Two Judgments - real or apparent?

[bagged]

Is it possible that the two judgments, particular and final, are actually the same, but appear different to us because we are bounded by time and God is not? As C.S. Lewis puts it in The Screwtape Letters, our “kind of consciousness forces [us] to encounter the whole, self-consistent creative act as a series of successive events”.

I guess the existence of Purgatory before final judgment but not after would make the answer “no”, but curious if anyone else has given this some thought.

 

[JerryZ]

The judgement at the end of time pertains to the whole human race there it will disclosed and everyone will see the effects of our sins and our good acts.
Each one is judged when we die and we get our final destination. Heaven or Hell.
Remember, Purgatory is a “station” on our way to Heaven if we need it.
Peace!

 

[po18guy]

There is an element of time - not well understood - in purgatory. Time has to apply, or it would be a permanent state. We know that is not the case.

How this affects or demonstrates a difference between the particular and general judgment is above my theological grade.

A very good question for theologian Dr. David Anders on his EWTN radio show “Called to Communion”

 

[Todd_Easton]

I look upon the particular judgment as the judgment of the soul to heaven (via purgatory, if necessary) or hell and the general judgement as the judgment of the resurrected body to heaven or hell. Of course, the judgment of the body to heaven or hell will correspond to the judgment of the soul.

 

[bagged]

Thanks for the responses!

I think what I’m really wrestling with, more than the two judgments, is that we are subject to time and God is not. My thought was that perhaps there is only one judgment, which manifests itself to our body/soul composites as the final judgment within the bounds of time (which is the only way our body/soul composites can experience reality - “a series of successive events”), AND manifests itself to our souls upon separation from our bodies as a particular judgment outside the bounds time (which is how God experiences reality, how things really are). In other words, the “result” of the final judgment affects the soul immediately (I hesitate to use “immediately” here since it implies time) upon separation from the body because the soul is no longer subject to time (assumption on my part) and therefore all creation, including the final judgment, is happening (…or something like that, difficult to express a reality without time).

Anyway, along with this all being based on conjecture on my part, the existence of Purgatory directly contradicts it. Since the particular judgment has three possible results (Heaven, Purgatory, Hell) and the final judgment only two (Heaven, Hell), the two judgments are not the same.

There’s also the belief in the new Heaven and new Earth after the final judgment (CCC 1042-1050) which pretty much destroys whatever grasp I thought I had on this.

…there was a practical reason I was thinking about this, but I’ve forgotten what it was…something to do with a chance we, the Catholic Church, have at getting all souls to heaven…