Does the church teach that one of the two is the better choice in terms of attaining salvation? Is one choice better than the other?..
will a very holy monk, nun, preist have a better position in heaven then an extremely loving married couple who were also very loving and caring towards their children?
Not for salvation, but there is more merit from different actions that we do, such as theologians, priests, nuns, chaste spouses, all those that do good works in grace, etc.
The dogmatic teaching on merit (
Meritum de Condigno) from the Council of Trent that:
- A just man merits for himself through each good work an increase of sanctifying gnce, etemal life (if he dies in a state of grace) and an increase of heavenly glory. (De fide.)
Also:
EUGENIUS IV 1431-1447, COUNCIL OF FLORENCE 1438-1445
Ecumenical XVII (Union with the Greeks, Armenians, Jacobites)
Decree for the Greeks From the Bull “Laetentur coeli,” July 6, 1439
Denzinger 693 De novissimis] * It has likewise defined, that, if those truly penitent have departed in the love of God, before they have made satisfaction by the worthy fruits of penance for sins of commission and omission, the souls of these are cleansed after death by purgatorial punishments; and so that they may be released from punishments of this kind, the suffrages of the living faithful are of advantage to them, namely, the sacrifices of Masses, prayers, and almsgiving, and other works of piety, which are customarily performed by the faithful for other faithful according to the institutions of the Church. And that the souls of those, who after the reception of baptism have incurred no stain of sin at all, and also those, who after the contraction of the stain of sin whether in their bodies, or when released from the same bodies, as we have said before, are purged, are immediately received into heaven, and see clearly the one and triune God Himself just as He is, yet according to the diversity of merits, one more perfectly than another. Moreover, the souls of those who depart in actual mortal sin or in original sin only, descend immediately into hell but to undergo punishments of different kinds [see n.464].
