Hell

May you never be numbered among those whose house is peaceful, quiet, and free from care; those on whom the Lord's chastisement does not descend; those who live out their days in prosperity, and in the twinkling of an eye will go down to hell.--St. Raymond of Penyafort, Priest, 13th century

 

We do not think enough of the reality of hell. Jesus would not had suffered and died for us if there was no hell. Very often today we are given the impression that everyone will go to heaven. Many say that if God is a good God He won't let anyone spend eternity in hell. This is a very shallow understanding of God and free will, not scriptural at all. Jesus spoke as much about the reality of hell as He did anything else. Hell is a choice we make, not God. When those nails were being driven into his very human hands, this was for our salvation and sanctification. If hell was not a reality, He would not have had to defeat death by dying. Read Matthew 25 and you will find a very important message from Jesus about hell.

The hard times we all go through have a purpose. Our Father is working in us for our good. Man, it's hard to see this when we are going through them!! We easily become angry, despondent, depressed, afraid, etc... He knows how we feel, He experienced every emotion we possibly could, so let us try and remember this the next time the storms come. God demands perfection, holiness, and purity in all of us. We can't see God without these virtues, and we cannot attain them on our own, we must press in to Jesus. We must offer ourselves each morning to our Lord. We must stand with Mary at the foot of the cross, fixing our eyes on Jesus when we find ourselves on our own Golgotha. And then, we must try our best to smile at our Beloved. I find that daily Mass and praying the rosary help me a great deal in this journey. I need all the help I can get! Please pray for me.

 

wkm