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Will the Stars still move around in the Sky?

5/30/2013

Will the movement of heavenly bodies cease? Yes

But not from a natural cause. Final end of movement will still be present that is to imitate Divine Goodness in its causality over inferiors.

Instead by the action of the Divine will. Man will no longer need service of physical bodies for sustenance (growth and generation), but only for sense knowledge, to see with the eyes the wonders of God.
St Thomas.

Will the Earth be glorified or renewed

5/30/2013

Will the World be renewed?
St. Thomas Answers, Yes.

From

1. A new Heaven and Earth, Isaiah 65:17

2. First Heaven and Earth passed away. Apoc. 21:1

3. Wherein justice dwells according to His promises 2 Pet. 3:13

4. Man naturally loves the World as a creature of God and is part of it, from its clay, so to speak, so he desires its good. Therefore his natural desire is for its happiness to be attained and this will not happen until the World is improved by renewal.

Conclusion

Bodily things served man in 2 ways:

1. By sustaining bodily life. This is not necessary in glorified man because the divine power which glorifies the soul will make his body completely incorruptible.

2. By enabling him to know God. From visible creatures. Rom. 1:20. This will not be necessary with respect to intellectual knowledge because intellect will immediately see God by His essence.

But it will be necessary for the World to be renewed with respect to the senses which are not capable to attain or see the Divine Essence.
Thus they will be satisfied in a proportionate manner as they can’t see God immediately, but only through His physical effects, which are:

1. Glorified Body of Christ

2. Glorified Bodies of the Blessed

3. Other physical bodies of the World thus renewed by perfection & Glory, but no change in what is really consisted.

Therefore the renewal of World corresponds to glorification of man.

Will the stars and planets be brighter after the end times?

5/29/2013

Will the brightness of heavenly bodies be increased at this renewal? Yes

St. Thomas says
1. Whole World will be renewed. But Heavens are more noble part of the World. So therefore, we conclude yes

2. From Scripture: Rom 8:19. Creation awaits the glory of the Saints. Therefore Something will need to increase to this creation.

Conclusion

1. Purpose for this increase is that God may be seen in a way by man through a manifest physical sign.

2. The appearance and beauty of creatures principally manifests the wisdom of their creator, so this would be fitting but greater brightness.

3. Therefore God will improve the beauty of the heavenly bodies, stars etc. by increasing their brightness in quantity. The heavenly bodies which have not been affected by man's sins will not need to be purified by the fire at the end of the world. Only those where man has tainted in some way.

A New Heaven and New planets?

5/29/2013

Will the heavens to be renewed, does this mean the planets?

St Thomas say, yes, this fire will remove all contrary dispositions from all bodies (heavenly or earthly) thus preparing them for their perfection and ultimate consummation

Hunker Down, batten down the Hatches

5/28/2013

Bishop Williamson tells us to hunker down, not just the end of the world but we need to be prepared.

Are we at the end of the World?

5/27/2013

Fr Chazal talks about whether we are near the end of the world or not. Fr Chazal talks about whether we are at the end of the world in the history of the world according to scripture and prophesies

The Last Things- The destruction of all things?

5/27/2013

Will this purification result in the destruction or annihilation of certain things?

Obj. To purify fire uses the matter of other things and thus as they burn their nature becomes void

Resp. This fire will cause only purification, not corruption since it is acting by divine power which can prevent the corruption. The matter will simply return to its original and pure state.

St. Augustine = “the world will pass by a change in things, not by their complete destruction

Conclusion

The elements will remain with respect to their substance and proper qualities

But they will be purified from the infection caused by:

1) sins of man and

2) their actions on each other which produce in them unnatural dispositions

The Last Things - Fire cleansing the earth

5/27/2013

Will this fire be of same species as earthly fire?

Obj. 2 - Something that works with a certain power indicates that its nature has this power earthly fire by nature can not do much.
Resp. 2 - This is only true when a nature operates by its own power, not when it is being used as an instrument and receives a power higher than its own. This purifying action comes from the divine power

Obj. 3 - The the various earthly fire work the same but this fire will move everywhere unlike it does now, so must be not earthly.
Resp. 3 - The fire as instrument of divine power it will have the power to move everywhere

Conclusion:

The generation of this fire will be different but variety of fires will be the same insofar as it affects all matter as an instrument of and by the special intervention of God.
This purging by fire will probably be a grouping together by divine power of all causes capable of causing fire (fire from heaven and below)

The Last Things - Questions

5/27/2013

Will this purification be by fire?

Obj. 1 - But fire is a part of the of the world so fire itself must be purified.
Resp. 1 - Fire is not used by us now in its own matter (pure state) and thus matter will be able to be purified by fire in its pure state
Obj. 2 - But does not water also has a purifying power (deluge)
Resp. 2 - The Deluge was a suitable purification for the personal infection of sin, but for the impurity mixed in with creatures water has not power to purify/separate. (fire can purify all things with or without the destruction)
Obj. 3 - By saying cleansing, this means to separate, but only God can do this, not a creature.
Resp. 3 – This is a purgation which means to return things to the purity in which they were created which can be done through an instrument, namely fire.

To all these we read in Scripture:

II Pet 3,10 “the day of the Lord will come as a thief; at that time the heavens will pass away with great violence and the elements will be dissolved with heat and the earth and the works that are in it will be burned up”

Conclusion
Purification by fire in convenient for 3 reasons :

i) fire is the most noble of four elements is has properties most similar to glory (light)

ii) fire is not contaminated from something outside since it is an active power

iii) fire is not common (not an element) that can become tainted by sin and thus has a great efficacy to purify

Will the created world be cleansed?

5/27/2013

Will there be a cleansing of the created world?

Obj. 1 - All the creatures that God made were good therefore there is no need for purification
Resp. 1 - perfection of creatures considered in 2 ways

a) regarding their substance : creatures are simply good and therefore not in need of purification
b) as mixed with foreign nature which is inconsistent with its perfection : evil becomes accidental to creature this therefore needs purification

Obj. 2 - Purification is to take away uncleanness of fault but fault does not infect elements of world
Resp. 2 - The elements become the subject of fault by being used to commit the fault therefore they are not suited to to receive glory till this be taken away.

But in Scripture we see:

Apoc 21,1 and II Pet 3,10-13 speaks of a renewal of heaven and earth which implies a certain purification

Conclusion

The World which is the means for man to attain heaven, it also should attain to a better state when man is glorified by his body. Just as man attains glory by purification from corruption and faults, by suffering here or in Purgatory, so the elements of world must be purified from all contrary dispositions (due to bad use made of them) which produce in them a certain unsuitability to be glorified.

<<Previous

Will the Stars still move around in the Sky?

Will the Earth be glorified or renewed

Will the stars and planets be brighter after the end times?

A New Heaven and New planets?

Hunker Down, batten down the Hatches

Are we at the end of the World?

The Last Things- The destruction of all things?

The Last Things - Fire cleansing the earth

The Last Things - Questions

Will the created world be cleansed?

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