214. We now apply the doctrine to the supernatural
moral order in wayfarers. We know that the soul possesses supernatural
life when grace, which is the Holy Ghost, dwells therein, and that it is
in supernatural disgrace when through sin Satan dwells therein. Given
which, we now examine the functions of the soul.
(a) Higher functions: these are the communication by
the soul to the essential body of supernatural grace or disgrace,
according to the state of the soul.
(b) Lower functions: these are the communication by the
soul to the accidental body of its state of grace or disgrace.
We now consider the mysterious intercommunication
between the three elements of the person. This communication is never
direct between the essential body and the accidental, but through the soul
which animates them.
(a) When one in the state of grace practices the
Christian virtues, it is always with the three elements - soul, essential
body and accidental body. The virtuous act redounds to the greater
supernatural beauty and glory of the soul. In turn the soul shares its
enrichment with the essential and accidental bodies.
1. The essential body assumes that spiritual benefit
according to its nature, thus becomes more beautiful, and in turn shares
that beauty with the soul.
2. The
accidental body assumes the same spiritual benefit according to its nature,
thus becomes more sublimated, and in turn shares that sublimation with the
soul.
The soul, on assuming the new supernatural beauty of
both bodies, becomes more beautiful and also communicates, with its own,
to both bodies, their respective spiritual benefits.
(b) When one in the state of grace sins mortally, it is
always with the three elements - soul, essential body and accidental body.
By the sinful action the soul loses its supernatural beauty and glory. In
turn the soul shares that loss with the essential and accidental bodies.
1. The essential body assumes the spiritual disgrace
according to its nature, is thus disgraced, and in turn shares that
disgrace with the soul.
2. The accidental body assumes the same spiritual
disgrace according to its nature, thus becomes depraved, and in turn
shares that depravity with the soul.
The soul, on assuming the supernatural impoverishment
of both bodies becomes uglier, and also communicates, with its own, to
both bodies, their respective spiritual disgrace.
215. With that doctrine we arrive at the following
clarification. The soul, with its intelligence, memory and will, can be
the cause of virtue or sin. So can the accidental body: of virtues,
through acquired good habits; or of sins, through concupiscence. We must
understand that for sin or virtue formally to exist, the deliberate
consent of the soul is required. Nevertheless the essential body is not of
itself the cause of virtue or sin since, being spiritualized matter, it is
bereft of concupiscence. In short, the supernatural good or evil of the
essential body comes to it from the soul, as also from the accidental body
through the soul.
216. After considering the soul's functions in the
natural and supernatural order, we now consider them in regard to the
beatific order in a wayfarer. We know that the beatific life of the soul
consists in seeing God face to face with the intelligence and loving Him
most perfectly with the will. And that the vision of God is only possible
when the soul is illuminated by the Lumen
Gloriae; since to contemplate the divine essence it needs a very
special grace to assist, elevate and make it fit for what is much beyond
its natural powers. Given which, let us now examine the functions of the
soul in the beatific order.
(a) The higher functions are the communication of the
soul's beatific vision to the essential body, which always shares in that
most special grace, since in their common action most perfect harmony
reigns between both elements. In other words, when the soul enjoys the
beatific vision the essential body must needs share therein.
(b) The lower functions are the communication of the
soul's beatific vision to the accidental body, which only participates
therein when the soul is illuminated in its entirety.
When a wayfaring soul enjoys the beatific vision, that
soul is always illuminated by the Lumen
Gloriae for higher functions, causing the essential body to share in
its beatific joy. If at the same time the soul is illuminated for lower
functions, it also causes the accidental body to share in its beatific joy.
Therefore, when the soul is illuminated for the beatific exercise of its
higher and lower functions, that means that the soul is illuminated in its
entirety, or in other words, that it communicates its beatific life
simultaneously to the essential and accidental bodies. Speaking of a
wayfaring soul, when we say that the higher part of the soul is veiled, we
mean that the higher functions do not possess beatific exercise, and that
consequently neither the soul nor the essential body share in that vision.
When we say that the lower part of the soul is veiled, we mean that the
lower functions do not possess beatific exercise, and that consequently
the accidental body does not share in that vision. However, we must
understand that only when the higher part of the soul is unveiled is it
possible for the lower part to be unveiled. In other words, if there are
no higher beatific functions, it is impossible for there to be lower
beatific functions. We make clear that in wayfarers, when a soul enjoys
the beatific vision, the memory, nevertheless, continues to exist as a
power, and is exercised without any obstacle, to record mysteries
contemplated with the intelligence in that vision.
217. With respect to the beatific vision in
comprehensors, we teach that the souls of the Blessed in Heaven are
completely illuminated.
(a) Indeed when the soul is there with its essential
and accidental bodies both glorious, whether the accidental body is
essentially glorious, or only accidentally glorious for lack of
Sacramentality.
(b) Or when the soul is there alone, as in the majority
of cases, since in Heaven its beatific joy is complete according to its
nature.
Until the Messianic Kingdom, only Our Lord Jesus Christ
and the Blessed Virgin Mary are in Heaven essentially glorious, through
Sacramentality. All other risen bodies, including those of Saint Joseph,
are only accidentally glorious. We make clear that in the human person
Sacramentality is an attribute exclusive to the accidental body. Only from
the latter can quantitative parts be extracted, since the soul is purely
spiritual and the essential body is spiritualized matter. We take the opportunity to teach that the exercise of the
memory by the Blessed in Heaven is solely to the benefit of their
accidental glory.
218. Let us now consider the intercommunication of
suffering or of joy, or of both simultaneously, between the three elements
of the human person as wayfarer.
(a) In the
common natural order suffering or rejoicing is always limited.
1. The wayfaring soul can suffer or rejoice or both
simultaneously. The joy or pain has its origin in the soul itself through
its powers, or in the accidental body given its nature, or in both
elements simultaneously; but not in the essential body, which of itself is
not capable of joy or suffering since it only suffers or rejoices in
accordance with what is communicated to it by the soul. However, once the
essential body has assumed the suffering or joy communicated to it, it
makes the soul partaker of that suffering or joy, or of both
simultaneously, as the case may be, and through the soul the accidental
body.
2. The accidental body can suffer or rejoice, or both
simultaneously. The joy or suffering has its origin in that body, or in
the soul, or in both elements simultaneously, but not in the essential
body as we have already stated.
3. In the common state of wayfarers there always occurs
the mysterious intercommunication of suffering or of joy, or of both
simultaneously, between the three elements of the person.
(b) In the
supernatural moral order the same doctrine is applied as in the common
natural order. Yet by a most special grace, more frequent in mystics,
wholesome joy in
the essential body and suffering in the accidental body
at the same time, can be completely compatible. That comes about when the
soul, while it suffers and rejoices, communicates only its joy to the
essential body and only its suffering to the accidental body, and besides,
assumes the wholesome joy of the former and the suffering of the latter.
Therefore, when a person rejoices in his essential body and at the same
time suffers in his accidental body, his whole soul suffers and rejoices
at the same time. Here wholesome joy must be understood as the purely
supernatural, with origin in the beatific vision which, though veiled,
dwells in the soul of a wayfarer in the state of grace through living
Faith.
(c) In the beatific order, when one rejoices in his
essential body and simultaneously suffers in his accidental body, it is
because his whole soul simultaneously suffers and rejoices. The soul's joy
comes from beatific communication with God, in union with its essential
body. The suffering comes from having its lower beatific functions veiled.
That implies in the soul a limitation of its power regarding the
accidental body, which assumes the soul's suffering, while simultaneously
communicating to it its own. Hence we see that in the beatific order, the
soul can possess a dual state, the glorious - which comes to it from the
beatific vision and the resultant communication thereof to the essential
body, and the passible - which results from the lack of communication of
that vision to the accidental body. But we must understand that the dual
state does not occur in the essential body. For when that body is in
possession of beatific joy it does not assume the suffering of the
passible state which the soul might possess, because only through its
glorious state does the soul communicate with the essential body. Nor does
the dual state exist in the accidental body because the soul, when it
possesses the dual state, only communicates through its passible state
with the accidental body.
219. We further clarify the doctrine on the human
nature of Our Lord Jesus Christ.
(a) In virtue of the Hypostatic Union the Most Divine
Soul of Christ was created in a natural state of glory and thus is
glorious by nature. Through the grace of Union it always enjoyed the
beatific vision and infused knowledge, both in the highest degree, and was
endowed with the Infinite Sanctity of the Divine Word and consequently
with the deific character which makes It adorable.
(b) At the very instant of the Incarnation of the
Divine Word, the Most Sacred Body of Christ was conceived in the natural
state of glory through the three drops of the Divine Mary's glorious Blood,
and therefore with the essential gift of Sacramentality. For Our Lord
Jesus Christ inherited in His Body, through the three drops of Blood, the
glorious gifts and virtues of the elements of the first couple which His
Divine Mother had inherited through the Triple Benediction. But we must
understand that the glorious properties of Adam and Eve, when inherited by
Christ, were assumed by Him in His Deific Body most perfectly and in the
highest degree, corresponding to the supreme degree of beatific vision of
His Soul, and through the extension of the Hypostatic Union to His Body,
at the very instant of the Incarnation of the Divine Word.
The following Dogmatic Definition of His Holiness Pope
Gregory XVII is thus further clarified: <
220. The previously explained doctrine that, for `higher
part' and `lower part' of the soul there must be understood, respectively,
higher functions and lower functions, has, as far as the human nature of
Christ is concerned, a most singular application, since He possesses a
single Body in the glorious state. In the present Treatise, when speaking
of the Most Divine Soul of Christ as wayfarer, we have considered in It `higher
part' and `lower part'. Also we said that, when He suspended the beatific
vision in the lower part of His Soul, He miraculously assumed a passible
state in His Deific Body and simultaneously conserved the glorious state
natural to Him. We now further clarify the doctrine. Although as wayfarer
Our Lord Jesus Christ always conserved the glorious state which His Most
Sacred Humanity possessed by nature, nevertheless in order to suffer and
to die He assumed, both in His Most Divine Soul and in His Deific Body, a
passible state in which He did not permit the access of the beatific
vision, thus to maintain passibility, necessary for the fulfillment of His
expiatory mission. Therefore the Most Divine Soul of Christ, in the
glorious state communicated through its higher functions the plenitude of
the beatific vision, along with other gifts, to the glorious state of His
Deific Body, at the same time assuming the latter's joy. Moreover, the
Soul in the passible state communicated through its lower functions its
suffering and joy, both natural and supernatural, to the passible state of
His Deific Body, assuming at the same time the latter's suffering and joy.
Hence we see that when treating of the Most Divine Soul of Christ we
consider in It two parts. The higher part - meaning the Soul's glorious
state and Its communication with the glorious state of the Body; that is,
the higher natural, supernatural and beatific functions. The lower part -
meaning the Soul's passible state and Its communication with the passible
state of the Body; that is, the lower natural and supernatural functions.
That is why, when previously we said in this Treatise that the higher part
of the Most Divine Soul of Christ rejoiced and the lower part suffered, we
referred to the glorious and passible states, respectively, of His Soul.
Also, when we said in previous chapters that Christ suspended the beatific
vision in the lower part of His Soul in order thus to assume a passible
state in His Deific Body, it must be understood that He impeded the
passage of the vision to the assumed state of His Soul and therefore to
that of His Body, to maintain passibility in both elements. Also, when we
said that if the higher part of His Soul communicated its beatific joy to
the lower part the Soul was completely illuminated, we meant that Christ
ceased to assume in His Soul, and therefore in His Body, the passible
state, thus remaining in His glorious state alone. Consequently, although
Our Lord Jesus Christ assumed a passible state in His Most Sacred Humanity,
He always conserved the plenitude of glorification in the glorious state
of His Soul and of His Body. Wherefore, at the same time as He always
possessed maximum joy in that state, in the passible state He suffered to
the point of maximum pain, which was in His most bloody Passion, in some
moments of which He suspended part of the infused knowledge in the
passible state of His Soul as we shall see later. Besides, in the passible
state of His Most Sacred Humanity, Christ on many occasions during His
life attained sublime degrees of supernatural joy which sweetened the
intensity of His sufferings, although during His most bloody Passion He
deprived Himself of these consolations in order to drink the cup of
suffering to the dregs. In other words, in His Most Sacred Passion and
ignominious crucifixion, Our Lord Jesus Christ rejoiced fully and in the
highest degree in the glorious state of His Soul and Body and at the same
time suffered to the full and in the highest degree in the passible state
of His Soul and Body.
221. It is fitting now to amplify the doctrine on the
Person of the Divine Mary. Through Her Divine Espousal with Christ,
(a) The Divine Soul of Mary was created in a natural
state of glory, and thus is glorious by nature.
(b) Mary's two corporeal elements, namely Her essential
Body and Her accidental Body, received at the moment of the Immaculate
Conception the properties of the glorious elements of Adam and Eve.
Consequently Her accidental Body received the essential gift of
Sacramentality, both Bodies being glorious by nature. We must understand
that the Divine Mary inherited in Her Bodies the glorious gifts and
virtues of the first couple, elevated in highest degree corresponding to
the beatific vision with which Her Divine Soul was endowed.
222. We must clarify that the natural state of glory of
the three elements of the Divine Mary's Person already was, as wayfarer,
essentially glorious. At the very instant of their respective existence,
these elements took to themselves, in accordance with their nature and in
perpetuity, the essential glory coming from the beatific vision, which
implied the essential gift of Sacramentality in Her accidental Body. Such
property is exclusive to essentially glorious bodies. That essential gift,
inherited by the Divine Mary through the Triple Benediction, had been
given to our first parents in Paradise when each of them assumed, in his
or her accidental body, respectively, the beatific vision corresponding to
original justice in which they were created and which afterwards they lost.
Regarding the natural state of glory of Our Lord Jesus Christ's Soul and
Body, as well as the passible state assumed by Him in both elements as
wayfarer, about which we have already spoken, these must be understood as
natural states of essential glory, even though the passible state was, at
the same time, merely accidental only in the sense of being transitory in
order thus to fulfil the most high mission of the saving work of
Reparation and Redemption.
223. Studying more profoundly the Person of the Divine
Mary, we teach that this most excellent Creature, during the course of Her
life on earth, possessed in Her Soul three states.
(a) The beatific
state, in Her dignity as favourite Daughter of the Eternal Father.
(b) The
glorious state, in Her dignity as Mother of the Divine Word.
(c) The passible
state, in Her dignity as most beloved Spouse of the Holy Ghost, in
order to collaborate with Him in giving birth to the Mystical Body of
Christ.
(a) The beatific
state was the natural state of essential glory of Mary's Soul, whereby
She was never deprived of the vision of the divine essence, although by
exception on the occasion of the lance-thrust She lost it in all Her Soul
for the seven seconds which lasted Her spiritual Death on Calvary. That
beatific state was of itself incommunicable to the other two states of Her
Soul, and therefore to Her essential and accidental Bodies. The beatific
state was at the same time merely accidental or transitory, since it
disappeared when Mary's Soul exercised, through its glorious state, higher
and lower beatific functions or higher functions alone.
(b) The glorious
state is the natural state of essential glory of Mary's Soul, with
beatific vision communicable through higher functions to Her essential
Body, and through lower functions to Her accidental Body. In specific
moments of Her earthly life the Divine Mary's higher functions were veiled;
and during the greater part of Her earthly life the lower functions were
veiled. When both beatific functions were veiled, the beatific state was
again given to Mary's Soul, in all of which She thereby continued to enjoy
the beatific vision.
(c) The passible
state was the natural state of essential glory of Mary's Soul, given
to Her when the higher and lower beatific functions, or the latter alone,
were veiled. Hence that state was at the same time merely accidental or
transitory.
Consequently the Divine Mary, through Her beatific
state, could always enjoy the beatific vision in all Her Soul while on
earth, save during Her Spiritual Death on the occasion of the lance-thrust,
as we have already mentioned. Through Her glorious state She enjoyed the
beatific vision in all Her Soul when She exercised higher and lower
beatific functions, or the former alone. When She exercised the higher
beatific functions only, all Her Soul rejoiced beatifically in the
glorious state. However, as She lacked lower beatific functions,
simultaneously She was given a passible state in which all Her Soul also
suffered. When both beatific functions were unexercised, Her Soul in the
glorious state lacked beatific joy, but in that state conserved a sublime
wholesome joy, that is, supernatural, which inundated all Her Soul; and
since at the same time a passible state was given to Her Soul, all Her
Soul also suffered in that state. As we have seen, the natural state of
the Divine Mary's Soul was, is and will forever be the glorious. The other
two states, namely the beatific and the passible, which She possessed
during the course of Her terrestrial life, were merely accidental only in
the sense that they were transitory, since She possessed them so as to
fulfil Her most high mission in the saving Work of Reparation and
Redemption. In other words, the beatific state was given to Her only when
the glorious state of Her Soul was completely deprived of the beatific
vision; and the passible state was given to Her only when higher and lower
beatific functions, or the latter alone, were suspended.
224. Thanks, then, to the beatific state of the Soul of
the Divine Mary as wayfarer, She was never deprived of the vision of the
divine essence, save at the instant of the lance- thrust on Calvary.
Wherefore, in the strict sense, the Spiritual Death of the Divine Mary at
the foot of the Cross, at the instant the lance penetrated Christ's right
Side, was the momentary deprival, in all Her Being and for seven seconds,
of the vision of the divine essence, by which the Divine Mary's sufferings
far surpassed everything She had until then suffered sharing the most
sorrowful Passion and Death of Christ, and everything She afterwards would
suffer until Her most gentle Dormition. Yet during the Divine Mary's
Spiritual Death, which was Her most painful giving birth to the Church, at
the same time as Her whole Soul suffered, It retained and was completely
inundated by a sublime supernatural joy. Immediately after Her Spiritual
Death there took place Her spiritual Resurrection, with the Birth of the
Mystical Body. Thus She recovered for seven seconds the beatific vision in
the glorious state of Her Soul, with the exercise of higher and lower
beatific functions. The result was that the three clements of the Divine
Mary's Person, namely Soul, essential Body and accidental Body, were
completely glorious for those seven seconds, though She concealed that
glory from those present by fabricating an ethereal barrier. The seven
seconds of the Divine Mary's Spiritual Death particularly represent the
seven capital sins for which She died. The seven seconds of the Divine
Mary's Spiritual Resurrection particularly represent the seven virtues
opposed to those seven sins, and also the seven Sacraments.
225. With respect to the divine Mary's most pure
essential and accidental Bodies, it is helpful further to clarify:
(a) When Her Soul exercised higher and lower beatific
functions, both Bodies shared in that vision, with the joy consequent.
(b) When Her Soul in beatific vision had the lower
beatific functions suspended, Mary's essential Body rejoiced in that
vision through the higher beatific functions. However Her accidental Body,
retaining the essential gift of Sacramentality and other sublime gifts,
had amongst others the gift of impassibility veiled, and therefore
suffered.
(c) When Her Soul's higher and lower beatific functions
were suspended, and It was completely deprived of the beatific vision and
therefore of the joy consequent, Her essential Body retained the
essentially glorious state and a sublime wholesome joy, that is to say
supernatural, which completely inundated that Body. Nevertheless Her
accidental Body, retaining the essential gift of Sacramentality and other
sublime gifts, had amongst others the gift of impassibility veiled, and
therefore suffered.
(d) We see,
then, that the natural state of the Divine Mary's essential Body and
accidental Body was, is and will forever be the essentially glorious, and
that the passible state of Her accidental Body was merely accidental or
transitory in order to fulfil Her co-reparative and co-redemptive mission.
(e) We teach that the suffering of the passible state
of Mary's Soul, as well as the suffering of Her accidental Body deprived
of impassibility, was often attenuated with spiritual consolations.
Nevertheless, during Christ's Most Sorrowful Passion She was also deprived
of many of those consolations in order to drink the cup of suffering to
the dregs.
(f) We teach that when the Divine Mary's Soul, in Its
glorious state, and therefore Her essential Body, were deprived of
beatific joy, the sublime and irrevocable supernatural joy which they
retained came to them in virtue of the Divine Espousal.
226. We further amplify the doctrine on the Divine
Mary's Person teaching that in order to enable Her to suffer both in Her
Soul and in Her accidental Body it was necessary,
(a) To suspend the higher and lower beatific functions
of her Soul or the latter alone, to give a passible state both to Her Soul
and to Her accidental Body.
(b) To suspend, moreover, impassibility and other gifts
in the passible state of Her Soul and accidental Body since both elements,
essentially glorious, by nature were incapable of suffering, even when the
Soul was completely deprived of the beatific vision in the glorious state.
(c) Be it understood that suspension of the higher and
lower beatific functions, or the latter alone, in Mary's Soul, and its
repercussion in Her accidental Body, always coincided with suspension in
both elements of the gift of impassibility and other gifts, to enable Her
to suffer.
227. We further clarify the doctrine of the beatific
vision.
(a) The bodies of Most Holy Joseph and the other
Blessed who are now in Heaven receive their glorious gifts through the
beatific vision, in order for those bodies to share in the glory of their
souls. Therefore the natural state of the three elements of the person is
the glorious, as is that of all the souls in Heaven. We must understand
that the natural state of glory of souls and essential bodies in Heaven is
essentially glorious, since both have already assumed as their own, and in
accordance with their respective natures, essential glory. In contrast,
their accidental bodies are glorious merely accidentally, for although
they share in essential glory, they have as yet not assumed it as proper
to their nature, since that assumption is the essential gift of
Sacramentality, to be received by the Blessed when, in the Messianic
Kingdom, they are enthroned in the Immaculate Heart of Mary. Thus their
accidental bodies will inherit from the Divine Mary the Sacramentality
lost by the first couple.
(b) The bodies of the inhabitants of the Planet of Mary
also receive their glorious gifts through beatific vision, in order for
those bodies to share in the glory of their souls. However, there the
natural state of the three elements of the person is glorious accidentally,
for none of the three elements has assumed essential glory since all the
dwellers of the Marian planet, wayfarers still, must come to earth to die.
Hence we further clarify what was taught in Chapter XXXII of this Treatise
when we said that many of those on Mary's Planet will come to earth to
preach penance in the battle against the Antichrist, offering their lives
as martyrs. Although many will come first to preach and then to die, the
remaining inhabitants of Mary's Planet will gather on earth, close to the
last Pope, at the supreme moment of the great martyrdoms, so as also to
obtain that grace by giving their lives for Christ.
(c) As for wayfarers on earth, it is fitting to
distinguish that when one momentarily receives the grace of beatific
vision, his essential body necessarily shares in the vision, without this
meaning that his accidental body does so as well. Hence in those
circumstances his soul possesses two states, the one accidentally glorious,
the other passible; his essential body, a single state, the accidentally
glorious; his accidental body, the passible state alone. In other words,
the soul and essential body enjoy only accidentally the state of natural
glory, since in the wayfarer state they have not assumed essential glory.
But the passible state of the soul and accidental body is the natural one,
proper to fallen nature. If one on earth momentarily receives the grace of
beatific vision and his accidental body also participates therein, the
natural state of the three elements of the person is accidentally glorious.
But he with the accidentally glorious body can conceal at will the
glorious gifts of his body, producing an ethereal barrier to prevent other
persons seeing his glory, although he is able simultaneously to reveal it
to others with greater or less intensity. Also, one on earth is able to
receive glorious gifts momentarily in his accidental body and yet not
enjoy the beatific vision. Hence the possession of those gifts, or of some
of them, is merely accidental, and the state of the body is naturally
passible even were passibility suspended, since that suspension would be
transitory and miraculous, and impassibility therefore accidental.
(d) When Christ returns in His Second Coming to implant
His Messianic Kingdom, the natural state of the three elements of the
person, both of the Blessed and of those who live on the earth now renewed,
will be essentially glorious for eternity of eternities, since all will be
enthroned in the Immaculate Heart of Mary. We affirm that the natural
state of the three elements of the saved will be essentially glorious.
1. Because the accidentally glorious bodies already in
Heaven prior to the Universal Resurrection will attain, at the Advent of
Christ, the essential gift of Sacramentality. From that moment those
bodies will possess a natural state of essential glory, like that already
possessed by their souls and essential bodies.
2. Because the rest of the Blessed, who are in Heaven
in soul alone, will rise with their essential and accidental bodies
essentially glorious when those elements assume, at Resurrection, the
soul's essential glory, which implies the gift of Sacramentality for their
accidental bodies.
3. Because the members of the Churches Suffering and
Expectant will rise with the three elements of the person in the natural
state of essential glory when they assume, at Resurrection, essential
glory, which implies the gift of Sacramentality for their accidental
bodies.
4. Because the wayfarers who survive until the Advent
of Christ and continue to live on earth, at the instant of the
implantation of the Messianic Kingdom will assume, in the three elements
of the person, essential glory, which implies the gift of Sacramentality
in their accidental bodies.
5. Because those who are born during the Messianic
Kingdom will be conceived in the natural state of essential glory in the
three elements of the person.
We think it very opportune to include the following
doctrine. On Christ's return to earth to implant the Messianic Kingdom,
Most Holy Joseph and the rest of the saved will obtain the gift of
ubiquity or omnipresence, corresponding to their increase in essential
glory, in virtue of enthronement in the Holy Ghost through direct
enthronement in the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and indirect enthronement in
the Deific Heart of Christ.
228. In conclusion we teach that the natural state of
essential glory is the state of original justice. But it is proper to
distinguish that,
(a) It was given to the Angels at the moment of their
creation, and those who remained faithful were confirmed therein when they
overcame the trial.
(b) It was given to Adam and Eve at the moment of their
respective creations but later they lost it.
(c) Nevertheless to poor fallen humanity it is denied
at the conception of each human being, who inherits original sin. However
those who are saved recover the state of original justice at the moments
previously mentioned.
(d) It will be given to those born in the Messianic
Kingdom, at the moment of conception, since original justice for them is
inherent to their condition as irredeemed.
229. Regarding Most Holy Joseph we teach that from the
moment of conception his soul and essential and accidental bodies,
according to their respective natures, shared in the state of imperfect
original justice, his by right since he was exempt from original guilt and
the indwelling of Satan. But at the moment of presanctification he
recovered in his soul and essential body what he had lacked of original
justice, both elements henceforth possessing the natural state of
essential glory. Therefore on earth there pertained to Saint Joseph the
complete and permanent beatific vision, even though it was often veiled in
order for him to carry out his mission. Nevertheless the virginal
accidental body of Saint Joseph, from the moment of presanctifi-cation,
was and remains accidentally glorious until the Messianic Kingdom. We
further clarify the doctrine. Although the natural state of Most Holy
Joseph's accidental body at conception was the passible, that state at
presanctification was elevated by divine grace to the natural state of
accidental glory without losing its passible nature in what concerned,
exclusively, his most gentle death and the need to eat to survive, since
by divine decree his accidental body was subject to these conditions.
However, at presanctification he lost forever the natural state of
passibility. In other words, during his life on earth the most just Man
possessed a natural state of accidental glory in his accidental body,
subject exceptionally to the law of death and to the necessity of
alimentation. Therefore the natural state of the accidental body of Most
Holy Joseph from presanctification until death was an essential natural
state accidentally glorious. At the same time it was a merely accidental
or transitory natural state of passibility, for him to fulfil his most
high mission according to the divine plan. When we say an essential
natural state accidentally glorious, we mean that that state was, in Saint
Joseph, properly his own from presanctification, and continues to be so
until the Coming of Christ, when his accidental body will assume forever
the natural state of essential glory on receiving Sacramentality. When we
say `merely accidental or transitory natural state of passibility', it
must be understood that that was the state given to Saint Joseph in his
accidental body when the latter did not share in the beatific vision, and
had impassibility and other gifts veiled as well. This doctrine interprets
what was said in Chapter XXVII of this Treatise that the body of Saint
Joseph was not glorious by nature, in contrast with the Bodies of Christ
and Mary, for we meant that the accidental body of Saint Joseph was not
glorious in essence.
230. During his earthly life Most Holy Joseph possessed
up to three states in his virginal Soul.
(a) The beatific
state, in his dignity as Vicar of the Eternal Father.
(b) The glorious
state, in his dignity as Virginal Father of the Divine Word made
Flesh.
(c) The passible
state, in his dignity as Confidant of the Holy Ghost and Virginal
Spouse of the Most Holy Virgin Mary, in order to cooperate in the work of
Reparation and Redemption.
(a) The beatific
state was the natural state of essential glory of Saint Joseph's Soul,
whereby he was never deprived, from presanctification, of the vision of
the divine essence. That state was of itself incommunicable to the other
two states of his Soul, and therefore to his essential and accidental
bodies. The beatific state was at the same time merely accidental or
transitory, since it disappeared when Saint Joseph's Soul, through the
glorious state, exercised higher and lower beatific functions or higher
functions alone.
(b) The glorious
state is the natural state of essential glory of Saint Joseph's Soul,
with beatific vision communicable through higher functions to his
essential body; and through lower functions to his accidental body. Those
functions were veiled during the greater part of his earthly life, the
higher on far fewer occasions than the lower. In moments when he had both
beatific functions veiled, the beatific state was given to Saint Joseph's
Soul, whereby he continued to enjoy the beatific vision in all his soul.
(c) The passible
state was the natural state of essential glory of Saint Joseph's Soul,
given to him when the higher and lower beatific functions, or the latter
alone, were veiled, whereby the passible state was at the same time merely
accidental or transitory. Be it understood that for Saint Joseph to suffer
in his Soul, it was also necessary for him to have impassibility and other
gifts veiled.
Consequently Most Holy Joseph, through the beatific
state, could always enjoy the beatific vision in all his Soul during his
life on earth. Through the glorious state he enjoyed the beatific vision
in all his Soul only when he exercised higher and lower beatific
functions, or the former alone. When he exercised only higher beatific
functions, all his Soul in the glorious state rejoiced beatifically. But
since he lacked lower beatific functions, simultaneously there was given
to him a passible state, in which all his Soul also suffered. When both
beatific functions were unexercised, his Soul in the glorious state was
bereft of the beatific vision, but conserved in that state a wholesome
joy, that is supernatural, which completely inundated It. Since a passible
state simultaneously was given to his Soul, all his Soul also suffered in
that state. As we have seen, the natural state of Most Holy Joseph's Soul
was, is and will forever be the glorious. The other states he possessed
during his life on earth, namely the beatific and the passible, were
merely accidental or transitory, since he possessed them to fulfil his
most high mission on earth according to the divine plan.
231. Regarding the most pure essential and accidental
bodies of Most Chaste Joseph, it is helpful further to clarify that,
(a) When his Soul exercised higher and lower beatific
functions, both bodies shared in that vision, with the joy consequent.
(b) When his Soul in beatific vision had its lower
beatific functions suspended, his essential body rejoiced in that vision
through the higher beatific functions. However the accidental body,
conserving part of its exalted gifts, had amongst others the gift of
impassibility veiled, and therefore suffered.
(c) When his Soul had its higher and lower beatific
functions suspended and was completely deprived of the beatific vision,
and therefore of the joy consequent, his essential body conserved a
sublime wholesome joy, that is supernatural, which completely inundated
It. Nevertheless his accidental body, conserving part of its gifts, had
amongst others the gift of impassibility veiled, and therefore suffered.
(d) We see, then, that the natural state of Saint
Joseph's essential body, from presanctification, was, is and forever will
be the essentially glorious.
(e) We teach that the suffering of the passible state
of Saint Joseph's Soul, as well as the suffering of his accidental body
deprived of impassibility, was often attenuated with spiritual
consolations.
(f) We teach that when Saint Joseph's Soul, in Its
glorious state, and therefore his essential body, were deprived of
beatific joy, the sublime and irrevocable supernatural joy which they
retained came to them through Saint Joseph's singular participation in the
Divine Espousal, as befitted his most sublime dignity as Virginal Father
of Jesus and Virginal Spouse of Mary.
(g) Be it understood that the suspension of higher and
lower functions, or of the latter alone, in Saint Joseph's Soul, and its
repercussion in his accidental body, always coincided with the suspension
in both elements of the gift of impassibility and other gifts, to enable
him to suffer.
232. Hence we see that Most Holy Joseph, from
presanctification, at no time lost the vision of the divine essence, since
the pain of the slightest interruption would have occasioned natural
death, to which he was subject. Be it understood that neither did he lose
the beatific vision in natural death. It is fitting to make clear that
Saint Joseph's natural death was that of his accidental body alone, namely
clinical death; and moreover that he was exempt from Particular Judgement.
For his essential body, essentially glorious through having recovered at
presanctification what it had lacked of original justice, could not die.
That is why after the death of Saint Joseph's accidental body, his
essential body was immersed in a gentle sleep and, united to his Soul,
remained in the Limbo of the Just asleep and insensible to his Soul's
beatific joy and to any other joy until Calvary. We say finally that Most
Holy Joseph died mystically at the Circumcision of the Lord, suffering in
anticipation the Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ, in degree inferior to
the Divine Mary and superior to all the mystics together who have suffered
it.
233. In conclusion we consider it advantageous further
to amplify and clarify the doctrine concerning the ego or human person, in the light of the Dogmatic Definitions of His
Holiness Pope Gregory XVII. As we know, the human person comprises three
elements:
1. The soul,
purely spiritual.
2. The essential
body, spiritualized matter, with perfect organic structure.
3. The
accidental body, purely material, with organs still in disharmony with
the perfect structure of its model, the essential body.
It behoves us to make clear that when the three
elements of the human person are united, the essential body's actuation is
always merely passive, limiting itself, therefore, to serve as model for
the accidental body. After this brief introduction let us consider the
human brain, one of the most vital organs. Both in the essential cerebrum
and in the accidental cerebrum, according to the nature of each, there
exists a material substance called the instinctive animal power or sixth
sense. This is divided into three subpowers - submemory, subintelligence
and subwill. These therefore radicate simultaneously in both cerebra, are
unable to act unless animated by the soul and thus perish with their
respective bodies. As long as the three elements of the human person are
united, it is the task of the accidental cerebrum's instinctive animal
power to act through its subpowers. Therefore the essential cerebrum's
instinctive power remains inactive meanwhile, necessarily fulfilling the
passive mission of model for the accidental body's instinctive power. We
say that it remains inactive because it is the task of the accidental
body, while united to the soul, to serve as instrument of the soul's
actuation. At clinical death, when the accidental body is separated from
the soul, it is the task of the essential body to fulfil that mission
until real death. Consequently:
(a) If the three elements of the human person are
united, the person, essentially and accidentally complete, properly acts,
1. With
two memories - one spiritual, that of the soul; another purely material,
that of the accidental cerebrum.
2. With two intellects - one spiritual, that of the
soul; another purely material, that of the accidental cerebrum.
3. With two wills - one spiritual, that of the soul;
another material, that of the accidental cerebrum.
(b) When only the soul and the essential body are
united, the human person, essentially complete, properly acts.
1. With two memories - one spiritual, that of the soul;
another of spiritualized matter, that of the essential cerebrum.
2. With two intellects - one spiritual, that of the
soul; another of spiritualized matter, that of the essential cerebrum.
3. With two wills - one spiritual, that of the soul;
another of spiritualized matter, that of the essential cerebrum.
234. The instinctive animal power or sixth sense of the
accidental cerebrum, since Adam's fall, has in this life greater
inclination to evil than to good. However, it can be sublimated through
the soul's powers with the practice of the Christian virtues. Because of
the disordered inclination due to concupiscence of the accidental body,
goaded by the world, the flesh and the devil, there exists a horrific
internal battle between the subpowers of the cerebrum and the powers of
the soul, since the soil has greater inclination to good than to evil, and
therefore greater disposition for the human virtues impressed upon it by
Natural Law, as likewise for supernatural virtues through the life of
grace. Thus the cerebrum's subpowers, more in accord with the
concupiscence of the flesh, pressure the soul to consent with its powers.
If the soul deliberately agrees to the body's evil desires, the human
person will be morally responsible before God for his sinful acts. If it
openly resists those evil desires and overcomes and conquers them, the
human person morally before God will be the performer of his own virtues.
Nevertheless, at other times the soul itself impels the accidental body to
the satisfaction of disordered desires.
From this it follows that in the human person there are
two kinds of morals:
(a) Spiritual morals, those of the soul - which can
decide for good or evil, though more easily for good.
(b) Material morals, those of the accidental body -
which can decide for evil or good, though more easily for evil.
When we say, on speaking of the soul, that the latter
is, according to the case, morally responsible for its sinful actions or
morally the performer of its own virtues, we are referring to spiritual
morals, namely, those of the soul which decides whether to do good or
evil, making the human person responsible before God.
235. Despite the soul's greater natural tendency to
good through its powers, above all with the help of grace, it is necessary
for the soul duly to cooperate in performing good acts, thus to grow ever
stronger and more easily conquer the evil inclinations of the instinctive
power or sixth sense. The greater its opposition to the accidental body's
disordered appetites, the more will the soul be strengthened in good, as
also will be the accidental body through the formation of good habits.
Although in this fallen world, in the exercise of good works, complete
harmony between the powers of the soul and the subpowers of the accidental
cerebrum is impossible, greater harmony of action between body and soul
can be achieved through the practice of Christian virtue. But when the
soul consents to vice, its powers and those of the accidental cerebrum are
weakened in good and more readily agree to evil.
236. Regarding the essential cerebrum's instinctive
animal power or sixth sense, which only acts through its subpowers between
clinical and real death, we teach that at the Particular Judgement, for
the human person to act essentially complete, the decisive action,
conscious and deliberate, of the soul through its powers is necessary, as
is also the cooperation, conscious and deliberate, of the essential body
through the subpowers of its cerebrum, necessarily always in harmony with
the powers of the soul. In this way the human person determines his
eternal destiny through an act essentially complete. Wherefore the soul
will rejoice or suffer as the result of its own decision. The accidental
body and the essential body, when risen, will rejoice or suffer as a
result of the latter's decision made at the Particular Judgement, when it
necessarily followed the soul's decision due to the perfect harmony of
action between soul and essential body.
237. In his Epistles Saint Paul confirms for us the
previously explained doctrine on the contest between the powers of the
soul and the subpowers of the accidental cerebrum. Let us examine some of
his luminous texts, hitherto insufficiently interpreted. The Apostle says:
"For we know that the law is
spiritual. But I am carnal, sold under sin. For that which I work, I
understand not. For I do not that good which I will: but the evil which I
hate, that I do...For I know that there dwelleth not in me, that is to
say, in my flesh, that which is good. For to will is present with me: but
to accomplish that which is good, I find not...I find then a law, that
when I have a will to do good, evil is present with me. For I am delighted
with the Law of God, according to the inward man: but I see another law in
my members, fighting against the law of my mind and captivating me in the
law of sin that is in my members. Unhappy man that I am, who shall deliver
me from the body of this death?...Therefore, I myself, with the mind serve
the law of God: but with the flesh, the law of sin" (Rom. VII,
14-15; 18; 21-25). Saint Paul discerned the mystery of the open quarrel
between soul and corruptible flesh. He himself acknowledged, according to
our interpretation, that the soul, by the Natural Law impressed upon it,
sublimated by grace, with its powers tends supernaturally towards God. But
the flesh, infected with concupiscence by original sin, tends to
disordered satisfactions through its instinctive animal power. That is why
he said that it cost him so much to do the good to which his soul aspired,
because of the many sinful demands, which he hated, of his flesh. Thus he
acknowledged that evil had deeper roots in his flesh than good, due to the
instinctive subpowers' inclination to evil, which he felt. But good had
deeper roots in his soul than evil due to the virtuous inclination of its
powers. Because of the rebellion of the flesh against the spirit, while
the Apostle delighted in the Law of God which ruled deep within him, that
is in the powers of his soul, and which he carried out by practicing
virtue, yet he suffered on account of the violence of the law of sin
rooted in his flesh and tending to subject the law of the spirit to
slavery. Wherefore he was consumed with desire to be freed from his
accidental body which, with the instinctive animal power of its cerebrum,
endeavoured to subdue the soul and to drive him to death by sin; for the
soul impelled him to love and to serve God, whereas in his body he felt
the rebellion of the flesh with the inclination to offend Him.
238. It remains for us to teach that no instinctive
animal power or sixth sense exists in the Deific Cerebrum of Our Lord
Jesus Christ, being a Divine Person. For that power is exclusive to the
human person. However, we teach that the instinctive animal power or sixth
sense existent in the Immaculate Cerebrum of the Divine Mary always acted
in perfect harmony with the most pure powers of Her Divine Soul in virtue
of the impeccability intrinsic by grace. Regarding Most Holy Joseph, we
also teach that the instinctive animal power or sixth sense existent in
his virginal cerebrum always acted, from presanctification, in perfect
harmony with the most perfect powers of his soul, in virtue of his most
high degree of impeccancy, by grace equivalent to intrinsic impeccability.
239. After what has recently been explained it is
fitting now to consider the mystery of the human person with his three
elements now united, rejoicing in Eternal Happiness. In the Kingdom of
Heaven, after the Resurrection of the flesh and for eternity of
eternities, there will be for each human person with his three elements
reunited a kingdom of peace in virtue of heavenly beatific harmony. Thus
the three elements of the person will mutually love one another, and in
perfect harmony they will love God and all that God loves. In that abyss
of happiness each human person will rule his own kingdom and at the same
time form part of the empire of Heaven, most wisely ruled by the Supreme
and Most Divine Emperor, Our Lord Jesus Christ, and the August and Divine
Empress, the Most Holy Virgin Mary. In that heavenly empire the personal
kingdom of each human will bear the sublime stamp of the most consummate
peace, since he will live in perfect harmony with himself and with the
others who share that happiness. We say first with himself because the
soul and the accidental body will necessarily incline only to good given
the most perfect confirmation in grace. Therefore in each human person, in
his own kingdom and for eternity of eternities there will take place the
following:
(a) The soul's intelligence will communicate to the
accidental cerebrum's subintelligence, besides the vision of the divine
essence or essential glory, sublime mysteries about spiritual things,
namely about the invisible creation, which ipso
facto the cerebrum's subintelligence will understand, the whole body
participating. Those mysteries of spiritual things form part of the soul's
accidental glory.
(b) The accidental body's subintelligence will
communicate to the soul's intelligence sublime mysteries about material
things, namely about visible creation, especially about the animal
kingdom, which ipso facto the
soul's intelligence will understand, the whole soul participating. Those
mysteries form part of the body's accidental glory, when the
subintelligence of the cerebrum understands, with participation of the
corporeal senses, all things pertaining to the mineral, vegetable and
especially animal kingdoms. Among the mysteries pertaining to material
things are exceedingly prominent the Deific Body of Christ and the
Virginal accidental Body of Mary, and in greatly inferior degree the other
blessed accidental bodies.
(c) At the same time the essential body, through
beatific joy communicated by the soul, will also passively share in the
joy resulting from the intercommunication of soul and accidental cerebrum.
All the harmonious relationship of the three elements
of the blessed human person will be through the vision of things in the
light of God. That is to say, because the three elements of the human
person will have assumed essential glory according to their nature. The
joy corresponding to each of the three elements, through that marvellous
intercommunication of knowledge, will form part of the accidental glory of
each person. But the kingdom of peace of each will also imply the
perfectly harmonious, overflowingly happy, communication with the rest of
the Blessed, as well as the intimate co-existence of all of them in each
personal kingdom through mutual enthronement. Therefore each kingdom will
be at the same time majestic Seat of the August Trinity, Exalted Throne of
the Divine Emperors Christ and Mary, as well as felicitous fatherland of
the other kings and mystical Host of most vehement love of God.
The doctrine set forth for the blessed human person
after the universal resurrection applies in like manner, and in conformity
with their respective economy of grace,
1. To all persons already risen and therefore in Heaven
glorious in their three clements.
2. To the future inhabitants of the Messianic Kingdom.
3. To the inhabitants of the Planet of Mary.
Also, in the present economy of grace the Angels, as
also souls in Heaven without their bodies, through their having assumed
essential glory enjoy, according to their respective natures, a most
perfect harmony between their powers. Thus the personal kingdom of each
angelic or human spirit is already of consummate peace with oneself and
with others and, at the same time, of complete union in loving God and all
that God loves.
240. It is appropriate now to consider the mystery of
the human person with his three elements now united, suffering eternal
condemnation. In the kingdom of darkness, that is in Hell, after the
resurrection of the flesh and for eternity of eternities, for each human
person with his three elements reunited, there will be a kingdom of hatred
through infernal disharmony. Thus the three elements of the human person
will mutually hate one another and, at the same time, in common accord
will hate God and everything that God loves. Also, in that abyss of
unhappiness each human person will be the tyrannical monarch of his own
divided kingdom. At the same time, he will form part of the divided
kingdom of Hell whose despotic Chief, Lucifer, will govern in utter chaos
owing to the complete disobedience to him of the rest of the condemned.
Vengeful, they will trample him underfoot relegating him to the last
place, above all for having shackled himself to his two bodies. However,
the Evil One will retain the title of Chieftain of Hell for his greater
humiliation. In the empire of darkness the personal kingdom of each human
will bear the stamp of the most consummate anarchy, both with himself and
with the rest of the condemned sharing that misery. We say first with
himself because his soul and accidental body will necessarily surrender
themselves only to evil, given their absolute confirmation in disgrace.
Therefore in each human person, for eternity of eternities, in his own
divided kingdom there will take place what that division consists of,
namely:
(a) The soul's intelligence will communicate to the
accidental cerebrum's subintelligence, besides the pain of loss and pain
of sense, its ill-fated knowledge of spiritual things, which ipso facto the subintelligence of the cerebrum, wishing to
understand, will not understand in the least, with resultant suffering of
the whole body. This knowledge of spiritual things consists in those
mysteries of the invisible order which the soul is permitted to keep
knowing for its greater torment, and therefore constitutes part of the
accidental punishment of the condemned.
(b) The accidental cerebrum's subintelligence will
communicate to the intelligence of the soul its ill-fated knowledge of
material things, in particular of the animal kingdom, which ipso facto the soul's intelligence, wishing to understand, will not
understand in the least, with resultant suffering in all the soul. This
knowledge of material things pertains to the visible order, that is, of
the mineral, vegetable, and in particular animal kingdoms. On the one
hand, insofar as it is permitted to do so, the cerebrum's subintelli-gence
will be aware of, yet will be unable to enjoy, the beauty of the things of
those kingdoms, as also the sublime beauty of Christ's Deific Body and of
Mary's virginal accidental Body, and in greatly inferior degree that of
the other blessed accidental bodies. On the other hand, the cerebrum's
subintelligence will be aware of, and the senses of its body will
participate in, the horrific ugliness, stench and other filthy sensations
of condemned accidental bodies.
(c) At the same time the essential body, with the pain
of loss and pain of sense communicated to it by the soul, will also
passively share in the hatred resulting from the lack of mutual
understanding of soul and accidental body. All that demoniacal discord
between the three elements of the condemned human person will come from
the confusion produced by the searing fire of the Most Divine Soul of
Christ.
The hatred of each of the three elements, because of
that frightful incomprehension, will be part of the accidental pain of
each person. But the kingdom of hatred of each of the condemned will also
imply the absolutely hostile, overflowingly miserable communication with
the other condemned, as well as the antagonistic and compulsory
co-existence of all of them in each personal kingdom through repugnant
mutual enthronement. Therefore each kingdom will be at same time an
infernal seat of Satan shackled to his bodies, and of the Antimary; an
execrable dungeon of the other kingdoms and pestilential volcano of hatred
of God.
The doctrine set forth for the condemned human person
after the universal resurrection applies in like manner, and in conformity
with their respective economy of disgrace,
1. To all persons already risen and therefore reprobate
in Hell with their three elements.
2. To the inhabitants of the planet of Lucifer.
3. In the present economy of disgrace, the infernal
angels, as also souls in Hell without their bodies, suffer, according to
their respective natures, absolute antagonism between their powers. Thus,
the personal kingdom of each infernal angelic or human spirit is of
consummate enmity with oneself and with one another and, at the same time,
of complete union in hating God and all that God loves.
241. At the Nuptials of the Dragon, for each human
person in the infernal empire, though the pain of loss and pain of sense
of the condemned will be fixed, the discord and confusion between the
three elements of the person will progressively increase, implying an
uninterrupted increase of accidental punishment. It is fitting to clarify
that when in this Treatise we said that the essential pain is that of
loss, it was only to mean that this is the principal punishment of the
condemned, and therefore very much worse than the pain of sense, which
consists in torments of inextinguishable fire and cold. Thus it follows
that both punishments are essential, inasmuch as they will be fixed in
their maximum degree at the Nuptials of the Dragon. The doctrine also
applies to the demons, since the confusion prevailing between the powers
of their fallen angelic natures after their Nuptials with the Dragon will
go on increasing progressively and uninterruptedly.
242. Regarding Satan, we teach that when he takes flesh
in a corporeal human nature, making himself the Antichrist, in the cerebra
of his essential and accidental bodies, though not a human person he will
possess the instinctive animal power naturally coming to him from his
progenitors, and which will be for the greater humiliation and accidental
suffering of his satanic person. In Antichrist during his mission on
earth, at the same time that there exists the most consummate antagonism
between the intelligence of his angelic nature and the subintelligence of
his accidental cerebrum, there will also be between them complete
agreement in evil, for making war on God and His Church. With the Coming
of Christ and the resultant destruction of Antichrist, that antagonism
will become a more bitter rivalry, without further possibility of his
tempting men. At the same time, however, the union between the
intelligence of his angelic nature and the subintelligence of his
accidental body will be much greater for hating God and all that God
loves. At the Nuptials of the Dragon with all the condemned, the personal
confusion of Satan shackled to his bodies will reach higher degrees owing
to the direct infernal enthronement in him of all his hellish children,
with progressive and uninterrupted increase for eternity of eternities of
that accidental punishment. As for the Antimary who, as we know, will have
her Nuptials of the Dragon on conceiving Antichrist, the same doctrine of
the infernal antagonism between the three personal elements also applies
to her as to the rest of the condemned.
243. We also consider it convenient here to present the
theme of diabolical possession. Indepen-dently of whether or not Satan
dwells in the soul, a human person can be the victim of diabolical
possession, which is always in the instinctive animal power or sixth sense
of his accidental cerebrum. When Satan dwells in a human soul because of
sin, not on that account does the soul lose its freedom, for God never
allows Satan direct control of the will. But when the Evil One takes
possession of a body, only being able to do so with divine permission, he
can restrict its natural action. The fact that Satan takes possession of
the instinctive animal power is because, despite his fallen state, he
retains his angelic nature and knows that the accidental cerebrum's
subpowers are more vulnerable than the powers of the soul and therefore
easier to subdue. Hence if by divine leave Satan comes completely to
control the accidental cerebrum's subwill, he thus will have greater
prospect of subjecting the soul to the control of the body for doing evil.
God permits diabolical possession for sundry reasons. Sometimes, in order
to test and purify the most select souls. At other times, as punishment
for the sins of the possessed and of others. Also, in order to gain
spiritual benefits for many souls owing to the strange phenomena the
devils manifest through the possessed. Diabolic possession occurs more
readily in those in mortal sin than in those in grace. Furthermore, the
highest degrees of possession generally occur in the most perverse,
although there have been cases of victim souls of the Lord most severely
tormented by Satanic possession. At the present time there are vast
numbers of possessed without external signs of that state. When a person,
on submitting to Satan once and for all, incurs the sin against the Holy
Ghost in the highest degree, the Evil One definitively fixes his infernal
dwelling in that person's soul and simultaneously takes full and
irrevocable possession of the instinctive animal power of that person's
accidental cerebrum, with absolute dominion both of soul and of bodies,
though the accidental body display no external anomaly. We make clear that
Satan, in cases of bodily possession, does so at times accompanied by
other demons, even legions of them, and at other times delegates that
mission to one or more of them without participating directly himself.
Condemned souls may also take part in diabolical possession.
244. We present greater clarification of the mysteries
of the Creation. The human person is, with all propriety, a sublime
compendium of all visible and invisible things created from the beginning
of the world until the Nuptials of the Lamb. Thus in himself the human
person combines spirituality of Angels, sentient matter of animals,
functions of development and growth of plants and fundamental elements of
minerals.
245. Our Lord Jesus Christ, being a Divine Person is,
with all propriety, the most vivid image of all created and uncreated
things. Of created things because Christ, as Man, is the model and
culmination of all visible and invisible creation, which bears the impress
of the most sublime spiritual and material beauty summed up in His deific
human nature.
Of uncreated things,
1. Because Christ as God is the substantial image of
the Father, from Whom He proceeds by way of generation. 2. Because Christ
as Man is also model, compendium and culmination of all future creations,
namely those to come until the implantation of the Messianic Kingdom,
those during the Messianic Kingdom and those from the Nuptials of the Lamb
for eternity of eternities.
246. We further amplify the present chapter making a
profound study,
(a) Of the
doctrine of the animal kingdom, with its multiplicity of species from
the largest to the most microscopic. For each animal without exception, in
the very first instant of fertilization or existence, God creates out of
nothing and infuses a material soul, mortal and subrational, an extremely
fine tissue which extends throughout the whole interior of the animal's
body. The animal's soul, therefore, is a mysterious material substance
which envelopes and impregnates all of the animal's cells, giving them
structure and life through their constitutive substance, protoplasm. The
mysterious substance which constitutes the soul of animals is created
already organized with the structure it gives to the body. Thus it impels
the cells to reproduce and organize themselves so that each body adopts
the shape or structure of the soul. Hence it is the animal's soul that
gives life and structural form to the body, is subject to the latter's
development and at the same time impels it to grow. In other words the
soul, purely material, does not possess life distinct from that of the
body, which it follows in all things since both elements of the animal are
of the same nature. For that reason, the material soul perishes with the
body without separating from it, and together they decay and disintegrate.
Hence the animal will not rise again. In any part of the body separated
from the whole there is always present the corresponding portion of
material soul. After the fall of Adam, since the whole of visible creation
has been deranged by sin, the shape of the animal's body does not conform
exactly with its model, the material soul, whose structure is more
perfect. In the material soul of each animal, no species excepted, there
is an instinctive animal subpower divided into three vice-subpowers,
namely vice-submemory, vice-subintelligene and vice-subwill. As stated,
the animals of Mary's Planet preserve all the beauty of the original
creation, as it will be in the Messianic Kingdom,
(b) Regarding
the vegetable kingdom, each individual of the various species of the
vegetable kingdom has its own soul, created out of nothing and infused by
God at the very instant it begins to exist. In the term `it begins to
exist' is also included all the buds or shoots of a plant, for example the
branches, leaves, fruits and seeds of the same tree. The vegetative soul
is material, mortal, has a kind of intelligence and feeling according to
its nature, and gives life and structure to each individual vegetable
while subject to the latter's development, perishing with it. The
vegetables of Mary's Planet retain all the beauty of the original
creation, as it will be in the Messianic Kingdom.
Thus God's creative work is not limited to the first or
universal Creation, but is incessant and prodigious since He continues to
create in the Universe an incalculable number of souls, human, animal and
vegetable. At the same time, with His Providence He governs and preserves
all things.
247. We treat further the doctrine of the Creation of
the Universe and of future creations. The better to understand we first
cite what was defined in Chapter XXVII: <
(a) First space,
the creation of the Most Divine Soul of Christ united to the Divine Word.
(b) Second space,
the creation of the Divine Soul of Mary associated to the Divine Council.
(c) Third space,
the creation of the Espousal of the Souls of Christ and Mary with the
fruits of their love, these being all other created things.
Since the three spaces are one and the same instant,
the Work of Creation in all its extension was executed simultaneously.
Therefore in the Work of Creation,
(a) The Most Divine Soul of Christ, created before all
things, was not for even a single instant without His Spouse the Divine
Soul of Mary; neither was He without His children, all other created
things.
(b) The Divine Soul of Mary, created after the Most
Divine Soul of Christ, was not for a single instant without Her Spouse the
Most Divine Soul of Christ; neither was She without Her children, all
other created things.
(c) All other created things were not for even a single
instant without their Parents the Most Divine Soul of Christ and the
Divine Soul of Mary.
Although in the Work of Creation all things were
created by a single act of the Most Holy Trinity, it is fitting to
attribute one only space to each Divine Person. In the first the Eternal
Father created the Most Divine Soul of Christ. In the second the Son
created the Divine Soul of Mary. In the third the Holy Ghost created the
Espousal of the Souls of Christ and Mary, with the fruits of the love of
both Souls, namely their children, all other things.
In the sublime doctrine of the Creation lie hidden
other great mysteries, which we now unfold in the light of the infallible
teaching of His Holiness Pope Gregory XVII.
248. In the Universe there are four mysterious elements
fundamental for the life and conservation of created things: sublime fire,
produced by the Most Divine Soul of Christ; sublime water, produced by the
Divine Soul of Mary; sublime air, impelled by the creating breath of the
Holy Ghost; and sublime earth or energetic-soul, produced by the union of
these three elements. The four sublime elements are of a nature distinct
from the four common elements we know.
249. From the instant when were created the Divine
Souls of Christ and Mary before all things, the sun, the moon, the earth,
the planets, the stars and all of other galaxies in existence, with their
suns, planets and moons, that is to say, all the multiple universes that
exist, revolve around the Divine Souls and around the sublime fire and
water respectively produced by them, under the impulse of the air of the
Holy Ghost, and this continually. The union of the fire and the water with
the air impelled by the breath of the Paraclete produces the energetic-
soul, which gives life to each planet, star, satellite, comet, asteroid,
etc., etc.
250. Thus we see that there exist four necessary
elements which harmoniously impel and sustain the multiform complex of the
physical-natural laws impressed by God on the great Work of Creation. The
first three elements are of spiritualized matter, inextinguishable,
inexhaustible and unalterable in their nature, and therefore distinct from
the common fire we know, the water we drink and the air we breathe which,
purely material, are susceptible to transformation. The fourth element of
the Universe, the sublime earth or energetic- soul, produced by the union
of the other three, is likewise spiritualized matter, unalterable and
insentient, and possesses neither intelligence nor will. It is distinct
from the material earth or ground - -common also to many other planets -
we tread underfoot. These four elements, fire, water, air and earth, are
fundamental for the life and conservation of all the multiple unimaginable
created universes which comprise the immense Universe. Thus the creative
breath of the Holy Ghost impelling the element air, as likewise the fire
produced by the Most Divine Soul of Christ, the water produced by the
Divine Soul of Mary and the energetic-soul or sublime earth produced by
the union of the other three elements, give life to all created things.
Exactly as the Work of Creation is incessant, incessant also is the
production of the fire, water and earth under the vital impulse of the air
created by the Holy Ghost. The better to clarify the doctrine, we present
the following example based on human procreation. To the element fire we
attribute the function of father. To the element water, mother. To the
clement air, human soul, and to the element earth or energetic-soul, the
new being engendered. Analogously, in the Universe the union of the fire
and the water with the infusion of the air produces the earth or
energetic-soul.
251. Although the four sublime elements have in common
the fact that they consist of spiritualized matter, each possesses
peculiar qualities which distinguish its nature. Besides, there is among
them the following order of sublime priority due to their origin: air,
fire, water and earth. Each of the sublime elements, sublime air, sublime
fire and sublime water, is a unity indivisible in itself. That means that
in the Universe there is a single air, a single fire and a single water,
though the last two possess a numerical structure as we shall see later.
Regarding the sublime earth or energetic-soul, in itself it is also a
unity, since in the Universe there is a single indivisible energetic-soul.
Hence when in the dogmatic definition of His Holiness Pope Gregory XVII
the term <
252. As we know, merely material beings, without the
mainstay of the energetic-soul, would be totally annihilated and reduced
to nonexistence. But let it be understood that the energetic-soul never
replaces the soul - rational, animal or vegetable, in its function of
animating and conserving the substance animated. Nevertheless animal and
vegetable souls, since these are merely material, require the force of the
energetic--soul to perform their functions. After the death of the human
person the remains of the accidental body prior to resurrection, however
pulverized and scattered, or even transformed into other substances, are
never reduced to nonexistence thanks to the energetic-soul; also; in
virtue of the energetic-soul, when a living accidental body loses a part
thereof, the matter of which the part is composed remains separated from
the trunk without being annihilated. Regarding what pertains to the nature
of animals and vegetables, the same doctrine applies to them as to a dead
accidental body or a part separated from a living accidental body. With
the above we can more readily understand how, according to the divine
plan, no existing thing returns to nonexistence, since matter, though
susceptible to transformation, thanks to the energetic-soul is not subject
to annihilation.
253. The sublime fire produced by the Most Divine Soul
of Christ for the Work of Creation that we are expounding forms eight
circles, which, with the sublime water produced by the Divine Soul of
Mary, give a perfectly rounded form to the immense Ball of the Universe,
as follows. In the uppermost part of the Ball there is a horizontal
circle, in the lowermost part another horizontal circle. In addition there
are six circles, all vertical, encircling the horizontal perimeter of the
Ball, united one to another in the manner of a girdle of fire, so that,
were we to sketch the Ball, we would always have before our eyes at least
the complete circumference of a circle. The six surrounding circles are
also joined to the superior and inferior circles, as later we shall state
more precisely. The sublime water covers the inner circumference of each
circle, as well as the spaces between the circles, and does so in
proportion thrice greater than the fire of the eight circles. As well as
being within each of the fiery circles and in the spaces between them, the
water, in the manner of a smooth and delicate film, also covers the
external surface of the immense Ball of the great Universe made up of the
whole multitude of universes. The sublime water produced by the Divine
Soul of Mary, which as we have already stated covers the external surface
of the immense Ball of the Universe in the manner of a smooth and delicate
film, has a gentle and graceful swell produced by the caressing air, under
the impulse of the breath of the Holy Ghost. This is mysteriously
contained in Genesis, wherein we read: "And
the Spirit of God moved over the waters" (Gen. I, 2). Also in
that book, when we read that God "divided
the waters that were under the firmament, from those that were above the
firmament" (Gen. I, 7), the words "from
those that were above the firmament" refer to the sublime water
produced by the Divine Soul of Mary. The expression "the
waters that were under the firmament", refer to common natural
water. Hence we see how the sacred text distinguishes one water from the
other. It is proper to clarify that the circular fires produced by the
Most Divine Soul of Christ must not be confused with the fire that sears
the reprobates and purifies the Souls of Purgatory, also produced by the
Most Divine Soul of Christ, even though both fires have some qualities in
common.
254. Each of the fiery circles is perfectly round, both
in its interior and in its planes superior and inferior. Moreover, its
external circumference is made up of innumerable points of fire similar to
thorns, no two of which are identical. In other words, the points of the
eight circles are all distinct. The better to understand this teaching of
His Holiness Pope Gregory XVII, the eight circles of fire must be
regarded, with relation to the Ball of the Universe, as though each were
horizontal. As we know, only the superior and inferior circles of the Ball
are horizontal. Consequently, in each of the eight circles of fire, for
`interior' must be understood the inside of each circle, for `superior
plane' the part facing upwards, and for `inferior plane' that facing
downwards. Regarding the external circumference, that of course is the
opposite of the internal circumference. More exactly, each circle of fire
has the form of a ring. The external circumference has its corresponding
thickness, and between that and the internal circumference there is
another thickness equal to the former. The fiery circles are all equal as
regards their diameter and thickness, but unequal owing to the
dissimilarity in dimensions of their points of fire. Each of the six
vertical circles is united by points of fire to the two respective
contiguous ones, and at the same time each is united in the same way to
the two horizontal circles. Furthermore, each circle of fire
uninterruptedly rotates upon, and with identical velocity, its own axis as
follows. In the horizontal circles one rotates to the right, and the other
to the left. In the vertical ones, three rotate to the right and three to
the left, without any adjacent pair ever simultaneously rotating in the
same direction. Nevertheless the points of fire do not move.
255. Once explained the arrangement of the eight
circles of fire and water in the immense Ball of the Universe, we teach
that in the Ball there are eight dimensions, not merely the three we know
- length, breadth and depth. The other five are distinct in nature and
imply, for their occupants, diverse ways of viewing the Universe, from
viewpoints distinct from that of mere wayfarers, as we now explain.
(a) In the eighth dimension are customarily to be found
the Blessed, dispersed throughout the immense space of the Universe. Their
vision thereof is perfect for each according to his personal merit. This
vision is with the intelligence and simultaneously with the eyes of the
body for those with bodies in Heaven. The inhabitants of Mary's Planet are
also in the eighth dimension, since they enjoy the beatific vision,
although they are not dispersed throughout the im\mense space of the
Universe. Among wayfarers, while a mystic momentarily enjoys the grace of
beatific vision he is in the eighth dimension. According to the degree of
beatific vision he will contemplate with the intelligence, more or less
intensely, the Work of Creation, without that depriving him of being able
to view it with corporeal eyes.
(b) In the
seventh dimension are to be encountered the Holy Souls of Purgatory,
dispersed throughout the immense space of the Universe. Their vision
thereof is according to their degree of merit on earth and state of
purification. This vision produces in them a natural joy. But since they
lack beatific vision, their vision is imperfect compared to that of the
Blessed in Heaven. The vision of the Universe does not diminish in the
Holy Souls of Purgatory their pain of sense, which latter is also
compatible with certain satisfactions, for example, being in the grace of
God, the hope of enjoying Him eternally, etc....
(c) In the sixth dimension are to be found the members
of the Church Expectant, dispersed throughout the immense space of the
Universe. Their vision thereof is according to their degree of merit and
produces in them a natural joy. But their vision is imperfect compared to
that of those in Purgatory.
(d) In the fifth dimension are to be found momentarily
wayfarer mystics in ecstasies not implying beatific vision but rather the
vision of heavenly beings. This can result in a more extensive view of the
Universe, both with the intelligence and with the eyes of the body.
(e) In the fourth dimension the condemned are
customarily to be found, dispersed throughout the immense space of the
Universe. Their vision thereof is chaotic and shattering, as befits their
state of reprobation. Besides, that vision is also with corporeal eyes for
those with bodies in Hell. In the fourth dimension are also to be found
the inhabitants of the Planet of Lucifer, according to their state of
reprobation, although they are not dispersed throughout the immense space
of the Universe.
(f) Mere wayfarers, in their normal state, only
conceive the Universe with the first three geometric dimensions which they
know, length, breadth and depth. For they only possess a very limited
partial vision of the Universe, since naturally they are absolutely
incapable of perceiving more, although human science by numerous
investigations glimpses inexplicable mysteries concerning the Universe,
beyond those three dimensions.
We further amplify the expounded doctrine. Although on
Christ's Return Purgatory, the Church Expectant and the state of fallen
wayfarer will cease to exist, the eight dimensions of the Universe will
endure eternally. None of those dimensions will disappear, neither in the
Messianic Kingdom nor following the Nuptials of the Lamb for eternity of
eternities, since they affect manifold spiritual and material mysteries.
256. We judge it very fitting also to expound here the
doctrine of the members of the Bosom of Abraham, of Purgatory and of
Children's Limbo, in relation to the eight dimensions of the Universe
according to the economy of grace prior to Calvary.
(a) While the Bosom of Abraham existed its members were
in the eighth dimension, but in accordance with the economy of grace of
that time. But as we know, there were in that state of justice sanctified
members, who enjoyed the beatific vision; and members who possessed
imperfect justice only, wherefore these enjoyed merely the reflection of
the beatific vision veiled. Nevertheless both groups saw the Universe in
the eighth dimension, with the following differences.
1. The sanctified viewed it as corresponded to their
beatific state and according to the merit of each, although to a lesser
degree than in the present economy of grace.
2. The imperfectly justified saw it as corresponded at
that time to the reflection of the beatific vision veiled which they
possessed, and according to the merit of each, although in degree greatly
inferior to the sanctified.
(b) Regarding the members of Purgatory, both the
sanctified and the imperfectly justified saw the Universe from the seventh
dimension. But it behoves us to distinguish,
1. The sanctified Holy Souls saw the Universe as
befitted their state of perfect justice, according to the personal merit
of each, although to a lesser degree than in the present economy of grace.
2. The imperfectly justified Holy Souls saw it as
corresponded at that time to the reflection of the beatific vision veiled
which they possessed and according to the personal merit of each, although
in an imperfect manner in relation to the sanctified.
(c) The Children of Limbo who, as we are aware, prior
to Calvary lacked imperfect justice, saw the Universe in the sixth
dimension, according to the merely natural state of their souls, and
therefore in the lowest degree of the graded scale of that dimension. That
vision was greatly inferior to the one they now possess as members of the
Church Expectant, who also view the Universe from the sixth dimension.
It is also fitting to distinguish that the highest
degree of the graded scale of an inferior dimension is always less than
the lowest degree of the graded scale of a superior dimension, and vice
versa.
Besides, as we know, the state of imperfect justice of
the members of the Church Expectant is similar to that of the imperfectly
justified members of the Bosom of Abraham and of Purgatory prior to
Calvary. But as we have seen, those members of the Bosom of Abraham and of
Purgatory viewed the Universe from the eighth and seventh dimensions,
respectively, in contrast to the members of our Church Expectant who view
it from the sixth. The reason for the difference is that the members of
our Church Expectant are not yet judged and continue to merit, whereas
those of the Bosom of Abraham and of Purgatory had already been judged and
did not merit.
257. By the expression `multitude of universes' must be
understood that in the immense Ball of the Universe there is essentially a
single Universe and simultaneously, without contradiction, there are many
universes according to their distinct characteristics, in keeping with the
laws established by God in the various cosmic systems. The cosmic system
that characterizes and individualizes each universe has physical-natural
laws with features peculiar to that system setting it apart from the
others. At the same time, in each cosmic system the different heavenly
bodies that comprise it, with the whole range of great and small entities,
possess, as far as those laws are concerned, their peculiar properties.
Therefore the existing multiple universes, those formed by galaxies and by
other unknown stellar systems, and by miniuniverses, comprise, with the
air, the fire and the water, the great cosmic Ball of the Universe. From
the moment that God began the Work of Creation, in virtue of the breath of
the Holy Ghost and of the simultaneous presence of the Souls of Christ and
Mary both outside and inside the immense Ball of the Universe, that Ball
uninterruptedly gyrates around the Divine Souls. Following their
incarnations, it also rotates around their Divine Bodies, since Christ's
human nature and Mary's Person, through their most singular omnipresence,
sublimely penetrate and embrace the whole of the interior of the great
Ball and at the same time marvelously enfold its exterior. Thus the vast
number of created entities form, with Christ's human nature and Mary's
Person, the immense Ball of the Universe, which is a Cosmic Body having as
Father and Head the Man-Christ, as Mother and Heart Mary, and as members
all other created beings. But Christ's human nature and Mary's Person, in
addition to being inside the Ball of the Universe as the creatures they
are, are also outside it, He through the Hypostatic Union with the Divine
Word, She for being associated with the Divine Council. It is fitting to
clarify that when we say that Christ's Most Sacred Humanity and Mary's
Person penetrate and embrace the whole of the interior of the great Ball,
it does not mean that of necessity they dwell in all existing things, but
rather that their presence is manifested in diverse ways, as we have
already seen throughout this Treatise and shall see in the following
section. Given the doctrine explained, we arrive at a better understanding
of the instrumental mission of the Souls of Christ and Mary in the Work of
Creation.
258. We consider further the unfathomable mystery of
the Universal Cosmic Body, in the light of the Dogmatic Definitions of His
Holiness Pope Gregory XVII. The entire Universe forms the Cosmic Body of
Christ, which is of natural character, in contrast to Christ's Mystical
Body, which is supernatural. In the Cosmic Body of Christ there are
different aspects. The essential aspect is composed of the Divine Word
made Man, the Most Sacred Person of Mary and the three sublime elements -
air, fire and water. The extensive aspect consists of all other creatures.
In
the essential aspect of the Cosmic Body of Christ we must consider the
following doctrine:
In the immense Ball of the Universe Our Lord Jesus
Christ, Eternal High Priest, assumes through divine virtue the following
three sublime spiritualized material elements - air, fire and water. But
that assumption is neither in His heavenly glory nor in His sacramental
presence. In the assumption by Christ of the three elements there is no
transubstantiation, for the sublime air, the sublime fire and the sublime
water conserve their own substances and accidents, respectively.
But let us now consider what the assumption of the
three elements implies. At the moment God created the Soul of Christ
united to the Divine Word and the Soul of Mary associated to the Divine
Council, the Holy Ghost created the sublime air, the Soul of Christ
produced the sublime fire and the Soul of Mary the sublime water. Also, at
that moment the Divine Word assumed, with and through the Soul of Christ,
the three sublime elements - air, fire and water. Hence the Divine Word
simultaneously assumed four distinct natures, namely that of Christ's
Human Soul, that of the sublime air, that of the sublime fire and that of
the sublime water. Hence when the Divine Word was made Man, He
simultaneously was made air, was made fire and was made water. Thus just
as we can with all correctness say that the Divine Word made Man is
Christ, we also can say that the Divine Word made air is Christ, the
Divine Word made fire is Christ and the Divine Word made water is Christ.
At the Incarnation of the Divine Word, with the extension of the
Hypostatic Union to the Most Sacred Body of Christ, the Second Person of
the Most Holy Trinity also assumed, through that Sacred Body, the three
sublime elements. At the same time as the complete human nature of Christ,
the sublime air, the sublime fire and the sublime water are each
inseparably united hypostatically to the Divine Word, with neither mixture
nor confusion between Divinity and creature, likewise the four are also
inseparably united one to another, with neither mixture nor confusion in
the Second Divine Person. Nonetheless the Most Divine Soul of Christ
animates only His Most Divine Body. We make clear that the assumption by
Our Lord Jesus Christ, the Word made Man, of the three sublime elements -
air, fire and water, is cosmic, since it occurs exclusively in the great
Cosmic Body, in which the three sublime elements necessarily are to be
found. The mystery of their assumption occurs neither outside the great
cosmic Ball nor in the heavenly glory which Christ possesses. That is why
the three sublime elements do not share in the beatific vision of Christ's
human nature, and therefore are bereft of glorious qualities. Neither does
that assumption of the air, fire and water occur in any of the sacramental
presences of Christ, namely the Eucharist, the Drop of Blood, the Particle
of Heart and the Light in form of a Cross. Better to understand the
doctrine we add that in the sublime air, in the sublime fire and in the
sublime water of the Cosmic Body, in virtue of the Hypostatic Union the
Person of the Divine Word made Man is present. Nevertheless, since the
three elements fulfil an exclusive function in the Cosmic Body, outside
that Body they are not to be found in the Divine Word made Man. Neither
were the three sublime elements present in Christ as wayfarer, because
they have a specific mission in the Cosmic Body, and did not have the
mission of accompanying Christ during His life on earth. In short, where
the air, the fire and the water are, there is Christ and, outside those
three elements, where Christ is present, they are not. The sublime air,
the sublime fire and the sublime water, since they are hypostatically
united to the Divine Word, are infinitely holy and adorable. It is fitting
to add that because the creation of the sublime air, the production of the
sublime fire and the production of the sublime water are incessant, their
assumption by Christ is likewise incessant.
In
the extensive aspect of the Cosmic Body of Christ we must also consider
the following doctrine:
(A) In the immense Ball of the Universe Our Lord Jesus
Christ, Eternal High Priest, through divine virtue vinculates to Himself
the element earth or energetic-soul. That vinculation is the mysterious
natural relationship of dependence of the sublime earth or energetic-soul
on Christ and the three most divine elements - air, fire and water, and
therefore on the divinity. This relationship does not imply any hypostatic
union.
(B) All created things, whether produced or formed, be
they visible or invisible, spiritual or material, are also vinculated to
the Cosmic Body of Christ through natural relationship of dependence.
Hence,
(a) The members of the Churches Triumphant and
Suffering are vinculated to the Cosmic Body of Christ by pertaining to the
Mystical Body of Christ in its invisible aspect. In other words, their
spiritual espousal with Christ implies in turn their natural vinculation
with the Cosmic Body, since divine sonship is the elevation of natural
sonship to the supernatural order.
(b)The members of the Church Militant are vinculated to
the Cosmic Body of Christ by pertaining to the Mystical Body of Christ and
by possessing energetic-soul.
However it is necessary to distinguish,
1. The vinculation of members in the state of grace is
through spiritual espousal with Christ, as previously stated, and also
because energetic-soul is infused in their accidental bodies.
2. The vinculation of members in mortal sin is in
virtue of their common external espousal with the Church through communion
with the Pope, and also because energetic-soul is infused in their
accidental bodies.
(C) The members of the Church Expectant are vinculated
to the Cosmic Body of Christ through vinculation to the Mystical Body. In
other words, in virtue of their quasi- divine sonship with Christ.
(D) Wayfarers outside the Church are vinculated to the
Cosmic Body of Christ through the energetic-soul in their accidental
bodies.
(E) Reprobates are vinculated to the Cosmic Body of
Christ by the chastising justice which, together with the pain of loss and
the pain of sense, shackle them to the chaotic and shattering vision of
the Cosmic Body due to their hatred of God, creatures and the Universe.
(F) Animals, vegetables, minerals and the remaining
existing substances are vinculated to the Cosmic Body of Christ through
their energetic-soul.
The Mystical Body of Christ is within the Cosmic Body,
but the Cosmic Body is not within the Mystical Body.
259. Following these explanations it behoves us to
clarify that when Our Lord Jesus Christ vinculates to Himself the element
earth or energetic-soul, we speak of direct vinculation of that element to
the Cosmic Body of Christ in the essential aspect which, as we know, is
formed by the Eternal Father, the Divine Word made Man, the Holy Ghost,
the Divine Mary and the three most sublime elements - air, fire and water.
When we say that all other created things, whether produced or formed,
visible or invisible, spiritual or material, are vinculated to the Cosmic
Body of Christ, we speak of the vinculation of those entities to the
Cosmic Body in its essential aspect, which vinculation is indirect as is
gathered from what was said in their respect. Hence we see that all the
entities forming the Cosmic Body of Christ in its extensive aspect, at the
same time as they are naturally incorporated in that Cosmic Body, are
vinculated to it in its essential aspect. We further complete the doctrine
and teach that essential bodies separated from the other two elements of
the human person are vinculated to the Cosmic Body of Christ, in its
essential aspect, by the unity of the person, and therefore in two ways:
that of the soul according to its destiny in the other life, and that of
the accidental body through possession of energetic-soul. Prior to Calvary
the souls of Children's Limbo, which as we are aware in nowise belonged to
the Church, as likewise their essential bodies, were at the time
vinculated to the Cosmic Body of Christ in its essential aspect also by
the unity of the person, through the energetic-soul of their accidental
bodies.
260. It is admirable and beautiful how God continues to
create out of nothing, not only the spiritual and material beings known to
us, but many other unknown entities, something impossible to comprehend at
present. God continues to create marvels in that gigantic work, since He
did not remain at rest on that First Day of the Universal Creation or
initial Creation, but has continued to work without cease and will
continue to do so eternally with creations new and unimaginable. For that
reason the Ball which constitutes the great Universe is ever greater and
more beautiful, since the circles of fire are ever larger, the water more
abundant, and the breath of air more copious. However, the immense Ball of
the Universe will attain the height of perfection and limit of expansion
at the Nuptials of the Lamb when Our Lord Jesus Christ gives it over to
His Eternal Father. That is why all the new and unimaginable creations
ensuing thereafter, for eternity of eternities, will be realized outside
the Ball. Nevertheless within the Ball, following the Nuptials of the Lamb
and for eternity of eternities, animals and vegetables will continue to
exist since generation of the former and reproduction of the latter will
not cease. Those creatures of the animal and vegetable kingdoms will
receive their respective souls, not now created out of nothing by God, but
in the same manner as they presently receive the energetic-soul, which, as
we know, is through generation in animals and fertilization in vegetables.
However, those souls will continue to be mortal because the animals and
vegetables will remain subject to death, divisible according to their
merely material nature, multiple because each individual animal or
vegetable will continue to possess its own soul, and distinctive because
each soul will continue to possess its peculiar and identifiable
characteristics distinct from the rest, wherefore there will never be two
individuals alike. It is well to make clear that when we affirm that God
continues to create in the Universe stars, planets, heavenly bodies, and
any other being, however minute, etc., that must be understood in the
strict sense, namely to create out of nothing.
261. Within the multiple macrouniverses of the Cosmic
Body of Christ there also exist miniuniver-ses, to which we have already
referred and about which we now speak in more detail according to the
teaching of His Holiness Pope Gregory XVII. In the immense space of the
Universe, in addition to microbes, only perceptible by microscope and
which belong to the animal kingdom of the macrouniverses, there are a
great multitude of animals very much smaller than microbes. In effect, in
the immense space of the Universe there exists a great multitude of
miniuniverses very much smaller than microbes. In some of the
miniuniverses there exists a great multitude of animals and vegetables
very much smaller than the planets they populate, since each miniuniverse
is made up of different planetary systems. Both microbes and the animals
smaller than them perceive the existence of miniuniverses, but not that of
macrouniverses like ours for example. The miniuniverses with their animals
and vegetables are not detectable for the present by any laboratory
apparatus. It remains for us to say that in a large number of the
miniuniverses taken as a whole, every human word uttered, whether good or
bad, is recorded, as also are all the other possible sounds of the
different beings of the Cosmic Body of Christ.
262. In order to delve more deeply into the nature of
the energetic-soul, it behoves us to speak again about two of the sublime
elements that produce it, the fiery circles and the water. Each of the
eight fiery circles produced by the Most Divine Soul of Christ possesses
111 octo-dimensional degrees, which results in a total, with the eight
circles, of 888 octo- dimensional degrees or Christic number. Each of the
seven strata of the water produced by the Divine Soul of Mary possesses
111 hepta-dimensional degrees, which results in a total of 777 hepta-
dimensional degrees or Marian number, representing at the same time the
seven Sacraments instituted by Our Lord Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest.
The octo-dimensional and hepta-dimensional degrees must be understood
neither as a measure of surface area nor of volume nor of intensity of
heat or temperature, but as capacity of generating potency, that is, of
producing energetic- souls. The words `octo-dimensional' and
`hepta-dimensional' are to express the ubiquity of the generating capacity
in the Universe of the fiery circles and of the water, respectively. The
number 111 for each circle of fire and for each stratum of water is to
express the total plenitude of the generating capacity, respectively, of
each circle and of each stratum. The numbers 888 and 777 are to express
the fullness of the total generating capacity in the Universe of the eight
circles of fire and of the seven strata of water, respectively. Through
the impetuous vigour with which energetic-souls are produced, these cause
to to projected into the interior of the immense Ball of the Universe the
images or reflections of the fiery circles and of the strata of water,
together with the images or reflections of the caressing air. In other
words, the energetic-souls, through direct vinculation to the Cosmic Body
of Christ in its essential aspect, possess those images or reflections,
which they project into the merely material entities in which they are
infused, these latter being vinculated indirectly to the Cosmic Body. The
images or reflections of the three sublime elements - air, fire and water,
become ever smaller in the measure they approach the centre of the Ball,
so that they come to attain microscopic dimensions. The reason for the
successive decrease of the images of the thee elements is that, in the
measure they project their reflections towards the interior of the
Universe, the volume of Universe which they occupy becomes ever smaller,
although those images of the eight fiery circles and of the seven strata
of water, together with those of the air, possess the same capacity of
generating potency as their originals. Wherefore, through the union of the
images of the eight fiery circles with those of the seven strata of water
and those of the air impelled by the breath of the Paraclete, new
energetic-souls are produced. When we say seven `strata' of water we are
indicating seven layers or levels of water. We make clear that the images
or reflections mentioned are neither Christ air, nor Christ fire, nor
Christ water, respectively, but merely irradiations of those three deific
mysteries through the production of energetic-souls. The doctrine bears
certain analogy with that of imperfect justice in the Mystical Body of
Christ. For the reflection of grace is not the Holy Ghost, but is indeed a
mysterious projection of the Paraclete in the souls of the Church
Expectant.
263. Delving a little deeper into the structure of the
immense Ball of the Universe we teach that, besides the eight dimensions
previously mentioned, the Universe as a whole has, without contradiction,
five forms. The first three are essential, since they correspond to the
true structure of the Universe, and the last two only accidental.
Here are the five:
(a) The first is of a perfectly rounded immense Ball,
circumscribed by the fiery circles and the water.
(b) The second is of an immense Cross, with the two
cross-pieces perfectly rounded. The lesser cross-piece is comprised of the
fire and the greater of the water.
(c) The third is of an immense and perfectly designed
Altar. The superior part of this Altar of the Universe is comprised of the
fire, and the remaining parts of the water.
(d) The fourth form corresponds to the common optical
effect, namely to the restricted tridimensio-nal manner wayfarers, with
their bodily eyes, see the part of the Universe within their perception.
(e) The fifth is chaotic and indefinable, the result of
the state of confusion of the condemned in the kingdom of darkness. In
other words the reprobate see the Universe monstrously deformed,
indefinable and shapeless, for their greater punishment.
We have previously spoken in detail in this chapter
about the essential form of the Universe as an immense Ball. Regarding the
essential form of the Universe as an immense Cross, the water comprising
the greater cross-piece is thrice more plentiful than the fire comprising
the lesser cross-piece. Both sublime elements, each in its proper place,
cover the exterior of the Cross at the same time as their images or
reflections are projected into the interior thereof by the energetic-soul
infused in all merely material beings, which also comprise part of that
Cross. Regarding the essential form of the Universe as an immense Altar,
the fire comprising the superior part thereof is quantitatively one-third
that of the water comprising the remaining parts. Both sublime elements,
each in its proper place, cover the exterior of the Altar at the same time
as their images or reflections are projected into the interior thereof by
the energetic-soul infused in all merely material beings, which also
comprise part of that Altar. We clarify that for `superior part' is to be
understood the sacred table of Sacrifice, and for `inferior part' all the
surrounding embellishment.
The Blessed, the Souls of Purgatory and the members of
the Church Expectant, namely all who are in the eighth, seventh and sixth
dimensions, respectively, always see, simultaneously, each in his degree
the three essential forms of the Universe. At the same time as they see
the Universe in the form of a Ball, they see it in the form of a Cross and
in the form of an Altar. For the Blessed the vision of the triple form of
the Universe is always perfect. But it is also in accordance with their
degree of glory.
Therefore,
1. Observing the Universe under the form of an immense
Ball, from wherever they are they always see a circle above, another below
and six enclosing.
2. Observing the Universe under the form of an immense
Cross, from wherever they are they always see the Cross in vertical
position, never inverted nor slanted nor horizontal.
3. Observing the Universe under the form of an immense
Altar, from wherever they are they always see the Altar from the front,
never inverted nor from the side.
Given the doctrine it follows that the Holy Souls of
Purgatory and the members of the Church Expectant do not see the three
forms of the Universe with the perfection and harmony of the Blessed of
Heaven.
264. We complete the doctrine on the Work of the
Creation adding that at the Nuptials of the Lamb, at the moment Our Lord
Jesus Christ gives over the Universe to the Father, the first thing that
God will create outside the great Ball of the Universe, and and the
Blessed will co-create, will be an immense thing unknown until then,
wherein all the condemned will roam for eternity of eternities. For Christ
is not going to give over to the Father a Universe inhabited by
reprobates, who do not belong to the Kingdom of God. With this doctrine we
penetrate more deeply the words of the Gospel when Jesus spoke of the
accursed: That they shall be cast out into the exterior darkness. There,
shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth (Matt. VIII, 12). With that
expression reference is made not only to Hell, but also to the `thing
unknown until then' which God will create outside the Universe, to come
forth from His Infinite Hands with great beauty and perfection since He is
incapable of creating anything ugly, although for the condemned it will be
chaotic according to the ghastly vision they have of all that is created.
Moreover, God and all the Blessed will be present, through justice, in
that new created thing, so that upon the accursed there be accentuated the
weight of God's just anger on account of their reprobations, and at the
same time there shine forth His infinite Goodness and Mercy for those who
are saved. After the Nuptials of the Lamb the condemned, for their greater
punishment, even though they will roam exclusively throughout the immense
thing created for them, will nonetheless be present in the interior of the
immense Ball of the Universe through their hatred of God, of the Blessed
and of the Universe, and because they will continue to see the Universe in
chaotic and indefinable form, since they will be unable to escape from
that perversity and punishment.
265. We amplify the doctrine teaching that the three
essential forms of the Universe represent the mystery of the Most Holy
Trinity. The immense Ball of the Universe represents the Eternal Father,
and externally is completely enfolded by Him, as likewise by the Divine
Mary as Daughter of the First Person of the Trinity. The immense Cross of
the Universe represents the Son, and externally is completely enfolded by
Him, as likewise by the Divine Mary as Mother of the Divine Word made Man.
The immense Altar of the Universe represents the Holy Ghost, and
externally is completely enfolded by Him, as likewise by the Divine Mary
as Most Pure Spouse of the Paraclete.
266. We treat now the mysterious movements of the
Universe, which from the Creation or beginning of time moves ceaselessly.
For time began at the very instant that the Most Divine Soul of Christ was
created: firstly, in virtue of Its being the Light or Sun of all suns;
secondly, because all the other things told in Genesis were created at the
same instant as the Most Divine Soul of Christ. The first instant of the
Creation was 00.00 hours of the first natural Day, of twenty-four hours.
From the very instant that God began the Work of
Creation, through the impelling breath of the Holy Ghost and the
simultaneous presence of the Souls of Christ and Mary both outside and
inside the immense Ball of the Universe, that Ball uninterruptedly rotates
around the Divine Souls, with four simultaneous movements and in the
following order: 1. To the right. 2. To the left. 3. Upwards. 4.
Downwards.
In suchwise that it realizes them all simultaneously,
without any contradiction whatsoever,
(a) The Universe, under the form of the immense Ball,
rotating to the right gives birth to the form of the immense Cross.
(b) The Universe, under the form of the immense Cross,
rotating to the left, and in unison with the corresponding rotation of the
immense Ball, which is to the right, gives procession and elevation to the
form of the immense Altar; in other words this form proceeds from the
simultaneous rotation of the other two forms, and the elevation, without
rotation, of the Altar of the Universe, is not produced by the Altar
itself, but by the impulse of the respective rotations of the Ball and of
the Cross.
(c) The Universe, under the form of the immense Altar,
descending corresponds to the movement of the other two forms. In other
words the descending movement, without rotation, of the Altar of the
Universe, is produced by the Altar itself, thus corresponding to the
movement of the other two forms. Therefore the Altar's movement gives
neither birth nor procession to a new form ad
intra of the admirable triform mystery of the Universe. But ad
extra it gives equilibrium to the cosmos. For without the downwards
movement of the Altar, the Universe, in its unity and triple form, would
lack harmonious stability and would be chaotic. What was stated about the
Divine Souls at the beginning of this section also applies to the Divine
Bodies of Christ and Mary from the time of their respective incarnations.
Given the doctrine it follows that the Universe is, in
its own way, a perfect image of the Most Holy Trinity, as we shall now
specify in greater detail.
1. The Universe, under the form of the immense Ball,
image of the First Person, rotating to the right and ceaselessly giving
birth to the form of the immense Cross, image of the Second Person,
represents the Eternal Father eternally begetting the Son on His right
hand.
2. The Universe, under the form of the immense Ball
rotating to the right, and the Universe under the form of the immense
Cross rotating to the left, and both rotations in unison giving procession
and elevation to the form of the immense Altar, image of the Third Person,
represents the Love between the Father and the Son, and the eternal
procession which both thereby give to the Holy Ghost.
3. The Universe, under the form of the immense Altar,
descending represents the Holy Ghost corresponding with His Love to the
other two Divine Persons.
We complete the doctrine stating that the continual and
sublime dance of the Universe gives, on the one hand, accidental glory to
God, since He delights in His work, and on the other, accidental joy to
the Blessed through their beatific vision, that is, as accidental reward
for being in Heaven. It also gives accidental torture to the reprobates,
in the manner of vertigo, through the confusion in the kingdom of
darkness, since they view all things in a chaotic and ghastly fashion.
267. The above doctrine on the three essential forms of
the Universe is profoundly related to the mystery of Calvary and its
perpetuation in Holy Mass. At the instant when in the Cenacle Our Lord
Jesus Christ, Eternal High Priest, eucharistically immolated Himself, He
also mystically immolated Himself on the immense Cross and on the immense
Altar of the Universe. Christ was also mystically immolated
simulta-neously on both essential forms at the instant that Saint John the
Evangelist eucharistically immolated Him on Calvary. Likewise Our Lord
Jesus Christ mystically immolates Himself on the immense Cross and on the
immmense Alter of the Universe at the instant that the celebrant immolates
Him eucharistically on our altars in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass. When
we say that Christ immolates Himself mystically on the immense Cross and
on the immense Altar of the Universe, we must understand that His Divine
Mother also immolates Herself. With the doctrine we understand more fully
the universal scope of the mystery of Holy Mass, prophesied by Most Holy
Malachias when He said: "For from the rising of the sun even to the going down...in every
place there is sacrifice and there is offered to My Name a clean
oblation..." (Mal. I, 11). We know that the Holy Sacrifice of the
Mass has power to restore both in the spiritual and in the material order.
Hence the Universe, which came forth from the hand of its Creator with
stainless beauty and afterwards was deranged by Adam's sin and the other
sins of men, through Holy Mass is recovering its lost perfection. Thus
each time the celebrant immolates Christ in the Holy Sacrifice of the
Altar, the Universe is partially restored, since grace restores what sin
deranged. Besides, the petition for the restoration of the Universe is
implicitly contained in the Offertory of Holy Mass, as is the petition for
the hastening of the Return of Christ to earth, so that through His
glorious and triumphant Coming the entire Universe be fully restored to
its original beauty. The beauty of all merely material things depends
largely on the vigour of the energetic- soul. That is why in this fallen
world things are very far from their natural perfection. From the moment
Adam sinned the energetic-soul infused in every substance ipso facto lost part of its vigour. But through the Infinite
Sacrifice of Christ and Mary on Calvary the energetic-soul's vigour was
partially restored. That partial restoration is also effected in each Mass
through the celebrant's sacrificial Communion. Given the doctrine we see
more clearly the scope of the following words of the Council in the
present chapter: <
268. We enlarge the doctrine on the Work of Creation,
delving into the mystery of the Earthly Paradise which existed prior to
the fall of our first parents. To do so we harmonize the sacred texts with
the teachings of His Holiness Pope Gregory XVII (Doc. 45). In Chapter II
of Genesis we read: "And the
Lord God had planted a Paradise of pleasure from the beginning: wherein He
placed man whom He had formed. And the Lord God brought forth of the
ground all manner of trees, fair to behold, and pleasant to eat of: the
Tree of Life also in the midst of Paradise: and the tree of knowledge of
good and evil. And a river went out of the place of pleasure to water
Paradise, which from thence is divided into four heads" (Gen. II,
8-10). Genesis (II, 11-14) forthwith gives us the names of the four
rivers: the Phison, which is located in Hevilath, the Gehon, in Ethiopia,
the Tigris and the Euphrates in Assyria. But in the narrative of Earthly
Paradise made by Moses, the author of Genesis, we must distinguish what
literally corresponds to the truth from that which has a figurative
meaning. As we know, prior to the sin of our first parents, not only the
Earth but the whole of the created great Universe enjoyed the
indescribable beauty with which it had come forth from the hand of its
Creator, since everything was most beautiful and most perfect. That is why
the biblical name of `Earthly Paradise' is extended, in its full sense, to
the great Universe as a whole prior to man's first sin; and in its strict
sense means the place of delight to which the sacred text also refers, for
within the great Universe the Creator chose a place of predilection, more
sumptuous and beautiful, in which to settle His People and centre the
sublime mysteries of His divine communication with mankind. That place of
delight, the spiritual heart of Paradise or created great Universe, was
the geographical place now known piously as the Holy Land, whose borders
correspond to the land that God promised to Abraham for his descendants
and later to Moses, and where there settled the Twelve Tribes of Israel.
The above biblical text also says that a river went out of the place of
pleasure to water Paradise, whose source was divided into four heads,
giving to these the respective names of Phison, Gehon, Tigris and
Euphrates, situating each in a geographical part of the earth. This
placing of the four rivers indicates, among other things, the universal
character of Paradise, and therefore, that the latter was not limited to a
particular part of the planet Earth, for we cannot give a merely literal
meaning to the sacred text. From our interpretation of these texts of
Genesis it follows that although the whole of the geat Universe enjoyed,
prior to sin, most perfect original beauty, each heavenly body making it
up had its own peculiar natural charm; some by the concurrence in them of
the animal, vegetable and mineral kingdoms, and others by the last-named
alone, given that God created animals and vegetables in many parts of the
Universe. But as we know, on earth only did He place man in order
afterwards also to populate, from here, other parts of the Universe. When
Genesis narrates that God created on the earth every kind of tree lovely
to behold and with fruit pleasing to eat, we must understand that He did
so in all habitable parts of the great Universe, particularly on our
planet and very particularly in the place of delight, now the Holy Land.
We read also in the sacred text that in the midst of Paradise stood the
Tree of Life and the tree of the knowledge of good and of evil. In other
words neither tree had been produced by the earth, as we interpret the
Hebrew text. When the sacred text says "in
the midst of Paradise", it must be understood as in the centre of
the place of delight or Earthly Paradise in the strict sense, today the
Holy Land, centre in the divine plans of the paradisiacal great Universe.
The centre or heart of that sublime garden of delight was to be found in
what is today Jerusalem and its surroundings.
269. This Holy Council teaches that our holy father
Adam and our holy mother Eve were created in the very place where Our Lord
Jesus Christ was born, situated where afterwards would stand the city of
Bethlehem. Both sinned on what we now know as Mount Calvary in Jerusalem;
for the Tree of Life was to be found in the same place where afterwards
Christ would die crucified, and the Tree of the knowledge of good and of
evil was close by and to the left of the other Tree, in the place where
afterwards would be raised the cross of the bad thief. Adam died in the
very place where afterwards Christ would be buried, today the holy
sepulchre, and the body of our first father was buried in the same place
on Calvary where Christ on the Cross would be lifted up.
270. We now present a brief doctrinal expose of the sin
of our first parents in Paradise, in the light of the sacred texts
infallibly interpreted by His Holiness Pope Gregory XVII. Adam and Eve,
after their respective creations, enjoyed the supreme felicity of original
justice until God, in His inscrutable plans, resolved to try them in
order, if they overcame the trial, to confirm them in that state of glory
and in the happiness they possessed. It was at 12.00 midday on the Sunday
of the Creation when the Most High, to try Adam and Eve, began at certain
moments to deprive them of the beatific vision, infused knowledge,
impeccability and immunity to concupiscence except in what concerned
carnal lust. When they were reduced to a quasi-common state of mortal men,
they had to exert themselves to remain faithful in their obedience to God,
but did not lack the special help of grace. Besides, Satan was permitted
to tempt them in various ways. During the trial our first parents were
already near what we know today as Mount Calvary in Jerusalem, since it
was the most beautiful spot in Paradise. We read in Genesis that in the
middle of Paradise stood the Tree of Life, which we teach was the Most
Divine Soul of Christ which, during our first parent's trial, appeared
there under the form of a slender and leafy olive tree to illuminate them
with salvific light. We also read in Genesis that from the centre of
Paradise a river emerged, which we teach was the Divine Soul of Mary
which, to help our first parents, appeared under the form of a salutary
spring that gushed from the base of the Tree of Life itself, and whose
crystalline waters represented the immaculate purity of that divine
creature, channel of mediation of grace between Christ and mankind. The
trial to which Adam and Eve were subjected was the fulfillment of certain
divine precepts that God imposed on them. As Satan saw that, despite his
snares, with the help of grace our first parents remained faithful to
their pristine virtue, he planned a more effective way to make them fall.
To that end, in his hellish audacity, endeavouring to supplant the Tree of
Life, the Evil One appeared under the form of another tree, known in
Genesis as "the tree of
knowledge of good and evil". That Tree of Death, as His Holiness
Pope Gregory XVII also denominates it, was possessed of a diabolically
seductive power due to the exuberant fruit it proffered, which was
elaborated with particular diabolical cunning to seduce our first parents.
That fruit, ethereal by nature, differed from that of all the other trees,
planted by God in Paradise. Thus we rule out that it was an apple tree or
something similar. Since the Tree of Death, owing to the exotic colour,
odour and other qualities of its fruit, which set it apart from the other
trees, forcibly drew the attention of our first parents, God wished to
forewarn them of the hellish plot and of the danger that stalked them. It
was then, according to our interpretation of Genesis, that the Most Divine
Soul of Christ, under the form of the Tree of Life, spoke to Adam saying: "Of
every tree of Paradise thou shalt eat: But of the of knowledge of good and
evil, thou shalt not eat. For in what day soever thou shalt eat of it,
thou shalt die the death" (Gen. II, 16-17). The command was heard
simultaneously by Eve, who understood that it bound her also. As we know,
the expression "thou shalt die the death" indicates supernatural death of
the soul and corporeal death, which befell humanity consequent upon the
first sin. As Satan saw that our first parents not only felt natural
attraction but were intrigued to know the mystery of the fruit of the
forbidden tree, given its unwonted beauty, he waylaid them ever more
craftily until he obtained in them the vehement desire to satisfy that
curiosity. Since Eve had more tendency to pry, she approached closer to
the accursed tree to take pleasure, with deadly enchantment, in the rare
beauty of its fruit. That was the opportune moment for Satan's decisive
assault. Wherefore, also taking the form of a serpent, he climbed up the
infernal tree and started with Eve the pernicious conversation narrated in
Genesis until he seduced her with lying and flattering promises, provoking
in her vainglory and ambition, with the malice of the very grave sin of
pride, that of attempting to be like God. That the serpent spoke also
baited the curiosity of the first woman, who marvelled at speech from an
animal in appearance. In the conversation with the demon, Eve, first
filled with a certain fear and indecision, sometimes glanced at the Tree
of Life, receiving from It wise inspirations to flee the danger. At other
times she listened with increasing interest to the seductive insinuations
of the deceitful serpent until, after intense wavering and rejection of
divine inspiration, she yielded to Satan in thought, desire and heart and
ate physically of the forbidden fruit which, though of ethereal
constitution, gratified her as if it were a natural fruit. Eve, motivated
by pride, committed that most heinous sin of disobedience at 2 o'clock in
the afternoon of the first day of the Creation without Adam's being
present. After the fall of the first woman, the envious and hellish
serpent saw the terrain better prepared for the accomplishment of his
complete triumph - to make the first man, Head of Humanity, sin. The Evil
One discerned that with that sin disgrace would befall the human race.
That is why, once the hapless Eve had fallen into the trap, Satan, with
words even more seductive, induced her to draw her spouse towards the Tree
of Death. To please her, Adam agreed and saw with immense astonishment how
his wife continued eating of the forbidden fruit without any apparent evil
befalling her. When both were beside the accursed tree, Eve took a fruit
and offered it to Adam, at the same time telling him of the serpent's
alluring promises if one ate it. The first man did not yield without first
resisting. He gazed towards the Tree of Life from which he received wise
inspirations to flee the temptation. On the one hand, he felt profoundly
disposed to obey his God and Creator. On the other hand, his wife's
tenderness forcibly drew him towards the flattering promises concealed in
the forbidden fruit, the sight of which blinded his understanding and
weakened his will. In that frightful battle between good and evil, Adam
was capable neither of openly contradicting and reproving Eve for her
abominable action nor even of fleeing from her, above all because he
perceived no physical change whatsoever in his wife. Hence he also gave
access in his heart to the iniquitous and illusory desire of making
himself equal to God through the influence of the forbidden fruit,
received from the hands of his wife and which he ate physically. Adam
committed that most heinous sin of disobedience, motivated by pride, at 3
o'clock in the afternoon of the first Day of the Creation. We teach that
at the very instant that the first man, head of mankind, committed his
sin, the whole Universe suffered the consequences thereof, with the
exception of Mary's Planet.
271. It behoves us now to clarify the following verses
of Genesis, which refer to the naked bodies of our first parents. The
sacred text says: "And they
were both naked, to wit, Adam and his wife: and were not ashamed"
(Gen. 11, 25). Here is stressed the state of innocence of our first
parents and their immunity to concupiscence of the flesh prior to original
sin, wherefore they had no need of man-made clothing. We teach that from
the moment of their creation the bodies of Adam and Eve were covered with
a mysterious radiance, in the manner of heavenly clothing, which they
retained until Adam's sin. Although Eve, as we have said, sinned an hour
earlier and lost Sanctifying Grace, nevertheless she continued to retain
certain preternatural gifts until her husband sinned and both lost all
their privileges. At Adam's sin, the sacred text says: "And
the eyes of them both were opened: and when they perceived themselves to
be naked, they sewed together fig leaves, and made themselves aprons"
(Gen. III, 7). Here must be understood that the loss of original justice
in our first parents entailed their being despoiled of the heavenly
clothing that covered their bodies, wherefore they became completely naked
in the strict sense of the word, and subject to concupiscence of the flesh
with feelings of mutual shame. In the light of this doctrine we teach that
the risen bodies of the Blessed are covered with glorious radiance, in the
manner of heavenly clothing, as will occur in the Messianic Kingdom.
272. Furthering our interpretation of Genesis, we delve
into the profound sense of the following verse, applied to the first
couple after the fall: "And
when they heard the voice of the Lord God walking in Paradise at the
afternoon air, Adam and his wife hid themselves from the Face of the Lord
God, amidst the Tree of Paradise" (Gen. III, 8). The sacred text,
duly interpreted, is evident proof of the manifestation in Paradise of the
Divine Word made Man in the form of the Tree of Life, identified in the
text by "Tree of Paradise". For the expression "of
the Lord God walking in Paradise at the afternoon air" must be
taken to mean that God revealed Himself in Paradise under the form of a
Tree. All this confirms our previous doctrine that the Tree of Life
appeared to our first parents after midday, in other words, from 12
o'clock when the trial began. The sacred text goes on to say: "And
the Lord God called Adam, and said to him: Where art thou?" (Gen.
III, 9), and to relate the reprimand of our first parents and the
punishments for their sin, as also the promise of the Redemption and the
exaltation of the Woman Who would crush the head of the infernal serpent.
God said all that through the Soul of Christ under the form of the Tree of
Life. We teach that on hearing of the crushing of his proud head by the
Divine Woman, Satan, in the form of tree and of serpent, vanished from the
presence of our first parents.
273. We conclude for the present our interpretation of
Genesis with the following clarification. The sacred text says: "And
the Lord God made for Adam and his wife garments of skins, and clothed
them" (Gen III, 21), which must be understood as the universal
precept given by God to our first parents decently to cover their bodies
with garments; to that end He taught Adam and Eve how to make them out of
the skins of animals. Genesis goes on to relate, according to our
interpretation, that the Triune God, in the Tree of Life, said to Himself:
"Behold Adam is become as one
of Us, knowing good and evil" (Gen. III, 22), mysterious words
heard by Adam and Eve and uttered with the following meaning: `Behold
Adam, created in original justice and inclining to good, on trying to make
himself like unto God is despoiled of his privileged state and subjected
to the tyranny of sin, inclining him naturally to evil through
concupiscence, inflamed by the world, the flesh and the devil; therefore,
in order for man to do good he must henceforth battle tenaciously against
evil'. In short, after sinning, our first parents recognized the benefit
they had lost and the evil which had befallen them and mankind. That is
why their repentance was so deep and perfect. The Most High's very severe
reprimand of the first couple was bolstered by another not less painful
when He added: "Now, therefore,
lest perhaps he put forth his hand, and take also of the Tree of Life, and
eat, and live forever" (Gen. III, 22). This mysterious sentence
encompasses the divine decree whereby Adam and Eve and all fallen humanity
were deprived of the privileges of Earthly Paradise, lost by sin. After
these words the Divine Word made Man disappeared as Tree of Life from the
presence of our first parents, and therefore the Soul of Mary under the
form of salutary spring disappeared as well. Genesis then figuratively
shows us the Universe deranged by sin and deprived of its pristine beauty,
when speaking of Adam: "And the
Lord God sent him out of the Paradise of pleasure, to till the earth from
which he was taken" (Gen. III, 23), then confirming it very
emphatically: "And He cast out Adam; and placed before the Paradise of pleasure
Cherubims, and a flaming sword, turning every way, to keep the way of the
Tree of Life" (Gen. III, 24). With the term "Cherubims" the sacred text alludes to the Souls of Christ
and Mary Who, by divine decree, were absolutely excluded from the baneful
consequences of original sin, and to Whom, also in virtue of that decree,
the safekeeping of Mary's Planet, which as we know was preserved from the
universal derangement resulting from sin, was entrusted. Thus all the
human beings who by special grace inhabit that most privileged planet,
have been transferred thither by liberal and gracious concession of the
Divine Souls. The expression, "and
a flaming sword, turning every way, to keep the way of the Tree of
Life" (Gen. III, 24) encloses, among other mysteries, that of the
manifestation of God's just Anger and His irrevocable decision not to
allow fallen humanity to enjoy an Earthly Paradise until the implantation
of the Messianic Kingdom at the glorious second Coming of Christ. For
Christ will feed the entire Universe, not now as He did in Paradise during
the trial, which was under the form of a botanical tree known as the Tree
of Life, but exactly as He is, that is to say, contemplated by all the
saved as the Word of God made Man, in virtue of the beatific vision; for
thus must be interpreted the words of His Holiness Pope Gregory XVII in
his 45th Document. Speaking of the sin of our first parents, in the ninth
chapter of this Treatise we taught that <
274. In accord with the above doctrine we teach that at
the Nuptials of the Lamb, Most Holy Joseph and the rest of the saved will
receive the gifts of omniscience or Wisdom of God ad extra, of suppliant omnipotence, will form part of the Divine
Council, and will be co-creators of everything God creates from that
instant for all eternity, creations which we cannot imagine. All these
gifts correspond to the final and definitive increase of essential glory
then to take place through the enthronement of all the saved in the Holy
Ghost, through their direct enthronement in the Deific Heart of Jesus.
Thus, following the Nuptials of the Lamb, in the heavenly Empire, to each
human person for eternity of eternities will occur the following: in God's
new creations, every human person will co-create in harmony with the will
of God according to the knowledge of the soul's intelligence concerning
spiritual things and the knowledge of the accidental cerebrum's
subintelligence concerning material things. Although at the Nuptials of
the Lamb the essential glory of each of the Blessed will remain fixed in
its maximum degree, the co- creations will imply for him a progressive
increase in accidental glory. All this sublime doctrine on the human
person applies also to the Angels in what pertains to their nature. We
make clear that in future creations God will not create natures more
perfect than the angelic and the human.
275. To end this chapter we delve more deeply into the
sublime mystery of salvation.
(a) At the instant Christ returns to earth to implant
His Messianic Kingdom, God will create with single breath a number of
Angels already confirmed in grace, identical in number to the Angels
condemned.
(b) Through the infinite mercy of God the number of men
saved is very much greater than that of those condemned, given that grace
did more abound than sin.
Let us consider this in greater detail:
1. In the period from the creation of the world until
Christ's Return to earth, the number of humans who die after attaining the
use of reason and are saved is very much greater than the number of humans
with the use of reason who die and are condemned. Of course, among those
who are saved we have not as yet taken into account the vast number of
members of the Church Expectant.
2. At the instant of the Nuptials of the Lamb, the
number of blessed humans will be immensely greater than the number of
condemned humans, on counting, among the eternally chosen, those saved
until the Return of Christ, the members of the Church Expectant - who will
attain to eternal blessedness at the glorious Coming - and those born on
the new earth during the Messianic Kingdom.
(c) At the moment of the Nuptials of the Lamb the total
number of blessed humans will be the same as the total number of blessed
Angels. For from the Return of Christ to the earth until the Nuptials of
the Lamb, a number of humans will be born until the number of blessed
humans is the same as that of blessed Angels. In that number is included
the number of humans to be born identical in number to the humans
condemned, for during the Messianic Kingdom many more humans will be born
than those who, prior thereto, were condemned.
