Cyprian of Carthage, Augustine of Hippo and Gregory the Great on Purgatory
Cyprian
of Carthage, Augustine of Hippo and Gregory the Great on Purgatory
St. Cyprian
of Carthage (d. 258)
The context
of these quotes seems to be the fate of believers based on how faithful
they were:
“In the
cxviith Psalm: The Lord amending has amended me, and has not delivered me to
death. Also in the eighty-eighth Psalm: I will visit their
transgressions with a rod, and their sins with scourges. But my mercy will I
not scatter away from them. Also in Malachi: And He shall sit melting
and purifying, as it were, gold and silver; and He shall purify the sons of
Levi. Also in the Gospel: You shall not go out thence until you pay the
uttermost farthing.” (St. Cyprian of Carthage, Treatise 12, third book, 57;
source: https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/050712c.htm )
“20. And do
not think, dearest brother, that either the courage of the brethren will be
lessened, or that martyrdoms will fail for this cause, that repentance is
relaxed to the lapsed, and that the hope of peace is offered to the penitent.
The strength of the truly believing remains unshaken; and with those who fear
and love God with their whole heart, their integrity continues steady and
strong. For to adulterers even a time of repentance is granted by us, and peace
is given. Yet virginity is not therefore deficient in the Church, nor does the
glorious design of continence languish through the sins of others. The Church,
crowned with so many virgins, flourishes; and chastity and modesty preserve the
tenor of their glory. Nor is the vigour of continence broken down because
repentance and pardon are facilitated to the adulterer. It is one thing to
stand for pardon, another thing to attain to glory: it is one thing, when cast
into prison, not to go out thence until one has paid the uttermost farthing;
another thing at once to receive the wages of faith and courage. It is one
thing, tortured by long suffering for sins, to be cleansed and long purged by
fire; another to have purged all sins by suffering. It is one thing, in fine,
to be in suspense till the sentence of God at the day of judgment; another to
be at once crowned by the Lord.” (St. Cyprian of Carthage, Letter 51, par. 20;
source: https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/050712c.htm )
The last line seems to imply that temporary punishments, according to Cyprian, occur to faithful, yet imperfect souls of the elect. This theme recurs both in St. Augustine and St. Gregory the Great as will be seen later.
St.
Augustine of Hippo (d. 430)
Notice that both Augustine and Gregory the Great speak of temporary punishments before the general resurrection:
“ But
temporary punishments are suffered by some in this life only, by others after
death, by others both now and then; but all of them before that last and
strictest judgment. But of those who suffer temporary punishments after death,
all are not doomed to those everlasting pains which are to follow that
judgment; for to some, as we have already said, what is not remitted in this
world is remitted in the next, that is, they are not punished with the eternal punishment
of the world to come.” (St. Augustine of Hippo, City of God, chapter 21,
paragraph 13; source: https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/120121.htm )
“The
prophet Malachi or Malachias, who is also called Angel, and is by some (for
Jerome tells us that this is the opinion of the Hebrews) identified with Ezra
the priest, others of whose writings have been received into the canon,
predicts the last judgment, saying, Behold, He comes, says the Lord
Almighty; and who shall abide the day of His entrance? . . . for I am the Lord
your God, and I change not. (Malachi 3:1-6) From these words it more
evidently appears that some shall in the last judgment suffer some kind of
purgatorial punishments; for what else can be understood by the word, Who
shall abide the day of His entrance, or who shall be able to look upon Him? For
He enters as a moulder's fire, and as the herb of fullers: and He shall sit
fusing and purifying as if over gold and silver: and He shall purify the sons
of Levi, and pour them out like gold and silver?” (St. Augustine of Hippo, City
of God, chapter 20, paragraph 25; source: https://www.newadvent.org/fathers/120120.htm
)
“”68. But,
since these fully plain and most pertinent apostolic testimonies cannot be
false, that one obscure saying about those who build on "the foundation,
which is Christ, not gold, silver, and precious stones, but wood, hay, and
stubble"148 --for it is about these it is said that they will be saved as by
fire, not perishing on account of the saving worth of their foundation--such a
statement must be interpreted so that it does not contradict these fully plain
testimonies.
In fact,
wood and hay and stubble may be understood, without absurdity, to signify such
an attachment to those worldly things--albeit legitimate in themselves--that
one cannot suffer their loss without anguish in the soul. Now, when such
anguish "burns," and Christ still holds his place as foundation in
the heart--that is, if nothing is preferred to him and if the man whose anguish
"burns" would still prefer to suffer loss of the things he greatly
loves than to lose Christ--then one is saved, "by fire." But if, in
time of testing, he should prefer to hold onto these temporal and worldly goods
rather than to Christ, he does not have him as foundation--because he has put
"things" in the first place--whereas in a building nothing comes
before the foundations.
Now, this
fire, of which the apostle speaks, should be understood as one through which
both kinds of men must pass: that is, the man who builds with gold, silver, and
precious stones on this foundation and also the man who builds with wood, hay,
and stubble. For, when he had spoken of this, he added: "The fire shall
try every man's work, of what sort it is. If any man's work abides which he has
built thereupon, he shall receive a reward. If any man's work burns up, he
shall suffer loss; but he himself shall be saved, yet so as by fire."149 Therefore the fire will test the work, not only of the one, but of
both.
The fire is
a sort of trial of affliction, concerning which it is clearly written
elsewhere: "The furnace tries the potter's vessels and the trial of
affliction tests righteous men."150 This kind of fire works in the span of this life, just as the
apostle said, as it affects the two different kinds of faithful men. There is,
for example, the man who "thinks of the things of God, how he may please
God." Such a man builds on Christ the foundation, with gold, silver, and
precious stones. The other man "thinks about the things of the world, how
he may please his wife"151 ; that is, he builds upon the same foundation with wood, hay, and
stubble. The work of the former is not burned up, since he has not loved those
things whose loss brings anguish. But the work of the latter is burned up,
since things are not lost without anguish when they have been loved with a
possessive love. But because, in this second situation, he prefers to suffer
the loss of these things rather than losing Christ, and does not desert Christ
from fear of losing such things--even though he may grieve over his
loss--"he is saved," indeed, "yet so as by fire." He
"burns" with grief, for the things he has loved and lost, but this
does not subvert nor consume him, secured as he is by the stability and the
indestructibility of his foundation.
69. It is
not incredible that something like this should occur after this life, whether
or not it is a matter for fruitful inquiry. It may be discovered or remain
hidden whether some of the faithful are sooner or later to be saved by a sort
of purgatorial fire, in proportion as they have loved the goods that perish,
and in proportion to their attachment to them. However, this does not apply to
those of whom it was said, "They shall not possess the Kingdom of
God,"152 unless their crimes are remitted through due repentance. I say
"due repentance" to signify that they must not be barren of
almsgiving, on which divine Scripture lays so much stress that our Lord tells
us in advance that, on the bare basis of fruitfulness in alms, he will impute
merit to those on his right hand; and, on the same basis of unfruitfulness,
demerit to those on his left--when he shall say to the former, "Come,
blessed of my Father, receive the Kingdom," but to the latter,
"Depart into everlasting fire."153 (St. Augustine of Hippo, Enchiridion 68-9; source: https://www.tertullian.org/fathers/augustine_enchiridion_02_trans.htm )
St.
Gregory the Great (d. 604)
“GREGORY.
Our Lord saith in the Gospel: Walk whiles you have the light:61 and by his Prophet he saith: In time
accepted have I heard thee, and in the day of salvation have I holpen thee:62 which the Apostle St. Paul expounding,
saith: Behold, now is the time acceptable; behold, now the
day of salvation.63 Solomon, likewise, saith: Whatsoever
thy hand is able to do, work it instantly: for neither work, nor reason, nor
knowledge, nor wisdom shall be in hell, whither thou dost hasten.64 David also saith: Because his mercy is
for ever.65 By which sayings it is plain, that in such
state as a man departeth out of this life, in the same he is presented in
judgment before God. But yet we must believe that before the day of judgment
there is a Purgatory fire for certain small sins: because our Saviour
saith, that he which speaketh blasphemy against the holy Ghost, that it
shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor in the world to come.66 Out of which sentence we learn, that some sins
are forgiven in this world, and some other may be pardoned in the next: for
that which is denied concerning one sin, is consequently understood to be
granted touching some other. But yet this, as I said, we have not to believe
but only concerning little and very small sins, as, for example, daily idle
talk, immoderate laughter, negligence in the care of our family (which kind of
offences scarce can they avoid, that know in what sort sin is to be shunned), ignorant
errors in matters of no great weight: all which sins be punished after death,
if men procured not pardon and remission for them in their lifetime: for when
St. Paul saith, that Christ is the foundation: and by and by
addeth: And if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver,
precious stones, wood, hay, stubble: the work of every one, of what kind it is,
the fire shall try. If any man's work abide which he built thereupon, he shall
receive reward; if any mans work burn, he shall suffer detriment, but himself
shall be saved, yet so as by fire.67 For although these words may be understood
of the fire of tribulation, which men suffer in this world: yet if any will
interpret them of the fire of Purgatory, which shall be in the next life:
then must he carefully consider, that the Apostle said not that he may be saved
by fire, that buildeth upon this foundation iron, brass, or lead, that is, the
greater sort of sins, and therefore more hard, and consequently not remissible
in that place: but wood, hay, stubble, that is, little and very light sins,
which the fire doth easily consume. Yet we have here further to consider, that
none can be there purged, no, not for the least sins that be, unless in his
lifetime he deserved by virtuous works to find such favour in that place.” (St.
Pope Gregory the Great, Dialogues, chapter 39; source: https://historicalchristian.faith/by_father.php?file=Gregory%2520the%2520Dialogist%2FDialogues%2FBook%25204.html )
"1030 All who die in God's grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.
1031 The Church gives the name Purgatory to this final purification of the elect, which is entirely different from the punishment of the damned.606 The Church formulated her doctrine of faith on Purgatory especially at the Councils of Florence and Trent. The tradition of the Church, by reference to certain texts of Scripture, speaks of a cleansing fire:607
'As for certain lesser faults, we must believe that, before the Final Judgment, there is a purifying fire. He who is truth says that whoever utters blasphemy against the Holy Spirit will be pardoned neither in this age nor in the age to come. From this sentence we understand that certain offenses can be forgiven in this age, but certain others in the age to come.608'
606.Cf. Council of Florence (1439):DS 1304; Council of Trent (1563):DS 1820; (1547):1580; see also Benedict XII, Benedictus Deus (1336):DS 1000.ù
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