Purgatory Monologue

In 1741, Jonathan Edwards preached his sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” to his congregation in Enfield, Connecticut. Although the sermon was given to his whole congregation, it was and still is purposefully directed towards unconverted non-Christians. Jonathan Edward’s sermon “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God” utilizes provocative diction, unsettling repetition, and belittling metaphors to prove that the only escape from God’s wrath is to convert to Christianity, rather than one depending “upon himself for his own security” (212). Jonathan Edwards challenges his audience to think deeper into his words and converting to Christianity through his provocative diction. In the beginning of the sermon, Edwards says that God possesses

As I learned nothing will kill me and I don’t understand this because I would like nothing else then to stop the eternal suffering and just end it all. Those thoughts had to wait until I found and killed her for good then maybe I would get my peace and resolve for once. I wiped the blood off my chin and collected all the coins from the dead putting them inside a pouch which slipped into the top of my corset. It’s not like they would be spending money anytime soon and I needed it to escape so I walked out of the tavern as if nothing happened and walked out of the town. I heard screaming and shrieks from a far but no one knew I had committed the murders and they couldn’t trace me to it they hadn’t even heard my name. I followed the hints of mother that I could through the years whether it be multiple killings in one area or her scent in the air. I had been closer on her trail and finally got into the same country she was

The humming was increasing in intensity when the first tentative wave of the fog arrived at our camp like I imagined the Angel of Death appeared as it rolled through Egypt. Actually, it looked exactly like what the special effects department dreamed up in the movie The Ten Commandments, a malicious flowing black fog looking for a victim. The tip of the first wave descended on us and all the mystery of the morning was explained in one horrifying second.

Man’s soul becomes consumed with fire and heat. The soul becomes hell, as the doomed sinner journeys into hell. The soul and hell represent dark isolation and

Purgatory has been an important aspect of organized religion from the early days of the church until now, but never more controversial then during the time of the protestant reformation.

“ They measure the length of their time in Purgatory as if by water-clock, counting centuries,

I slipped beneath the surface of the pool of grain, my hands sticking straight up over my head as I held my breath, preparing for death. I was preparing for the world to go silent. This was the exact situation my father had warned me about, and I had fallen victim to it despite that. Fourteen years old as of two months ago, and death had already come for me. Or so I thought. I felt firm, callused hands grasp my own, plucking me from my grave. The relief was wonderful. I drank the air in, filling my burning lungs with as much as possible. I almost laughed out of sheer happiness – until my eyes met my father’s.

According to a Roman Catholic tradition, a pilgrim returning from the Holy Land took refuge on a rocky island during a storm. There he met a hermit, who told him that among the cliffs was an opening to the infernal regions, through which flames ascended, and where groans of the tormented were distinctly audible. The pilgrim told Odilo, who was the head of the monks in a town in eastern France, who appointed the day following (November 2) to be set apart for the benefit of those souls in purgatory (  ). What has yet to be investigated is what today’s symbols of All Soul’s Day mean to those who celebrate it. To accomplish this, I analyze the myths that surrounded All Soul’s Day, and I focus on how the symbols that come out of these myths help

In Dante’s Purgatorio, Dante thoroughly describes his vision of Purgatory. He enters Purgatory with Virgil, his guide, and is carried to the gate by St. Lucia. After reaching the gate an angel puts seven Ps on his forehead, one for each of the seven terraces he has to pass. Each terrace corresponds with one of the seven deadly sins and includes a penance you must complete to move onto the next terrace and continue up the mountain. As Dante and Virgil go through their ascent of Mt. Purgatorio, Dante encounters many souls and learns many important lessons, most importantly, the reason why souls are in limbo, the lesson of Marco Lombardo, and the power of prayers.

Joy runs through my body as I tightly hold gabriel. I am going down the little hill to the elsewhere. I have made it Jonas thought. I am reliving my favorite memory of going down the hill in my red sled. I hear different sounds and I see new colors. This is amazing I thought. “Waaaaa” Gabriel shrieks he must be scared I don’t think he can handle this kind of travel. Unless we get him to a nursing center soon he might not be able to make it through the night. I reach my ending point my little red sled has stopped at the end of a steep slippery hill. This journey has made me very tired I don 't think I can walk, Actually I don 't think I can even stand. So, I lay there in the freezing cold snow all around me I see giant white hills, except for this one light that doesn 't look very far. I think that must be civilization. I prop gabriel on to the snow I wrap him in a soft cloth i bought for this journey. I cant see any bushes or rivers or civilization from where I am. I only have a little bit of food I don 't think me and gabriel will make it through the night. I look down at gabriel while he is asleep and think why he is soundly asleep now but could never sleep at our home. I rub his head but he doesn 't move, I shake his arms but he still won 't budge I saw his name and his eyes won 't open. Is he dead I think? I have learned about death before, but not in a calm way I have only seen gruesome death from the memories the giver has passed to me. I only have wisps of those

Eschatology was undeniably a preoccupation of the Medieval epoch. This was a period of revived macabre and Memento mori; the world, according to John of Patmos, was in last and final stage. Yet, there was nothing new about this apocalypticism; judgement had always been a common fixture in the Christian psyche, as Fredrickson asserts: ‘Christianity began with the announcement that time and history were about to end.’ What marked the Middle Ages as a transitional period in terms of eschatological thought, was an evolution in theological discourse regarding death. From the eleventh century, Purgatory, combined with the teachings of Church Fathers like Augustine of Hippo, fostered a resolve to immanentize salvation within the soul, marking a notable

Can you feel that? Ah, shit Oh, ah, ah, ah, ah Oh, ah, ah, ah, ah oh, oh,

In the Christian concept of Hell, the true torment lies not so much in the physical pain of fire but rather the emotional pain induced by man’s severance from God. For those of wavering spiritual faith and the more secular, the untoward effect of death is softened by companionship with the deceased through memory. The speaker asserts that isolation and lack of memory prostrate the “rustic moralist” (84) as “prey to forgetfulness” (85). The speaker insists that “Even from the tomb the voice of Nature cries / Even in our ashes live their wonted fires” (91-92) meaning that even in death, man yearns for recognition. By memorializing, the living impart an essence of life to the deceased.

There is a reoccurring theme throughout The Confessions where Puritans seem entirely burdened with guilt, typically due to their wavering faith or belief in God. It often seems that in times of adversity, they are unable to feel God’s presence and their misery completely clouds and obstructs their faith. Many of them also feel so out-of-touch with God, they feel they are undeserving of his “mercy”. Some even go further and admit to being afraid of God’s wrath, as Joanna Still’s confession demonstrates; “And from Jeremiah—though has forsaken me for I am weary of repenting—and so she thought God would destroy her.” (The Confessions 159). The various circumstances of these confessions bring up some interesting questions and serve as a window into the the everyday lives of these Puritan colonists.

I hadn’t been speaking to God long when Father Callahan came up from the food pantry having finished his inventory. “Father Callahan, thank God you’re still here!” I told him. “Evil is among us and we have to prepare for a battle.”