By Fr. Andrew Heaslip
Another way of saying indulgence is leniency, that is, to treat another with gentleness and an excess of kindness.
We can think of a mother who, in the midst of correcting her child for lying, sees the child’s remorse and decides not to give the full consequences, understanding that the mild correction was enough. This in an indulgence. We can also think of a teacher who, in grading his student’s work recognizes that its quality does not reach the required expectations for the assignment but knows that this student is giving his all and decides to be lenient in scoring his grade. This too is an indulgence.
In these examples, it would not be possible for the mother or teacher to be indulgent unless she or he had an authentic sense of mercy, had the authority to give the kindness, and saw that the child or student was genuinely moving in the right direction. If any of these were missing it would not be a true indulgence but rather a form of disregard, undermining, or negligence for the child or student’s growth and well-being.
This description of indulgence can help us understand something of the meaning of ecclesial indulgences. Simply stated, an indulgence fully or partially takes away temporal punishment due to sin. Like the mother in the example, through the Church Jesus Christ, seeing our repentance and remorse, takes away the full consequences of the punishment due to our sin. Or, like the example of the teacher, Jesus, seeing that we are giving our all, gives an excess of kindness that removes some of the consequences of our faults.
The precise definition of an 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…” (CCC 1471). This can happen because the Church “dispenses and applies with authority the treasury of the satisfactions of Christ and the saints” (ibid.).
It is important to remember that “every sin, even venial, entails an unhealthy attachment to creatures, which must be purified either here on earth, or after death in the state called Purgatory. This purification frees one from what is called the ‘temporal punishment’ of sin” (ibid., 1472). This precise definition of an indulgence displays the indulgence of Christ Jesus. As we saw with the examples of the mother and teacher, real indulgence includes mercy, authority, and a genuine move in the right direction, or simply, conversion.
So, with obtaining an indulgence, one must understand that Jesus is merciful to sinners and wants to heal the consequences of their personal sins; that the Church legitimately exercises Jesus’ authority in granting the grace of an Indulgence; and that personal cooperation away from sin and to Jesus is integral to obtaining an Indulgence.
While the indulgence of Jesus, which purifies us of temporal punishment, can be realized in many ways—for example, through the sacraments, through charity and penance, through bearing daily sufferings with patience, through prayer and works of mercy, and even through serenely facing one’s own death—nevertheless, obtaining an indulgence is a particular and direct means of realizing this purification while it draws upon those basic practices of the Christian life.
For example, in this time of the COVID-19 pandemic, the Church is granting an indulgence for “the faithful suffering from Coronavirus,” “Health care workers, family members and all those who… care for the sick of Coronavirus,” and “those faithful who [through specific spiritual practices]… implore from Almighty God the end of the epidemic, relief for those who are afflicted and eternal salvation for those whom the Lord has called to Himself” (Decree of the Apostolic Penitentiary, 20.03.2020)
In these cases, the daily sufferings, the works of mercy, and the prayers that are occurring in the midst of this pandemic are the occasion for receiving an indulgence. Likewise, the opportunity for obtaining an indulgence for the souls in purgatory, which the Church ordinarily grants on November 1-8 is being extended to the entire month of November due to complications of the coronavirus (cf. Decree of the Apostolic Penitentiary, 23.10.2020). In this case, visiting a cemetery and offering prayer for the dead, both of which are basic Christian practices, become the occasion for receiving an indulgence. It is the mercy of Jesus, the authority of his Church, and our own cooperation in conversion which elevates these occasions to a remarkable opportunity of grace, that is, the grace of purification from temporal punishment for oneself and for those in purgatory.
Included in every occasion for an indulgence, whether those above or the many other opportunities outlined in the Manual of Indulgences, a Christian must receive sacramental confession, Eucharistic communion, and offer prayer for the Holy Father’s intentions. These requirements for an indulgence are at the very heart of what purification from sin and temporal punishment are about, namely, reconciliation and communion with Jesus Christ and his Church.
In the example of the child who lied and had remorse and the student who did his best but still fell short, they needed the indulgence of another to reconcile their situation and lift them up to the place they wanted to be. Likewise, Jesus, through our mother and teacher, the Church offers us that indulgence. Indulgences are an important way for us to receive the indulgence of Christ Jesus.
Father Andrew Heaslip was ordained in 2009. He serves the Diocese of Lincoln as director of religious education, diocesan digital media coordinator, director of the TV Mass for the homebound, and teaches at St. Gregory the Great Seminary.
