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A motive no less powerful than those we have
enumerated is the thought of Heaven. This is the
reward of virtue, and in it we must distinguish two
things: the excellence and beauty of the abode
promised us, which is no other than the empyreal
heavens, and the perfection and beauty of the
Sovereign King who reigns there with His elect.
But though no tongue can fully express the splendor
and riches of the heavenly kingdom, we will endeavor
to describe its beauty as well as our limited
capacities will allow. Let us, therefore, first
consider the grand end for which it was created,
which will enable us to conceive some idea of its
magnificence. God created it to manifest His
glory. Though "the Lord hath made all things for
himself," (Prov. 16:4) yet this is particularly true
of Heaven, for it is there that His glory and power
are most resplendent. We are told in Scripture that
Assuerus, whose kingdom included one hundred
twenty-seven provinces, gave a great feast, which
lasted one hundred eighty days, for the purpose of
manifesting his splendor and power. So the Sovereign
King of the universe is pleased to celebrate a
magnificent feast, which continues, not for one
hundred eighty days only, but for all eternity, to
manifest the magnificence of His bounty, His power,
His riches, His goodness. It is of this feast that
the prophet speaks when he tells us, "The Lord of
hosts shall make unto all people in this mountain a
feast of fat things, a feast of wine, of fat things
full of marrow, of wine purified from the lees." (Is.
25:6). By this we are to understand that He will
lavish upon His elect all the riches of the heavenly
country and inebriate them with unutterable delights.
Since this feast is prepared to manifest the
greatness of God's glory, which is infinite, what
must be the magnificence of this feast and the
variety and splendor of the riches He displays to the
eyes of His elect? We will better appreciate the
grandeur of Heaven if we consider the infinite power
and boundless riches of God Himself. His power is so
great that with a single word He created this vast
universe, and with a single word He could again
reduce it to its original nothingness. A single
expression of His will would suffice to create
millions of worlds as beautiful as ours, and to
destroy them in one instant. Moreover, His power
is exercised without effort or exertion; it costs Him
no more to create the most sublime seraphim than to
create the smallest insect. With Him, to will is to
accomplish. Therefore, if the power of the King who
calls us to His kingdom be so great; if such be the
glory of His holy Name; if His desire to manifest and
communicate this glory be so great, what must be the
splendor of the abode where He wills to display, in
its fullness, His divine magnificence? Nothing can
be wanting to its perfection, for its Author is the
Source of all riches, all power, and all wisdom. What
must be the beauty of that creation in the formation
of which are combined the almighty power of the
Father, the infinite wisdom of the Son, the
inexhaustible goodness of the Holy Spirit? Another
consideration no less striking is that God has
prepared this magnificence not only for His glory,
but for the glory of His elect. "Whosoever shall
glorify me, him will I glorify." (1Kg. 2:30). "Thou
hast subjected all things under his feet," cries out
the psalmist (Ps. 8:8); and this we see verified in
the most striking manner among the saints. Witness
Josue, whose word arrests the sun in its course, thus
showing us, as the Scripture says, "God obeying the
voice of man." (Jos. 10:14). Consider the prophet
Isaias bidding King Ezechias choose whether he will
have the sun go forward or backward in its course,
for it was in the power of God's servant to cause
either. (4Kg. 20:9). Behold Elias closing the
heavens, so that there was no rain but at his will
and prayer. And not only during life, but even after
death, God continues to honor the mortal remains of
His elect; for do we not read in Scripture that a
dead body which was thrown by highwaymen into the
tomb of Eliseus was brought to life by contact with
the bones of the prophet? (4Kg. 13:21). Did not God
also honor in a marvelous manner the body of St.
Clement? On the day that this generous defender of
the Faith suffered, the sea was opened for a distance
of three miles to allow the people to pass to the
place of martyrdom to venerate the sacred remains. Is
it not from a like motive that the Church has
instituted a feast in honor of St. Peter's chains, to
show us how God wills to honor the bodies of His
servants, since we are to reverence their very
chains? A still more marvelous proof of this was
the power of healing the sick communicated to the
shadow of the same Apostle. Oh! Admirable goodness!
God confers upon His Apostle a power which He Himself
did not exercise. Of St. Peter alone is this related.
But if God be pleased thus to honor the saints on
earth, though it is but a place of toil and labor,
who can tell the glory which He has reserved for them
in His kingdom, where He wills to honor them, and
through them to glorify Himself? The Holy
Scriptures teach us also with what liberality God
rewards the services we render Him. We are told that
when Abraham was about to sacrifice his son in
obedience to God's command, an angel of the Lord
appeared to him and said, "By my own self have I
sworn, saith the Lord: because thou hast done this
thing, and hast not spared thy only begotten son for
my sake, I will bless thee, and I will multiply thy
seed as the stars of heaven and as the sand that is
by the sea shore; thy seed shall possess the gates of
their enemies. And in thy seed shall all the nations
of the earth be blessed, because thou hast obeyed my
voice." (Gen. 22:16-18). Was not this a reward
befitting such a Master? God is sovereign in His
rewards, as well as in His punishments. We read
also that David, reflecting one night that while he
dwelt in a house of cedar, the Ark of the Covenant
was kept in a poor tent, resolved to build it a more
fitting habitation; and the next day the Lord sent
the prophet Nathan to promise, in His name, the
following magnificent reward: Because thou hast
thought of building me a house, I swear to thee that
I will build one for thee and thy posterity which
shall have no end, nor will I ever remove my mercies
from it. (Cf. 2Kg. 7). We see how faithfully His
promise was fulfilled, for the kingdom of Israel was
governed by the princes of the house of David until
the coming of the Messias, who from that time has
reigned, and shall reign for all eternity. Heaven,
then, is that superabundant reward which the faithful
will receive for their good works. It is the
manifestation of the Divine munificence, and of its
greatness and glory we ought to have a lively
appreciation. Another consideration which will help
us to form some idea of the eternal beatitude
promised us is the price which God, who is so
liberal, required for it. After we had forfeited
Heaven by sin, God, who is so rich and magnificent in
His rewards, would restore it to us only at the price
of the Blood of His Divine Son. The death of Christ,
therefore, gave us life; His sorrows won for us
eternal joy; and, that we might enter into the ranks
of the celestial choirs, He bore the ignominy of
crucifixion between two thieves. Who, then, can
sufficiently value that happiness to obtain which God
shed the last drop of His Blood, was bound with
ignominious fetters, overwhelmed with outrages,
bruised with blows, and nailed to a cross? But
besides all these, God asks on our part all that can
be required of man. He tells us that we must take up
our cross and follow Him; that if our right eye
offend us we must pluck it out; that we must renounce
father and mother, and every creature that is an
obstacle to the Divine will. And after we have
faithfully complied with His commands, the Sovereign
Remunerator still tells us that the enjoyment of
Heaven is a gratuitous gift. "I am Alpha and Omega;
the beginning and the end," He says by the mouth of
St. John (Apoc. 21:6); "to him that thirsteth, I will
give of the fountain of the water of life freely."
Since God so liberally bestows His gifts upon the
sinner as well as the just in this life, what must be
the inexhaustible riches reserved for the just in the
life to come? If He be so bountiful in His gratuitous
gifts, how munificent will He be in His rewards?
It may further help us to conceive a faint image of
this eternal glory to consider the nobility and
grandeur of the empyreal Heaven, our future country.
It is called in Scripture the land of the living, in
contrast, doubtless, to our sad country, which may
truly be called the land of the dying. But if, in
this land of death inhabited by mortal beings, so
much beauty and perfection are found, what must be
the splendor and magnificence of that heavenly
country whose inhabitants will live forever? Cast
your eyes over the world and behold the wonders and
beauties with which it is filled. Observe the
immensity of the blue vault of heaven; the dazzling
splendor of the sun; the soft radiance of the moon
and stars; the verdant beauty of the earth, with its
treasures of precious metals and brilliant gems; the
rich plumage of the birds; the grandeur of the
mountains; the smiling beauty of the valleys; the
limpid freshness of the streams; the majesty of the
great rivers; the vastness of the sea, with all the
wonders it contains; the beauty of the deep lakes,
those eyes of the earth, reflecting on their placid
bosoms the starry splendor of the heavens; the
flower-enameled fields, which seem a counterpart of
the starlit firmament above them. If in this land of
exile we behold so much beauty to enrapture our soul,
what must be the spectacle which awaits us in the
haven of eternal rest? Compare the inhabitants of the two countries, if you
would have a still stronger proof of the superiority
and finite grandeur of the heavenly country. This
earth is the land of death; Heaven is the land of
immortality. Ours is the habitation of sinners,
Heaven the habitation of the just. Ours is a place of
penance, an arena of combat; Heaven is the land of
triumph, the throne of the victor, the "city of God."
"Glorious things are said of thee, O city of God."
(Ps. 86:3). Immeasurable is thy greatness,
incomparable the beauty of thy structure. Infinite
thy price; most noble thy inhabitants, sublime thy
employments; most rich art thou in all good, and no
evil can penetrate thy sacred walls. Great is thy
Author, high the end for which thou wast created, and
most noble the blessed citizens who dwell in thee. All that we have hitherto said relates only to the
accidental glory of the saints. They possess another
glory incomparably superior, which theologians call
the essential glory. This is the vision and
possession of God Himself. For St. Augustine tells us
that the reward of virtue will be God Himself, the
Author of all virtue, whom we will untiringly
contemplate, love, and praise for all eternity. (City
of God, 22, 30). What reward could be greater than
this? It is not Heaven, or earth, or any created
perfection, but God, the Source of all beauty and all
perfection. The blessed inhabitants of Heaven will
enjoy in Him all good, each according to the degree
of glory he has merited. For since God is the Author
of every good that we behold in creatures, it follows
that He possesses in Himself all perfection, all
goodness, in an infinite degree. He possesses them,
because otherwise He could not have bestowed them on
creatures. He possesses them in an infinite degree,
because as His Being is infinite, so also are His
attributes and His perfections. God, then, will be
our sovereign beatitude and the fulfillment of all
our desires. In Him we will find the perfections of
all creatures exalted and transfigured. In Him we
will enjoy the beauty of all the seasons � the balmy
freshness of spring, the rich beauty of summer, the
luxurious abundance of autumn, and the calm repose of
winter. In a word, all that can delight the senses
and enrapture the soul will be ours in Heaven. "In
God," says St. Bernard, "our understandings will be
filled with the plenitude of light; our wills with an
abundance of peace; and our memories with the joys of
eternity. In this abode of all perfection, the wisdom
of Solomon will appear but ignorance; the beauty of
Absolom deformity; the strength of Samson weakness;
the longest life of man a brief mortality; the wealth
of kings but indigence." Why, then, O man, will you seek straws in Egypt? Why
will you drink troubled waters from broken cisterns,
when inexhaustible treasures, and the fountain of
living water springing up into eternal life, await
you in Heaven? Why will you seek vain and sensual
satisfactions from creatures, when unalterable
happiness may be yours? If your heart craves joy,
raise it to the contemplation of that Good which
contains in Itself all joys. If you are in love with
this created life, consider the eternal life which
awaits you above. If the beauty of creatures attracts
you, live that you may one day possess the Source of
all beauty, in whom are life; and strength, and
glory, and immortality, and the fullness of all our
desires. If you find happiness in friendship and the
society of generous hearts, consider the noble beings
with whom you will be united by the tenderest ties
for all eternity. If your ambition seeks wealth and
honors, make the treasures and the glory of Heaven
the end of all your efforts. Finally, if you desire
freedom from all evil and rest from all labor, in
Heaven alone can your desires be gratified. God, in the Old Law, ordained that children should be
circumcised on the eighth day after birth, teaching
us thereby that, on the day of the general
resurrection which will follow the short space of
this life, He will cut off the miseries and
sufferings of those who, for love of Him, have
circumcised their hearts by cutting off all the
sinful affections and pleasures of this world. Now,
who can conceive a happier existence than this, which
is exempt from every sorrow and every infirmity? "In Heaven," says St. Augustine, "we shall cease to
feel the trials of want or sickness. Pride or envy
will never enter there. The necessity of eating or
drinking will there be unknown. The desire for honors
will never disturb our calm repose. Death will no
longer reach body or soul, united as they will be
with the Source of all life, which they will enjoy
throughout a blessed immortality." (Soliloq., 35).
Consider, moreover, the glory and happiness of living
in the company of the angels, contemplating the
beauty of these sublime spirits; admiring the
resplendent virtue of the saints, and the rewards
with which the obedience of the patriarchs and the
hope of the prophets have been crowned; the brilliant
diadems of the martyrs, dyed with their own blood;
and the dazzling whiteness of the robes with which
the virgins are adorned. But what tongue can
describe the beauty and the majesty of the Sovereign
Monarch who reigns in their midst? "If by daily
enduring fresh torments," says St. Augustine
(Manual., 15), "and even suffering for a time the
pains of Hell, we were permitted for one day to
contemplate this King in all His glory and enjoy the
society of His elect, surely it would be a happiness
cheaply purchased." What, then, can we say of the happiness of possessing
these joys for all eternity? Conceive, if you can,
the ravishing harmony of the celestial voices
chanting the words heard by St. John: "Benediction,
and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, honor, and
power, and strength to our God for ever and ever.
Amen." (Apoc. 7:12). If the harmony of these voices
will cause us such happiness, how we will rejoice at
the unity that we will behold between soul and body!
And this concord will be still more marked between
angels and men, whilst between God and men the union
will be so close that we can form no adequate idea of
it. What glory, then, will it be for the creature to
find himself seated at the banquet of the King of
kings, partaking of His table-that is, of His honor
and His glory! Oh! Enduring peace of Heaven! Oh!
Unalterable joy! Oh! Entrancing harmonies! Oh!
Torrents of celestial delight, why are ye not ever
present to the minds of those who labor and combat on
earth? If such be the happiness which faith tells
us is the reward of the just, how great is your
blindness if you are not moved thereby to practice
virtue!
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