Question about Evening Prayer in LoH

[natestar]

I have been curious of the following intercession for evening prayer wednesday week III:

“Be merciful to the faithful departed, keep them from the power of the Evil One.”

Can anyone explain to me what power the evil one has over the faithful departed? Or perhaps the origins of this petition? I checked the Latin and the english is a fairly accurate translation.

Thanks,

Nate

 

[EsclavoDeCristo]

natestar:

I have been curious of the following intercession for evening prayer wednesday week III:

“Be merciful to the faithful departed, keep them from the power of the Evil One.”

Can anyone explain to me what power the evil one has over the faithful departed? Or perhaps the origins of this petition? I checked the Latin and the english is a fairly accurate translation.

Thanks,

Nate

Wow you’ve sparked my curiosity. I’ll have to check it out. I have it in both English and Spanish. Unfortunately I do not have an answer for you! Good luck and God bless you!

 

[Fortiterinre]

My interpretation would be simply that it is a petition that the dead avoid Hell. I agree it is awkwardly phrased.

 

[EsclavoDeCristo]

Fortiterinre:

My interpretation would be simply that it is a petition that the dead avoid Hell. I agree it is awkwardly phrased.

If you are dead, is there anything you can do to avoid Hell? I thought you either go to Hell, Heaven or Purgatory. If you are in Purgatory you will definately go to Heaven (eventually). Am I wrong?

So I think the question is why would that petition be in the LoH since there is nothing the dead can do? Their fate is allready determined with exception to intercession for their stay in purgatory.

 

[EsclavoDeCristo]

natestar:

I have been curious of the following intercession for evening prayer wednesday week III:

“Be merciful to the faithful departed, keep them from the power of the Evil One.”

Can anyone explain to me what power the evil one has over the faithful departed? Or perhaps the origins of this petition? I checked the Latin and the english is a fairly accurate translation.

Thanks,

Nate

So have you found out the answer yet?

 

[Ter]

Prayer can apply retrospectively. So you can pray now that someone who has already died be preserved from Hell & your prayer can be/was helpful to them. God is not limited by time, thats part of where the whole concept of the Sacrafice of the Mass.

 

[Fergal]

Well in my humble opinion, holy souls in purgatory are there in sorrow. Sorrow is very close to despair. To be close to God yet out of view and away from the glow of his love makes it very easy for these souls to come close to despair. Despair is evil.
Being close to the evil ones in hell allows them to exert an influence on the Holy Souls and blur the fine line between sorrow and despair.

It has been said that in Purgatory also it is hard to discern between imagination and reality. The evil ones can affect the discernment. They are not in Purgatory, obviously, but they can and do exert and influence.

It makes perfect sense to me that since Purgatory is away from God it must be close to the power of evil. In Purgatory what is spiritual here is physical there.

We are praying that the effects evil tries to have on the Holy Souls will be minimised and neutralised by our prayer. Helping the Holy Souls to regain great Hope and focus on the virtues of Heaven so that they practise them with full vigour whilst all the time making reparation for sin.

Only my humble opinion and probably way off the mark!!