Sed contra: Est quod Gregorius dicit, quod, sicut sub eodem igne aurum rutilat et palea fumat, ita sub eodem igne peccator crematur et electus purgatur. Ergo idem est ignis purgatorii et inferni. Et sic in eodem loco sunt. On the contrary, Gregory says that just as in the same fire gold is reddened while chaff turns to smoke, so in the same fire a sinner reduced to ashes while one of the elect is purified. Therefore, the fire of purgatory and of hell is the same, and thus they are in the same place. Praeterea, sancti patres ante adventum Christi fuerunt in loco digniori quam sit locus in quo nunc purgantur animae post mortem: quia non erat ibi aliqua poena sensibilis. Sed locus ille erat coniunctus inferno, vel idem quod infernus: alias Christus, ad limbum descendens, non diceretur ad inferos descendisse. Ergo et purgatorium est in eodem loco, vel iuxta infernum. Further, Before the coming of Christ the holy patriarchs were in a worthier place than the place where the souls are purified after death, for there was no sensible pain there. But that place was either the same as hell or attached to it, otherwise Christ would not be said to have descended into hell when he descended to limbo. Therefore, purgatory is in the same place as, or connected with, hell. Respondeo dicendum quod de loco purgatorii non invenitur aliquid expresse determinatum in Scriptura, nec rationes possunt ad hoc efficaces induci. Tamen probabiliter, et secundum quod consonat magis Sanctorum dictis et revelationi factae multis, locus purgatorii est duplex. Unus secundum legem communem. Et sic locus purgatorii est locus inferior inferno coniunctus, ita quod idem ignis sit qui damnatos cruciat in inferno, et qui iustos in purgatorio purgat: quamvis damnati, secundum quod sunt inferiores merito, et loco inferiores ordinandi sint. Alius est locus purgatorii secundum dispensationem. Et sic quandoque in diversis locis aliqui puniti leguntur: vel ad vivorum instructionem; vel ad mortuorum subventionem, ut viventibus eorum poena innotescens per suffragia Ecclesiae mitigaretur. I answer that, Concerning purgatory’s location nothing specific is expressly found in Scripture, nor can one offer effective arguments about it. Yet probably, and according to what agrees most with the words of the saints and the revelation made to many, there are two places for purgatory. One is according to the common law. And in this purgatory’s location is a lower place, connected with hell, so that it is the same fire that torments the damned in hell and purifies the just in purgatory; although the damned, as lower in merit, are also relegated to a lower place. The other is the place for purgatory by special dispensation; and this is why it is read sometimes that certain people are punished in different places, whether for the instruction of the living, or for the aid of the dead, so that by making their suffering known to the living, it might be reduced through the Church’s intercession. Quidam tamen dicunt quod secundum legem communem locus purgatorii est ubi homo peccat. Quod non videtur probabile: quia simul potest homo puniri pro peccatis quae in diversis locis commisit. However, some people say that according to the common law purgatory’s place is wherever a man sins. But this does not seem probable, since a man can be punished at the same time for sins that he committed in different places. Quidam vero dicunt quod puniuntur supra nos secundum legem communem: quia sunt medii inter nos et Deum quantum ad statum. Sed hoc nihil est. Quia non puniuntur pro eo quod supra nos sunt: sed pro eo quod est infimum in eis, scilicet peccatum. But other people say that they are punished above us according to the common law, for they are in a middle place between us and God according to their state. But there is nothing in this, for they are not punished for being above us, but for what is lowest in them, namely, sin. Ad primum ergo dicendum quod ignis purgatorius est aeternus quantum ad substantiam, sed temporalis quantum ad effectum purgationis. Reply Obj. 1: The fire of purgatory is eternal as to its substance, but temporal as to the effect of purification. Ad secundum dicendum quod poena inferni est ad affligendum: et ideo nominatur ab omnibus illis quae hic nos affligere consueverunt. Sed poena purgatorii est principaliter ad purgandum reliquias peccati. Et ideo sola poena ignis purgatorio attribuitur: quia ignis habet purgare et consumere. Reply Obj. 2: The suffering of hell exists for the sake of affliction, and so it is named from all those things that usually afflict us here. But the suffering of purgatory is chiefly for purifying the traces of sin, and this is why only the suffering of fire is attributed to purgatory, because fire has the capacity to purify and consume. Ad tertium dicendum quod ratio illa procedit secundum dispensationem, et non secundum legem communem. Reply Obj. 3: That argument proceeds according to a special dispensation, and not according to the common law. Articulus 3 Article 3 Utrum poena purgatorii excedat omnem poenam temporalem huius vitae Whether the punishment of purgatory exceeds all temporal suffering of this life? Ad tertium sic proceditur. Videtur quod poena purgatorii non excedat omnem poenam temporalem huius vitae. Quanto enim aliquid est magis passivum, tanto magis affligitur, si sensum laesionis habeat. Sed corpus est magis passivum quam anima separata: tum quia habet contrarietatem ad ignem agentem; tum quia habet materiam quae est susceptiva qualitatis agentis, quod de anima non potest dici. Ergo maior est poena quam corpus patitur in hoc mundo, quam poena qua anima purgatur post hanc vitam. Obj. 1: It seems that the suffering of purgatory does not exceed all the temporal suffering of this life. For the more something is passive, the more it is afflicted if it has the sensation of injury. But a body is more susceptible to being acted upon than a separated soul, both because it has a contrariety to the fire acting on it, and because it has matter that is susceptible to a quality acting on it, which cannot be said about a soul. Therefore, the pain that a body suffers in this world is greater than the suffering by which a soul is purified after this life. Praeterea, poena purgatorii directe ordinatur contra venialia. Sed venialibus, cum sint levissima peccata, levissima poena debetur, si secundum mensuram delicti sit plagarum modus. Ergo poena purgatorii est levissima. Obj. 2: Further, the suffering of purgatory is directly ordered against venial sin. But venial sins, since they are the lightest of sins, should have the lightest punishment, if the number of lashes are according to the measure of the offense (Deut 25:2). Therefore, the suffering of purgatory is very light. Praeterea, reatus, cum sit effectus culpae, non intenditur nisi culpa intendatur; Sed in illo cui iam culpa dimissa est, non potest culpa intendi. Ergo in eo cui culpa mortalis dimissa est pro qua non plene satisfecit, reatus non crescit in morte. Sed in hac vita non erat ei reatus respectu gravissimae poenae. Ergo poena quam patietur post hanc vitam, non erit ei gravior omni poena istius vitae. Obj. 3: Further, liability to punishment, since it is an effect of guilt, is not intensified unless the guilt is intensified. But in someone whose guilt is already forgiven, guilt cannot be intensified. Therefore, when someone has been forgiven for a mortal sin yet has not made full satisfaction for it, his liability to punishment does not grow after he has died. But in this life he was not liable to punishment with respect to the worst punishment. Therefore, the punishment that he will suffer after this life will not be worse than every suffering of this life. Sed contra: Est quod Augustinus dicit, in quodam Sermone: ille ignis purgatorii durior erit quam quidquid in hoc saeculo poenarum qui sentire aut videre aut cogitare quis potest. On the contrary, Augustine says in one of his sermons: that fire of purgatory will be harsher than anything one can feel or see or think in this world of punishments. Praeterea, quanto poena est universalior, tanto maior. Sed anima separata tota punitur: cum sit simplex. Non autem ita est de corpore. Ergo illa poena quae est animae separatae, est maior omni poena quam corpus patitur. Further, The more universal a punishment is, the greater it is. But the whole separated soul is punished, since it is simple; but it is not so with the body. Therefore, that suffering that belongs to the separated soul is greater than every suffering that the body suffers. Respondeo dicendum quod in purgatorio erit duplex poena: una damni, inquantum scilicet retardantur a divina visione; alias sensus, secundum quod ab igne corporali punientur; et quantum ad utrumque poena purgatorii minima excedit maximam poenam huius vitae. I answer that, In purgatory there are two punishments: one of loss, namely, inasmuch as souls are held back from the divine vision; the other, of sense, according as they are physically punished by fire. And in both, the least punishment of purgatory exceeds the greatest punishment of this life. Quanto enim aliquid magis desideratur, tanto eius absentia est molestior. Et quia affectus quo desideratur summum bonum, post hanc vitam in animabus sanctis est intensissimus, quia non retardatur affectus mole corporis; et etiam quia terminus fruendi summo bono iam advenisset nisi aliquid impediret; ideo de tardatione maxime dolent. For the more something is desired, the more troubling is its absence. And because the affection by which the highest good is desired in holy souls after this life is the most intense, since the affection is not held back by the weight of the body, and since the enjoyment of the highest good would have been attained by then had nothing impeded it, they suffer extremely from this detainment. Similiter etiam, cum dolor non sit laesio, sed laesionis sensus, tanto aliquid magis dolet de aliquo laesivo, quanto magis est sensitivum: unde laesiones quae fiunt, in locis maxime sensibilibus, sunt maximum dolorem causantes. Et quia totus sensus corporis est ab anima, ideo, si in ipsam animam aliquod laesivum agat, de necessitate oportet quod maxime affligatur. Quod autem anima ab igne corporali patiatur, hoc ad praesens supponimus: quia de hoc infra, dist. 44, dicetur. Et ideo oportet quod poena purgatorii, quantum ad poenam damni et sensus, excedat omnem poenam istius vitae. Similarly, because sorrow is not so much due to an injury but to the sensation of the injury, the more sensitive someone is, the more he suffers from anything harmful, which is why the injuries that happen in the most sensitive places are the most painful. And since all the sensation of the body is from the soul, for this reason if anything injurious is at work in the soul itself, it necessarily must be most afflicted. Now for the moment we will suppose that the soul suffers from a physical fire (Cf. Q. 70, A. 3; Sentences Dist. 44). And therefore the punishment of purgatory in the suffering of loss and of sense exceeds every punishment of this life. Quidam autem assignant rationem ex hoc quod anima tota punitur, non autem corpus. Sed hoc nihil est. Quia sic poena damnatorum esset minor post resurrectionem quam ante. Quod falsum est. However, some people argue this conclusion from the fact that the whole soul is punished without the body. But there is nothing in this, for then the punishment of the damned would be less after the resurrection than before, which is false. Ad primum ergo dicendum quod, quamvis anima sit minus passiva quam corpus, tamen est magis cognoscitiva passionis. Et ubi est maior passionis sensus, ibi est maior dolor, etiam si sit minor passio. Reply Obj. 1: Although the soul is less susceptible to harm than the body, nevertheless it is more aware of suffering. And where there is greater sense of suffering there is greater pain, even if there is less harm. Ad secundum dicendum quod acerbitas illius poenae non est tantum ex quantitate peccati, quantum ex dispositione puniti: quia idem peccatum gravius punitur ibi quam hic. Sicut ille qui est melioris complexionis, magis punitur, eisdem plagis impositis, quam alius: et tamen iudex utrique easdem plagas pro eisdem culpis inferens iuste facit. Reply Obj. 2: The severity of that punishment is not so much from the amount of sin as from the disposition of the one punished, for the same sin is punished more heavily there than here; just as someone who has a finer complexion is punished more than another by the same lashes inflicted, and yet the judge, imposing the same number of lashes on both for the same faults, acts justly. Et per hoc etiam patet solutio ad tertium. This suffices for the reply to the third objection. Articulus 4 Article 4 Utrum illa poena sit voluntaria Whether that suffering is voluntary? Ad quartum sic proceditur. Videtur quod illa poena sit voluntaria. Quia illi qui sunt in purgatorio, rectum cor habent. Sed haec est rectitudo cordis, ut quis voluntatem suam voluntati divinae conformet, ut Augustinus dicit. Ergo, cum Deus velit eos puniri, ipsi illam poenam voluntarie sustinent. Obj. 1: It seems that that suffering is voluntary. For those who are in purgatory have upright hearts. But this is uprightness of heart, that someone conform his own will to the divine will, as Ambrose says. Therefore, since God wills to punish them, they voluntarily endure that punishment. Praeterea, omnis sapiens vult illud sine quo non potest pervenire ad finem intentum. Sed illi qui sunt in purgatorio, sciunt se non posse pervenire ad gloriam nisi prius puniantur. Ergo volunt puniri. Obj. 2: Further, every wise person wills whatever is necessary for attaining his intended end. But those who are in purgatory know that they cannot attain to glory unless they are first punished. Therefore, they will to be punished. Sed contra, nullus petit liberari a poena quam voluntarie sustinet. Sed illi qui sunt in purgatorio, petunt liberari: sicut patet per multa quae in Dialogo narrantur. Ergo non sustinent illam poenam voluntarie. On the contrary, No one begs to be freed from suffering that he willingly endures. But those who are in purgatory beg to be freed, as is clear from many things that are told in the Dialogues. Therefore, they do not endure that suffering willingly. Respondeo dicendum quod aliquid dicitur voluntarium dupliciter. Uno modo, voluntate absoluta. Et sic nulla poena est voluntaria: quia ex hoc est ratio poenae quod voluntati contrariatur. I answer that, Something is called voluntary in two ways. In one way, by an absolute will, and then no punishment is voluntary, for by the very nature of punishment it is contrary to the will. Alio modo dicitur aliquid voluntarium voluntate conditionata: sicut ustio est voluntaria propter sanitatem consequendam. Et sic aliqua poena potest esse voluntaria dupliciter. Uno modo quia per poenam aliquod bonum acquirimus: et sic ipsa voluntas assumit poenam aliquam, ut patet in satisfactione. Vel etiam quia ille libenter eam accipit, et non vellet eam non esse: Sicut accidit in martyrio. Alio modo quia, quamvis per poenam nullum bonum nobis accrescat, tamen sine poena ad bonum pervenire non possumus: sicut patet de morte naturali. Et tunc voluntas non assumit poenam, et vellet ab ea liberari, sed eam supportat: et quantum ad hoc voluntaria dicitur. Et sic poena purgatorii est voluntaria. In another way, something is said to be voluntary by a conditional will, as burning is voluntary because of the health that will result; and in this way a punishment can be voluntary in two ways. In one way, because by this punishment we acquire some good, and so the will itself takes on a punishment, as is seen in the case of satisfaction; or also because someone accepts it willingly, and he did not wish it to be, as happens in martyrdom. In the other way, because although no good accrues to us by the punishment, nevertheless we cannot attain the good without the punishment, as is seen in the case of natural death. And then the will does not take on the punishment but wishes to be freed from it; and yet the will endures it, and for this it is said to be ‘voluntary.’ And this is how the punishment of purgatory is voluntary. Quidam autem dicunt quod non est aliquo modo voluntaria: quia sunt ita absorpti poenis quod nesciunt se per poenam purgari, sed putant se esse damnatos. Sed hoc est falsum. Quia, nisi scirent se liberandos, suffragia non peterent: quod frequenter faciunt. Now some people say that it is not voluntary in any way, for the souls are so absorbed by their sufferings that they do not know they are being purified by them, but they believe themselves to be damned. But this is false: for unless they knew they would be freed, they would not beg for prayers, which they often do. Et per hoc patet solutio ad obiecta. And by this the answers to the objections are clear. Articulus 5 Article 5 Utrum animae in purgatorio per daemones puniantur Whether souls in purgatory are punished by demons? Ad quintum sic proceditur. Videtur quod animae in purgatorio per daemones puniantur. Quia, sicut infra, dist. 47, dicit Magister, illos habent tortores in poenis quos habuerunt incentores in culpa. Sed daemones incitant ad culpam non solum mortalem, sed etiam venialem, quando aliud non possunt. Ergo etiam in purgatorio ipsi animas pro peccatis venialibus torquebunt. Obj. 1: It seems that the souls in purgatory are punished by the demons. For as the Master says at the end of Distinction 47, they will have as torturers in their punishments those who were their provokers in sin. But the demons incite us not only to mortal sin, but also to venial sin, when they cannot do worse. Therefore, they also torture those souls who are in purgatory for venial sins. Praeterea, purgatio a peccatis competit iustis et in hac vita et post hanc vitam. Sed in hac vita purgantur per poenas a diabolo inflictas: sicut patet de Iob. Ergo etiam post hanc vitam punientur a daemonibus purgandi. Obj. 2: Further, purification from sins applies to the just both in this life and after this life. But in this life they are purified through the sufferings inflicted by the devil, as is seen in the case of Job. Therefore, those to be purified after this life are also punished by demons. Sed contra, iniustum est ut qui de aliquo triumphavit, ei subiiciatur post triumphum. Sed illi qui sunt in purgatorio, de daemonibus triumphaverunt, sine peccato mortali decedentes. Ergo non subiicientur eis puniendi per eos. On the contrary, It is unjust that someone who has triumphed over another be subject to him after the triumph. But those who are in purgatory have triumphed over the demons by dying without mortal sin. Therefore, they are not subject to being punished by them.