Purgatory as a place not of external torments, but as an inner fire, urifying the soul in preparation for full communion with God.
Conscious
of God’s infinite love and justice, the soul is pained by its
inadequate response, even as the divine love purifies it from the
remnants of sin."
This "the fire that purifies" is the
vision of St. Catherine of Genoa, the wife of the late Middle Ages to
whom Benedict XVI dedicated his general audience Wednesday.
The Pope spoke of the saint to the 8 thousand people present
Wednesday. Born in 1447 in Genoa the last of five children, Catherine
Fieschi lost her father, James, in infancy.
Her mother, Francesca Negro,
gave her a Christian education. In 1463 she was married to Giuliano
Adorno, "a man who, after various military and commercial experiences
in the Middle East had come home to get married."
Married life was not
easy, he gambled she had a busy court life.
"After 10 years there was a
profound sense of emptiness and bitterness in her heart."
In 1473 she had a "singular experience": visiting the church of
St. Benedict and the nearby monastery of Our Lady of Grace she
received, she writes, "a wound to the heart with a vision of her misery
and defects and the goodness of God, so that she almost fainted.
From
this experience came the decision that was to change her life: 'No more
world, no longer sins'. " She fled confession, returned to her home and
cried for a long time. It was a "spiritual experience of God's love
towards her sinful self." A few days later she returned to the priest
"to make a good confession."
"It started here that life of purification which , for a long
time, made her feel a constant pain for sins committed and pushed her to
impose penances and sacrifices on herself to show God her love." In her
"Life" it is written that "her soul was inwardly guided and tamed only
by the sweet love of God, who gave her everything she needed."
She moved to the hospital in Pammatone, becoming its director
and leader. "A life fully active despite the depth of her inner life."
And " around her a group of followers, disciples and collaborators grew,
fascinated by her life of faith and charity".
Even her husband was won
over enough to leave the life he led and become a Franciscan tertiary
and move himself to the hospital. Catherine died September 15, 1510.
From conversion to death there were other extraordinary events,
but "two elements characterize her entire life: her mystical
experience, namely her profound union with God, experienced as a spousal
union, and, her care for the sick, the hospital organization, service
to others, especially the most needy and neglected.
These two poles of
God and neighbour, completely filled her life, spent almost entirely
within the walls of the hospital. "
Because "the more we love God and
are constant in prayer, the more we will truly love those around us,
because we'll be able to see every person in the face of the Lord, who
loves without limits and distinction."
This is what characterizes
Catherine’s thoughts on Purgatory.
In her Treatise on purgatory and
Dialogue between the soul and the body there are no "specific
revelations about purgatory or the souls who are being purified."
However, "the way used to describe it is original compared to the
period. The first part concerns the original place of purification of
souls.
At the time it was mainly portrayed by the use of images related
to a place" in the “bowels of the earth. "
For Catherine, however,
purgatory "it is not an external fire, rather an internal one”.
“The soul comes to God, still tied to the wishes and the
punishment resulting from sin, and this makes it impossible to enjoy the
beatific vision of God."
"The soul is aware of the immense love and
perfect justice of God and, therefore, suffers for failing to respond
properly to such love and perfection" and God’s love purifies it”.
The
Saints, said Benedict XVI, in their experience of union with God, "reach
so deep a knowledge of the divine mysteries, in which love and
knowledge permeate them to be of help to theologians in their efforts to
study the mysteries of faith ".
Catherine concludes the Pope "teaches us that the more we love God
and enter into intimacy with Him in prayer, the more He makes Himself
known and tranforms our hearts with his love" writing on Purgatory, she
invites us to pray for the faithful departed.
A" humble, faithful and
generous" woman, who served in the hospital for her entire life " a
shining example of charity for all and special encouragement to women
who make a crucial contribution to society and the Church in their
valuable work, enriched by their sensitivity and attention to the
poorest and most needy. "
SIC: AN/INT'L