Choose a topic from Part 3 Suppl:
1. The gate of heaven, always open to mankind since the day ofAscension, is closed upon that individual man who is burdened bythe guilt of mortal sin and the debt of eternalpunishment due to it. Whatever takes away these two thingsfrom that man's soul, opens thegate of heaven to him.Now, what opens a gate is fittingly called a key. The power toremove sin, both as to guilt and debt of eternal punishment, isbestowed by Christ on his Church and on the priest of his Church;this power, especially exercised in the sacrament of penance, isfiguratively called "the power of the keys."
2. The "keys" are the power of binding andloosing given to the Church by our Lord; more specifically, the"keys" are the power given to priests to forgivesins.
3. Now, there are two keys, and they are distinguishedfrom each other by their respective acts: the one is the key ofjudging whether sins are to be forgiven or retained; the otheris the key of absolving from sin. When these two keys areused (when the penitent is judged worthy and is absolved from hissins) the gate of heaven is opened to the penitent.
"Let no one wear a mask, otherwise he will do ill; and if he has one, let him burn it."
St Philip Neri
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"The one thing necessary which Jesus spoke of to Martha and Mary consists in hearing the word of God and living by it."
R. Garrigou-Lagrange, OP
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"Whoever wants to stand alone without the support of a master and guide will be like the tree that stands alone in a field without a proprietor. No matter how much the tree bears, passers-by will pick the fruit before it ripens.
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St John of the Cross, OCD - Doctor of the Church
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