In his Fundamentals of Catholic Dogma, Dr. Ludwig Ott included the following truths of the Catholic Faith regarding Hell:
“The souls of those who die in the condition of personal grievous sin enter Hell.” (De fide.; p. 479)
“The punishment of Hell lasts for all eternity.” (De fide.; p. 481)
Based on these two truths, all reasonable people should want to do everything possible to avoid dying “in the condition of personal grievous sin.” And, by extension, all Catholics who “love their neighbors” should want to help as many souls as possible accept the Catholic Faith.
One would have to be monstrously evil or a madman to purport to have a position of authority in the Catholic Church and do anything to call into question the Church’s teaching on Hell.
On the question of “who is on the path to Hell?,” Monsignor Louis Gaston de Ségur (1820-1821) wrote the following in his book entitled Hell: Heaven’s Great Missionary:
“They are first of all those who abuse authority, in any order whatsoever, in order to lead their subordinates into evil, either by violence or seduction. ‘A very harsh judgment’ awaits them. True Satans of the earth, it is to them that are addressed, in the person of their father, these formidable words of Scripture: ‘How art thou fallen from Heaven, O Lucifer?’” (p. 159)
With this in mind, we can understand why one would have to be monstrously evil or a madman to purport to have a position of authority in the Catholic Church and do anything to call into question the Church’s teaching on Hell. Monsignor de Ségur continued by explaining that these abusers of authority inherit Our Lord’s condemnation of the Pharisees by turning souls away from the service of God:
“They are all those who abuse the gifts of the mind to turn the poor away from the service of God and tear the Faith away from them. These public corruptors are the inheritors of the Pharisees in the Gospel and the anathema of the Son of God applies to them: ‘Woe to you scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites; because you shut the kingdom of heaven against men, for you yourselves do not enter in; and those that are going in, you suffer not to enter.’” (p. 159)
It is clear from these words that the absolute worst offenders are those who have the greatest authority and influence in the spiritual realm. Those in this category who would turn their subordinates away from God’s service are undoubtedly on the path to Hell according to Monsignor de Ségur.
Rahner was not the last so-called Catholic authority figure to risk earning a millstone for undermining the Church’s teaching on Hell.
Those who have studied the changes in the Church since Vatican II likely understand that Francis is not the first nominal Catholic to call into question the Church’s teaching on Hell. In his Iota Unum: A Study of Changes in the Catholic Church in the XXth Century, Professor Romano Amerio wrote the following:
“Karl Rahner maintains that the denial of the eternity of punishment and the assertion of eternal salvation are a new development due to Vatican II, and constitute a milestone for the faith of the Church.“ (p. 697)
As one of the most influential theologians of Vatican II, Rahner was embarrassingly confused on this point: the Church can never teach such heresies, so it is not a “milestone for the faith.” Rather, those who misrepresent the Catholic Faith’s teaching about Hell deserve the millstone about their necks as described by Our Lord:
“But he that shall scandalize one of these little ones that believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone should be hanged about his neck, and that he should be drowned in the depth of the sea.” (Matthew 18:6)
Alarmingly, Rahner was not the last so-called Catholic authority figure to risk earning a millstone for undermining the Church’s teaching on Hell. For example, on his “Dare We Hope?” Resource Page, Bishop Robert Barron answers frequently asked questions about his endorsement of Hans Urs von Balthasar’s thesis that Hell might be empty. In support of his own openness to the possibility of an empty Hell, Bishop Barron cited John Paul II:
“Eternal damnation remains a real possibility, but we are not granted, without special divine revelation, the knowledge of whether or which human beings are effectively involved in it.”
Fascinatingly, Bishop Barron also addresses the following questions about the implications of an empty Hell:
"IF WE CAN HOPE THAT ALL PEOPLE ARE SAVED, WHAT’S THE POINT OF CHRISTIANITY? WHY SHOULD A NON-CHRISTIAN EVER CONSIDER CONVERTING?”
“IF IT’S POSSIBLE ALL CAN BE SAVED, WHAT’S THE POINT OF EVANGELIZATION? WHY SHOULD THE CHURCH EVANGELIZE IF PEOPLE ARE GOING TO BE SAVED ANYWAYS?”
“HASN’T THIS ‘DARE WE HOPE’ VIEW LED TO A ‘PRACTICAL UNIVERSALISM’ IN THE PEWS? EVEN IF IT MIGHT BE *TECHNICALLY* TRUE, SHOULDN’T WE STOP PROMOTING IT?”
Bishop Barron offers many words in answer to each of these very reasonable questions, all meant to overcome common sense conclusions. In his response to the last of these questions, he includes the following:
“It’s important to recognize, though, that we’re now in the realm of prudence—whether it’s prudent to promote a particular view or not, given its ramifications. This is wholly different than whether the view in question is true or orthodox.”
To his credit, this is honest and accurate insofar as we are simply looking at a legalistic interpretation of the argument. However, the entire topic is rooted within the “realm of prudence” because Our Lord taught us about Hell so that we will order our lives to attain salvation and avoid eternal damnation. As such, anyone who thinks it is a good idea to call into question what Jesus taught will scandalize souls. That scandal will be magnified in proportion to the person’s position of apparent authority to interpret Our Lord’s teaching.
The globalists also benefit through all efforts to undermine the Catholic Faith — this because they know that Catholics who would rather die than commit a sin that could lead them to Hell stand in the way of their demonic goals. So we have what has become the standard partnership of Satan, Francis, and the globalists.
And, as we have seen for over ten years, when it comes to scandal, one man has taken it upon himself to secure the largest possible millstone. Unsurprisingly, then, Francis had the following to say in his January 14 interview:
“What I am going to say is not a dogma of faith but my own personal view: I like to think of hell as empty; I hope it is.”
Who benefits from this? By undermining one of the primary reasons God has given us to choose to serve Him, we can see that the one who actively wants the end result of damnation for souls is Satan. However, the globalists also benefit through all efforts to undermine the Catholic Faith — this because they know that Catholics who would rather die than commit a sin that could lead them to Hell stand in the way of their demonic goals. So we have what has become the standard partnership of Satan, Francis, and the globalists.
If that demonic partnership is doing so much to undermine the Catholic Faith and lead us down the path to Hell, we really ought to go in the opposite direction with great determination. On that point, we can heed Monsignor de Ségur’s advice:
“Do you want to be even more sure of avoiding Hell, dear reader? Do not be content with avoiding mortal sin and combating the vices and defects which lead to it. Lead a good, holy and seriously Christian Life, full of Jesus Christ. Do like those prudent people who have to pass along difficult parts and walk near precipices. For fear of falling, they take care not to walk on the edge where a simple false step could become fatal. They wisely walk on the other side of the road and stay as far away from the precipice as they can. Do likewise. Generously embrace that beautiful and noble life which is called the Christian life, the life of piety.” (p. 185)
We should follow the saints by staying as far away from Francis’s path as possible.
Immaculate Heart of Mary, pray for us!