CONSIDERATION XXVI
Of the Pains of Hell
"And these shall go away into everlasting punishment." S. Matt. xxv. 46.
First Point.
The sinner, when he sins, commits two evils: he leaves God, the highest good, and he turns over to the creature. "My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me the fountain of living waters, and hewed cut cisterns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water." (Jer. ii. 13.) Since, then, the sinner turns to the creature, with a loathing at God, by those very creatures he shall be justly tormented in hell, by the fire and by demons; and this forms the pain of the senses. But since his greatest guilt, in which the sin consists, lies in his turning away from God, so the chief punishment, and that which will make hell, will be the pain of loss; that is, the pain of having lost God.
Let us consider, in the first place, the pain of the senses. It is an article of faith that there is a hell. This prison is reserved in the middle of the earth for the punishment of the rebels against God. What is this hell? It is a place of torments. " This place of torment," (S. Luke xvi. 28), as the condemned glutton called hell. A place of torments, where all the senses and the powers of the condemned will each have their especial torment; and in proportion as one sense has especially offended God, so also will be its peculiar punishment. " That wherewithal a man sinneth, by the same also shall he be punished." (Wisd. xi. 16.) " How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and sorrow give her." (Rev. xviii. 7.) The sight will be tormented with darkness. "The land of darkness, and the shadow of death." (Job x. 21.) What compassion should we feel for a poor man who remained shut up in a dark pit for the remainder of his life, for forty or fifty years! Hell is a pit, shut in on every side, in which no ray of the sun or any other light will ever enter. "Man .... shall never see light." (Ps. xlix. 20.) The fire which enlightens on earth, in hell will be altogether dark. "The voice of the Lord divideth the flames of fire." (Ps. xxix. 7.) Which expression S. Basil explains, of the Lord dividing the fire from the light, so that it will suffice to burn only, and not to illuminate; or as Albert the Great expresses it, " He will divide the glowing from the heat." The very smoke which leaves this fire will form that " blackness of darkness," which S. Jude says is reserved for ever for the wicked. (S. Jude 13.) S. Thomas Aquinas says, that there will be reserved for the wicked, light, " as much as suffices for men to see those things which torment them." They will see in that glimmer of light the ugliness of the other reprobates, and of the demons, who, to frighten them the more, will assume horrible forms.
The sense of smell will be tormented. What torment would it be, to be shut up in a room with a putrid corpse? " Their stink shall come up out of their carcases." (Isa. xxxiv. 3.) The lost will have to remain in the midst of so many millions of other lost ones, alive as to pain, but corpses from the odour which they emit.
But some foolish one may say, " If I go to hell, I shall not be alone." Wretched one I By how many the more there are in hell, by so much the more will they suffer. As S. Thomas Aquinas says, " There the society of the wretched will not lessen, but increase the misery;" they will suffer all the more, I say, from the smell, the cry, the confinement; since in hell they will be upon each other like sheep are penned up together in the winter time. "They live in hell like sheep." (Ps. xlix. 14.)
Nay more, they will be as grapes, pressed under the press of the wrath of God. " He treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God." (Rev.xix. 15.) They shall have from this also the pain of fixedness. " They shall be as still as a stone." (Exod. xv. 16.) Thus the lost, as they fall into hell at the last day, so will they remain without ever changing their place, and be unable to move either foot or hand, whilst God shall be God.
The sense of hearing will be tormented with the ceaseless howling and wailing of those poor desperate ones. The demons will make continual dins. " A dreadful sound is in his ears." (Job xv. 21.) What pain this, when one wishes to sleep, to hear the continual moaning of the sick, the barking of a dog, or the crying of an infant? Unhappy lost ones, who are condemned to ever hear for all eternity, the groans and cries of those who are tortured.
The appetite will be tormented by hunger; the lost ones will experience a rabid hunger, " grin like a dog, .... and grudge if they be not satisfied." (Ps. lix. 14, 15.) But they shall not have a crumb of bread.
The thirst will be so great, that all the water of the sea would not suffice for it; nevertheless, they shall not have one drop. The rich man asked for one drop, but this he has not yet had, and. will never have it never.
Affections and Prayers.
Ah, my Lord, behold at Thy feet one who has made small account both of Thy grace and of Thy chastisements. Poor me; if Thou, my Jesus, hadst not had pity upon me, for how many years should I have been in that fearful furnace, where truly are now burning so many like myself. Oh, my Redeemer, how is it, that whilst thinking upon this I do not burn with Thy love? How shall I ever be able to think of offending Thee anew? Oh, may it never be, my Jesus Christ; grant me rather to die a thousand deaths. Since Thou hast begun, finish the work. Thou hast delivered me from the ruin of my many sins, and with so great love, Thou hast called me to love Thee. Ah, grant now. that this time which Thou hast given me, I may spend wholly for Thee. How would the lost desire one day, nay, one hour of the time which Thou hast granted to me; and I, what shall I do? Shall I continue to spend it on things which displease Thee? No, my Jesus! do not allow this by the merits of that Blood which hitherto has delivered me from hell. I love Thee, O Highest Good; and because I love Thee, I repent of having offended Thee. I desire to offend Thee no more, but ever to love Thee. Grant that I may obtain the gift of perseverance and of Thy holy love.
Second Point.
The punishment which most torments the senses of the lost, is the fire of hell which torments the touch. " The vengeance of the ungodly is fire and worms." (Ecclus. vii. 17.) Therefore it is, that the Lord makes special mention of it in His description of the judgment. " Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire." (S. Matt. xxv. 41.) Even in this life, the pain which is caused by fire is sharper than any other; but there is so much difference between this pain and that which will be caused by the fire of hell, that S. Augustine tells us, the pain we suffer here would seem to be but painted. And S. Vincent Ferrer observes, that in comparison to that fire, our fire is but cold. The reason is, that our fire is made for our use; but the fire of hell is created by God on purpose to punish. Tertullian observes that the fire which is for human use, is very different from the fire which serves for the judgment of Cod. The wrath of God kindles that avenging fire. " A fire is kindled in Mine anger." (Jer. xv. 14.) Therefore, by Isaiah, the fire of hell is called the spirit of burning. " When the Lord shall have washed away the filth .... by the spirit of burning." (Isa. iv. 4.) The lost shall not only be sent to the fire, but into the fire. " Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire." So that the miserable ones will be surrounded with fire, like wood in a furnace. The lost will find themselves, with an abyss of fire beneath, an abyss of fire above, and an abyss of fire around them. If they touch anything, if they see, if they breathe, it is only fire that they touch, see, and breathe. They will be in the fire as a fish is in the water. But not only will this fire remain, surrounding those who are lost, but it will even enter within them to torment them. The body will become all fire, so that the bowels within will burn; the heart within the breast will burn; the brain within the head will burn; the blood within the veins; even the marrow within the bone every lost one will become in himself a furnace of fire. "Thou shalt make them like a fiery oven." (Ps. xxi. 9.)
There are some who cannot endure to walk along a road dried up by the sun, or to remain in a close room with a brasier, neither can they endure a spark that may chance to fly from a candle; and yet they do not fear that fire which devours, as Isaiah inquires, " Who among us shall dwell with the devouring fire?" (Isa. xxxiii. 14.) As a wild beast devours a young kid, even so does the fire of hell devour the lost; it devours them, but without causing them to die. S. Peter Damian, speaking to the incontinent, observes, Continue to please thy flesh, for a day will come, when thy lewdness will become as pitch within thy bowels, which will cause the flame which will burn thee in hell to be more great and more tormenting. S. Jerome adds, that this fire will bring with it all the torments and pains which are suffered in this life pains in the side, in the head, in the bowels, in the nerves. The pain of cold will also be felt in this fire. " Drought and heat consume the snow waters." (Job xxiv. 19.) But let it be ever understood, that all the pains which are endured in this life are but as a shadow, as S. Chrysostom remarks, when compared to the pains of hell, " Imagine fire, imagine the knife; what are these things but shadows compared with these torments? "
The powers belonging to the mind will also bring their own torment. The lost one will be tormented by memory, in remembering the time which he once had during this life in order to become saved, but which he has spent in causing his soul to be lost, and in remembering the graces which he received from God, but which he has never been willing to make use of. He will also be tormented by the intellect, in thinking of the great good which he has lost paradise and God; and that for this loss there is no longer any remedy. He will be tormented by the will, by seeing that every thing which he may ask for, will be for ever denied to him. "The desire of the ungodly shall perish." (Ps. cxii. 10.) The wretched one will never have that which he desires, but will ever have that which he abhors, which will be his eternal sufferings. He would wish to escape from the torments, and to find peace; but he will be tormented for ever, and will never more find peace.
Affections and Prayers.
Ah, my Jesus, Thy Blood and Thy death are my hope. Thou didst die to free me from eternal death. Ah, Lord, and who has ever shared more of the merits of Thy Passion than I, miserable one that I am, who have so often deserved hell? Ah, no longer do Thou allow me to live ungrateful for the graces which Thou hast bestowed upon me. Thou hast freed me from the fire of hell, because Thou didst not wish me to burn in that fire of torment, but Thou didst wish that I should burn with the sweet fire of Thy love. Help me, therefore, so that I may comply with Thy desire. If now I were in hell, I could never love Thee more, but since I can love Thee, I wish to love Thee. I love Thee, O Thou Infinite Goodness, I love Thee, my Redeemer, Who hast loved me so much. How could I live so long forgetfully of Thee! I thank Thee that Thou hast never been forgetful of me. If Thou hadst been forgetful of me, I should either be in hell now, or I should not feel any grief because of my sins. This grief which I feel in my heart, for having offended Thee, the desire which I feel to love Thee as I ought to do, are the gifts of Thy grace, which is still aiding me. I thank Thee for it, my Jesus. I hope for the future to give the life which may remain to me to Thee. I renounce all things. I only wish to think of serving Thee and pleasing Thee. Do Thou ever remind me of the hell which I have deserved, and of the graces which Thou hast bestowed upon me, and do not allow me ever to turn away from Thee, and to condemn myself to that pit of torments.
Third Point.
But all these pains are as nothing compared with the anguish we shall feel at our loss. The darkness, the smell, the cries, the fire, and the pain do not make hell; it is the anguish at having lost God which "makes hell. S. Bruno observes, " Let torments be added to torments, so that they are not deprived of God." And S. Chrysostom, " If thou hast spoken of a thousand hells, thou hast said nothing equal to the grief of this." And S. Augustine adds, that if the lost could enjoy the sight of God, they would feel no punishment, and hell itself would be turned into heaven.
In order to understand somewhat of this punishment, let us suppose some one were to lose a gem, for example, which might be worth a hundred crowns, he would be very sorry; but if it were worth two hundred crowns, he would be doubly sorry, and if four hundred, he would be still more sorry; in short, as the value of the thing which is lost increases, so does the sorrow for the loss increase. And what good is it that the wicked will have lost? An Infinite Good, even God; and therefore, S. Thomas tells us, it is, that they certainly feel an infinite sorrow. " The pain of the lost is infinite, since it consists of the loss of Infinite Good." This punishment now, is the only one feared by the saints. S. Augustine observes, " This is punishment for those who love, not for those who despise." S. Ignatius Loyola also says, "Lord, I can endure every punishment, but I cannot bear to be deprived of Thee." But sinners never conceive of this pain, who are contented to live months and years without God, because the miserable ones are living in the midst of darkness. In death they will know the great good which they are now losing. The soul, in departing from this life, directly understands that it was created for God; as S. Antoninus teaches, "The mind separated from the body understands God to be the Highest Good, and that it was created for Him." Therefore, directly, the soul rushes forward to go and to embrace its Sovereign Good; but remaining in sin, it will be driven away by God. If a dog sees a hare, and the dog is held by a chain, what strength does he not use to break the chain, and to go and seize his prey? The soul, in being separated from the body, is naturally drawn to God; but sin divides it from God, and sends it far away to hell: " Your iniquities have separated between you and your God." (Isa. lix. 2.)
Hell, therefore, consists entirely in that first word of the condemnation, "Depart from me, ye cursed." Jesus Christ will say to them, " Go, I do not wish you to see My face any more." S. Chrysostom says, "If one conceives of a thousand hells, nothing is expressed that, is comparable to being deprived of Christ." When David condemned Absalom never again to appear before him, this punishment was so great to Absalom that he answered, " Now, therefore, let me see the king's face; and if there be any iniquity in me, let him kill me." (2 Sam. xiv. 32.) Philip the Second said to a nobleman whom he observed to be irreverent in Church, "Never again appear before me." The punishment was so great to the nobleman, that he is reported to have died of grief. What will it be when God shall intimate to the sinner at the time of death, Depart, for I never wish to see thee more? " I will hide My face from them, and they shall be devoured, and many evils and troubles shall befall them." (Deut. xxxi. 17.) Jesus Christ will say to the lost in that Last Day, " You are no longer Mine, I am no longer yours." " Call his name Lo-ammi, for ye are not My people, and I will not be your God." (Hosea i. 9.)
What a trouble it is to a son when his father dies, or to a wife when her husband dies, to say, My father, or my husband, I shall never see thee again. Ah, if we could now hear a lost soul weeping, and if we were to ask, Wherefore, soul, dost thou weep so much? this would be the only answer it would make, I weep because I have lost God, and I shall never more behold Him. Were the miserable soul at least able to love its God in hell, and to resign itself to His will but no, if it could do that, hell would not be hell. The unhappy one is unable to become resigned to the will of God, because he is become an enemy to the Divine will. Neither can he love his" God any longer, but he hates Him, and will hate Him for ever; and this will be his hell to know that God is a Sovereign Good, and to feel obliged to hate God at the same time that he knows God is worthy of infinite love. The lost one will hate and will curse God, and cursing God, he will curse even the benefits which God has bestowed upon him creation, redemption, the Sacraments, especially that of baptism, repentance, and above all, the most Holy Eucharist. He will hate all the angels and the saints, but especially his own guardian angel; and chiefly will he curse the three Divine Persons; and amongst these three the Son of God particularly, Who one day suffered death for his salvation, cursing His Wounds, His Blood, His Pains, and His Death.
Affections and Prayers.
Ah my God, Thou art therefore my Highest Good, my Infinite Good; and have I so often lost Thee voluntarily? I know that by sinning, I gave Thee great displeasure, and that I was losing Thy grace; and yet have I done it? Ah, but if I did not behold Thee, O Son of God, nailed to the Cross dying for me, I should no longer have courage to ask Thee and to hope for pardon from Thee. Eternal Father, look not upon me, but look upon that Beloved Son Who begs mercy from Thee for me; hear Hun, and pardon me. I ought now to be in hell, and for so many past years, without any hope of being able to love Thee again, and of regaining Thy lost favour. My God, I repent beyond every other evil for the offence which I have committed against Thee, of renouncing Thy friendship and despising Thy love, for the miserable pleasures of this world. Oh, would that I had rather died a thousand times over! How could I be so blind and so mad? I thank Thee, my Lord, that Thou dost give me time to amend my evil doings. Since it is through Thy mercy that I am not in hell, and through Thy mercy that I am able to love Thee, my God, I do wish to love Thee. I do not wish any longer to defer being converted entirely to Thee. I love Thee, Thou Infinite Goodness, I love Thee, Who art my Life, my Treasure, my Love, my All.
Ever remind me, O Lord, of the love which Thou hast borne for me, and of the hell where I ought now to be; so that this thought may ever kindle a desire in me, to perform acts of love to Thee, and ever to tell Thee that I love Thee.