To this cavern of limbo
then the most holy soul of Christ our Lord betook itself in the company of
innumerable angels, who gave glory, fortitude and Divinity to their victorious
and triumphant King. In accordance with his greatness and majesty they commanded
the portals of this ancient prison to be opened, in order that the King of
glory, powerful in battles and Lord of virtues, might find them unlocked and
open at his entrance.
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| The soul of Christ descending into limbo |
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| The more He (Christ) approaches them the brighter the light into the cavern |
At their command some of the rocks of the passage were
rent and shattered; although this was not really necessary, since the King and
his army were immaterial spirits. By the presence of the most holy Soul this
obscure cavern was converted into a heaven and was filled with a wonderful splendour;
and to the souls therein contained was imparted the clear vision of the
Divinity.
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| Finally His presence turned the whole place into splendour and light |
In one instant they passed from the state of long deferred hope to
the possession of glory, and from darkness to the inaccessible light, which
they now began to enjoy. All of them recognized their true God and Redeemer,
and gave him thanks and glory, breaking forth in canticles of praise saying
: “The Lamb that was slain is worthy to
receive power and Divinity, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory and
benediction. Thou hast redeemed us, Lord, in thy blood, out of every tribe, and
tongue, and people, and nation; and hast made us to our God a kingdom and
priests, and we shall reign on the earth (Apoc. 59, 12). Thine is, O Lord, the
power, thine the reign, and thine is the glory of thy works.” Then the Lord
commanded the angels to bring all the souls in purgatory, and this was
immediately done. As if in earnest of the human Redemption they were absolved
then and there by the Redeemer from the punishments still due to them, and they
were glorified with the other souls of the just by the beatific vision. Thus on
that day of the presence of the King were depopulated the prison houses of both
limbo and purgatory.
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| The angels descending from limbo into purgatory to take the souls |
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| The angels taking the souls from purgatory to limbo |
But for the damned in hell this was a terrible
day; because by the disposition of the Most High all of them were made to see
and feel the descent of the Redeemer into limbo, and also the holy Fathers and
the just were made witnesses of the terror caused by this mystery to the demons
and the damned. The demons were yet terrorized and oppressed by the ruin which
they had undergone on Mount Calvary, as related above; and when they heard
(according to their manner of hearing and speaking) the voices of the angels
advancing before their King to limbo, they were confounded and terrified anew.
Like serpents pursued, they hid themselves and clung to the most remote caverns
of hell. The damned were seized with confusion upon confusion, becoming still
more deeply conscious of their aberration and of the loss of salvation, now
secured to the just. As Judas and the impenitent thief had so recently and
signally shared this misfortune, so their torments were greater; and the demons
were the more highly incensed against them. Then and there the infernal spirits
resolved to persecute, chastise and torment more grievously the Catholics who
should deny or repudiate their faith, and chastise more severely those who
should deny or repudiate the Catholic faith. For they concluded that these
merited greater punishment than the infidels, to whom it is not preached.
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| Hell, the place of the damned souls |
Of all these mysteries and
of other secrets, theblessed Mother of Christ had a clear knowledge and vision
from her retreat. Although in her soul where this knowledge originated, and it
causedHer exquisite joy; yet She did not permit it to overflow in her virginal
body, in her senses or inferior faculties, to which it should naturally have
been communicated. For She did not wish to permit such enjoyment to her body,
as long as that of her divine Son rested in the grave and was not yet
glorified. Such a careful and faithful love was that of the blessed Mother
toward her Son and Lord, that She strove to be a living, true and perfect image
of the deified humanity in all respects. Attending thus minutely to the
smallest particulars, She was rejoiced exceedingly in her soul, while She still
felt the sorrows and depression of her body in imitation of the state of Christ
our Saviour. During this vision She composed songs of praise magnifying the
mysteries of this triumph and the most loving and wise providence of the
Redeemer, who as an affectionate Father and omnipotent King wished, in his own
Person, to take possession of the new reign, given to Him by the Father, and
who now rescued his subjects by his own presence in order that they might
commence immediately to enjoy the reward merited for them. For these reasons,
and others recognized by Her in this sacrament, She rejoiced and glorified the
Lord as his Helper and as the Mother of the Conqueror.
