Difference between guilt and reconciliation

[whichwaytogo47]

Judas betrayed God. Did Judas kill himself because of pride or because he was truly remorseful for betraying God? When does a guilty conscience reach the point where we receive forgiveness for our sins? Doesn’t that predisposition of knowing right from wrong and that guilty conscience lead us to seek forgiveness from God thru confession for the sins (both venial and mortal) that we commit or do we choose to disregard that guilty conscience and thus die in our sins and spend an eternity in Hell? Just like Protestants ask, I know where I’m going when I die (i.e. an assumption of being saved vs never having been saved in the 1st place) can’t Catholics have a fruitful disposition that leads them to dying in God’s grace? How can one avoid turning away from God?

If his pride led him to getting pieces of silver and that pride was broken, it would be hard to say that he went beyond guilt and towards repentance. However, if he truly was sorrowful and couldn’t live with himself, that could suggest that he was repentant or had some form of mental illness that gave him some leeway. Purgatory is a beautiful thing as it cleanses us of impurity. It’s hard to know if his betrayal or his suicide was a mortal sin because while it was grave matter and he knew it was wrong, I am wondering whether he did it under compulsion or whether it was premeditated and even if it was, we hope that he was truly and sincerely repentant. It seems like it was premeditated and thus mortal but he also seemed contrite and if he could have hit rewind might not have done it and thus may have made a perfect contrition (i.e. go & sin no more).

Even if it was of his own free-will and premeditated, I kind of have a hard time believing he should be in Hell because he carried out the plan that gave us all the ability to receive redemption from God. It was his action(s) that allowed us to receive forgiveness for our sins. Of course Jesus/God was the person whom made the sacrifice and suffered a grueling death, but if it were not for Judas’s betrayal, we wouldn’t be saved or someone else would have had to betray Jesus. And was Judas more culpable than Pontius Pilate where Judas’s aim was for silver/greed and Pontius Pilate was for accolade / acceptance. How do we know whom is more culpable? Again my hope is that they somehow repented before they died and are thus in purgatory instead of Hell.

 

[Genesis315]

Guilt can lead to either reconciliation or despair. Judas sinned against the Holy Spirit–who moves us to reconcile–by giving in to despair instead.

from the CCC:

2091 The first commandment is also concerned with sins against hope, namely, despair and presumption:

By despair, man ceases to hope for his personal salvation from God, for help in attaining it or for the forgiveness of his sins. Despair is contrary to God’s goodness, to his justice - for the Lord is faithful to his promises - and to his mercy.

 

[Roseeurekacross]

Do you know what Judas’s sin was?

 

[whichwaytogo47]

Do you know what Judas’s sin was?

He betrayed God by either spitting at him or kissing him for 30 pieces of silver which condemned God to death on a cross that not only allowed for his death and resurrection - that is what Satan knows. It was also premeditated murder/betrayal. But what was important wasn’t only the resurrection but the remission of sins for all mankind whom choose to take up their cross and follow Him. Later, Judas had hung himself.

The reason why he hung himself isn’t that clear? Was it despair? Pride? Regret? Doubt? Mental illness? Insanity? From the text, it appears to me that he was very upset and guilty for what he had done but what we don’t know is what his state of mind was in terms of sin after he betrayed God but before he had hung himself. I believe he has one of the weakest cases for heaven/purgatory but I am thinking there is definitely a chance he repented and/or was sorry for what he had done. It’s really hard to comprehend what his choice was.

 

[Roseeurekacross]

It’s pretty simple. The sin of Judas was not the betrayal, after all , all the Apostles besides John ran off when Jesus was arrested. And Peter denied John. It wasn’t betrayal.

It wasn’t the act of suicide either. Nor pride, regret,
Mental illness is not a sin.

We have no idea and cannot presume to know if anyone is in heaven or hell, and if they have a weak or string case.
Gods ways are not our ways.

The sin of Judas was in failing to embrace the mercy and forgiveness Jesus was offering to all. Failing to embrace the mercy and forgiveness of God.
That’s all, pretty simple.
But we have no idea if Judas did, at the end.

 

[whichwaytogo47]

We have no idea and cannot presume to know if anyone is in heaven or hell, and if they have a weak or string case.
Gods ways are not our ways.

+1 Thanks for the reminder. It’s definitely good to be reminded of that to make sure we don’t fall into that trap.

The sin of Judas was in failing to embrace the mercy and forgiveness Jesus was offering to all. Failing to embrace the mercy and forgiveness of God.
That’s all, pretty simple.
But we have no idea if Judas did, at the end.

+1 yes, we don’t know if he changed his mind at the end or continued not to accept the mercy and forgiveness of God. We don’t know if he repented or rejected the Holy Spirit at the end.