Catholic Apologetics 

The Communion of Saints is the union that exists between all the members of the Church on earth, in heaven, and in purgatory. Those members on earth comprise the Church Militant; those in heaven, the Church Triumphant; those in purgatory, the Church Suffering.

These three Churches, strictly speaking, form but one Church existing in three different states whose Head is Jesus Christ: "so we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually we are members one of another" (Rom. 12, 5). Every member has his own place and part to perform, not merely for his own benefit, but for the benefit of the whole Church: "And God has appointed in the church first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then workers of miracles, then healers, helpers, administrators, speaking in various tongues" (1 Cor. 12, 28). All the good works performed within the Church, and all the Church’s spiritual treasures, are beneficial to all Her members.

The Church Militant is so-called as its members are still but wayfarers, working out their salvation in "fear and trembling" (Phil. 2, 12) struggling against the "world, the flesh and the Devil": "he who endures to the end will be saved" (St. Matt. 10, 22). Only those who persevere can reach their goal; there can no reward for the weak and faint-hearted.

The members of the Church Militant are in communion with each other by:

(i) Obedience to the same visible authority established by Christ Himself, that is, the rock of St. Peter and his successor the Pope of Rome;

(ii) Professing the same faith publicly as one body, such as the recitation of the Nicene Creed at weekly Mass. Through such, all the faithful are "united in the same mind and the same purpose" (1 Cor. 1, 10);

(iii) Assisting one another with their prayers and good works: "Bear one another's burdens, and so fulfil the law of Christ" (Gal. 6, 2).

In other words, "it is a matter of communion with God through Jesus Christ, in the Holy Spirit. This communion is to be had in the Word of God and in the sacraments. Baptism is the door and the foundation of communion in the Church…The communion of the eucharistic Body of Christ signifies and produces, that is, builds up, the intimate communion of all the faithful in the Body of Christ which is the Church."¹

No member of the Church Militant, whatever his condition, stands alone: "If one member suffers, all suffer together with it; if one member is honored, all rejoice together with it. Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it" (1 Cor. 12, 26-27). The Church Militant is not a collection of individuals having their own "personal relationships with Christ" to the exclusion of all others. To commune with Christ requires a communion with His Body, for one cannot claim to possess the Head to the exclusion of the Body: "and he has put all things under his feet and has made him the head over all things for the church, which is his body, the fullness of him who fills all in all" (Eph. 1, 22).

It is entirely appropriate to describe the Church in heaven as triumphant, for its members are those who have fought the "good fight" and have reached their port of destination. This triumph is reflected in the brightness of the Just in heaven: "There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory" (1 Cor. 15, 41). Each member of the Church Triumphant will be crowned in reward for his or her victory: "I have fought the good fight, I have kept the faith. Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award me on that day" (2 Tim. 4, 7). The Devil and his cohorts have been frustrated in their efforts to destroy these souls, and now they reign with their heavenly Lord and Master as their eternal reward.

As we are united with Christ our Head in heaven, so are we united with His members triumphantly reigning with Him. Death in no way impedes our union with the Church Triumphant, any more than it impedes our union with Christ Himself. Together, the Church Militant and the Church Triumphant unceasingly bless and praise God. Further, we can ask the Saints in heaven to intercede on our behalf to obtain God’s blessings and favors. When those in heaven see that one on earth has turned away from evil to do good they immediately express their joy: "there is joy in the presence of the angels of God over one sinner who repents" (St. Luke 15, 10). The Saints enjoy the same Beatific vision as the angels and hence are also witnesses to the struggles of the saints on earth: "Therefore, since we are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, let us also lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely" (Heb. 12, 1).

The Church Suffering, though its members have also been found worthy to share in eternal life, are obliged to undergo a period of purgation, or cleansing, for their unforgiven venial sins and / or lack of penance for mortal sin duly forgiven. This purgation, though temporary, is effected by purifying fires that burn at the soul: "If any man's is burned up, he will suffer loss, though he himself will be saved, but only as through fire" (1 Cor. 3, 15). From the writings of Mystics, Doctors and Saints, we know that these fires burn with a degree of intensity not found on earth, inflicting the acutest pain. Hence, the appropriateness of the term "Suffering."

Our communion with the Church Suffering is effected by praying for the souls in purgatory, by assisting them through good works and penances, especially the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass: "But if he was looking to the splendid reward that is laid up for those who fall asleep in godliness, it was a holy and pious thought. Therefore he made atonement for the dead, that they might be delivered from their sin" (2 Macc. 12, 45). Through such acts of charity, the Holy Souls earn an abatement of their sufferings; and they, in turn, will in gratitude pray for us.

For the unity of the Spirit, by which she is governed, brings it about that whatsoever has been given to the Church is held as a common possession by all her members...The same may be observed in the Church. She is composed of various members; that is, of different nations, of Jews, Gentiles, freemen and slaves, of rich and poor; when they have been baptized, they constitute one body with Christ, of which He is the Head.

No. 954: The three states of the Church. "When the Lord comes in glory, and all his angels with him, death will be no more and all things will be subject to him. But at the present time some of his disciples are pilgrims on earth. Others have died and are being purified, while still others are in glory, contemplating ‘in full light, God himself triune and one, exactly as he is’":

All of us, however, in varying degrees and in different ways share in the same charity towards God and our neighbors, and we all sing the one hymn of glory to our God. All, indeed, who are of Christ and who have his Spirit form one Church and in Christ cleave together.

No. 957: Communion with the saints. "It is not merely by the title of example that we cherish the memory of those in heaven; we seek, rather, that by this devotion to the exercise of fraternal charity the union of the whole Church in the Spirit may be strengthened. Exactly as Christian communion among our fellow pilgrims brings us closer to Christ, so our communion with the saints joins us to Christ, from which as from its fountain and head issues all grace, and the life of the People of God itself":

We worship Christ as God’s Son; we love the martyrs as the Lord’s disciples and imitators, and rightly so because of their matchless devotion towards their king and master. May we also be their companions and fellow disciples! (Martyrium Polycarpi, 17).

No. 958: Communion with the dead. In full consciousness of this communion of the whole Mystical Body of Jesus Christ, the Church in its pilgrim members, from the very earliest days of the Christian religion, has honored with great respect the memory of the dead; and because it is a holy and wholesome thought to pray for the dead that they may be loosed from their sins she offers her suffrages for them. Our prayer for them is capable not only of helping them, but also of making their intercession for us effective.

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"All authority," said Christ to His disciples, "in heaven and on earth has been given to me" (St. Matt. 28, 18). Included in this was the power to forgive sins. The following incident in the Gospels testifies to Christ’s power to forgive sins:

"When Jesus saw their faith, he said to the paralytic, Take heart, son; your sins are forgiven. Then some of the scribes said to themselves, This man is blaspheming. But Jesus, perceiving their thoughts, said, Why do you think evil in your hearts? For which is easier, to say, Your sins are forgiven, or to say, Stand up and walk? But so that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins - he then said to the paralytic - Stand up, take your bed and go to your home. And he stood up and went to his home" (St. Matt. 9, 2-7).

It was this same spiritual power to forgive sins that Our Lord communicated to His Apostles and their successors after His Resurrection:

"As the Father has sent me, so I send you...Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained" (St. John 20, 21-23).

In this verse we see that Christ bestowed upon His Apostles the following: (i) mission ("As the Father has sent me, so I send you…"); (ii) power ("Receive the Holy Spirit"), and (iii) discretion whether or not to exercise this power ("If you forgive…; if you retain."). This verse cannot be explained away by claiming that the Apostles were simply authorized to go out and preach forgiveness only according to the following injunction: "that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in his name to all nations" (St. Luke 24, 47). If such were the case St. John 20, 21-23 would be utterly devoid of purpose.

The power to forgive sins was the first charism Christ bestowed upon the Apostles after His resurrection. In claiming that Her priests have the power to forgive sins, the Catholic Church is criticized and accused of carrying out a function that is proper to God alone. It is he same accusation Christ Himself had to endure: "This man is blaspheming" (St. Matt. 9, 3). Yet, Christ established the Church to continue His work of salvation in the world after His ascension into heaven. Whatever Christ as Head possesses by way of power and authority is properly possessed by His Body also, that is, the Church. In forgiving sins, priests and bishops act as Christ’s ministers and instruments; the fact that they may be sinners themselves does not inhibit the exercise or effectiveness of this power.

The main ways by which the power to forgive sins is exercised in the Church are through the sacraments of Baptism and Penance. It is through Baptism that the merits of Christ’s Redemption are applied to us for the remission of Original Sin inherited from Adam: "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God" (St. John 3, 5). Penance forgives all actual sin committed after Baptism.

Actual sin can be either venial or mortal. Venial sin is a transgression of the law of God in a slight matter, or in a grave matter when, at the time, either our understanding does not wholly comprehend the full gravity of the evil presented to it, or there is wanting full consent of the will. Mortal sin is a grievous offense against God that brings death to the soul by causing us to lose the friendship of God. For mortal sin to be committed, there must be: (i) grave matter; (ii) full knowledge of the gravity of the act being committed; (iii) full consent of the will to the commission of the act.

There are some who claim that the distinction made by the Church between venial and mortal sin is artificial, and that all sin is equally bad ("sin is sin"). The difference in degrees of sin is clearly indicated by the following verses: "Why do you see the speck in your neighbor's eye, but do not notice the log in your own eye?" (St. Matt. 7, 3); "…therefore he who delivered me to you has the greater sin" (St. John 19, 11); finally, "If any one sees his brother committing what is not a mortal sin, he will ask, and God will give him life for those whose sin is not mortal. There is sin which is mortal; I do not say that one is to pray for that. All wrongdoing is sin, but there is sin which is not mortal." (1 John 5, 16 - 17).

[On Matthew 18:18] The power of binding and loosing given to the Apostles:-

"God never threatens the repentant, rather He pardons the penitent. You will say that it is God alone who can do this. True enough, but it is likewise true that He does it through his priests, who exercise His power."

As, therefore, He became man, in order to bestow on man this forgiveness of sins, He communicated this power to Bishops and priests in the Church, previous to His Ascension into heaven, where He sits forever at the right hand of God. Christ, however, as we have already said, remits sin by virtue of His own authority; all others, by virtue of His authority delegated to them as His ministers.

No. 976: The Apostle’s Creed associates faith in the forgiveness of sins not only with faith in the Holy Spirit, but also with faith in the Church and in the communion of saints. It was when he gave the Holy Spirit to his apostles that the risen Christ conferred on them his own divine power to forgive sins: "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained."

No. 981: After his Resurrection, Christ sent his apostles "so that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be preached in his name to all nations." The apostles and their successors carry out this "ministry of reconciliation," not only by announcing to men God’s forgiveness merited for us by Christ, and calling them to conversion and faith; but also by communicating to them the forgiveness of sins in Baptism, and reconciling them with God and with the Church through the power of the keys, received from Christ:

[The Church] has received the keys of the Kingdom of heaven so that, in her, sins may be forgiven through Christ’s blood and the Holy Spirit’s action. In this Church, the soul dead through sin comes back to life in order to live with Christ, whose grace has saved us (St. Augustine, Sermo 214,11).

No. 982: There is no offense, however serious, that the Church cannot forgive. "There is no one, however wicked and guilty, who may not confidently hope for forgiveness, provided his repentance is honest." Christ who died for all men desires that in his Church the gates of forgiveness should always be open to anyone who turns away from sin.

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According to God's original plan for humanity, Adam and Eve and their descendants were to live in Paradise on earth until they attained a certain level of grace through a life of meritorious acts. Thereupon, each person would be assumed body and soul into heavenly glory without having to endure sickness, pain, suffering or death. This was the proper end for humanity by virtue of the preternatural gifts of impassability and immortality, gifts that our original parents forfeited by their rebellion against God. Hence, it is now the lot of all men to die, a decree issued against all the children of Adam: "Therefore as sin came into the world through one man and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all men sinned" (Rom. 5, 12).

At death, the human soul departs from its mortal body and immediately comes before the judgment-seat of God; the body returns to the earth from whence it came: "and the dust returns to the earth as it was, and the breath returns to God who gave it" (Eccl. 12, 7). This judgment the Church calls the particular judgment for it is the private judgment of each individual before God in contrast to the general judgment when all of humanity will be publicly gathered together before Christ at the end of the world: "All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate them one from another...And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life" (St. Matt. 25, 31- 46).

The bodies of the dead will remain in the earth until the Last Day, or Day of Judgment, when God’s angel will descend from heaven to call all back to life. At that instant, all departed souls will be re-united with their bodies: "For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable" (1 Cor. 15, 52). Those who are alive at this time will have their bodies transformed instantly: "we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet… " (1 Cor. 15, 51-52).

Every soul shall be re-united with the same body it possessed during life, so that, as the body shared in its good or evil, so may it share in its glory or condemnation: "those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of condemnation" (St. John 5, 28-29); "For all of us must appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each may receive recompense for what has been done in the body, whether good or evil" (2 Cor. 5, 10).

Through the resurrection of the body, Christ’s victory over death is complete: "Death has been swallowed up in victory. Where, O death, is your victory? Where, O death, is your sting?" (1 Cor. 15, 54-55).

St. Paul tells us that as the sun is brighter than the moon, and one star brighter than another, so shall it be with the merits of the risen at the Resurrection: "There are both heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is one thing, and that of the earthly is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; indeed, star differs from star in glory" (1 Cor. 15, 40-41).

The bodies of the Just after the Resurrection shall possess four principal qualities:

(i) Impassability: this will render them incapable of pain or suffering: "he will wipe every tear from their eyes. Death will be no more; mourning and crying and pain will be no more" (Rev. 21, 4);

(ii) Brightness: this will render their merits as glorious as the sun: "There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; indeed, star differs from star in glory" (1 Cor. 15, 41);

(iii) Agility: this will give them the ability, as quick as thought, to move from one end of creation to another: "It is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory" (1 Cor. 15, 43);

(iv) Subtility: this will enable them to pass through material substances: "It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body" (1 Cor. 15, 44).

The opposite of these gifts will be the fate of the reprobate, as just punishment for their lives of sin and self-indulgence:

(i) Darkness: Their bodies will be dark and "they will look aghast at one another; their faces will be aflame" (Is. 13, 8);

(ii) Passability: Their bodies will suffer endless pain and torment, burning forever in the fire without being consumed: "for their worm shall not die, their fire shall not be quenched" (Is. 66, 24);

(iii) Heaviness: Their bodies will be weighed down and sluggish: " to bind their kings with chains and their nobles with fetters of iron" (Ps. 149, 8);

(iv) Carnality: Their souls will be subject and enslaved to their bodies: "To set the mind on the flesh is death" (Rom. 8, 6).

The thought of the future resurrection should be our great incentive to yield our bodies "as slaves to righteousness for sanctification" (Rom. 6, 19). It is our great hope, the crown of our faith: "If there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; and if Christ has not been raised, then our proclamation has been in vain and your faith has been in vain" (1 Cor. 15, 13-14).

Not only will the body rise, but whatever belongs to the reality of its nature, and adorns and ornaments man will be restored. For this we have the admirable words of St. Augustine: There shall then be no deformity of body; if some have been overburdened with flesh, they shall not resume its entire weight. All that exceeds the proper proportion shall be deemed superfluous. On the other hand, should the body be wasted by disease or old age, or be emaciated from any other cause, it shall be repaired by the divine power of Christ, who will not only restore the body unto us, but will repair whatever it shall have lost through the wretchedness of this life. In another place he says: Man shall not resume his former hair, but shall be adorned with such as will become him, according to the words: "The very hairs of your head are all numbered." God will restore them according to His wisdom.

No. 989: We firmly believe, and hence we hope that, just as Christ is truly risen from the dead and lives forever, so after death the righteous will live forever with the risen Christ and he will raise them up on the last day. Our resurrection, like his own, will be the work of the Most Holy Trinity:

If the Spirit of him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ Jesus from the dead will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit who dwells in you.

No. 994: But there is more. Jesus links faith in the resurrection to his own person: "I am the Resurrection and the life." It is Jesus himself who on the last day will raise up those who have believed in him, who have eaten his body and drunk his blood. Already now in this present life he gives a sign and pledge of this by restoring some of the dead to life, announcing thereby his own Resurrection, though it was to be of another order. He speaks of this unique event as the "sign of Jonah," the sign of the temple: he announces that he will be put to death but rise thereafter on the third day.

No. 996: From the beginning, Christian faith in the resurrection has met with incomprehension and opposition. "On no point does the Christian faith encounter more opposition than on the resurrection of the body." It is very commonly accepted that the life of the human person continues in a spiritual fashion after death. But how can we believe that this body, so clearly mortal, could rise to everlasting life?

No. 1000: This "how" exceeds our imagination and understanding; it is accessible only to faith. Yet our participation in the Eucharist already gives us a foretaste of Christ’s transfiguration of our bodies:

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