Good evening, sitetest!
I believe this is a very worthwhile topic and that the four last things (Death, Judgment, Hell, Heaven) ought to be subjects of mediation for all of us.
You wrote:
When I speculate, my speculations lead me to the conclude that it is likely that there are some souls in Hell.
Speculations? Some souls?
And that is why we can pray, "O my Jesus, forgive us our sins, save us from the fires of hell, and lead all souls to Heaven, especially those most in need of Thy mercy."
In a later post you write:
But I hope and pray that there are no human souls in Hell, and that ultimately, there will be no human souls in Hell.
If you or anyone else truly believes in the Fatima apparitions, then, in this case, you “hope and pray” for an impossibility.
I have a couple of points. Although your rendition is the way the “Fatima” prayer is said by most people in most places, it does not reflect the actual translation from the Portuguese as spoken by Our Lady to Sister Maria das Dores (Lucia) in 1917:
“O my Jesus, pardon us, and save us from the fire of hell; draw all souls to heaven, especially those in most need.” page 220: Our Lady of Fatima by William Thomas Walsh, Image Book.
We can speculate as to which souls are “in most need”, but, I don’t believe it necessarily refers to those who have abandoned Jesus Christ and His Church nor does it necessarily refer to those who WE mortals would consider the worst of sinners. The judgements of the Lord are inscrutable.
The second point is that if one believes in the Fatima apparitions, then why not also quote what Lucia said about her vision of hell and also what Our Lady has said about the “MANY” souls who go there?
"She opened Her [Our Lady’s]hands once more, as She had done the two previous months. The rays [of light] appeared to penetrate the earth, and we saw, as it were, a vast sea of fire. Plunged in this fire, we saw the demons and the souls [of the damned]. The latter were like transparent burning embers, all blackened or burnished bronze, having human forms. They were floating about in that conflagration, now raised into the air by the flames which issued from within themselves, together with great clouds of smoke. Now they fell back on every side like sparks in huge fires, without weight or equilibrium, amid shrieks and groans of pain and despair, which horrified us and made us tremble with fright (it must have been this sight which caused me to cry out, as people say they heard me). The demons were distinguished [from the souls of the damned] by their terrifying and repellent likeness to frightful and unknown animals, black and transparent like burning coals. That vision only lasted for a moment, thanks to our good Heavenly Mother, Who at the first apparition had promised to take us to Heaven. Without that, I think that we would have died of terror and fear."
And lastly:
Pray much and make sacrifices for sinners, for many souls go to hell because there is no one to make sacrifices for them.(Our Lady—August 19, 1917). [emphasis added]
I believe this is a very worthwhile topic and that the four last things (Death, Judgment, Hell, Heaven) ought to be subjects of mediation for all of us.
Amen!
Moreover, the fact that misunderstandings are had and overcome actually (at least, imho) add to the value herein. Thank you, each of you. You help me, and I am certain others, with your faith and knowledge.
I believe that Mary appeared to the three children, but what she said versus what may have come from the mind and imagination of Lucia is something we will never know.
In any case, private apparitions, even those sanctioned by the Church, may be believed or not by the Catholic faithful.
And, please, if you respond, refrain from your usual vitriol.
There was an excellent post or link in a post to an article by Fr. Groeschel (if my memory serves correctly) about the content and interpretation of private revelations. I believe it has bearing on your post to me.
It's past my bedtime, so I won't try to find it.
"We can speculate as to which souls are 'in most need', but, I don’t believe it necessarily refers to those who have abandoned Jesus Christ and His Church nor does it necessarily refer to those who WE mortals would consider the worst of sinners. The judgements of the Lord are inscrutable."
Nothing that I've written disagrees with this. I take "in most need" as those who most need Jesus' help to get to Heaven. I don't think I mentioned abandoning Jesus or His Church, nor did I mean to imply it.
In any event, from the human perspective, it isn't much of a hope to hope that no human souls are damned.
But the last human word on human life is death.
It isn't the last word, however.
sitetest