I hate hard deadlines. I feel so flustered, and there is nothing in the year of family life with a harder deadline than Christmas. You have to gather it all up, decorate it all up, and party it up before the 25 gets here. When it's past midnight and I'm still wrapping, it feels as though only death has a firmer though unknown end point. I was chatting with a friend about Christmas work, when it occurred to me that I'm a Catholic now--a Catholic Christmas starts Christmas Eve and keeps right on going into early January. My timeline suddenly felt generous. I find that deadline extension comforting, even though I'll still need to get the presents wrapped and the fancy clothes organized by the day, I will have a luxurious amount of time to reflect on the meaning of the season and Christ's place in my life.
Sometimes preparing for death seems as crammed and crowded as Christmas. We have so much to do, to be, to share, and things get behind. My first priest said that Purgatory is an acknowledgement that we die with sin and that that must be cleaned away. How comforting! I'd hate to show up in the Lord's presence still dragging this crap along. A chance to "shower and change into his righteousness" is just the thing. Purgatory is a deadline extension. a chance to reflect on the meaning of life and Christ's place in it.
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