Unfortunately, Purgatory: a state where saved souls undergo purification in order to be fully detached for their eternal future in Heaven, is a VERY real thing.

The souls there suffer in need, wanting to be with God but needing to endure painful purification according to the needs of God’s justice and to be perfected for Heaven. Jesus says His Mercy doesn’t want this but His justice demands it. Further, the Holy Souls cannot by any merit or prayer of their own, deliver themselves from this state.

So, how can we help them? Prayer, devotion and deed. Here we begin our plea for the souls in Purgatory: the first campaign of the ‘verse-meets-virtue’ Catholic artists collective.

firstly, what’s the catechism say?

It may come as a shock to Catholics and non-religious persons alike that purgatory is a real state; however, it’s a held and true doctrine of the faith. The catholic Church says the following on purgatory within the guiding document of beliefs: the catechism (1030 & 1031) linked here:

All who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.

why care?

It’s a great act of mercy and love to pray for the holy souls of the faithful departed. Not only in the catholic tradition, but in most faiths and belief systems – polytheist and monotheist alike- praying for and remembering our deceased is a vital, timeless practice. As catholics, we not only gain future saintly advocates in the holy souls when they reach heaven, but we also enable ourselves to become more saintly here on earth by our works.

how can we help?

as artists, our collective can help the holy souls in purgatory by any creative means we can. We can write, sing, paint etc. to illustrate their need and encourage assistance toward them.

That said, if you haven’t a creative inclination, there are always the 3 universally achievable ways to assist the inhabitants of purgatory, explored below.

prayer

there’s so many ways to pray – but perhaps the most efficacious prayers for purgatory sufferers, are the Holy rosary and the divine mercy chaplet. You can ask for the intercession of saints particularly devoted to the holy souls’ plight or hold the intention to help at any holy masses you attend. Some saints to pray to could be: St. Joseph, st. gertrude the great, st. padre pio and st. faustina among many, many others. The beautiful thing is that the catholic church has so many saints; some will connect with you to greater degrees than others, but all are able to assist you!

deed

works of mercy and offering your joys or your sufferings for the souls can also be a great offering for the merits of the faithful departed.

devotion

spreading the message and inspiring others to devote themselves to the souls in purgatory can also assist enormously. this can be done by distribution of prayer cards, educating colleagues or classmates, friends and family on the reality of purgatory, and even by working it into general conversation.

help the holy

Ultimately, helping the holy souls is a grand act of charity and love for them; a selfless action. if we wish to grow more Christ-like or even just develop more virtue in our lives, the devotion and cause of helping purgatory’s helpless is an admirable one.

remember, they are in pain and cannot do anything of their own power to aid themselves. they are completely reliant on us, and are so often forgotten! Let’s not forget them and do our very best to help in any little way we can offer.

seeking more?

to access more information on the plea for the souls in purgatory or any other campaigns of versemeetsvirtue, contact us at versemeetsvirtue@gmail.com