Indulgences In my own words, an indulgence is the act of saying special prayers, called "indulgences", in order to eliminate or lessen the time we or whomever we are praying for will spend in purgatory for their/our sins.According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, the word indulgence (Lat. indulgentia, from indulgeo, means to be kind or tender) originally meant kindness or favor; in post-classic Latin it came to mean the remission of a tax or debt. In Roman law and in the Vulgate of the Old Testament (Is., lxi, 1) it was used to express release from captivity or punishment. In theological language also the word is sometimes employed in its primary sense to signify the kindness and mercy of God. But in the special sense in which it is here considered, an indulgence is a remission of the temporal punishment due to sin, the guilt of which has been forgiven. Among the equivalent terms used in antiquity were pax, remissio, donatio, condonatio. New Plenary Indulgence to Mark Year of the Eucharist Established to Help Faithful Grow in "Mystery of Faith" VATICAN CITY, JAN. 14, 2005 - John Paul II has approved a special plenary indulgence to mark the Year of the Eucharist.According to a decree of the Apostolic Penitentiary, during the Year of the Eucharist a plenary indulgence may be gained by participating in acts of worship and veneration of the Most Holy Sacrament, as well as by praying vespers and compline of the Divine Office before the tabernacle.The decree, dated Dec. 25 and published today by the Vatican press office, is signed by Cardinal James Francis Stafford and Father John Francis Girotti, respectively major penitentiary and regent of the Apostolic Penitentiary.The objective of the papal disposition, the document indicates, is to "exhort the faithful in the course of this year, to a more profound knowledge and more intense love of the ineffable 'mystery of faith,' so that they will reap ever more abundant spiritual fruits."The decree reminds the faithful that to obtain a plenary indulgence it is necessary to observe the "usual conditions": "sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion, and prayer in keeping with the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff, with the soul completely removed from attachment to any form of sin."In the Year of the Eucharist -- which began October 2004 and will end October 2005, when the world Synod of Bishops will be held on the Eucharist -- the plenary indulgence may be obtained in two ways.In the first place, according to the decree, "each time the faithful participate attentively and piously in a sacred function or a devotional exercise undertaken in honor of the Blessed Sacrament, solemnly exposed or conserved in the tabernacle."In the second place, it is granted "to the clergy, to members of institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life, and to other faithful who are by law obliged to recite the Liturgy of the Hours, as well as to those who customarily recite the Divine Office out of pure devotion, each and every time they recite -- at the end of the day, in company or private -- vespers and night prayers before the Lord present in the tabernacle."The decree also provides the granting of the plenary indulgence to those persons who, due to illness or other just cause, cannot participate in an act of worship of the sacrament of the Eucharist in a church or oratory. These persons will obtain the plenary indulgence "if they make the visit spiritually and with the heart's desire, with a spirit of faith in the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Sacrament of the Altar, and pray the Our Father and Creed, adding a pious invocation to Jesus in the Sacrament (for example, "May the Most Holy Sacrament be blessed and praised forever"). Obviously, in all cases, the conditions established to receive a plenary indulgence must be respected. "If they are unable to do even this, they will receive a plenary indulgence if they unite themselves with interior desire to those who practice the normal conditions laid down for Indulgences, and offer the merciful God the illnesses and discomforts of their lives, with the intention of observing the three usual conditions as soon as possible," the decree states. The decree calls on priests, especially pastors, to inform the faithful on these dispositions, to prepare "with generous and ready spirit" to hear confessions and, in days that are determined according to the convenience of the faithful, to lead them "in solemn public recitation of prayers to Jesus in the Sacrament." Finally, the decree exhorts the faithful "to give open witness of faith and veneration for the Blessed Sacrament." The dispositions were approved by the Holy Father during the audience granted on Dec. 17 to Cardinal Stafford and Fr. Girotti. The decree will be in force during the Eucharistic Year, starting this Saturday, Jan. 15, the day of its publication in the Italian edition of L'Osservatore Romano. In number 1471, the Catechism of the Catholic Church explains that "[a]n indulgence is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven, which the faithful Christian who is duly disposed gains under certain prescribed conditions through the action of the Church which, as the minister of redemption, dispenses and applies with authority the treasury of the satisfactions of Christ and the saints." Number 1479 adds: "Since the faithful departed now being purified are also members of the same communion of saints, one way we can help them is to obtain indulgences for them, so that the temporal punishment due for their sins may be remitted." ** In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interestin receiving the included information for nonprofit research and educational purposes only.[Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ] I am going to add a new section of Indulgence prayers to make it easier for the viewer to understand. Please be patient and return to this Web page, as I am researching and finding these very useful prayers. For now, below are two links to indulgences. A Primer On IndulgencesEnchiridion of Indulgences What An Indulgence Is Not To facilitate explanation, it may be well to state what an indulgence is not. It is not a permission to commit sin, nor a pardon of future sin; neither could be granted by any power. It is not the forgiveness of the guilt of sin; it supposes that the sin has already been forgiven. It is not an exemption from any law or duty, and much less from the obligation consequent on certain kinds of sin, e.g., restitution; on the contrary, it means a more complete payment of the debt which the sinner owes to God. It does not confer immunity from temptation or remove the possibility of subsequent lapses into sin. Least of all is an indulgence the purchase of a pardon which secures the buyer's salvation or releases the soul of another from Purgatory. The absurdity of such notions must be obvious to any one who forms a correct idea of what the Catholic Church really teaches on this subject. I have always said certain prayers which are indulgences, and always said them because they were either beneficial to my deceased friends and relatives, or for someone who was dying, or for my family and myself. These prayers are not hard to say, and they give a great comfort and feeling of accomplishment toward something that is just about the most positive thing we can do for ourselves. Talk about good for you...indulgences are probably one of the best things you can do for yourself and if you think the time is wasted saying the prayers, well, the only way to know that is yet to come. I will list links to various pages on indulgences, and I will also list a page which refers to the indulgence prayers themselves.There are different kinds of indulgences also. Plenary indulgences wipe away all sin, and temporal indulgences wipe away only some of the time you will spend in purgatory thereby wiping away only some of the sins, that is the time you would spend in purgatory for those sins. Whatever you decide to do with your life, saying prayers to our Lord and Savior is never wasted time. You can pray while you drive to work, or do your chores or errands, and you can sing God's praises anytime at all. Talking to God is being in touch with Him, who loves us so much. It would be rude, or unthoughtful to ignore or shun anyone you love and who loves you, therefore, why would you ignore the One Who loves you the most. The One Who gave you everyone and everything you come in contact with, and only He can change things in your life. All you have to do is ask. Please keep in mind that we plan for our retirement by investing in retirement plans such as IRAs. Penary Indulgences are sort of like that, if you think about it...preparing our souls for Heaven...
According to the Catholic Encyclopedia, the word indulgence (Lat. indulgentia, from indulgeo, means to be kind or tender) originally meant kindness or favor; in post-classic Latin it came to mean the remission of a tax or debt. In Roman law and in the Vulgate of the Old Testament (Is., lxi, 1) it was used to express release from captivity or punishment. In theological language also the word is sometimes employed in its primary sense to signify the kindness and mercy of God. But in the special sense in which it is here considered, an indulgence is a remission of the temporal punishment due to sin, the guilt of which has been forgiven. Among the equivalent terms used in antiquity were pax, remissio, donatio, condonatio.
New Plenary Indulgence to Mark Year of the Eucharist
Established to Help Faithful Grow in "Mystery of Faith"
VATICAN CITY, JAN. 14, 2005 - John Paul II has approved a special plenary indulgence to mark the Year of the Eucharist.According to a decree of the Apostolic Penitentiary, during the Year of the Eucharist a plenary indulgence may be gained by participating in acts of worship and veneration of the Most Holy Sacrament, as well as by praying vespers and compline of the Divine Office before the tabernacle.The decree, dated Dec. 25 and published today by the Vatican press office, is signed by Cardinal James Francis Stafford and Father John Francis Girotti, respectively major penitentiary and regent of the Apostolic Penitentiary.The objective of the papal disposition, the document indicates, is to "exhort the faithful in the course of this year, to a more profound knowledge and more intense love of the ineffable 'mystery of faith,' so that they will reap ever more abundant spiritual fruits."The decree reminds the faithful that to obtain a plenary indulgence it is necessary to observe the "usual conditions": "sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion, and prayer in keeping with the intentions of the Supreme Pontiff, with the soul completely removed from attachment to any form of sin."In the Year of the Eucharist -- which began October 2004 and will end October 2005, when the world Synod of Bishops will be held on the Eucharist -- the plenary indulgence may be obtained in two ways.In the first place, according to the decree, "each time the faithful participate attentively and piously in a sacred function or a devotional exercise undertaken in honor of the Blessed Sacrament, solemnly exposed or conserved in the tabernacle."In the second place, it is granted "to the clergy, to members of institutes of consecrated life and societies of apostolic life, and to other faithful who are by law obliged to recite the Liturgy of the Hours, as well as to those who customarily recite the Divine Office out of pure devotion, each and every time they recite -- at the end of the day, in company or private -- vespers and night prayers before the Lord present in the tabernacle."The decree also provides the granting of the plenary indulgence to those persons who, due to illness or other just cause, cannot participate in an act of worship of the sacrament of the Eucharist in a church or oratory. These persons will obtain the plenary indulgence "if they make the visit spiritually and with the heart's desire, with a spirit of faith in the real presence of Jesus Christ in the Sacrament of the Altar, and pray the Our Father and Creed, adding a pious invocation to Jesus in the Sacrament (for example, "May the Most Holy Sacrament be blessed and praised forever"). Obviously, in all cases, the conditions established to receive a plenary indulgence must be respected. "If they are unable to do even this, they will receive a plenary indulgence if they unite themselves with interior desire to those who practice the normal conditions laid down for Indulgences, and offer the merciful God the illnesses and discomforts of their lives, with the intention of observing the three usual conditions as soon as possible," the decree states. The decree calls on priests, especially pastors, to inform the faithful on these dispositions, to prepare "with generous and ready spirit" to hear confessions and, in days that are determined according to the convenience of the faithful, to lead them "in solemn public recitation of prayers to Jesus in the Sacrament." Finally, the decree exhorts the faithful "to give open witness of faith and veneration for the Blessed Sacrament." The dispositions were approved by the Holy Father during the audience granted on Dec. 17 to Cardinal Stafford and Fr. Girotti. The decree will be in force during the Eucharistic Year, starting this Saturday, Jan. 15, the day of its publication in the Italian edition of L'Osservatore Romano. In number 1471, the Catechism of the Catholic Church explains that "[a]n indulgence is a remission before God of the temporal punishment due to sins whose guilt has already been forgiven, which the faithful Christian who is duly disposed gains under certain prescribed conditions through the action of the Church which, as the minister of redemption, dispenses and applies with authority the treasury of the satisfactions of Christ and the saints." Number 1479 adds: "Since the faithful departed now being purified are also members of the same communion of saints, one way we can help them is to obtain indulgences for them, so that the temporal punishment due for their sins may be remitted."
** In accordance with Title 17 U. S. C. Section 107, any copyrighted work in this message is distributed under fair use without profit or payment to those who have expressed a prior interestin receiving the included information for nonprofit research and educational purposes only.[Ref. http://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/17/107.shtml ]
I am going to add a new section of Indulgence prayers to make it easier for the viewer to understand. Please be patient and return to this Web page, as I am researching and finding these very useful prayers. For now, below are two links to indulgences.
A Primer On IndulgencesEnchiridion of Indulgences
There are different kinds of indulgences also. Plenary indulgences wipe away all sin, and temporal indulgences wipe away only some of the time you will spend in purgatory thereby wiping away only some of the sins, that is the time you would spend in purgatory for those sins.
Whatever you decide to do with your life, saying prayers to our Lord and Savior is never wasted time. You can pray while you drive to work, or do your chores or errands, and you can sing God's praises anytime at all. Talking to God is being in touch with Him, who loves us so much. It would be rude, or unthoughtful to ignore or shun anyone you love and who loves you, therefore, why would you ignore the One Who loves you the most. The One Who gave you everyone and everything you come in contact with, and only He can change things in your life. All you have to do is ask.
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