In the summer of 2017, during the centennial anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima, we made a local pilgrimage as a family for the purpose of obtaining a plenary indulgence for my mother-in-law who had passed away the year prior. Being intentional about this spiritual work of mercy (praying for the dead) was relatively new for us and so when we heard that we could obtain the remission of temporal punishment due to sin for one being purified in purgatory by way of indulgence (Latin: indulgentia, to be kind or tender), we did so for the benefit of my mother-in-law.
When my father-in-law passed away last month, I started digging around in the treasure chest of gifts the Church provides for the faithful to assist us as we "work out our salvation in fear and trembling" (Phil 2:12). What I discovered was that the gaining of a plenary indulgence wasn't just reserved for special jubilee years, but that they were available to the faithful year round through a variety of means.
Think about it for a moment. Christ through his Holy Church gives us so many gifts already. He washes away the pernicious stain of Original Sin with the waters of Baptism, something we could never under our own power do ourselves, and strengthens our witness in Confirmation. He gives us the gift of his body and blood in the Holy Eucharist so that we might never go spiritually hungry. He gives us the grace and solace of undeniable forgiveness through his ministers in the Sacrament of Confession, and when it is not available to us in emergencies He grants absolution by way of Perfect Contrition. He gives the sick and those in danger of death the Sacrament of Anointing and Extreme Unction. He sanctifies our vocations, whether that is in Holy Orders or Holy Matrimony.
Beyond the seven sacraments, He also gives us divine Revelation in the Holy Scriptures that is accessible to anyone so that we might know his Divine character. We have the lives of the saints to show us the way of those who have gone before us in holiness. He provides us with additional grace by way of sacramentals such as the scapular, holy water and blessed salt, the Miraculous Medal, and various other "weapons in our arsenal" for spiritual battle.
As if that weren't enough, belief in indulgences and Her authority to grant them is an infallible teaching of the Church. We can have full confidence that God WANTS TO SAVE US and gives us every possible grace so that we might be with him in Paradise, including the remission of temporal punishment due to sin for the indulged, whether it be for ourselves or for a deceased member of the Church Suffering. This is a supreme gift, which Christ through His Church has the authority to grant us and chooses to do so for our benefit and the benefit of those we love.
What I found when doing a little research was that the gaining of indulgences, whether plenary or partial, can be an everyday act of charity, not just a once a year thing.
How so? Well for one thing, one can obtain a plenary indulgence--that is, the complete remission of temporal punishment due to sin, for ourselves or one who has died and is in Purgatory--by the following:
-reading or listening to Holy Scripture for half an hour;
-praying before the Blessed Sacrament for half an hour;
-making the Stations of the Cross in an approved manner;
-reciting the rosary alone in a church, or communally with others outside of a church.
These are not onerous tasks! Besides being edifying for our own spiritual lives, they give us the opportunity to cooperate with grace to be a tender favor for the dead being purified, especially those with no one to pray for them. Take advantage of them!
Of course it goes without saying that the usual conditions for an indulgence apply: being in a state of grace, receiving Holy Communion (1 per indulgence), sacramental Confession (which can satisfy several indulgences), prayers for the Holy Father (an Our Father and Hail Mary suffice), and the detachment from all sin, including venial sin.
How many lost opportunities to pray for the dead and obtain favor them we let pass through our fingers! But we can remedy that by being intentional in our spiritual charity, especially as we move into the penitential season.
Why not obtain a Old Testament and New Testament on disk, or mp3, and listen on the way to work? I have a thirty minute commute, so this is what I do. Then after work, I go to Mass, pray for the pope, receive communion, and make an act of the will to be detached from sin. The next day, lead your family in the rosary at home. Go to Adoration for half an hour a few times a week. Go to Confession regularly as needed (for me it is once a month or so on average). In doing so, you can literally help free a soul completely from their torment and see them welcomed into happy repose every day.
You may run out of deceased relatives or loved ones to pray and obtain indulgences for if you do this every day. No matter. Continue to fulfill the conditions and offer them to Mary to dispense the graces to whomever she chooses; she probably knows better than you do who needs them. And it is ok to obtain them for yourself as well (remember, an indulgence can only be applied to a deceased or oneself, not another living person)
You may get hung up on the needing to be completely detached from sin, even venial sin. Remember, such intentions rests in the will, not the emotions. We can express this desire of the will in a heartfelt recitation of an Act of Contrition. Of course, one must be in a state of grace, but God does not command the impossible. Remember how much grace he pours out on us because he wants us to take advantage of those graces. He wants men to be saved.
One final word--strangely, it can sometimes be difficult to trust that God (and by extension, Holy Church) would offer such mercy to sinners; surely we must do more. It is not easy to become a saint--if it was, we would have many more! Although it is not easy, it is not complicated. The way of the Little Flower is an example of "taking the elevator" to Heaven by way of complete trust in God as Father. And so, when we fulfill the conditions and trust in charity that God will apply it to a soul in need, we should not second guess "that was too easy, it should be harder, maybe it didn't work," etc., nor should we second-guess this infallible teaching of Holy Church. Though the abuses of indulgences was right to be criticized, Martin Luther truly threw the baby out with the bathwater when he broke from Christ's One, Holy, Catholic and Apostolic Church.
Remember: God truly desires that all men be saved (1 Tim 2:4). He does not command the impossible, but gives us the grace necessary to carry out our duties (Jas 4:6). Praying for the dead is a spiritual work of mercy (2 Macc 12:39-46). We here on earth have the luxury of time. It is not forever, but what we do have should be spent to prepare ourselves and aid those being purified who have gone before us.
This supreme act of charity God will not fail to repay.
No comments:
Post a Comment