindred to him, related on a spiritual level as brothers and sisters to Christ, adopted sons and daughters of the Father. It is by giving away mercy that we make room in our hearts for receiving the pardon and saving grace of God.

We think too much of the body and too little about the soul. Luke 12:4-5 warns us to fear the one who has the authority to cast souls into hell. St. Paul in 2 Corinthians 5:9-10 reminds us that no one properly has this power other than Christ, not evil men, not even the devil. We wrongly shy away from the Fear of the Lord, which is a gift of the Holy Spirit. But Jesus is both the Divine Mercy and the Divine Justice. He is the judge of all. I suspect that redefining Fear of the Lord as Awe or Reverence tends to diminish something of the fear and trembling that should normally characterize the approach of a finite creature to the judging gaze of almighty God. It is true that God is all good but the problem is that we are often far from this goodness. This fearfulness is not just about who God is but about who we have failed to become. Many seem to have no shame about their iniquity and weakness. Few go to confession because there is a lack of contrition or sorrow for sin. We must not be precipitous of divine mercy or take the gifts that God offers for granted.

If we do not love God sufficiently to avoid offending him then we should at least fear the loss of heaven and the pains of hell. Ultimately God gives us what we truly want. Regrettably, we can compromise ourselves. Many display cowardice to evil men and submit to their intimidation. Many cower in facing the devil and wrongly give him power over them. Weak believers have literally laid down their shields, armor and weapons in the face of the legions of hell. All must be urged to take them up. We have the sacraments! We have the saving Word! We have the communion of the saints! We have the mystery of the Church! We can have in abundance the saving grace that the devil has forfeited! We must not forget that we are a parable people who follow a parable Savior. Jesus turns weakness and death into strength and life. He turns his defeat into his great victory.

Our Lord’s admonition to his friends, “Be not afraid,” should be clarified. It is first a necessary declaration given the surprise of his resurrection. Next, while Jesus would not have his disciples take light of the earthly and spiritual perils that face them; he is telling them that if they follow him, even to the Cross, they need not be afraid, because he has won the great victory. If we truly love the Lord, acknowledging with regret how our sins sent him to his passion and the Cross, then we can approach our Judge, the risen Christ, with hope and courage. If we have failed to love the Lord as we should, and have only imperfect contrition, then we have every reason to fear punishment, either temporarily in purgatory or even worse, eternally in hell. While Fear of the Lord can be saving, fear of the devil signals a deficiency in faith.

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We Trust the Promise but Must Wait for Details

Posted on July 7, 2025 by Father Joe

The dynamics of the kingdom are nothing like those of the world around us. Many who pride themselves as believers have been seduced by the unholy trinity: the world, the flesh and the devil. The world is greedy for wealth and power. Flesh desires pleasure and reduces “persons” to commodities. Satan is all about bondage and broken promises. There can be no doubt that this is what the damned substitute in hell for the true Trinity that raises up the poor and the weak, that seeks a lasting joy for all who are saved, that trusts in the promises of Christ and finds freedom in his everlasting covenant.

While lacking a practical guidebook to the afterlife, we can surmise a few aspects. Heaven is not an abode of bored angels playing harps on clouds. It is not a place where selfish dreams come true. While we are left with questions, we are told that the saints see God and that this beatific vision is an occasion for completion and peace in themselves while the focus will always be giving glory to the one triune God. There is a profound unity in the Lord. The divine mystery cannot be exhausted by finite creatures. But we will be one in Christ. We will be happy. There will be no more sorrow, sickness, pain or dying. All tears will be wiped away. We may not understand what it means, but there will be a new heaven and a new earth. Everything good that the world takes away will be given back to us in Christ. We will be in our true home.

We have been warned about hell, but it is unlikely that it will be exactly like the poets Dante and Milton described. What can we say about it? Many sources agree upon the component of fire, but while it is mesmerizing and torturous, it is more blinding than a light for true illumination. If heaven is where we find the light inside, then as Jesus described, hell is the “outer darkness.” The worst element of perdition is a forever alienation from the God that made us for himself. We will be always incomplete, frustrated in terms of our “final end.” It is a place of punishment for wrong, and along with this, of both pain or suffering to the senses and in the human spirit. The last element is the decisiveness of hell as there can be no escape. It is forever. Will the demons delight in abusing the damned? Despite the distraction of fire, will there be rational discourse in hell? Or will each soul be placed in a perpetual solitary confinement? It is certain that there is no communion of saints in hell. But what might be the parameters for associations or a community of the damned? Are all their relationships, by definition, parasitical? Just as not all saints are identical, cannot the same be argued for the damned? Even in this world we make distinctions about criminals. Would serial killers be lumped with those who occasionally missed Mass? While more theory than fact, it seemed to me that the limbo of the innocents was really more a suburb of hell than an abode on the fringes of heaven. It would appear likely that divine justice would treat differently those who did not know God from those who failed to love him as they should, through hatred or indifference. What quality of charity for a neighbor might spare one from the harshest elements of perdition? The mystery here is the question of salvation itself. Hell is real and terrible, but we do not know for sure who is there now and who will join them for eternity. Should we even speak of hell as a single place or as many places outside the boundaries of Christ’s kingdom?

I have wondered about the connection, if any, between dreaming and the afterlife. Dreams often reflect our concerns and anxieties about what awaits us after death. Given how I can remember very little while awake, I am amazed at the details and the worlds created in my head when sleeping. Places are fashioned that I have no conscious recognition of ever visiting. Books on shelves have real titles and there is text inside to read. This strikes me as bordering the paranormal. What is to be made of this? Often, I am oblivious to the dream, just accepting as reality the setting around me. While heaven and hell are real places, might the soul that is translated to the next world still have this capacity to create worlds within itself? If not heaven, might such an ability provide a small delusional refuge for the damned soul facing the utter terror of hell. I cannot say for sure, but I would not be surprised. Further, might there be a connection or parallel between the phantasms of the mind and the place that is prepared for us— between the virtual and the real?

The prospect of heaven or hell looms before every man and woman. Death signifies the most significant of personal transformations. It signals an awakening or a change of perspective about what matters. Too many squander their time and opportunities. Non-believers would argue that dreams have no connection with literal experiences. Dreaming allows the brain to process the questions, concerns and fears of the day. Believers would point to the two Joseph’s, one the interpreter of dreams and steward for Pharoah, and the other the foster father of Christ given messages from an angel. Dreams can be portals to the spiritual and reflect real communication with the kingdom. They can alert us to the apocalyptic and to what awaits us.

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A War Between Two Kingdoms

Posted on July 6, 2025 by Father Joe

The world around us would replace Christian virtues with secular ones. While tolerance is arguably a subcategory of justice, contemporary humanism would redefine it as an overriding permissiveness to a whole host of evils. Christianity cannot be tolerant of moral evil. Indeed, real Christianity makes moral judgments, seeks repentance and conversion, and amendment of life. A false Christianity would buy into the mentality of gross toleration. But the assertion that no judgments are made is a deceit. Any who would judge as God does or against the grain of selfishness would themselves face a negative judgment. The joke about this is that everything is tolerated except another’s intolerance. The tables are turned by those cohabitating in sin, living in adultery or pursuing intimate same sex unions. “Who are you to judge me! How dare you be so intolerant and backward? All we are doing is loving each other!”

Of course, such a stance makes moral life subjective. Life and behavior are not under human whims but must comply with both divine positive law and natural law. Neither liberal politicians nor progressive churchmen can substitute their statutes for those of the historical Gospel. When such people want to argue with me, I explain that their grievance is not with me but with God. They are essentially saying that God is at fault, that the Almighty has no right to judge them or to make demands.

As Catholics we are obliged to render human respect, but this does not mandate surrendering our basic principles. We can love others without embracing or enabling their sins. Those who act as if they were ashamed of Jesus Christ, failing to witness and to testify to the Lord, are doing no one any favors. Instead of promoting civility they are exhibiting cowardice. Believers should be willing to suffer persecution, imprisonment and martyrdom for the Gospel. It is an odd situation when the sinner is tolerated, and the would-be saint is oppressed. While much dissent comes from the left, the right is also guilty, as with the philosophy and cult around Ayn Rand. While an anti-communist, she was virulently anti-religion. Her popular philosophy of selfishness and a stark individualism stands in diametrical opposition to the communion of the Church and charity admonished by Christ. Religious liberty in the United States helps to preserve the place of the Church and the faith in society; however, it also makes room for competing creeds and contrary messages.

The reason why some states like Communist China persecute and manipulate the Church is because it sees Catholicism as a threat. While we might argue otherwise, insisting that believers make the best citizens, in truth the Church is dangerous. The Church and her message about justice and human dignity make her a threat to those states aligned with the principles of hell. Yes, the cosmic confrontation also has terrestrial allies. Despite propaganda, threats, imprisonment and executions— faith communities are hard to silence and neutralize. Communist China is intimidated by symbols like the cross. Lately there has been a campaign to remove crosses from churches. When possible, the churches themselves are bulldozed. There is a competition for souls. While it takes a different form, the tension is taking place in the Western world, too. The Marxist atheist and the Secular humanist are kindred spirits. The existence of God would not only be inconvenient but would place their materialistic objectives in peril. The battle is for hearts and minds. The devil is never more effective than when he is hidden from sight, presumed as a fairy tale without real existence.

I well recall the Solidarity movement in Poland during a time when a Polish Pope had been elected in Rome. What was happening in the Eastern bloc countries was thought impossible. Strides were being made for truth and freedom. The news recollected Stalin asking a mocking question of Churchill after the war, “How many divisions does the Roman Pope have?” Given time, the joke was on him, for the Pope evidently had enough. Not all wars are won with guns and bombs. Some victories come with trust in God and a willingness to take up the cross and follow the Lord.

Christian faith and values are often quite personal, but they are also communal and never private. Modern secularists assume that religion is merely a false superstition. Increasingly militant, they are forcing believers and their God out of the public forum. Sadly, if God is removed then there is no protection from those who have usurped the Lord as the chief lawgiver. Politicians make themselves into gods, lawyers become their priests, and the police are made the muscle to keep everyone in line. Media personalities and public-school teachers make possible the necessary indoctrination. By contrast, the Church does not indoctrinate but seeks to inform free men and women with the truths that come from God. Conversion and faith are the work of the Holy Spirit. Saints and the damned are fashioned in this world, not the next. Even though they may be unaware, all are being prepared for eternity, for heaven or hell. The demarcation as to which side we might be on is made possible by asking pertinent questions of ourselves. Are there certain truths that are immutable or are all things relative or subjective? Are all people regarded as having an incommensurate value as “persons” or do some matter more than others? Is human life sacred or are some judged as expendable? Anything that undermines human dignity and the sanctity of life is not from God. Human rights and freedoms are cherished by the Church and believers. The commandments reflect the mind of God and our nature as men and women. Any license to sin is not a nod to true freedom but rather its misuse and the derogation of human dignity. When we fail to think with the mind of Christ and his Church, we compromise the Gospel. We begin believing something other than the Christian faith. Reflecting upon such matters can enlighten us as to whether we are walking toward the kingdom of God or to the fiery trash heap of Gehenna.

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The Taint of Sin is a Taste of Hell

Posted on July 5, 2025 by Father Joe

When we compromise with sin or fail to acknowledge its damaging gravity over us, we are not simply tempting fate but attempting to spurn the providence of God. We are literally daring God to save us despite ourselves. This makes us kindred spirits with Judas who likely thought that a forced confrontation would speed the messianic confrontation with the Romans and a corrupt Jewish leadership. Given his close association with Jesus, it is unlikely that he acted purely from greed. He despairs when he realizes that he has been an agent for Satan in getting his master tortured and murdered. Lacking supernatural faith, he finds himself alienated from the other apostles and stripped of hope. The throngs he expected to rise as an army of the righteous proclaiming their hosannas, shouted “crucify him” instead. If the devil could not claim Jesus, and even has Peter stolen from his grasp, then he will at least claim this one traitor as his own. Indeed, all who sin and fail to repent before death overtakes them, share in the stamp of traitor that is pressed upon their souls. While those who have never known baptism and faith might know hell because of ignorance; Judas was probably the first but not the last to betray our Lord as one who had belonged to his grouping of friends. Indeed, while there is arguably a most terrible circle of hell for renegade Christians, Judas stands as a warning to the Church that even bishops and priests can suffer damnation.

Why would we play games and take chances? Too many are among the walking dead, perpetually working and playing in mortal sin. Failing to go to confession and to receive absolution, they have allowed the spirit of Satan to enter them. Indeed, akin to Judas at the Last Supper, they attend Mass and receive the Eucharist— blasphemies on top of blasphemies. Their priests like Christ could immediately steal them from Satan and return them to the good graces of God if only they would go to confession. But too many will not submit to God’s ministers of mercy or admit to one another or even to themselves, the terrible truth. They have broken their friendship with God. They already have one foot in hell. The longer this situation lasts, the more comfortable they become with sin. They can still be saved but it is increasingly unlikely. Indeed, many will no longer change their hellish trajectory even if they could.

Proof of this is evidenced when trying to turn someone around. They get angry when anyone challenges their hypocrisy. “Leave me alone! Who are you to tell me about my business! I haven’t hurt anyone! You talk like I’ve killed someone! I know people a lot worse than me!”

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Hell-Spirits are Known by Their Wrath

Posted on July 3, 2025 by Father Joe

Rage and anger against a brother are judged by Christ as damnable (see Matthew 5:22). Such hardness of the heart focuses not on justice or mercy, but on revenge and is frequently accompanied by a curse. I suspect that those in hell are locked into that posture and cannot escape. They can never say they are sorry. There is no healing. Their own self-hatred is projected upon God and everyone else.

Given that the sin of wrath or out-of-control anger is a damning sin, it must assuredly have a role to play in hell, no doubt polluting the atmosphere more than the smoke of any ordinary fire. While it might be directed toward God, it is a type of anger that is always diffusive, violently assaulting everyone and anything around the enraged person. The loss of control makes any type of meditative composure or resignation utterly impossible. The hearts of hell are forever restless or agitated. The irony is that the damned can never be whole or truly free. Their anger betrays a self-hatred that evades any semblance of supernatural love. The subject experiencing wrath always believes that he has been wronged and that his anger is justified. However, it allows for no levelheaded analysis. There can be no dialogue or reasoned accommodation. Note that stories of possessions often portray the demoniac as similarly explosive toward any efforts at exorcism. They act like cornered wild animals. Hell would constitute their ultimate cage. Unable to get their way, many souls might resemble wild beasts more than rational men and women. Wrath in hell is a demonic occupation, wrestling against a darkness that has nested in the human soul. There can be no exorcism for those in hell so infested. The soul strikes out and seeks to expel an invader and yet it no longer has any strength to do so. It is property. One cannot both hate or reject divine power and call upon it for help. Like an old battery left in a flashlight, the acid of wrath has eaten away at the insides. The light can never again be switched on.

Wrath eclipses the soul and casts hell in eternal twilight. This anger is literally hatred itself. It impacts upon the two properties of identity in the soul, intellect and will. The fire of wrath buries any possibility of good judgment and a humble heart. While in this world, the fiery tentacles of wrath would reach out to draw all within its reach into the embrace of hell. It desires harm and the downfall of others, even the most innocent.

While we are still pilgrims in this world, we should replace the raging lava of hate that threatens to consume hearts with the calming waters of Christ. The antidote to wrath in this world is the mystery of Christ’s Cross and the selfless love of Jesus in enduring his passion. If he could accept a death so outrageous, then why can we not embrace with docility the heavenly Father’s will in our lives? It is humility that can keep us from the grips of this sin. Oddly enough, Christ’s victory in the Cross is also the focus for the rage of Satan and his minions on the other side of the divide. The devil has allowed himself to be duped.

We often speak of contrition as the precondition for faith and saving grace. However, even more foundational is humility. The acceptance of God’s providence voids any claims at self-justification before the Lord. It makes possible clarity of judgment and resignation of spirit. If we want mercy, then we must also be vehicles for forgiveness and healing.

Rage is irrational and out-of-control. It is associated with vengeance and murder. It signifies an anti-gospel. The good news of Christ is about the acquisition of the truth, the forgiveness of sins and eternal life. While the abode of hell is an expression of God’s justice; the horror stories about hell are due to its denizens, themselves. It is not the just punishment of God but the rage of sinners that leads to the excessive chastisement of the damned.

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No Escape from Hell

Posted on July 2, 2025 by Father Joe

Given the testimony in the Old Testament, and the devilish attack upon Job, it is no wonder that the devil targets Mary, Christ and the Church. He attacks the family of our Lord. While it seems that he has utterly escaped hell to pursue his mischief, there are a few points we need to remember. First, Satan and his demonic horde are pure spirits and have no bodies. One can only identify their presence by their activity. Second, any abode outside of heaven may constitute at least a fringe boundary of hell, if not hell proper. Third, it might be possible for the demons to stretch the fabric of hell. Milton’s Satan as the great anti-hero cries out, “Me miserable! Which way shall I fly Infinite wrath and infinite despair? Which way I fly is hell; myself am hell.” I am reminded of the famous exorcism in Washington, purportedly in Georgetown but really in Cottage City. Completed in St. Louis months after a local failure, the demons identified themselves with scratches on the afflicted boy’s chest. The words read, “Hell Spirit.” The demons literally take hell with them, wherever they want to go. Fourth, the theme of freedom is likely engaged again. While there can be no reform or contrition on the part of fallen angels, their intrusion in human affairs sets the stage for us to prove our fidelity. Yes, some will abuse freedom and make bad choices. But liberty in this regard sets the groundwork for great saints and heroes of faith. There is an irony here, but some men and women would never step up unless they were severely tested.

While there is concurrence among authorities that devils might not be restricted to hell and thus roam the earth; the verdict is less clear about damned human beings. I am reminded of the story about the rich man and Lazarus in Luke 16:19-31. While there is some conversation, which might be merely a literary device, the rich man is told by Abraham that he can neither command Lazarus to refresh his tongue nor offer warning to his brothers about their looming fate. A great chasm both separates him from others and imprisons him. If taken literally as a depiction of hell, then there is no getting out.

Most Protestants deny the existence of ghosts. Catholicism does not. Ordinarily ghosts are understood as the suffering souls in purgation. There are many stories about them appealing for prayers so that they might be sped on their way to heaven. Further the reality of ghosts finds testimony from Christ in Luke 24:39. Jesus says, “Touch me and see, because a ghost does not have flesh and bones as you can see I have.” As a pastor of souls, I have seen evidence that the dead and the damned might also continue to exert a negative influence or manipulation upon the living. While I would not deny psychological elements, it is hard in certain cases not to discern a genuine and malicious spiritual bondage, particularly against family members. It may be that God allows such things so that the living might face the darkness and demons of life to find true liberation and healing. However, speaking generally, the ordinary negative spiritual agencies are not dead human beings but rather angelic demons or the devil.

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The Influence of Hell on Earth

Posted on July 1, 2025 by Father Joe

Hell is defined as a place of eternal punishment. Nevertheless, the Scriptures relate that the devil and his demons actively roam the earth. It is for this reason that some speculated about hell being located on earth or at least deep within it. I would argue this is unlikely. It may be enough to say that the earth or the material universe falls outside the parameters of the heavenly kingdom. The kingdom of Christ is breaking into the world but has yet to be fully realized. When Satan tempted Christ, he took for granted that he owned the world as a sort of adjunct to hell. Of course, our Lord’s passion and death redeemed us from the devil. We need no longer to be his property. Given the ministry of exorcism and the testimony of Job 1:7, Satan does indeed roam the world and he and his minions can negatively influence souls. Indeed, in some cases they seem to have limited power within the material order. This has given a few of us real pause, not only regarding traditional hauntings and stories of possession, but also about the internet and the rise of artificial intelligence. Might these new technologies open doors for the direct influence of the demonic on a wider scale than thought possible? Can we be certain that conversations online and even in social media are always with purely human and/or A.I. agents?

If the devil can influence men and intrude through tarot cards and Ouija boards, why not in the new electronic and digital media? I knew a priest-exorcist taunted through odd phone calls. Just look at the gross violence in gaming. Online pornography has utterly replaced adult bookstores and X-rated movie houses. All are now targeted with impunity. The devil has a hand in this for sure. Would the devil not use technology to undermine faith and to deform moral conscience? Such is a real potentiality if the devil is not rigidly restricted to the confines of hell.

Why does a good God give the devil liberty to tempt, influence and frighten us? The serpent in the garden tempted humanity with his own sin, urging that a bite of the forbidden fruit would make them gods. The cost was the dark side of mortality and the reduction of the devil to a worm that borrows the dirt. More than a snake, Satan was imaged as a serpent or dragon. Not only did he tempt Eve, but he intimidated her. The devil still seeks to frighten as the big boogeyman. This dragon appears in Genesis, the first book of the Bible, and in Revelation, the last. He was the great deceiver and was cast out from heaven, hurled to earth, along with his fallen host of angels (Revelation 12:7-9).

I suspect the presence of the demonic on earth has to do with the specific sin of Satan. He refuses to bend the knee to the Christ Child. Jesus, by making our humanity his own, dismissing Satan’s temptations in the desert and claiming victory by the Cross, incites the devil to target us all in his crosshairs. If he cannot take out Jesus, then he will go after us. He tempts our first parents, and the original sin would inflict great harm upon humanity and material creation. Our Lord would pay the price to make satisfaction for this dishonor to God, and he would heal the rift between heaven and earth. However, since the devil targeted the incarnation and humanity; all men and women would be called to take up their crosses and to take their turn in being tested. Now, not only the divine Person of Christ would assail the devil, but armed with faith and grace, even the smallest and weakest of God’s children might put the devil to shame. Jesus tells his friends not to be afraid but the devils and the damned have every reason to be fearful. The parable story of Christ has not ended with the Gospel but is extended into the life of the Church and her saints. The devil has lost the war, but the saints and martyrs still face the darkness in various skirmishes and battles. The devil fights on in spite and this intensifies his humiliation. It is as if he will never learn. He thought the crucifixion would be his great victory and yet it proved to be his bitter defeat. Now in time, with every selfless act of love and martyrdom, his loss is revisited.

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Fallen Angels & Men in Hell

Posted on June 28, 2025 by Father Joe

I suspect even the damned seek to run away from the truth of perdition, seeking to make some semblance of heaven in hell. What powers remain to them? They still have intellect and will. C. S. Lewis may have been on to something in his book THE GREAT DIVORCE. The damned fashioned their worlds through imagination and separated themselves ever more and more from one another. The reality would be most unpleasant. Might they seek escape through the phantasms of the mind just as mortal men turn to drugs or the bottle? Such seems to be a symptom of self-preoccupation and self-destruction.

What are the characteristics of the damned? Let us look first at the saved. At the very beginning of the catechism, we are asked about our ultimate meaning. Why did God make us? The answer is short and decisive— to know him, to love him, to serve him, and to give him glory. The damned do not want to know God and either hate or are indifferent to him. This failure to love will also show itself with an impoverishment regarding charity to our neighbor. The devil’s sin becomes that of fallen humanity. Milton’s Satan swears, “I will not serve!” We read in the epic poem, PARADISE LOST: “The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a Heav’n of Hell, a Hell of Heav’n. . . Better to reign in Hell, then serve in Heav’n.” The saints are about God’s business in the world. They worship him at Mass and take their adoration and praise with them into heaven. By contrast, a fallen humanity might go through the motions, but their love is purely for show. They might curse and throw God’s name around, but they rarely if ever pray. They miss more Masses than they attend. As I stated before, if they cannot worship God once a week for an hour, why should they want to enter heaven where the saints and angels give endless glory to God?

Many people wrongly assume that the souls of saints become angelic after death. However, this is not the teaching of the Church. When a human being dies, his body becomes a corpse, and his soul becomes a ghost. Human ghosts are regarded as helpless. They have no angelic powers. It is for this reason that after the final judgment, the righteous dead will be restored body and spirit. Like the glorified Christ, they will be reconstituted albeit like Jesus able to appear in locked rooms and no longer subject to sickness, suffering or death. By contrast, the angels were never born and are not human. They have no true bodies or physical extension. While we are born in time, the number of angels is fixed. Just like men, some angels rebelled against God. Fallen angels followed Satan and are called devils or demons. Fallen human beings are called the damned. They are not the same and fallen humanity is largely subject to the will of the demonic. While it is generally accepted that demons can sometimes evade or escape or extend hell; many if not most authorities view the fallen dead of humanity as imprisoned in hell without any possible respite. However, the Church has not given a certain answer to this query.

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The Closed & Locked Door

Posted on June 27, 2025 by Father Joe

The gravity of the parable in Luke 13:22-30 is not about the dimensions of the door but the fact that it is closed. No one will enter heaven except those that the Lord allows to do so. Hell is not simply another path or door that might be chosen but also regards being locked outside the kingdom of the just. St. Augustine writes in THE CITY OF GOD about two competing cities. The great doctor of the Church argued that in this world it is often difficult or impossible to determine the kingdom to which a person belongs. Wicked people sometimes do good things. Good people sometimes commit grievous wrongs. All will be made clear on the other side of the mortal veil.

We are reminded of a two-fold movement, first, pilgrims toward God and the land of promise; and second, the God who comes searching for us. God knows those who belong to him. When it comes to the damned, some will jump ship before reaching the promised shore. They may literally knock on the door to God’s house, but they will never come in. Self-deception can take one to the very entry of heaven but without the key hidden in the human heart, no one can enter. A single step inside would bring the full weight of truth crushing down. Lies have no place under the light of divine truth. God’s revelation about this takes into consideration human freedom and the tension between virtue and vice. The Lord readily showers his grace upon those who are disposed to receive his help and life. Unfortunately, others shun the rain of God’s gifts and favor.

Ours is no angry God who hates sinners as depicted in radical Calvinism. God loves us all, even those who would reject him. Indeed, he loves us so much that he is willing both to die for us and to give us space to exercise our own freedom, even if that means letting us go. There is no annihilation as supposed by the Adventists. God would love us into heaven but that same love will follow us into hell with a fire that can never be extinguished. If heaven is the proper home for love, then hell is where that love is never accepted. That love brings joy to some and agony to others.

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