Is Adolf Hitler in Heaven?

[QuantaCura]

This is one reason Purgatory makes sense. Mercy and justice are both served. A person enters Heaven, but not before retribution is paid and temporal justice is satisfied.

 

[Deut 5:29]

According to Christianity, is it possible if Hitler was truly sorry and asked for forgiveness at the time of his death to have a place in Heaven? We don't know for a hundred percent that he committed suicide or how he actually died. Then if the Jews he killed were still deniers of Christ would not have a place in Heaven. So is it possible according to Christianity that six million Jews are in Hell and one Hitler is in Heaven? Please don't let emotions do your talking.

None of the above.

 

[Yab Yum]

And what about Ghandi? He was never a Christian but a devout Hindu. Does this mean he did go to hell?

Plenty of Hindus and heaven and plenty of Christians in hell.

 

[Yab Yum]

All of the evidence is against the fact that Hitler was repentant at the time of his death. You have to show yourself to be repentant - shooting yourself in the head and biting down on a cyanide capsule is not good evidence of a repentant heart.

 

[chris4243]

It's all speculation. If Hitler knew God, then even if he repented, he would probably not be forgiven.

But since he murdered so many people, I doubt that God would forgive him even if he repented.

Perhaps you should read the Sermon on the Mount, you adulterous murderer. You are a sinner or you are not; a little sin will make you a sinner just as surely as a big sin will.

And while it is theologically possible for Hitler to be in heaven, it seems highly unlikely to me -- but that is between him and God. Also, consider that God called some very nasty people "his servant", though I doubt they get much credit for such.

 

[Leah]

According to Christianity, is it possible if Hitler was truly sorry and asked for forgiveness at the time of his death to have a place in Heaven? We don't know for a hundred percent that he committed suicide or how he actually died. Then if the Jews he killed were still deniers of Christ would not have a place in Heaven. So is it possible according to Christianity that six million Jews are in Hell and one Hitler is in Heaven? Please don't let emotions do your talking.

Well, if confessed and repented from his sins he committed against God and put all of his trust in Jesus Christ even upon his death, then it would be fair to say that yes, he is in heaven. But if he didn't, then he's not.

Its just like you said, we don't know for sure. Only God knows. So why not just leave it at that and see to it that we do the above and live for the glory of God?

 

[Hairy Tic]

that is not true. Imperfect contrition is still a valid form of contrition and repentence. Perfect contrition is extremely rare.

## Perfect contrition is neither rare nor is it confined to very holy people (Thank God !).

What may well be rare, is perfect contrition that is so intense in degree to cancel all debt of temporal punishment.

But anyone who makes an act of contrition, in which the motive for sorrow for sin is

not

• the prospect of punishment for sin

but

• the realisation that one has sinned against the Infinitely Good God, Who is above all things worthy of love
  

has made an act of perfect contrition.

And it does not have to be within the Sacrament of Confession - though all sacramental acts of contrition, should if possible be perfect, not imperfect. This is the answer to questions about people dying without being able to be confess their sins to a priest and be absolved. For contrition outside the sacrament presupposes an intention to go ASAP - the reason being, that sin has a social angle; it is not purely between sinner & God; it involves the Body, since the sin of one, weakens all. The connection is organic, not something invented by the Church.

Attrition is certainly sufficient for the sacrament; but why be contrite for a lower motive, when contrition from the best of motives is - with God's help - so easy & so natural ?

What is not sufficient for the sacrament is a motive founded on servile fear. Its great flaw is, that it looks at God as at One Who forbids it to sin, Whom it obeys, but only because it has to; whereas, if it could sin without undergoing punishment, it would do so. Servile fear can by God's mercy be a first step to better things - but AFA it goes it's an unhealthy attitude, for whereas both sorts of contrition, & attrition too, presuppose firm purpose of rejection of sin - servile fear does not. One cannot be absolved of sin, if one has no purpose of amendment, & thus of turning from all sin. Servile fear is the fear of one who has no such purpose.

Love for God admits of countless degrees, but is still love for God. So even if the love being expressed falls far short of that found in the Saints, is still love of God - for love is defined by what it is love of; not by our feelings, or the lack of them. To want to be to sorry for one's sins, is to be sorry for them; as St. Alphonsus Liguori makes explains in some detail in one of his writings.

In summary:

• Perfectly intense contrition = best sorrow for sin, because its motive is the best & so its degree.
  

Not to be confused with

• Perfect contrition (which may be far from intense in degree, but has the same motive).

The two differ in degree, but not in kind.

• Attrition is a form of sorrow of sin arising from any motive inferior to love of God.
  

• It is therefore different in kind from contrition, but still good. Like them, it is sufficient for absolution, as it presupposes a purpose of rejecting sin: IOW, interior conversion.
  

Different again is:

• Servile fear = good as a curb upon the soul, lest it do worse than it has. Not good in itself, & does not presuppose rejection of sin, so not sufficient for absolution.

Note about terminology:

• Contrition is AKA perfect contrition - regardless of degree of intensity
  
• Attrition is AKA imperfect contrition

The perfection in question refers to metaphysical - not moral - completeness.

Source: a note on contrition, of two & a half pages, by R. Hudleston O.S.B., at the end of a translation of "Comfort for the Faint-Hearted", by Ven. Louis of Blois O.S.B. (1506-66; he is AKA Blosius). The note was added to clarify a passage in Blosius on the subject of contrition; for when the translation was published in 1903, the same confusion between contrition & perfect contrition appears to have been around. The distinction is made in Blosius' work. If it had been an error, he could never have been declared Venerable, and the translation would not have got past the censor; as Dom Hudleston remarks, the distinction is one "of great practical importance". Three of Blosius' books are online, but not that; though it has been reprinted.

In fact the councils anathematized the view that fear of hell and God nullified repentance. Because it essentially says that the fear of God and hell is a bad thing. Which is wrong. Fear of God is a good thing, of which proverbs says is the beginning of wisdom.

## Which is presumably why servile fear is called servile, that is, slavish, and not simply fear (as in "the fear of JHWH is the beginning of wisdom"). There is a fear that is good, but not all fear is. Some is sub-Christian. Jesus never commands fear, and several times says "Fear not" - He does command love for God & for neighbour.

The situation by 1500 or so was rather confused - there was a prolonged debate over the value & qualities of attrition, which did not help; Luther's remarks on contrition can't be read against the background of the teaching of the Church & the debates among theologians that have taken place since the Council of Trent. (There is also the question of how adequate his religious formation was...).

 

[Hairy Tic]

whoops sorry Christian only thread. Posted before I saw the marker.

## One weakness in this board, is that one has no means of deleting posts

 

[PilgrimToChrist]

This is one reason Purgatory makes sense. Mercy and justice are both served. A person enters Heaven, but not before retribution is paid and temporal justice is satisfied.

If Hitler made an act of perfect charity on his deathbed, he would have gone straight to Heaven. The purpose of Purgatory is to make imperfect contrition perfect, that is to perfect charity in the soul. If someone makes an act of perfect contrition on their deathbed, they would fly straight to Heaven -- no Purgatory needed.

Let such as these [reprobate sinners] receive the eternal pains, with their horrible stench, inasmuch as they have not satisfied for their sins with contrition and displeasure of their guilt. Now, therefore, you have understood how suffering satisfies for guilt by perfect contrition, not through the finite pain; and such as have this contrition in perfection satisfy not only for the guilt, but also for the penalty which follows the guilt, as I have already said when speaking in general; and if they satisfy for the guilt alone, that is, if, having abandoned mortal sin, they receive grace, and have not sufficient contrition and love to satisfy for the penalty also, they go to the pains of Purgatory, passing through the second and last means of satisfaction.

It is the will of God not only that every one will be saved but that no one will go through Purgatory. If Hitler didn't actually commit suicide (thus abstracting from the generally-accepted historical understanding of Hitler and just using him as a representative of those who have committed great evil), then it is theoretically possible that he could have accepted his death as a fitting punishment from God for his sins. This resignation to death as the will of God is an act of perfect contrition. Therefore, he would go to Heaven immediately upon death, Purgatory having been made unnecessary by this act of perfect resignation to the will of God.

May the soul of Adolph Hitler, and the souls of all the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.

 

[PilgrimToChrist]

Plenty of Hindus and heaven and plenty of Christians in hell.

If there are any Hindus in Heaven, they aren't Hindus anymore -- they're Catholic now!

 

[PilgrimToChrist]

Perfect contrition is extremely rare.

Says who? The only thing is that we cannot know (apart from a special revelation, of course) if we truly have perfect contrition or not. With Confession, we can have more surety that our sins are forgiven because we only need imperfect contrition. But, of course, some people receive absolution but it is null and void because they have either made a sacrilegious Confession (because of withholding mortal sins) or not having amendment of life (and if the priest realizes they don't have amendment of life -- say they keep coming in every week confessing sins against the 6th and 9th Commandments with no progress -- it is a sin against charity to absolve them, since it would be a null absolution and mislead the penitent). So we can be sure and trust the absolution of the priest if we know that we truly have contrition and amendment of life and do penance for our sins.

But perfect contrition is not in any way "rare", at least among practicing Catholics.

 

[Hentenza]

If Hitler made an act of perfect charity on his deathbed, he would have gone straight to Heaven. .

That's works salvation and full pelagianism.

 

[Hentenza]

According to Christianity, is it possible if Hitler was truly sorry and asked for forgiveness at the time of his death to have a place in Heaven? We don't know for a hundred percent that he committed suicide or how he actually died. Then if the Jews he killed were still deniers of Christ would not have a place in Heaven. So is it possible according to Christianity that six million Jews are in Hell and one Hitler is in Heaven? Please don't let emotions do your talking.

Salvation is solely God's purview. The answer to your question is that we do not know since only God knows the heart.

 

[StThomasMore]

Says who? The only thing is that we cannot know (apart from a special revelation, of course) if we truly have perfect contrition or not. With Confession, we can have more surety that our sins are forgiven because we only need imperfect contrition. But, of course, some people receive absolution but it is null and void because they have either made a sacrilegious Confession (because of withholding mortal sins) or not having amendment of life (and if the priest realizes they don't have amendment of life -- say they keep coming in every week confessing sins against the 6th and 9th Commandments with no progress -- it is a sin against charity to absolve them, since it would be a null absolution and mislead the penitent). So we can be sure and trust the absolution of the priest if we know that we truly have contrition and amendment of life and do penance for our sins.

But perfect contrition is not in any way "rare", at least among practicing Catholics.

I believe St. Alphonsus and Augustine said it was very rare. In the book "preparation for death".

 

[CryptoLutheran]

Fr. Hans Urs von Balthasar makes an important point, I think, in saying that we have no business saying anyone specifically is in Hell. We don't and can't know such a thing.

We may speak of the Saints, but there isn't a group opposite of that, there is no canonization process for the damned, no list of names of those who most assuredly have been destroyed in the fires of Gehenna. That's not our place or purview, God alone is Judge, God alone knows.

-CryptoLutheran

 

[Yab Yum]

True, but in a few select cases I feel like we can conjecture.

 

[Chris81]

that is not true. Imperfect contrition is still a valid form of contrition and repentance. Perfect contrition is extremely rare. In fact the councils anathematized the view that fear of hell and God nullified repentance. Because it essentially says that the fear of God and hell is a bad thing. Which is wrong. Fear of God is a good thing, of which proverbs says is the beginning of wisdom.

Prefect contrition may not be required for salvation but certainly genuine contrition is needed.

If one's fear of God is based on awe, respect, and sincere reverence then yes salvation is possible.

However if one's fear of God is like that of demon who trembles before Lord knowing that he is destined to Hell as punishment for his wicked ways, salvation is not possible. It would mater not how loudly the wicked cries out Lord, Lord yet denies the truth within his own heart, he shall surly be suffer eternal damnation.

 

[PilgrimToChrist]

I believe St. Alphonsus and Augustine said it was very rare. In the book "preparation for death".

St. Alphonsus said it was rare for a person to make an act of contrition on their deathbed who has loved sin all their life. That doesn't mean it is impossible, it is a miracle of God if someone like that doesn't die with final impenitence.

But I was just saying that we can make acts of perfect contrition during our lives as faithful Catholics and this is seemingly far from rare. St. Alphonsus also refers to St. Bernardine and the importance of time because at any moment we can make an act of charity or contrition and find salvation.

 

[PilgrimToChrist]

That's works salvation and full pelagianism.

Then you don't know what "an act of perfect charity is".

 

[PilgrimToChrist]

Fr. Hans Urs von Balthasar makes an important point, I think, in saying that we have no business saying anyone specifically is in Hell. We don't and can't know such a thing.

We may speak of the Saints, but there isn't a group opposite of that, there is no canonization process for the damned, no list of names of those who most assuredly have been destroyed in the fires of Gehenna. That's not our place or purview, God alone is Judge, God alone knows.

-CryptoLutheran

I see no reason why people should look to heretics like von Balthasar for spiritual insight. His "soft universalism", trying to skirt the Church's condemnation of universalism, is just as dangerous. At the very least, the Fathers are unanimous that Judas is in hell.

While I was with them, I kept them in thy name. Those whom thou gavest me have I kept; and none of them is lost, but the son of perdition, that the scripture may be fulfilled.

The Son of man indeed goeth, as it is written of him: but woe to that man by whom the Son of man shall be betrayed: it were better for him, if that man had not been born.

It is clear that Christ is speaking of Judas.

von Balthasar thinks he can get off on a technicality, saying that he accepts the dogma of hell -- that hell exists -- but denies that anyone actually goes there. He therefore in doing so calls Christ a liar. If Christ is a liar, He cannot be God. If Christ is not God, we are not saved. If we are not saved, all of us (with the exception of those dying with only Original Sin) are going to hell. Therefore, by denying that anyone is in hell, you are actually stating that everyone is in hell...

Our Lord, most of the Fathers and all of the Doctors of the Church, as well as approved apparitions of Our Lady, state that the great majority of people will go to hell.

Don't read bad authors like von Balthasar, stick to the Father and the Saints.