The Happiness of Heaven Part 9

Yet, although it is true that instructing others unto justice deserves a peculiar reward, we must not forget that the preaching of the gospel will not, of itself, glorify any one, unless it is accompanied by a pure intention, and the practice of virtue. Even if Judas, as an apostle, instructed many unto justice, he certainly does not now shine as a star on that account. Evidently, then, holiness of life must accompany our teaching of others. This is what our Blessed Lord tells us in the most positive manner, when he says: "He that shall do and teach, he shall be called great in the kingdom of heaven."* Hence, you must ever remember that, how gifted soever you may be, however eloquent, and how many soever you may have taught unto justice, you never can shine as a star in heaven, unless you at the same time lead a Christian life. Without this, your preaching will profit you nothing, even if others are saved by your eloquence.

* Matt. v. 19.

CHAPTER XIX.

THE GLORY OF THE VIRGINS AND RELIGIOUS.

Here are two other bright throngs that present themselves. They are the holy Virgins and the Religious. Let us first contemplate the bright glory of the virgins. I quote again from the Apocalypse: "And I heard a great voice from heaven. . . . And the voice which I heard was as the voice of harpers, harping upon their harps. And they sang as it were a new canticle before the throne. . . . And no man could say that canticle but those hundred and forty-four thousand. These are they who were not defiled with women: for they are virgins. These follow the Lamb whithersoever He goeth."*

* Apoc. xiv.

These evidently form a distinct cla.s.s in heaven. It is composed of both men and women who never married, nor lost their virtue by actual sin. I speak here of such as these, and not of any others. Hence, we must exclude from this cla.s.s all little children, who died before they could be responsible for their deeds; for, though they all died virgins, their virginity, which was a gift of nature, does not deserve a "crown of justice." Wherefore, in this place we shall consider the excellent glory of those only, who, having grown to the age of discretion, led a life of purity, and died virgins. Evidently these alone have purchased the glory promised to virgins. Many of them led holy lives while living in the world--either with or without vow; while the great majority were so enraptured with the beauty and purity of Jesus, that they cheerfully gave up all the lawful pleasures of the world, and consecrated themselves to Him by the vows of poverty, chast.i.ty, and obedience. In this life of suffering and self-denial they persevered unto the end.

Their day of trial and suffering is now over, and they are rewarded with exceeding glory. Clad in their white robes, which denote the spotless purity of their lives, they enjoy a peculiar and intimate union with Jesus, their beloved Spouse. While on earth, they would have no other spouse but Him. They consecrated themselves to Him, and he accepted the n.o.ble sacrifice. By His grace he sanctified and beautified them, and made them worthy of the special glory they now enjoy. How beautiful they are! How glorious! They are the lilies of heaven. In the words of the Holy Ghost, we may exclaim: "O how beautiful is the chaste generation with glory! for the memory thereof is immortal: because it is known both with G.o.d and with men. When it is present, they imitate it: and they desire it when it hath withdrawn itself: and it triumpheth forever, winning the reward of undefiled conflicts."*

* Wis. iv.

Yet, while it is true that those who die virgins are rewarded with a peculiar glory, we must not forget that virginity alone can neither deserve the high honors of heaven, nor even save any one, unless it is accompanied by the virtues which befit a spouse of Christ. There are many foolish virgins, who are not even admitted to the wedding--feast, because they are not adorned with charity, and other virtues which belong to their state.

We must ever remember that the crown worn by the virgins in heaven is only an accidental glory; for if it were essential, no one except virgins could be happy there. Virginity is, therefore, far from being the greatest of virtues, or the most necessary to reach the high honors of heaven. For, to use the strong language of the Apostle, if you could speak with the tongues of angels and men; and if you knew all mysteries, and had all knowledge; and if you had faith, so as to remove mountains, and have not charity--even though you be a virgin--you are become as sounding bra.s.s and a tinkling cymbal.

Neither will your virginity, nor all other gifts, profit you anything without charity.

See, therefore, that you endeavor to clothe your soul with those virtues which befit a spouse of Jesus Christ. Love G.o.d above all things. Be extremely charitable to all. Be humble, modest, reserved.

Lead a life of mortification, silence, and prayer. For unless you lead such a life as your vocation requires, you expose yourself to hear the terrible words spoken to the foolish virgins. When they came to the wedding, they stood at the door, and said, "Lord, Lord, open to us. But He answering, said: Amen, I say to you, I know you not."*

* Matt. xxv. 11.

But if you do lead the charitable life of a true spouse of Christ, you shall undoubtedly reach a high degree of glory in heaven; and, besides, you will wear the virgins' crown, and enjoy the special intimate union with Jesus which is promised to all those who, despising the short-lived pleasures of this world, have consecrated themselves to His divine service.

Let us now spend a few moments in contemplating the high glory of the religious. This cla.s.s is composed exclusively of men and women who, while on earth, consecrated themselves to G.o.d by the vows of poverty, chast.i.ty, and obedience. Many of them--perhaps the great majority are virgins, while other are not. For many of them, like a St. Francis Borgia, were widowers; and others, like a St. Frances of Rome, were widows. Others again, there are, who, when young and foolish, committed sin, by which they may have ceased to be virgins, but who nevertheless received a most marked vocation to the religious life.

All these, as well as virgins, enjoy a peculiar glory in heaven, which is due to them as a "crown of justice," on account of the great sacrifices they made to G.o.d by the vows of religion.

By the vow of poverty, they not only stripped themselves of all their possessions--they, moreover, gave up the natural right which all men have to possess property. By the vow of chast.i.ty, they gave up the natural right which all men have to enjoy the lawful pleasures of the body. By the vow of obedience, they not only relinquished forever the right to dispose of themselves, but they also placed themselves in the hands of their superiors, to be ruled and governed by them as if they were little children. Thus, by one single act, religious persons abandon all that is dearest to the heart of man according to nature; for they not only give up all their possessions--the world, with its honors and pleasures--they not only sacrifice their liberty--they also abandon father and mother, brother and sister, friends and relatives. In a word, they cut themselves away from the world, and all that makes life bright and desirable, according to nature. And what is more, they embrace a life of continual mortification and self-denial.

It is true, the grace of G.o.d, which enables men and women to make such sacrifices, makes the life of religious tolerable; but this does not prevent it from being a life of a continual and painful struggle against the inclinations and cravings of nature. From all this, it follows that religious, as such, whether virgins or not, enjoy an exceeding glory in heaven on account of the sublime sacrifice of themselves they have made to G.o.d by the three vows of religion. This is what our Blessed Lord promises, when he says: "And every one that hath left house, or brethren, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands for my name's sake, shall receive a hundred-fold, and shall possess life everlasting."

In speaking of the three vows, theologians compare them to martyrdom.

They maintain that, as a man who lays down his life for the faith enters heaven immediately, without any detention in purgatory, so also does a religious who dies immediately after taking his vows.

Whatever temporal punishment was due to him on account of His sins, is entirely cancelled by that one act. And the reason they give is, that the act of sacrificing one's self to G.o.d by the vows of religion is, like martyrdom, one of the n.o.blest and most heroic acts that man can perform.

If then, virgins, as such, are rewarded with a peculiar glory in heaven, what shall we say of the glory and splendor which surrounds religious? For virgins make only one great sacrifice, by the practice of perfect chast.i.ty, while religious, who make the same sacrifice, add to this two others, namely, poverty and obedience. And experience teaches that these two additional vows are, for most persons, far more difficult, because they involve far more suffering and self-denial than the mere practice of chast.i.ty. From all this it follows, that virgins who are religious, enjoy a far higher degree of glory in heaven than those who are not religious. It follows, also, that religious, as such, whether virgins or not, enjoy an exceeding glory in heaven, in virtue of the great sacrifices they have made for G.o.d by the three vows of religion. Like Jesus, they were poor, chaste, and obedient unto death; and like Him also, they are exalted to the high honors of heaven.

But, although it is true that religious, as such, enjoy a high glory in heaven, it must not be inferred that they all enjoy the same degree of glory. There is, perhaps, not a cla.s.s in heaven in which the degrees of glory are so various. Some of them died only a few days after taking their vows; others, on the day itself; while others lived half a century, and more, in the practice of the most heroic virtue. Some were called by the grace of G.o.d after a life of worldliness and sin; while others had already reached a high degree of sanct.i.ty when they offered their sacrifice to G.o.d. Others again, after their consecration to G.o.d, were extremely faithful to grace, and gave all the energies of their nature to the acquirement of greater perfection; while others were sadly wanting in generosity to G.o.d, and aimed at only an inferior degree of holiness. Again, some had few or no temptations from the day upon which they took their vows; while for others that act seemed to be a declaration of war, for they began to be a.s.sailed by every manner of temptation to violate their vows and go back into the world. But, aided by the all-powerful grace of G.o.d, they resisted manfully, and fought the good fight unto the end.

These, and a thousand other differences, give rise to various degrees of glory among the religious, who, having finished their course, have received the crown of life. They who, like a St. Aloysius, a St.

Stanislaus, a St. Theresa, and many others, practised every virtue in a heroic degree, are among the brightest and the highest in glory; while they who led less perfect lives are far inferior. Nevertheless, all, without exception, enjoy a peculiar glory, which is due to them as a "crown of justice" for the great sacrifice they made to G.o.d by the three vows of religion.

CHAPTER XX.

THE GLORY OF PENITENTS AND PIOUS PEOPLE.

Who are they that compose yonder bright mult.i.tude? They are headed by a queen who does not wear a virgin's crown; and yet, she is so beautiful, and enjoys so intimate a union with Jesus. Who is she? She is Mary Magdalen, the bright queen of Penitents, and the star of hope to all who have grievously sinned in this world.

She was once a sinner, and such a sinner! Her soul was the home of seven devils! She was a hireling of Satan, to catch the souls of men.

But a flash of light came forth from the Heart of Jesus, and in that light she saw herself sinful and hateful in the eyes of G.o.d. His grace filled her heart with a deep and crushing sorrow for her many sins. Prostrate at the feet of Jesus, she kissed them, and washed them with the tears of true repentance. Jesus, who never despised or rejected repentant sinners, commanded the devils to depart from her; He then washed her soul, and made her clean as an angel. Her many sins were forgiven her, because she loved much; for her deep contrition was not dictated by servile fear, but by pure love. After the ascension of Jesus, she shut herself up in a grotto, where she wept and did bitter penance during the remainder of her days. When her last hour was come, the angels descended from heaven, and took her pure soul to the bosom of Jesus. Her intense love and her penitential tears deserved for her a "crown of justice." They beautified and glorified her far above many a one who never sinned grievously; for she is crowned with the high honors of heaven, and enjoys a union with Jesus far more intimate than many who never offended G.o.d.

Nor is she alone in this exceeding glory wherewith an ardent love and penance clothe sinners. Thousands of others who sinned grievously, and imitated her penance, are now shining in glory far above others who never sinned. Think you that St. Peter, who denied his Lord, is below all those who preserved their innocence, and even below all the baptized infants in heaven? Think you that St. Paul, who once persecuted the Church, is now below all on that account? Think you that the great St. Augustine, St. Mary of Egypt, St. Pelagia, and a host of other ill.u.s.trious penitents, are all below mere babes on account of their sins? They certainly are not. Their intense love for G.o.d, their sorrow, and their tears atoned for their sins, and placed them far, very far above many who, though they never sinned grievously, never performed an act of heroic virtue in their whole lives.

Remember that charity, by which is meant love for G.o.d and for our neighbor, is the greatest of virtues, and has the power of elevating the greatest sinners to the highest glory of heaven. Mary Magdalen, therefore, though once a great sinner, is, at this moment, enjoying a most intimate union with Jesus, and shines like a very star, in the presence of G.o.d.

Even in this world she is glorified far above many who were not sinners. When Jesus sat at the table of Simon the Leper, Mary Magdalen anointed Him with precious ointment. Some of the Apostles complained of the waste; but Jesus defended her conduct, and added: "Amen, I say to you, wheresoever this gospel shall be preached, that also which she hath done, shall be told for a memorial of her."*

Again, we read in the Gospel of St. Mark, that Jesus, "rising early the first day of the week, appeared first to Mary Magdalen, from whom He had cast out seven devils."+ Again, in the Litany of the Saints, the Church places the name of Mary Magdalen before all the virgins.

This is certainly a high honor. Her feast, also, is one of a higher order than that of Martha her virgin sister, and above that of many other virgins; for she is the only woman, besides the Blessed Virgin Mary, who, in her ma.s.s, enjoys the privilege of the Credo. No other woman, whether a virgin-saint or not, enjoys that privilege, unless she is the patroness of a particular church. In that case, the Credo is said in her own church, but nowhere else; while for Mary Magdalen it is said in every church of the world. There is, moreover, a congregation of Magdalens, whereof she is the model and patroness. It is attached to the order of the Good-Shepherd, and is filled, not only with women who have sinned, but with virgins, too, who have fallen in love with the beautiful penitential spirit of Mary Magdalen.

* Matt. xiv. 9. + Mark xvi. 9.

All this must certainly be very consoling to those who have sinned grievously, and who have, perhaps, thought that, on account of their sins, they have lost all right to a high place in heaven. Mary Magdalen, St. Peter, St. Augustine, and a host of other ill.u.s.trious penitents, teach us that a high degree of glory is ours, no matter what sins we have committed, if we love ardently, lead a penitential life, and practise other virtues in an eminent degree.

There is one more beautiful throng standing around the throne of G.o.d, and enjoying a high degree of glory in heaven. It is made up of the vast mult.i.tude of men and women who sanctified themselves while living in the world. They are known as the Pious people. They lived in the world, but were not of it. They did not live according to its spirit; for its spirit is the sworn enemy of G.o.d. Many of them, while surrounded with the wealth and magnificence of this world, practised the virtues of the cloister. Others belonged to the middle cla.s.ses of society; and others, again, to the poorer cla.s.ses. But in whatever cla.s.s their lot was cast, they all sanctified themselves by loving G.o.d and their neighbor, and by acquitting themselves of their respective duties. What a beautiful and glorious throng they are!

Here are kings and queens who, in their exalted position, knew how to be humble, and who used their wealth and position for the benefit of their subjects. Here are representatives of all professions and trades in society--lawyers, physicians, soldiers, tradesmen, and cultivators of the soil. Here, too, are the servants of the rich, who thought it a kindness to be allowed to do all drudgery, in order to have wherewith to live. Here are good husbands and wives, who truly loved each other, and were faithful unto death. Here are those good parents whose first care was to teach their children the knowledge and love of G.o.d. Here, too, are the good children who honored their parents, and cared for them with a tender charity, when age and infirmity had rendered them helpless. Here, too, are young men, and young women, who, though they had no call to consecrate their virginity to Jesus Christ, led the lives of angels amid the fascinations of the world.

All these have led pious lives. They mortified their pa.s.sions; they were given to prayer; they frequented the sacraments; they performed acts of charity according to their means; and practised the virtues of their rank and calling. All these have, therefore, reached the honors and distinctions which G.o.d distributes among them who have served Him with fidelity. Though they are neither martyrs, nor doctors, nor religious, they all led holy lives; they all have received a "crown of justice," which was due to them as a reward for their love of G.o.d, and for the virtues they practised while on earth.

Many of them were great saints, such as a St. Louis, king of France; a St. Elizabeth, queen of Portugal; a St. Monica, widow; a St.

Genevieve, the virgin-shepherdess; a St. Zita, the angelic servant-girl; and many others, whom the Church has placed upon her altars, and proposed to our imitation.

You see, then, that the high honors of heaven do not belong, exclusively, to any privileged cla.s.ses, as you might imagine the martyrs, doctors, virgins, and religious to be. A high degree of glory is offered to all, and by the grace of G.o.d is attainable by all, without any exception. If, therefore, you have hitherto looked upon it as a presumption to aim at a high degree of glory, because you were neither a consecrated virgin nor a religious, banish such a thought from your mind. For, instead of being a presumption, it is a virtue to aspire to a high sanct.i.ty, and, consequently, to a high degree of union with G.o.d in heaven. Therefore, whether you are married or single, rich or poor, learned or ignorant, you are called upon by your Lord Jesus to fight the good fight unto the end, with a solemn a.s.surance that, when you have finished your course, a just Judge will encircle your brow with a "crown of justice," and admit you into the society of those who signalized themselves in His service.

Before closing this chapter, we must say a few words, at least, about the two remaining cla.s.ses of the blessed, and, probably, by far the most numerous in heaven. The one is composed of those who were not pious, nor generous to G.o.d. Many of them sinned often, and grievously, and did very little to atone for their sins; and the virtues they practised were few, and never brought to any perfection.

This cla.s.s also includes all those who spent their whole lives in sin, and who were saved, like the thief on the cross, by the grace of a death-bed repentance. Evidently, neither these, nor others who practised scarcely any virtue, are crowned with the high honors of heaven, which are the reward of a virtuous life. They are, nevertheless, perfectly happy, in their own degree, and sing the mercies of G.o.d, who saved many of them almost in spite of themselves.

Theirs may be called a crown of mercy, rather than one of justice.

The other cla.s.s is composed of baptized infants, and of children who died before they were responsible for their deeds. These form by far the most numerous cla.s.s in heaven, if it be true that one-half of all the children that are born die before the age of seven. But in heaven they are no longer children; for their elevation to glory has developed them into men and women. They therefore enjoy the full perfection of human nature, as well as those who died adults. They are, moreover, admitted to the Beatific Vision, and, consequently, they see, love, and enjoy G.o.d, and partake of the additional pleasures of heaven, as well as they who lived longer on earth. They, and they alone, enjoy the happiness of heaven entirely as a free gift of G.o.d, without any co-operation of their own. They are in heaven in virtue of their adoption as children of G.o.d, and through the merits of Jesus Christ.

Whatever may be their degree of glory, we certainly can never place them on a level with the Apostles, martyrs, confessors, virgins, religious, and pious people who have fought a good fight against the world, the devil, and the flesh. They never sinned, it is true, but neither did they ever make an act of faith, of hope, of charity, or perform any other act of virtue. Hence, theirs may be called a crown of liberality; for they enjoy their beat.i.tude as a free gift of G.o.d's unspeakable liberality. Their never-ending song is, therefore, one of grat.i.tude to G.o.d for taking them out of the world before their souls could be defiled by sin, or their little hearts turned away from virtue by the fascinations of the world.

Here, then, kind reader, we have the whole mult.i.tude that we saw standing around the throne of G.o.d. Though we have divided them into different cla.s.ses, and considered their glory separately, you must not infer from this that the blessed are really separated from each other in heaven. For how greatly soever the glory of the highest may differ from that of the lowest, they all, nevertheless, compose one great family of brothers and sisters, of whom G.o.d is the Father, Jesus Christ the Elder Brother as well as the King, and Mary the Mother as well as the Queen. They all mingle together, converse, and otherwise enjoy each other's society; for they are all united by the bond of the purest charity. They all exclaim, with the royal Prophet: "to Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity. . . . For there, the Lord hath commanded blessing, and life for evermore."* They all are happy, because they all see, love, and enjoy G.o.d, as well as the additional pleasures with which He perfects and completes the happiness of His beloved children. They are all filled to overflowing with the happiness of which the royal Prophet speaks, when he says: "They shall be inebriated with the plenty of Thy house: and thou shalt make them drink of the torrent of Thy pleasure. For with Thee is the fountain of life."+ By their union with the Fountain of Life, which is G.o.d himself, the blessed see all their desires fulfilled, and, knowing not what more to crave, they rest in G.o.d as their last end, and enjoy him forever.

* Ps. cx.x.xli. + Ps. xxiv.