Three Minutes with Newman
The Dream of Gerontius, Judgment and Purgatory
September 21, 2024
This final post on St. John Henry Newman’s longest poem, The Dream of Gerontius, observes what happens when the soul of the recently dead Christian man reaches the end of its journey, which is personal judgment and purgatory, and appropriately, the end of the poem. The soul has not been alone on this journey, as has been explained in previous posts.
The Guardian angel tells Gerontius’s soul:
“Thy judgment now is near, for we are come
Into the veilèd presence of our God.”
Before his judgment the soul is strengthened by the voices of his friend around his bed, the rites of the Catholic Church, and especially by the great Angel of Agony who strengthened Jesus during his passion.
“That Angel best can plead with Him for all
Tormented souls, the dying and the dead.
Angel of the Agony
Jesu! by that shuddering dread which fell on Thee;
Jesu! by that cold dismay which sicken’d Thee;
Jesu! by that pang of heart which thrill’d in Thee;
Jesu! by that mount of sins which crippled Thee;
Jesu! by that sense of guilt which stifled Thee;
Jesu! by that innocence which girdled Thee;
Jesu! by that sanctity which reign’d in Thee;
Jesu! by that Godhead which was one with Thee;
Jesu! spare these souls which are so dear to Thee;
Souls, who in prison, calm and patient, wait for
Thee;
Hasten, Lord, their hour, and bid them come to
Thee,
To that glorious Home, where they shall ever gaze
on Thee.”
The Angel appropriately uses the Latin vocative form of the name of Our Lord, Jesu, the form used in addressing another, since the Catholic rituals for the dead and dying have been seamlessly woven into this masterful poem. After the Angel of Agony’s sorrowful litany, the soul exclaims:
“I go before my Judge. Ah! ….”
Then the Guardian Angel narrates what living human eyes cannot see: the judgment, which will at the same time be the beginning of the soul’s purification:
” …. Praise to His Name!
The eager spirit has darted from my hold,
And, with the intemperate energy of love,
Flies to the dear feet of Emmanuel;
But, ere it reach them, the keen sanctity,
Which with its effluence, like a glory, clothes
And circles round the Crucified, has seized,
And scorch’d, and shrivell’d it; and now it lies
Passive and still before the awful Throne.
O happy, suffering soul! for it is safe,
Consumed, yet quicken’d, by the glance of God.”
The soul is happy, this encounter with God is one of such overpowering love, that the soul feels consumed by God’s benevolent glance. The soul joyfully asks to be taken to purgatory for more purification,which will allow the soul after purgation to be forever in the presence of this Beatific Vision. With moving strains it pleads:
“Take me away, and in the lowest deep
There let me be,
And there in hope the lone night-watches keep,
Told out for me.
There, motionless and happy in my pain,
Lone, not forlorn,—
There will I sing my sad perpetual strain,
Until the morn.
There will I sing, and soothe my stricken breast,
Which ne’er can cease
To throb, and pine, and languish, till possest
Of its Sole Peace.
There will I sing my absent Lord and Love:—
Take me away,
That sooner I may rise, and go above,
And see Him in the truth of everlasting day.”
In another one of Newman’s poem’s, purgatory is called “a golden prison,” to describe how this time is of the greatest value. The Guardian Angel says:
“Angels of Purgatory, receive from me
My charge, a precious soul, until the day,
When, from all bond and forfeiture released,
I shall reclaim it for the courts of light.”
Next the other Souls in Purgatory proclaim God’s goodness. Instead of purgatory being a dread place, Newman offers us a vision of peace, joy, and hope in these blessed souls who await their day of rejoicing when they will be forever with their Lord.
The Dream ends fittingly with the tender words which the Guardian Angel addresses to his friend:
“Softly and gently, dearly-ransom’d soul,
In my most loving arms I now enfold thee,
And, o’er the penal waters, as they roll,
I poise thee, and I lower thee, and hold thee.”
At the end of the poem Newman returns to one of his favorite themes: the communion of the saints, which had opened the poem:
“And masses on the earth, and prayers in heaven,
Shall aid thee at the Throne of the Most
Highest.”
“Farewell, but not for ever! brother dear,
Be brave and patient on thy bed of sorrow;
Swiftly shall pass thy night of trial here,
And I will come and wake thee on the morrow.”
This vision of purgatory from St. John Henry Newman is one of the most beautiful insights in English literature, and could only have come from the mature mind of an eventual saint. Purgatory is embraced because the soul knows it is leading to what has been the goal of life’s journey, to live happily forever with God. Gerontius has left earthly time and space with death, so the period spent in this golden prison is not marked by human years. The length is appropriate to each soul after judgment. This poem, when understood, is filled with Christian hope, and should inspire within us the desire to live each day in the knowledge that we too will come before that Loving Glance. It brings vividly before us the mystery of the incarnation and redemption. God loves us and sees us as we truly are. The poem invites us to live better the communion of the saints, and to enjoy the friendship and help of our Guardian Angel.
