The Little Number of Those Who Are Saved
by
St. Leonard of Port Maurice
Introduction
Thanks be to God, the number of the
Redeemer's disciples is not so small that the wickedness of the Scribes and
Pharisees is able to triumph over them. Although they strove to calumniate
innocence and to deceive the crowd with their treacherous sophistries by
discrediting the doctrine and character of Our Lord, finding spots even in the
sun, many still recognized Him as the true Messiah, and, unafraid of either
chastisements or threats, openly joined His cause. Did all those who followed
Christ follow Him even unto glory? Oh, this is where I revere the profound
mystery and silently adore the abysses of the divine decrees, rather than
rashly deciding on such a great point! The subject I will be treating today is
a very grave one; it has caused even the pillars of the Church to tremble,
filled the greatest Saints with terror and populated the deserts with
anchorites. The point of this instruction is to decide whether the number of
Christians who are saved is greater or less than the number of Christians who
are damned; it will, I hope, produce in you a salutary fear of the judgments of
God.
Brothers, because of the love I have for
you, I wish I were able to reassure you with the prospect of eternal happiness
by saying to each of you: You are certain to go to paradise; the greater number
of Christians is saved, so you also will be saved. But how can I give you this
sweet assurance if you revolt against God's decrees as though you were your own
worst enemies? I observe in God a sincere desire to save you, but I find in you
a decided inclination to be damned. So what will I be doing today if I speak
clearly? I will be displeasing to you. But if I do not speak, I will be
displeasing to God.
Therefore, I will divide this subject
into two points. In the first one, to fill you with dread, I will let the
theologians and Fathers of the Church decide on the matter and declare that the
greater number of Christian adults are damned; and, in silent adoration of that
terrible mystery, I will keep my own sentiments to myself. In the second point
I will attempt to defend the goodness of God versus the godless, by proving to
you that those who are damned are damned by their own malice, because they
wanted to be damned. So then, here are two very important truths. If the first
truth frightens you, do not hold it against me, as though I wanted to make the
road of heaven narrower for you, for I want to be neutral in this matter;
rather, hold it against the theologians and Fathers of the Church who will
engrave this truth in your heart by the force of reason. If you are
disillusioned by the second truth, give thanks to God over it, for He wants
only one thing: that you give your hearts totally to Him. Finally, if you
oblige me to tell you clearly what I think, I will do so for your consolation.
The
Teaching of the Fathers of the Church
It is not vain curiosity but salutary
precaution to proclaim from the height of the pulpit certain truths which serve
wonderfully to contain the indolence of libertines, who are always talking
about the mercy of God and about how easy it is to convert, who live plunged in
all sorts of sins and are soundly sleeping on the road to hell. To disillusion
them and waken them from their torpor, today let us examine this great
question: Is the number of Christians who are saved greater than the number of
Christians who are damned?
Pious souls, you may leave; this sermon
is not for you. Its sole purpose is to contain the pride of libertines who cast
the holy fear of God out of their heart and join forces with the devil who,
according to the sentiment of Eusebius, damns souls by reassuring them. To
resolve this doubt, let us put the Fathers of the Church, both Greek and Latin,
on one side; on the other, the most learned theologians and erudite historians;
and let us put the Bible in the middle for all to see. Now listen not to what I
will say to you – for I have already told you that I do not want to speak for
myself or decide on the matter – but listen to what these great minds have to
tell you, they who are beacons in the Church of God to give light to others so
that they will not miss the road to heaven. In this manner, guided by the
triple light of faith, authority and reason, we will be able to resolve this
grave matter with certainty.
Note well that there is no question here
of the human race taken as a whole, nor of all Catholics taken without
distinction, but only of Catholic adults, who have free choice and are thus
capable of cooperating in the great matter of their salvation. First let us
consult the theologians recognized as examining things most carefully and as
not exaggerating in their teaching: let us listen to two learned cardinals,
Cajetan and Bellarmine. They teach that the greater number of Christian adults
are damned, and if I had the time to point out the reasons upon which they base
themselves, you would be convinced of it yourselves. But I will limit myself
here to quoting Suarez. After consulting all the theologians and making a
diligent study of the matter, he wrote, "The most common sentiment
which is held is that, among Christians, there are more damned souls than
predestined souls."
Add the authority of the Greek and Latin
Fathers to that of the theologians, and you will find that almost all of them
say the same thing. This is the sentiment of Saint Theodore, Saint Basil, Saint
Ephrem, and Saint John Chrysostom. What is more, according to Baronius it was a
common opinion among the Greek Fathers that this truth was expressly revealed
to Saint Simeon Stylites and that after this revelation, it was to secure his
salvation that he decided to live standing on top of a pillar for forty years,
exposed to the weather, a model of penance and holiness for everyone. Now let
us consult the Latin Fathers. You will hear Saint Gregory saying clearly,
"Many attain to faith, but few to the heavenly kingdom." Saint Anselm
declares, "There are few who are saved." Saint Augustine states
even more clearly, "Therefore, few are saved in comparison to those who
are damned." The most terrifying, however, is Saint Jerome. At the end
of his life, in the presence of his disciples, he spoke these dreadful words:
"Out of one hundred thousand people whose lives have always been bad,
you will find barely one who is worthy of indulgence."
The
Words of Holy Scripture
But why seek out the opinions of the
Fathers and theologians, when Holy Scripture settles the question so clearly?
Look in to the Old and New Testaments, and you will find a multitude of
figures, symbols and words that clearly point out this truth: very few are
saved. In the time of Noah, the entire human race was submerged by the Deluge,
and only eight people were saved in the Ark. Saint Peter says, "This
ark was the figure of the Church," while Saint Augustine adds, "And
these eight people who were saved signify that very few Christians are saved, because
there are very few who sincerely renounce the world, and those who renounce it
only in words do not belong to the mystery represented by that ark."
The Bible also tells us that only two Hebrews out of two million entered the
Promised Land after going out of Egypt, and that only four escaped the fire of
Sodom and the other burning cities that perished with it. All of this means
that the number of the damned who will be cast into fire like straw is far
greater than that of the saved, whom the heavenly Father will one day gather
into His barns like precious wheat.
I would not finish if I had to point out
all the figures by which Holy Scripture confirms this truth; let us content
ourselves with listening to the living oracle of Incarnate Wisdom. What did Our
Lord answer the curious man in the Gospel who asked Him, "Lord, is it
only a few to be saved?" Did He keep silence? Did He answer haltingly?
Did He conceal His thought for fear of frightening the crowd? No. Questioned by
only one, He addresses all of those present. He says to them: "You ask Me
if there are only few who are saved?" Here is My answer: "Strive
to enter by the narrow gate; for many, I tell you, will seek to enter and will
not be able." Who is speaking here? It is the Son of God, Eternal
Truth, who on another occasion says even more clearly, "Many are
called, but few are chosen." He does not say that all are called and
that out of all men, few are chosen, but that many are called; which means, as
Saint Gregory explains, that out of all men, many are called to the True Faith,
but out of them few are saved. Brothers, these are the words of Our Lord Jesus
Christ. Are they clear? They are true. Tell me now if it is possible for you to
have faith in your heart and not tremble.
Salvation
in the Various States of Life
But oh, I see that by speaking in this
manner of all in general, I am missing my point. So let us apply this truth to
various states, and you will understand that you must either throw away reason,
experience and the common sense of the faithful, or confess that the greater
number of Catholics is damned. Is there any state in the world more favorable
to innocence in which salvation seems easier and of which people have a higher
idea than that of priests, the lieutenants of God? At first glance, who would
not think that most of them are not only good but even perfect; yet I am
horror-struck when I hear Saint Jerome declaring that although the world is
full of priests, barely one in a hundred is living in a manner in conformity
with state; when I hear a servant of God attesting that he has learned by
revelation that the number of priests who fall into hell each day is so great
that it seemed impossible to him that there be any left on earth; when I hear
Saint Chrysostom exclaiming with tears in his eyes, "I do not believe
that many priests are saved; I believe the contrary, that the number of those
who are damned is greater."
Look higher still, and see the prelates
of the Holy Church, pastors who have the charge of souls. Is the number of
those who are saved among them greater than the number of those who are damned?
Listen to Cantimpre; he will relate an event to you, and you may draw the
conclusions. There was a synod being held in Paris, and a great number of
prelates and pastors who had the charge of souls were in attendance; the king
and princes also came to add luster to that assembly by their presence. A
famous preacher was invited to preach. While he was preparing his sermon, a
horrible demon appeared to him and said, "Lay your books aside. If you
want to give a sermon that will be useful to these princes and prelates, content
yourself with telling them on our part, 'We the princes of darkness thank you,
princes, prelates, and pastors of souls, that due to your negligence, the
greater number of the faithful are damned; also, we are saving a reward for you
for this favor, when you shall be with us in Hell.'"
Woe to you who command others! If so
many are damned by your fault, what will happen to you? If few out of those who
are first in the Church of God are saved, what will happen to you? Take all
states, both sexes, every condition: husbands, wives, widows, young women,
young men, soldiers, merchants, craftsmen, rich and poor, noble and plebian.
What are we to say about all these people who are living so badly? The
following narrative from Saint Vincent
Ferrer will show you what you may think about it. He relates
that an archdeacon in Lyons gave up his charge and retreated into a desert
place to do penance, and that he died the same day and hour as Saint Bernard.
After his death, he appeared to his bishop and said to him, "Know,
Monsignor, that at the very hour I passed away, thirty-three thousand people
also died. Out of this number, Bernard and myself went up to heaven
without delay, three went to purgatory, and all the others fell
into Hell."
Our chronicles relate an even more
dreadful happening. One of our brothers, well-known for his doctrine and
holiness, was preaching in Germany. He represented the ugliness of the sin of
impurity so forceful that a woman fell dead of sorrow in front of everyone.
Then, coming back to life, she said, "When I was presented before the
Tribunal of God, sixty thousand people arrived at the same time from
all parts of the world; out of that number, three were saved by going
to Purgatory, and all the rest were damned."
O abyss of the judgments of God! Out of
thirty thousand, only five were saved! And out of sixty thousand, only three
went to heaven! You sinners who are listening to me, in what category will you
be numbered?... What do you say?... What do you think?...
I see almost all of you lowering your
heads, filled with astonishment and horror. But let us lay our stupor aside,
and instead of flattering ourselves, let us try to draw some profit from our
fear. Is it not true that there are two roads which lead to heaven: innocence
and repentance? Now, if I show you that very few take either one of these two
roads, as rational people you will conclude that very few are saved. And to
mention proofs: in what age, employment or condition will you find that the
number of the wicked is not a hundred times greater than that of the good, and
about which one might say, "The good are so rare and the wicked are so
great in number"? We could say of our times what Salvianus said of
his: it is easier to find a countless multitude of sinners immersed in all
sorts of iniquities than a few innocent men. How many servants are totally
honest and faithful in their duties? How many merchants are fair and equitable
in their commerce; how many craftsmen exact and truthful; how many salesmen
disinterested and sincere? How many men of law do not forsake equity? How many
soldiers do not tread upon innocence; how many masters do not unjustly withhold
the salary of those who serve them, or do not seek to dominate their inferiors?
Everywhere, the good are rare and the wicked great in number. Who does not know
that today there is so much libertinage among mature men, liberty among young
girls, vanity among women, licentiousness in the nobility, corruption in the
middle class, dissolution in the people, impudence among the poor, that one
could say what David said of his times: "All alike have gone astray...
there is not even one who does good, not even one."
Go into street and square, into palace
and house, into city and countryside, into tribunal and court of law, and even
into the temple of God. Where will you find virtue? "Alas!"
cries Salvianus, "except for a very little number who flee evil, what
is the assembly of Christians if not a sink of vice?" All that we can
find everywhere is selfishness, ambition, gluttony, and luxury. Is not the
greater portion of men defiled by the vice of impurity, and is not Saint John
right in saying, "The whole world – if something so foul may
be called – "is seated in wickedness?" I am not the one who is
telling you; reason obliges you to believe that out of those who are living so
badly, very few are saved.
But you will say: Can penance not
profitably repair the loss of innocence? That is true, I admit. But I also know
that penance is so difficult in practice, we have lost the habit so completely,
and it is so badly abused by sinners, that this alone should suffice to
convince you that very few are saved by that path. Oh, how steep, narrow,
thorny, horrible to behold and hard to climb it is! Everywhere we look, we see
traces of blood and things that recall sad memories. Many weaken at the very
sight of it. Many retreat at the very start. Many fall from weariness in the
middle, and many give up wretchedly at the end. And how few are they who
persevere in it till death! Saint Ambrose says it is easier to find men who
have kept their innocence than to find any who have done fitting penance.
If you consider the sacrament of
penance, there are so many distorted confessions, so many studied excuses, so
many deceitful repentances, so many false promises, so many ineffective
resolutions, so many invalid absolutions! Would you regard as valid the
confession of someone who accuses himself of sins of impurity and still holds
to the occasion of them? Or someone who accuses himself of obvious injustices
with no intention of making any reparation whatsoever for them? Or someone who
falls again into the same iniquities right after going to confession? Oh,
horrible abuses of such a great sacrament! One confesses to avoid
excommunication, another to make a reputation as a penitent. One rids himself
of his sins to calm his remorse, another conceals them out of shame. One
accuses them imperfectly out of malice, another discloses them out of habit.
One does not have the true end of the sacrament in mind, another is lacking the
necessary sorrow, and still another firm purpose. Poor confessors, what efforts
you make to bring the greater number of penitents to these resolutions and
acts, without which confession is a sacrilege, absolution a condemnation and
penance an illusion?
Where are they now, those who believe
that the number of the saved among Christians is greater than that of the
damned and who, to authorize their opinion, reason thus: the greater portion of
Catholic adults die in their beds armed with the sacraments of the Church,
therefore most adult Catholics are saved? Oh, what fine reasoning! You must say
exactly the opposite. Most Catholic adults confess badly at death, therefore most
of them are damned. I say "all the more certain," because a dying
person who has not confessed well when he was in good health will have an even
harder time doing so when he is in bed with a heavy heart, an unsteady head, a
muddled mind; when he is opposed in many ways by still-living objects, by
still-fresh occasions, by adopted habits, and above all by devils who are
seeking every means to cast him into hell. Now, if you add to all these false
penitents all the other sinners who die unexpectedly in sin, due to the
doctors' ignorance or by their relatives' fault, who die from poisoning or from
being buried in earthquakes, or from a stroke, or from a fall, or on the
battlefield, in a fight, caught in a trap, struck by lightning, burned or
drowned, are you not obliged to conclude that most Christian adults are damned?
That is the reasoning of Saint Chrysostom. This Saint says that most Christians
are walking on the road to hell throughout their life. Why, then, are you so
surprised that the greater number goes to hell? To come to a door, you must
take the road that leads there. What have you to answer such a powerful reason?
The answer, you will tell me, is that
the mercy of God is great. Yes, for those who fear Him, says the Prophet; but
great is His justice for the one who does not fear Him, and it condemns all
obstinate sinners.
So you will say to me: Well then, who is
Paradise for, if not for Christians? It is for Christians, of course, but for
those who do not dishonor their character and who live as Christians. Moreover,
if to the number of Christian adults who die in the grace of God, you add the
countless host of children who die after baptism and before reaching the age of
reason, you will not be surprised that Saint John the Apostle, speaking of those
who are saved, says, "I saw a great multitude which no man could
number."
And this is what deceives those who
pretend that the number of the saved among Catholics is greater than that of
the damned... If to that number, you add the adults who have kept the robe of
innocence, or who after having defiled it, have washed it in the tears of
penance, it is certain that the greater number is saved; and that explains the
words of Saint John, "I saw a great multitude," and these
other words of Our Lord, "Many will come from the east and from the
west, and will feast with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,"
and the other figures usually cited in favor of that opinion. But if you are
talking about Christian adults, experience, reason, authority, propriety and
Scripture all agree in proving that the greater number is damned. Do not
believe that because of this, paradise is empty; on the contrary, it is a very
populous kingdom. And if the damned are "as numerous as the sand in the
sea," the saved are "as numerous at the stars of heaven,"
that is, both the one and the other are countless, although in very different
proportions.
One day Saint John Chrysostom, preaching
in the cathedral in Constantinople and considering these proportions, could not
help but shudder in horror and ask, "Out of this great number of
people, how many do you think will be saved?" And, not waiting for an
answer, he added, "Among so many thousands of people, we would not find
a hundred who are saved, and I even doubt for the one hundred." What a
dreadful thing! The great Saint believed that out of so many people, barely one
hundred would be saved; and even then, he was not sure of that number. What
will happen to you who are listening to me? Great God, I cannot think of it
without shuddering! Brothers, the problem of salvation is a very difficult
thing; for according to the maxims of the theologians, when an end demands
great efforts, few only attain it.
That is why Saint Thomas, the Angelic
Doctor, after weighing all the reasons pro and con in his immense erudition,
finally concludes that the greater number of Catholic adults are damned. He
says, "Because eternal beatitude surpasses the natural state,
especially since it has been deprived of original grace, it is the little
number that are saved."
So then, remove the blindfold from your
eyes that is blinding you with self-love, that is keeping you from believing
such an obvious truth by giving you very false ideas concerning the justice of
God, "Just Father, the world has not known Thee," said Our
Lord Jesus Christ. He does not say "Almighty Father, most good and
merciful Father." He says "just Father," so we may
understand that out of all the attributes of God, none is less known than His
justice, because men refuse to believe what they are afraid to undergo.
Therefore, remove the blindfold that is covering your eyes and say tearfully:
Alas! The greater number of Catholics, the greater number of those who live
here, perhaps even those who are in this assembly, will be damned! What subject
could be more deserving of your tears?
King Xerxes, standing on a hill looking
at his army of one hundred thousand soldiers in battle array, and considering
that out of all of them there would be not one man alive in a hundred years,
was unable to hold back his tears. Have we not more reason to weep upon
thinking that out of so many Catholics, the greater number will be damned?
Should this thought not make our eyes pour forth rivers of tears, or at least
produce in our heart the sentiment of compassion felt by an Augustinian
Brother, Ven. Marcellus of St. Dominic? One day as he was meditating on the
eternal pains, the Lord showed him how many souls were going to hell at that
moment and had him see a very broad road on which twenty-two thousand reprobates
were running toward the abyss, colliding into one another. The servant of God
was stupefied at the sight and exclaimed, "Oh, what a number! What a
number! And still more are coming. O Jesus! O Jesus! What madness!"
Let me repeat with Jeremiah, "Who will give water to my head, and a
fountain of tears to my eyes? And I will weep day and night for the slain of
the daughter of my people."
Poor souls! How can you run so hastily
toward hell? For mercy's sake, stop and listen to me for a moment! Either you
understand what it means to be saved and to be damned for all eternity, or you
do not. If you understand and in spite of that, you do not decide to change
your life today, make a good confession and trample upon the world, in a word,
make your every effort to be counted among the littler number of those who are
saved, I say that you do not have the faith. You are more excusable if you do
not understand it, for then one must say that you are out of your mind. To
be saved for all eternity, to be damned for all eternity, and to not make your
every effort to avoid the one and make sure of the other, is something
inconceivable.
The
Goodness of God
Perhaps you do not yet believe the
terrible truths I have just taught you. But it is the most highly-considered
theologians, the most illustrious Fathers who have spoken to you through me. So
then, how can you resist reasons supported by so many examples and words of
Scripture? If you still hesitate in spite of that, and if your mind is inclined
to the opposite opinion, does that very consideration not suffice to make you
tremble? Oh, it shows that you do not care very much for your salvation! In
this important matter, a sensible man is struck more strongly by the slightest
doubt of the risk he runs than by the evidence of total ruin in other affairs
in which the soul is not involved. One of our brothers, Blessed Giles, was in
the habit of saying that if only one man were going to be damned, he would do
all he could to make sure he was not that man.
So what must we do, we who know that the
greater number is going to be damned, and not only out of all Catholics? What
must we do? Take the resolution to belong to the little number of those who are
saved. You say: If Christ wanted to damn me, then why did He create me?
Silence, rash tongue! God did not create anyone to damn him; but whoever is
damned, is damned because he wants to be. Therefore, I will now strive to
defend the goodness of my God and acquit it of all blame: that will be the
subject of the second point.
Before going on, let us gather on one
side all the books and all the heresies of Luther and Calvin, and on the other
side the books and heresies of the Pelagians and Semi-Pelagians, and let us
burn them. Some destroy grace, others freedom, and all are filled with errors;
so let us cast them into the fire. All the damned bear upon their brow the
oracle of the Prophet Osee, "Thy damnation comes from thee,"
so that they may understand that whoever is damned, is damned by his own malice
and because he wants to be damned.
First let us take these two undeniable
truths as a basis: "God wants all men to be saved," "All are in
need of the grace of God." Now, if I show you that God wants to save all
men, and that for this purpose He gives all of them His grace and all the other
necessary means of obtaining that sublime end, you will be obliged to agree
that whoever is damned must impute it to his own malice, and that if the
greater number of Christians are damned, it is because they want to be. "Thy
damnation comes from thee; thy help is only in Me."
God
Desires All Men to be Saved
In a hundred places in Holy Scripture,
God tells us that it is truly His desire to save all men. "Is it My
will that a sinner should die, and not that he should be converted from his
ways and live?... I live, saith the Lord God. I desire not the death of the
sinner. Be converted and live." When someone wants something very
much, it is said that he is dying with desire; it is a hyperbole. But God has
wanted and still wants our salvation so much that He died of desire, and He
suffered death to give us life. This will to save all men is therefore not an
affected, superficial and apparent will in God; it is a real, effective, and
beneficial will; for He provides us with all the means most proper for us to be
saved. He does not give them to us so they will not obtain it; He gives them to
us with a sincere will, with the intention that they may obtain their effect.
And if they do not obtain it, He shows Himself afflicted and offended over it.
He commands even the damned to use them in order to be saved; He exhorts them
to it; He obliges them to it; and if they do not do it, they sin. Therefore,
they may do it and thus be saved.
Far more, because God sees that we could
not even make use of His grace without His help, He gives us other aids; and if
they sometimes remain ineffective, it is our fault; for with these same aids,
one may abuse them and be damned with them, and another may do right and be
saved; he might even be saved with less powerful aids. Yes, it can happen that
we abuse a greater grace and are damned, whereas another cooperates with a
lesser grace and is saved.
Saint Augustine exclaims, "If,
therefore, someone turns aside from justice, he is carried by his free will,
led by his concupiscence, deceived by his own persuasion." But for
those who do not understand theology, here is what I have to say to them: God
is so good that when He sees a sinner running to his ruin, He runs after him,
calls him, entreats and accompanies him even to the gates of hell; what will He
not do to convert him? He sends him good inspirations and holy thoughts, and if
he does not profit from them, He becomes angry and indignant, He pursues him.
Will He strike him? No. He beats at the air and forgives him. But the sinner is
not converted yet. God sends him a mortal illness. It is certainly all over for
him. No, brothers, God heals him; the sinner becomes obstinate in evil, and God
in His mercy looks for another way; He gives him another year, and when that
year is over, He grants him yet another.
But if the sinner still wants to cast
himself into hell in spite of all that, what does God do? Does He abandon him?
No. He takes him by the hand; and while he has one foot in hell and the other
outside, He still preaches to him, He implored him not to abuse His graces. Now
I ask you, if that man is damned, is it not true that he is damned against the
Will of God and because he wants to be damned? Come and ask me now: If God
wanted to damn me, then why did He create me?
Ungrateful sinner, learn today that if
you are damned, it is not God who is to blame, but you and your self-will. To
persuade yourself of this, go down even to the depths of the abyss, and there I
will bring you one of those wretched damned souls burning in hell, so that he
may explain this truth to you. Here is one now: "Tell me, who are you?"
"I am a poor idolater, born in an unknown land; I never heard of heaven
or hell, nor of what I am suffering now." "Poor wretch! Go
away, you are not the one I am looking for." Another one is
coming; there he is. "Who are you?" "I am a
schismatic from the ends of Tartary; I always lived in an uncivilized state,
barely knowing that there is a God." "You are not the one I
want; return to hell." Here is another. "And who
are you?" "I am a poor heretic from the North. I was born
under the Pole and never saw either the light of the sun or the light of faith."
"It is not you that I am looking for either, return to Hell."
Brothers, my heart is broken upon seeing these wretches who never even knew the
True Faith among the damned. Even so, know that the sentence of condemnation
was pronounced against them and they were told, "Thy damnation comes
from thee." They were damned because they wanted to be. They received
so many aids from God to be saved! We do not know what they were, but they know
them well, and now they cry out, "O Lord, Thou art just... and Thy
judgments are equitable."
Brothers, you must know that the
most ancient belief is the Law of God, and that we all bear it written in
our hearts; that it can be learned without any teacher, and that it
suffices to have the light of reason in order to know all the precepts of that
Law. That is why even the barbarians hid when they committed sin, because they
knew they were doing wrong; and they are damned for not having observed the
natural law written in their heart: for had they observed it, God would have
made a miracle rather than let them be damned; He would have sent them someone
to teach them and would have given them other aids, of which they made
themselves unworthy by not living in conformity with the inspirations of their
own conscience, which never failed to warn them of the good they should do and
the evil they should avoid. So it is their conscience that accused them at the
Tribunal of God, and it tells them constantly in hell, "Thy damnation
comes from thee." They do not know what to answer and are obliged to
confess that they are deserving of their fate. Now if these infidels have no
excuse, will there be any for a Catholic who had so many sacraments, so many
sermons, so many aids at his disposal? How will he dare to say, "If God
was going to damn me, then why did He create me?" How will he dare to
speak in this manner, when God gives him so many aids to be saved? So let us
finish confounding him.
You who are suffering in the abyss,
answer me! Are there any Catholics among you? "There certainly are!"
How many? Let one of them come here! "That is impossible, they are too
far down, and to have them come up would turn all of hell upside down; it would
be easier to stop one of them as he is falling in." So then, I am
speaking to you who live in the habit of mortal sin, in hatred, in the mire of
the vice of impurity, and who are getting closer to hell each day. Stop, and
turn around; it is Jesus who calls you and who, with His wounds, as with so
many eloquent voices, cries to you, "My son, if you are damned, you have
only yourself to blame: 'Thy damnation comes from thee.' Lift up
your eyes and see all the graces with which I have enriched you to insure your
eternal salvation. I could have had you born in a forest in Barbary; that is
what I did to many others, but I had you born in the Catholic Faith; I had you
raised by such a good father, such an excellent mother, with the purest
instructions and teachings. If you are damned in spite of that, whose fault
will it be? Your own, My son, your own: 'Thy damnation comes from thee.'
"I could have cast you into hell
after the first mortal sin you committed, without waiting for the second: I did
it to so many others, but I was patient with you, I waited for you for many
long years. I am still waiting for you today in penance. If you are damned in
spite of all that, whose fault is it? Your own, My son, your own: "Thy
damnation comes from thee." You know how many have died before your
very eyes and were damned: that was a warning for you. You know how many others
I set back on the right path to give you the good example. Do you remember what
that excellent confessor told you? I am the one who had him say it. Did he not
enjoin you to change your life, to make a good confession? I am the One who
inspired him. Remember that sermon that touched your heart? I am the One who
led you there. And what has happened between you and Me in the secret of your
heart, ...that you can never forget.
"Those interior inspirations, that
clear knowledge, that constant remorse of conscience, would you dare to deny
them? All of these were so many aids of My grace, because I wanted to save you.
I refused to give them to many others, and I gave them to you because I loved
you tenderly. My son, My son, if I spoke to them as tenderly as I am speaking
to you today, how many others souls return to the right path! And you... you
turn your back on Me. Listen to what I am going to tell you, for these are My
last words: You have cost Me My blood; if you want to be damned in spite of the
blood I shed for you, do not blame Me, you have only yourself to accuse; and
throughout all eternity, do not forget that if you are damned in spite of Me,
you are damned because you want to be damned: 'Thy damnation comes from thee.'
"
O my good Jesus, the very stones would
split on hearing such sweet words, such tender expressions. Is there anyone
here who wants to be damned, with so many graces and aids? If there is one, let
him listen to me, and then let him resist if he can.
Baronius relates that after Julian the
Apostate's infamous apostasy, he conceived such great hatred against Holy
Baptism that day and night, he sought a way in which he might erase his own. To
that purpose he had a bath of goat's blood prepared and placed himself in it,
wanting this impure blood of a victim consecrated to Venus to erase the sacred
character of Baptism from his soul. Such behavior seems abominable to you, but if
Julian's plan had been able to succeed, it is certain that he would be
suffering much less in hell.
Sinners, the advice I want to give you
will no doubt seem strange to you; but if you understand it well, it is, on the
contrary, inspired by tender compassion toward you. I implore you on my knees,
by the blood of Christ and by the Heart of Mary, change your life, come back to
the road that leads to heaven, and do all you can to belong to the little
number of those who are saved. If, instead of this, you want to continue
walking on the road that leads to hell, at least find a way to erase your
baptism. Woe to you if you take the Holy Name of Jesus Christ and the sacred
character of the Christian engraved upon your soul into hell! Your chastisement
will be all the greater. So do what I advise you to do: if you do not want to
convert, go this very day and ask your pastor to erase your name from the
baptismal register, so that there may not remain any remembrance of your ever
having been a Christian; implore your Guardian Angel to erase from his book of
graces the inspirations and aids he has given you on orders from God, for woe
to you if he recalls them! Tell Our Lord to take back His faith, His baptism,
His sacraments.
You are horror-struck at such a thought?
Well then, cast yourself at the feet of Jesus Christ and say to Him, with
tearful eyes and contrite heart: "Lord, I confess that up till now I
have not lived as a Christian. I am not worthy to be numbered among Your elect.
I recognize that I deserve to be damned; but Your mercy is great and, full of
confidence in Your grace, I say to You that I want to save my soul, even if I
have to sacrifice my fortune, my honor, my very life, as long as I am saved. If
I have been unfaithful up to now, I repent, I deplore, I detest my infidelity,
I ask You humbly to forgive me for it. Forgive me, good Jesus, and strengthen
me also, that I may be saved. I ask You not for wealth, honor or prosperity; I
ask you for one thing only, to save my soul."
And You, O Jesus! What do You say? O
Good Shepherd, see the stray sheep who returns to You; embrace this repentant
sinner, bless his sighs and tears, or rather bless these people who are so well
disposed and who want nothing but their salvation. Brothers, at the feet of Our
Lord, let us protest that we want to save our soul, cost what it may. Let us
all say to Him with tearful eyes, "Good Jesus, I want to save my
soul," O blessed tears, O blessed sighs!
Conclusion
Brothers, I want to send all of you away
comforted today. So if you ask me my sentiment on the number of those who are
saved, here it is: Whether there are many or few that are saved, I say that
whoever wants to be saved, will be saved; and that no one can be damned if he
does not want to be. And if it is true that few are saved, it is because there
are few who live well. As for the rest, compare these two opinions: the first
one states that the greater number of Catholics are condemned; the second one,
on the contrary, pretends that the greater number of Catholics are saved. Imagine
an Angel sent by God to confirm the first opinion, coming to tell you that not
only are most Catholics damned, but that of all this assembly present here, one
alone will be saved. If you obey the Commandments of God, if you detest the
corruption of this world, if you embrace the Cross of Jesus Christ in a spirit
of penance, you will be that one alone who is saved.
Now imagine the same Angel returning to
you and confirming the second opinion. He tells you that not only are the
greater portion of Catholics saved, but that out of all this gathering, one
alone will be damned and all the others saved. If after that, you continue your
usuries, your vengeances, your criminal deeds, your impurities, then you will
be that one alone who is damned.
What is the use of knowing whether few
or many are saved? Saint Peter says to us, "Strive by good works to
make your election sure." When Saint Thomas Aquinas's sister asked him
what she must do to go to heaven, he said, "You will be saved if you
want to be." I say the same thing to you, and here is proof of my
declaration. No one is damned unless he commits mortal sin: that is of faith.
And no one commits mortal sin unless he wants to: that is an undeniable
theological proposition. Therefore, no one goes to hell unless he wants to; the
consequence is obvious. Does that not suffice to comfort you? Weep over past
sins, make a good confession, sin no more in the future, and you will all be
saved. Why torment yourself so? For it is certain that you have to commit
mortal sin to go to hell, and that to commit mortal sin you must want to, and
that consequently no one goes to hell unless he wants to. That is not just an
opinion, it is an undeniable and very comforting truth; may God give you to
understand it, and may He bless you.
Amen.
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