particular judgement

[MarysLittleFlower]

Does every soul get to meet God when they are judged? If they go to Heaven then obviously. But I read some experiences of people who died and found themselves going straight to hell and then God gave them a second chance. (I know these types of experiences are not infallible). But I kind of wondered how come they didn't first meet God to be judged? Was going to hell the judgement itself? They saw demons but I don't know if they saw God...maybe they were aware of Him at first. . anyway in Church teaching, does it say every soul does meet God after death, directly? In some accounts it's like they are aware of God but the flee from Him... In others it's like being taken to hell by the demons. Scary topic but just wondering how this relates to Church teaching!

Edited August 7, 2015 by MarysLittleFlower

[HopefulHeart]

According to the CCC, each person is subject to the particular judgment at his/her death. The particular judgment occurs regardless of the state of the person's soul.

1022 Each man receives his eternal retribution in his immortal soul at the very moment of his death, in a particular judgment that refers his life to Christ: either entrance into the blessedness of heaven-through a purification⁵⁹⁴ or immediately,⁵⁹⁵ -- or immediate and everlasting damnation.⁵⁹⁶

Then, after the general resurrection comes the general judgment, in which all individuals are judged (like the sheep and goats in the Gospel). The Baltimore Catechism #2 (maybe not the best theological resource, but I like its simple explanation of this issue) says, "Although everyone is judged immediately after death, it is fitting that there be a general judgment in order that the justice, wisdom, and mercy of God may be glorified in the presence of all" (Question 182).

Edited August 7, 2015 by HopefulHeart

[MarysLittleFlower]

Thanks! Well what I mean is though does every soul get judged by meeting God? Or could going to hell be in itself the sign of the judgement? Maybe those souls are aware of God at first and see His justice and their hatred of Him... And then they flee Him and then see the demons... I don't know I just hope I never find myself there 

[HopefulHeart]

Hm, I don't know if the particular judgment necessarily involves meeting God directly. The line "receives his eternal retribution in his immortal soul" in the passage from the CCC doesn't quite clarify the point. Maybe someone more theologically versed than I can answer the question.

[julianneoflongbeach]

If a person lives their life in rejection of Christ they continue on in their eternity in that same rejection. There is no reason to think a soul would want to see God upon its death or that God would care to see that soul. So straight to Hell in other words. I think the general judgment, where all dammed souls are forced to witness God's goodness and their own sins, will make going back into Hell even worse. I think that's as face to face as it's going to get for then.

[Tab'le De'Bah-Rye]

I think holy scripture says the elect will not face judgement, that is you and me.  The sanctified believers, the disciples not just followers, those that hear the word and act upon it. And also God is everywhere, hell is Gods Justice, hell is God, but so is heaven which is Gods mercy.

Edited August 7, 2015 by Tab'le De'Bah-Rye

[Basilisa Marie]

Thanks! Well what I mean is though does every soul get judged by meeting God? Or could going to hell be in itself the sign of the judgement? Maybe those souls are aware of God at first and see His justice and their hatred of Him... And then they flee Him and then see the demons... I don't know I just hope I never find myself there 

Yes, every soul get judged when they meet God after they die. Going to heaven, purgatory, or hell is the consequence of the judgement. 

Some people think that when people meet God when they die they see God's love and grace and that the love and grace is irresistible, that it would be impossible to resist it. That's a heresy, because it negates our free will. 

At the end of the world will be the Final Judgment. There will be the resurrection of the dead in which our souls will be reunited with a body (our own body, physically perfected and probably similar to Christ's after he rose from the dead). The whole truth of everything will be revealed, including the reality of each person's relationship with God and our relationships with each other. Everyone still in Purgatory will go to Heaven. Those in Hell will stay there, and everyone in Heaven will experience the new creation in the "life of the world to come." 

[julianneoflongbeach]

hell is God,

...no

[Tab'le De'Bah-Rye]

why not julianne? Hell is Gods judgement and God must be in his judgement, or is his judgement an angel? Or perhaps the word i'm looking for is justice, or perhaps it is neither justice or judgement and it is WRATH.

 

Sorry pet if that scares you but God is patient kind and slow to anger but he can and does anger. Love is way more mercy but don't test the LORD your God coz when he snap that person gonna pack as in petrified frozen holy ghost toast gettin faint God isnt always so quaint.

Edited August 7, 2015 by Tab'le De'Bah-Rye

[Tab'le De'Bah-Rye]

And i'm living in a house where tha heaters broken, and it's minus 8C outside and i'm frozen cold hardly able to move, that kind of like hell, saturated in doubt and fear without being able to live or die, frozen and i aint talking the disney bollocks. coz like st teresa says that water is fire in heaven and fire is water. Careful not to get it upside down, tripple 9 on tha rhyme here to eliminate slime. And the slime comment aint at you. But aye i just went mad off topic didn't i. my bad. But i was thought Gods wrath is hell and that God is everywhere, but hell is like way scary, more scary than anything man has ever feared or even dreamt of fearing and there is no escape, ever.  i try not to think about hell to much i try and focus on heaven mainly but i do have a peep bo at hell, death and purgatory as well.

Edited August 7, 2015 by Tab'le De'Bah-Rye

[AccountDeleted]

There is a wonderful opera (oratio, although it is said he didn't like that description - work for voices and orchestra) ) by Edward Elgar called "The Dream of Gerontius" which I see as a good example of life after death (or at least one person's view). The soul is taken by an angel who explains to Gerontius that he is going to see God but only for a brief moment because the beauty of the light of God will be too painful for him to endure for more than a moment. The opera progresses to the point where Gerontius does see God but because of his imperfections and God's beauty, the pain is too much to bear and he begs the angel to take him away. Then he is taken to the cooling waters of Purgatory to be healed and cleansed before one day, finally being able to be with God.

Here is a link to the verses of the poem and below is a synopsis from Wikipedia.

http://www.newmanreader.org/works/verses/gerontius.html 

 

The synopsis is:

Newman's poem tells the story of a soul's journey through death, and provides a meditation on the unseen world of Roman Catholic theology. Gerontius (a name derived from the Greek word geron, "old man") is a devout Everyman.^[12][29] Elgar's setting uses most of the text of the first part of the poem, which takes place on Earth, but omits many of the more meditative sections of the much longer, otherworldly second part, tightening the narrative flow.^[4]

In the first part, we hear Gerontius as a dying man of faith, by turns fearful and hopeful, but always confident. A group of friends (also called "assistants" in the text) joins him in prayer and meditation. He passes in peace, and a priest, with the assistants, sends him on his way with a valediction. In the second part, Gerontius, now referred to as "The Soul", awakes in a place apparently without space or time, and becomes aware of the presence of his guardian angel, who expresses joy at the culmination of her task (Newman conceived the Angel as male, but Elgar gives the part to a female singer). After a long dialogue, they journey towards the judgment throne.

They safely pass a group of demons, and encounter choirs of angels, eternally praising God for His grace and forgiveness. The Angel of the Agony pleads with Jesus to spare the souls of the faithful. Finally Gerontius glimpses God and is judged in a single moment. The Guardian Angel lowers Gerontius into the soothing lake of Purgatory, with a final benediction and promise of a re-awakening to glory.