«Omnes enim nos manifestari oportet ante tribunal Christi» — "For we must all be manifested before the judgment seat of Christ" (2 Cor. 5:10).
Point I
Let us consider the appearance, the accusation, the examination, and the sentence. And speaking first of the soul's appearance before the judge, it is the common opinion of theologians that the particular judgment takes place at the very moment a man breathes his last, and that in the very place where the soul is separated from the body it is judged by Jesus Christ, who will not send another, but will come Himself to judge its cause. «Qua hora non putatis, Filius hominis veniet» — "The Son of Man will come at the hour you do not expect" (Luke 12:40). «Veniet nobis in amore, impiis in tremore» — "He will come to us in love, to the wicked in trembling" (St. Augustine). Oh what terror he will feel who sees the Redeemer for the first time, and sees Him wrathful! «Ante faciem indignationis eius quis stabit?» — "Who shall stand before the face of His indignation?" (Nah. 1:6). Reflecting on this, Father Louis de Ponte trembled so greatly that he made even the cell in which he was staying tremble. The Venerable Father Juvenal Ancina, hearing the «Dies illa» — "That day" — being sung, at the thought of the terror the soul will feel in having to be presented for judgment, resolved to leave the world, as in fact he did leave it. The sight of the judge's wrath will be the forewarning of condemnation: «Indignatio regis, nuntii mortis» — "The indignation of the king is a messenger of death" (Prov. 16:14). St. Bernard says that then the soul will suffer more in seeing Jesus wrathful than in being in hell itself: «Mallet esse in inferno» — "It would rather be in hell."
At times criminals have been seen to break into a cold sweat on being brought before some earthly judge. Piso, appearing in the senate in the garb of a culprit, felt such confusion that he took his own life. What anguish it is for a son, or for a vassal, to see his father or his prince deeply angered! Oh what far greater anguish will that soul feel in seeing Jesus Christ, whom it despised during life! «Videbunt in quem transfixerunt» — "They shall look upon Him whom they have pierced" (Zech. 12:10). That Lamb who in life had such patience, the soul will then see enraged, with no hope left of appeasing Him; and this will drive it to beg the mountains to fall upon it and so hide it from the fury of the angered Lamb. «Montes cadite super nos, abscondite nos ab ira Agni» — "Mountains, fall upon us, and hide us from the wrath of the Lamb" (Rev. 6:16). St. Luke, speaking of the judgment, says: «Tunc videbunt Filium hominis» — "Then they shall see the Son of Man" (Luke 21:27). To see the judge in the form of a man — oh what anguish it will bring to the sinner! For at the sight of that man who died for his eternal salvation, he will feel his ingratitude reproached all the more keenly. When the Savior ascended into heaven, the angels said to the disciples: «Hic Iesus qui assumptus est a vobis in coelum, sic veniet, quemadmodum vidistis eum euntem in coelum» — "This Jesus, who has been taken up from you into heaven, will come in the same way as you have seen Him going into heaven" (Acts 1:11). The judge will therefore come to judge bearing the same wounds with which He departed from the earth. «Grande gaudium intuentium! grandis timor exspectantium» — "Great joy for those who behold Him, great fear for those who await Him," says Rupert. Those wounds will console the just, but they will terrify sinners. When Joseph said to his brothers, «Ego sum Ioseph, quem vendidistis» — "I am Joseph, whom you sold" — Scripture says that in their terror they fell silent and lost the power of speech: «Non poterant respondere fratres, nimio terrore perterriti» — "His brothers could not answer him, so utterly terrified were they" (Gen. 45:3). Now what answer will the sinner give to Jesus Christ? Will he perhaps have the boldness to beg pity of Him, when he must first render Him an account of the contempt he has shown for the pity He had shown him? «Qua fronte misericordiam petes, primum de misericordiae contemtu iudicandus?» — "With what face will you ask for mercy, you who must first be judged for your contempt of mercy?" (Eusebius of Emesa). What then will he do, says St. Augustine; where will he flee, when he sees above him the wrathful judge, below him hell lying open, on one side his sins accusing him, on the other the devils ready to execute the sentence, and within him the conscience gnawing? «Superius erit iudex iratus, inferius horrendum chaos, a dextris peccata accusantia, a sinistris daemonia ad supplicium trahentia, intus conscientia urens; quo fugiet peccator sic comprehensus?» — "Above will be the angered judge, below the horrid abyss, on the right sins accusing, on the left devils dragging him to punishment, within the burning conscience: where will the sinner thus encompassed flee?"
Affections and Prayers
O my Jesus, I wish to call You always Jesus; Your name consoles me and gives me courage, reminding me that You are my Savior, who died to save me. Here I am at Your feet; I confess that I have deserved as many hells as the times I have offended You by mortal sin. I do not deserve pardon; but You died to pardon me. «Recordare Iesu pie, quod sum causa tuae viae» — "Remember, O loving Jesus, that I am the cause of Your journey." Quickly, my Jesus, pardon me before You come to judge me. Then I will no longer be able to seek pity from You; now I can ask it of You, and I hope for it. Then Your wounds will terrify me, but now they give me confidence. My dear Redeemer, I repent above every other evil of having offended Your infinite goodness. I resolve to accept every pain and every loss rather than lose Your grace. I love You with all my heart. Have pity on me: «Miserere mei, Deus, secundum magnam misericordiam tuam» — "Have mercy on me, O God, according to Your great mercy."
O Mary, Mother of mercy, O advocate of sinners, obtain for me a great sorrow for my sins, pardon, and perseverance in the divine love. I love You, my Queen, and in You I trust.
Point II
Consider the accusation and the examination. «Iudicium sedit, et libri aperti sunt» — "The judgment sat, and the books were opened" (Dan. 7:10). These books will be two: the Gospel and the conscience. In the Gospel will be read what the culprit was bound to do; in the conscience, what he has done: «Videbit unusquisque quod fecit» — "Each one will see what he has done" (St. Jerome). In the scales of divine justice, neither riches, nor dignity, nor nobility of persons will then be weighed, but only works. «Appensus es in statera, et inventus es minus habens» — "You have been weighed in the balance and found wanting" — said Daniel to King Belshazzar (Dan. 5:27). Father Alvarez comments: «Non aurum, non opes in stateram veniunt, solus rex appensus est» — "It is not gold or riches that are placed in the balance; the king alone is weighed." Then the accusers will come forward, and first of all the devil. «Praesto erit diabolus ante tribunal Christi, et recitabit verba professionis tuae. Obiiciet nobis in faciem omnia quae fecimus, in qua die, in qua hora peccavimus» — "The devil will stand ready before the tribunal of Christ, and he will recite the words of your profession. He will throw in our face all that we have done, on what day and at what hour we sinned" (St. Augustine, Against Julian, vol. 6). «Recitabit verba professionis tuae» — "He will recite the words of your profession" — that is, he will produce our very promises, which we then failed to keep; and he will bring forward all our faults, marking the day and the hour on which we committed them. Then he will say to the judge, as St. Cyprian writes: «Ego pro istis nec alapas, nec flagella sustinui» — "For these I endured neither blows nor scourges." Lord, for this culprit I have suffered nothing; but he abandoned You, who died to save him, to make himself my slave; therefore he belongs to me. The guardian angels will also be accusers, as Origen says: «Unusquisque Angelorum testimonium perhibet, quot annis circa eum laboraverit, sed ille monita sprevit» — "Each of the angels bears witness for how many years he labored over him, but he spurned the warnings" (Origen, Hom. 66). So that then: «Omnes amici eius spreverunt eam» — "All her friends have despised her" (Jer. 51). The very walls within which that culprit will have sinned will be his accusers! «Lapis de pariete clamabit» — "A stone from the wall will cry out" (Hab. 2:11). His own conscience will be an accuser: «Testimonium reddente illis conscientia ipsorum in die, cum iudicabit Deus» — "Their conscience bearing witness against them on the day when God shall judge" (Rom. 2:15-16). Their very sins will then speak, says St. Bernard, «et dicent: Tu nos fecisti, opera tua sumus, non te deseremus» — "and will say: You made us; we are your works; we will not desert you" (Book of Meditations, ch. 2). Finally, the accusers will be, as St. John Chrysostom says, the wounds of Jesus Christ: «Clavi de te conquerentur: cicatrices contra te loquentur: crux Christi contra te perorabit» — "The nails will complain of you, the scars will speak against you, the cross of Christ will plead against you" (St. John Chrysostom, Hom. on Matt.). Then will come the examination.
The Lord says: «Ego in die illa scrutabor Ierusalem in lucernis» — "On that day I will search Jerusalem with lamps" (Zeph. 1:12). The lamp, says Mendoza, penetrates every corner of the house: «Lucerna omnes angulos permeat» — "The lamp passes through all the corners." And Cornelius a Lapide, explaining the word «in lucernis» — "with lamps" — says that then God will set before the culprit the examples of the saints and all the lights and inspirations He gave him in life, and also all the years He granted him to do good. «Vocavit adversum me tempus» — "He has summoned the time against me" (Lam. 1:15). So that then you will have to render an account of every glance. «Exigitur a te usque ad ictum oculi» — "An account is exacted of you even to a glance of the eye" (St. Anselm). «Purgabit filios Levi, et colabit eos» — "He will purify the sons of Levi and strain them" (Mal. 3:3). As gold is strained by separating the dross from it, so will good works, confessions, Holy Communions, and the like have to be examined. «Cum accepero tempus, ego iustitias iudicabo» — "When I take the appointed time, I will judge with justice" (Ps. 74:3). In short, says St. Peter, in the judgment the just man will scarcely be saved: «Si iustus vix salvabitur, impius et peccator ubi parebunt?» — "If the just man will scarcely be saved, where will the wicked and the sinner appear?" (1 Pet. 4:18). If an account must be rendered of every idle word, what account will be rendered of so many evil thoughts consented to? Of so many shameless words? St. Gregory: «Si de verbo otioso ratio poscitur, quid de verbo impuritatis?» — "If an account is demanded for an idle word, what of a word of impurity?" Above all, says the Lord (speaking of the scandalous who have robbed Him of souls): «Occuram eis quasi ursa raptis catulis» — "I will come upon them like a bear robbed of her cubs" (Hos. 13:8). Then, speaking of his works, the judge will say: «Date ei de fructu manuum suarum» — "Give him of the fruit of his hands" (Prov. 31:31). Pay him according to the works he has done.
Affections and Prayers
Ah my Jesus, if You willed now to repay me according to the works I have done, nothing but hell would fall to me. O God, how many times have I myself written out my own condemnation to that place of torments! I thank You for the patience You have had in bearing with me so long. O God, if I had now to appear before Your tribunal, what account would I render You of my life? «Non intres in iudicium cum servo tuo» — "Do not enter into judgment with Your servant." Ah Lord, wait for me a little while longer; do not judge me yet. If You wished to judge me now, what would become of me? Wait for me; since You have shown me so many mercies until now, show me this one more: give me a great sorrow for my sins. I repent, O Sovereign Good, of having so many times despised You. I love You above all things. Eternal Father, pardon me for the love of Jesus Christ, and through His merits grant me holy perseverance. My Jesus, I hope for all things through Your blood.
Mary Most Holy, in You I trust. «Eia ergo advocata nostra, illos tuos misericordes oculos ad nos converte» — "Turn then, our advocate, those merciful eyes of Yours toward us." Look upon my miseries and have pity on me.
Point III
In short, to attain eternal salvation, the soul must appear at the judgment with a life made conformable to the life of Jesus Christ. «Quos praescivit, et praedestinavit conformes fieri imaginis Filii sui» — "For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be made conformable to the image of His Son" (Rom. 8:29). But this was what made Job tremble. «Quid faciam, cum surrexerit ad iudicandum Deus? et cum quaesierit, quid respondebo illi?» — "What shall I do when God rises up to judge? And when He examines me, what shall I answer Him?" Philip II, when a servant of his had told him a lie, rebuked him, saying: "So you deceive me?" That wretched man returned home and died of grief. What will the sinner do, what will he answer to Jesus Christ the judge? He will do what that man in the Gospel did who came without the wedding garment: he was silent, not knowing what to answer. «At ille obmutuit» — "But he was speechless" (Matt. 22:12). His very sin will stop his mouth: «Omnis iniquitas oppilabit os suum» — "All iniquity shall stop its mouth" (Ps. 106:42). St. Basil says that the sinner will then be more tormented by shame than by the very fire of hell: «Horridior, quam ignis, erit pudor» — "Shame will be more dreadful than the fire."
At last the judge will pronounce the sentence. «Discede a me, maledicte, in ignem aeternum» — "Depart from Me, you cursed, into everlasting fire." Oh, what a terrible thunderclap this will be! «Oh quam terribiliter personabit tonitruum illud!» — "Oh, how terribly that thunder will resound!" — the Carthusian. St. Anselm says: «Qui non tremit ad tantum tonitruum, non dormit, sed mortuus est» — "He who does not tremble at so great a thunder is not asleep, but dead." And Eusebius adds that the terror of the sinners at hearing their condemnation pronounced will be so great that, if they could die, they would die again: «Tantus terror invadet malos, cum viderint iudicem sententiam proferentem, ut nisi essent immortales, iterum morerentur» — "So great a terror will seize the wicked, when they see the judge pronouncing the sentence, that, were they not immortal, they would die again." Then, says St. Thomas of Villanova, there is no longer room for prayers, nor are there any more intercessors to whom to have recourse: «Non ibi precandi locus; nullus intercessor assistet, non amicus, non pater» — "There is no place for prayer; no intercessor will be present — no friend, no father." To whom, then, will they have recourse? Perhaps to God, whom they have so despised? «Quis te eripiet, Deusne ille, quem contempsisti?» — "Who will deliver you — that God whom you have despised?" (St. Basil, Oration 4, On Repentance).
Perhaps to the saints? To Mary? No, for then: «Stellae cadent de coelo; et luna non dabit lumen suum» — "The stars (which are the saints, the advocates) shall fall from heaven; and the moon (which is Mary) shall not give her light" (Matt. 24). St. Augustine says: «Fugiet a ianua paradisi Maria» — "Mary will flee from the gate of paradise" (Serm. 3, To the Brethren).
O God, exclaims St. Thomas of Villanova, with what indifference we hear the judgment spoken of, as though the sentence of condemnation could not touch us, or as though we did not have to be judged! «Heu quam securi haec dicimus, et audimus, quasi nos non tangeret haec sententia, aut quasi dies ille nunquam esset venturus!» — "Alas, how unconcerned we are when we say and hear these things, as though this sentence did not concern us, or as though that day were never to come!" (Serm. 1, On the Judgment). And what folly, adds the same saint, it is to remain secure in a matter of such great danger! «Quae est ista stulta securitas in discrimine tanto!» — "What foolish security in so great a peril!" Do not say, my brother, St. Augustine warns you: Ah, will God really want to send me to hell? «Nunquid Deus vere damnaturus est?» — "Will God truly condemn?" Do not say it, says the saint, for even the Jews did not believe they would be exterminated; so many of the damned did not believe they would be sent to hell; but then the end of the punishment came: «Finis venit, venit finis: nunc immittam furorem meum in te, et iudicabo» — "The end has come, the end has come: now I will send My fury upon you, and I will judge" (Ezek. 7:6). And so, says St. Augustine, it will happen to you as well: «Veniet iudicii dies, et invenies verum, quod minatus est Deus» — "The day of judgment will come, and you will find true what God has threatened." At present it is ours to choose the sentence we want: «In potestate nostra (dice S. Eligio) datur, qualiter iudicemur» — "It is given into our power (says St. Eligius) how we shall be judged." And what must we do? Settle our accounts before the judgment: «Ante iudicium para iustitiam» — "Before judgment, prepare justice" (Sir. 18:19). St. Bonaventure says that prudent merchants, to avoid going bankrupt, often review and settle their accounts. «Iudex ante iudicium placari potest, in iudicio non potest» — "The judge can be appeased before the judgment; at the judgment he cannot," St. Augustine. Let us then say to the Lord, as St. Bernard used to say: «Volo iudicatus praesentari, non iudicandus» — "I wish to be presented already judged, not to be judged." My Judge, I want You to judge me and punish me now, in this life, while it is the time of mercy and You can forgive me; for after death it will be the time of justice.
Affections and Prayers
My God, if I do not appease You now, then it will no longer be time to appease You. But how shall I appease You, I who have so many times despised Your friendship for wretched, brutish pleasures? I have repaid Your immense love with ingratitude. What worthy satisfaction can a creature ever give for offenses committed against its Creator? Ah, my Lord, I thank You that Your mercy has already given me the means to appease You and to satisfy You. I offer You the blood and the death of Jesus Your Son, and behold, I already see Your justice appeased and superabundantly satisfied. For this, my repentance is also needed. Yes, my God, I repent with all my heart of all the injuries I have done You. Judge me now, then, O my Redeemer. I detest, above every evil, all the displeasure I have caused You. I love You above all things with all my heart; and I resolve always to love You, and to die rather than ever offend You again. You have promised to forgive whoever repents; come then, judge me now, and absolve me of my sins. I accept the punishment I deserve, but restore me to Your grace, and keep me in it until death. So I hope.
O Mary, my Mother, I thank You for the many mercies You have obtained for me; pray, continue to protect me until the end.