First, it was not a choice to those who inherited Original Sin. Second, there is a problem with eternal torment for finite offenses. Third, one never earns one's way into Heaven anyway, it is always a matter of grace. The situation, then, strikes me this way: not accepting the mercy of God is a choice, and therefore not getting Heaven, but remaining in Limbo, is a credible choice. Limbo can be conceived us as Hell without the eternal torment, assuming that punishment is limited and proportional. Even accepting the grace of God, one needs purification, and therefore the idea of Purgatory as a means of performing penance makes sense. If Heaven is conceived us as "standing in the presence of God" in a special way, we need purgation.
As for the point of good, well, it does not per se require the afterlife to conform to the good, because you recognize it as such. Conscience involves praising or blaming oneself for the quality of one's acts, as if one were an on- looker. What is true, however, is that our sense of propriety desires a final accounting, that everything be subject to a kind of rough justice. On the other hand, one should recall that justice is always tempered with mercy, because we could not possibly earn the relationship to God that we hope for without His help........ |
