God's Justice

Part 16: In the next entry of his new weekly series on the Sacred Heart, Dr. Robert Stackpole explores the connection between devotion to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and Catholic social teaching on matters of justice, outlining a vision for a civilization of love.

St. Augustine tells us in his Enchidrion that God's mercy is expressed especially in the practice of penance.

If we insist on going our own way, He will respect the freedom He gave to us, and not compel us to turn away from our sins and be sanctified. ...

One reader writes, "I have terrifying thoughts that God does not love everyone - that He abandons some."

In response to a letter from Colleen and Paul, here's a cautionary tale.

Are notorious sinners damned to hell? Also, what's that I hear about an approved Marian apparition in the United States? 

Dear Mike, I certainly appreciate your compassion for those in hell. No doubt, our Savior, in one sense, shares it. But ...

Mercy and Hell don't mix. Or do they? Dr. Stackpole shows that God's merciful love and the eternal loss of those who refuse it are not incompatible truths.

Also, how are we to understand "temporal" and "eternal" punishment that is due to sin?

The doctrine of purgatory is "common ground" between the Catholic Church and Eastern Orthodoxy. So where does the trouble begin?