# The Raccolta (1857)/On Holy Indulgences

ON HOLY INDULGENCES,
AND THE
CONDITIONS REQUISITE FOR GAINING THEM.
TO THE DEVOUT READER.
Two bitter fruits are produced in the soul by sin: first, Guilt, which deprives us of grace and the friendship of God; and second, Its Penalty, which forbids us the enjoyment of God in Paradise. The penalty of sin is twofold, being partly eternal, partly temporal. Guilt, together with the eternal penalty of sin, is entirely remitted to us by means of the infinite merits of Jesus Christ in the Sacrament of Penance, provided only that we approach that Sacrament with fitting dispositions. On the other hand, as regards the temporal penalty of sin, inasmuch as it is not commonly wholly remitted to us by this Sacrament, very much remains to be discharged, either in this life by means of good works or penance, or else in the next life by means of the fire of Purgatory. But what man is he that can penetrate into the deepest and most hidden judgments of God? Who can tell how much in this present life the Divine Justice may exact in payment of the debt he owes to God, or whether his penances have gained for him the entire, or only the partial, remittance at God's hands of that temporal penalty which he has to undergo; and who, in the life to come, when he can only satisfy by burning fire, will not think that a fearful mode of payment?—a payment, too, which will be exacted of him to the last farthing. Blessed for ever, then, and praised be the most merciful and tender Heart of our Divine Redeemer, Jesus Christ He from its very origin imparted to His Holy Catholic Church the power to grant to us, and to us the capability to receive, a portion of this treasure of Holy ​Indulgences, by means of which we are enabled with lightest burden to ourselves to pay to the justice of God even to the last farthing all we owe Him of temporal penalty after the eternal penalty of sin and its guilt have been remitted.
For, indeed, these Indulgences form a treasury which abides continually before the face of God,—a treasury, that is, of the merits and satisfactions of Jesus Christ, of the most blessed Virgin Mary, and of the Saints,—a treasury which might technically be called in some sort the value received by God for the satisfactions of our Divine Redeemer, which were superabundant and infinite; as well as of Mary ever blessed; and lastly, of the Martyrs and other Saints, being all that portion of their works of penance not necessary for the expiation of their own sins. For this reason it is that Holy Indulgences are called by the Holy Council of Trent heavenly treasures. This is the doctrine inculcated by the Sovereign Pontiff Clement VI., of blessed memory, in the following words: "Jesus Christ did by His superabundant Holy Passion bequeath to His Church militant here on earth an infinite treasure, not laid up in a napkin, nor hidden in a field, but committed by Him to be dispensed for the welfare of the faithful by the hands of blessed Peter, who has the keys of heaven, and by his successors here on earth, the vicars of Jesus Christ. In this treasure are amassed also all the merits of the Blessed Mother of God, and of all the elect, from the first just man even to the last." And I will add, that these riches, being infinite, have never diminished, and never will diminish; but, like a mighty ocean, suffer no loss, draw from it what you will.
True it is, however, that Christians are not at liberty to take and use this treasure as they please; but only when and how, and in that quantity, greater or less, which is determined on by the Holy Church and the Sovereign Pontiff. Hence Indulgences are distinguished into two classes. Some are called Partial; and these are given for days, or periods of forty days, called "Quarantines," or for a year or years. Others are called Plenary, or, as it is sometimes said technically, "in form of Jubilee."
By Partial Indulgences, of days that is, or quarantines, or years, so much temporal penalty is remitted to the recipient of them as he would have had imposed upon him of old by the penitential canons of the Church, which penances ​were given in days, quarantines, or years. Plenary Indulgences, or Indulgences in form of Jubilee, in their effect are one and the same thing; the only difference being, that where the Indulgences are granted in form of Jubilee, confessors have power of jurisdiction conferred on them to absolve from reserved cases, to dispense from or commute all simple vows, &c. By all such Indulgences, all the temporal penalty is remitted to us which we owe to God for all those sins for which, though pardoned, we were still debtors, so that theologians teach us, that were we to die immediately after gaining worthily a Plenary Indulgence, we should go straight to heaven. The same may be said of the holy souls in purgatory, whenever in suffrage for them we gain a Plenary Indulgence applicable to them, provided the Divine justice deign to accept it in their behalf.
From all this we may easily gather, devout readers, how highly we ought to prize these Indulgences, how great their value is, and how mighty their efficacy; and lastly, how great a benefit they are spiritually to all faithful Christians. Hence the Holy Council says, "that the usage of Indulgences is most wholesome to Christian people, Indulgentiarum usum Christiano populo maximè salutarem esse;" wherefore it ought to be a holy duty in every Christian to endeavour to gain them, as far as he is able, as well for his own spiritual good as by way of suffrage in behalf of the faithful departed.
To gain an Indulgence, many conditions are requisite. First, it is requisite that we should be in a state of grace, that is, living in the grace of God; for whosoever before God is in his guilt of unremitted sin, and liable to its eternal penalty, is not, and cannot be, whilst continuing in that state, in a capacity to receive the remission of the temporal penalty. No better advice can, then, be given, than before doing the works enjoined for gaining an Indulgence, if we cannot go to Confession previously, to make at least an act of true contrition, accompanying it with a firm resolution to go to Confession, that by so doing we may regain the grace of God should it happen to have been lost.
Moreover, as the Church, in opening the Treasury of Holy Indulgences, has ever obliged faithful Christians to do some good work under specified circumstances of time, place, &c., it is to be remembered that she requires their personal ​and devotional fulfilment of all the works enjoined, both as to time, manner, and object, according to the precise letter of the grant by which the Indulgence has been conceded: as, for instance, if it be there said that the work ought to be done kneeling, or standing, or at the sound of the bell, or at such an hour, such a day, or contrite, or having Confessed and Communicated, &c.: so that, should any of the works enjoined be omitted, either wholly or in some notable portion of them, be it through ignorance, or negligence, or inability; or should any one of the conditions of time, place, &c. prescribed, fail to have been observed for any reason whatsoever,—then the Indulgence in question is not gained.
Here it will not be amiss to call attention to certain general decrees of the Holy Congregation of Indulgences relative to Confession, Communion, and Prayers, as these are works always enjoined in the grants of Indulgences.
First, then, as to Confession:—for all persons who have the praiseworthy custom of going to Confession at least once a week when not lawfully hindered, it is admitted that such a weekly Confession is sufficient for gaining all the Indulgences which occur from day to day, provided they do the other works which are enjoined them; nor is it necessary to make another fresh Confession on purpose. This, however, would of course be absolutely indispensable, were a person to be conscious that he had fallen into a mortal sin since his last Confession. Indulgences, however, of the Jubilee, whether ordinary or extraordinary,—granted, that is, in the form of a Jubilee,—are excepted from this general rule, inasmuch as in order to gain such Indulgences, besides the works enjoined, the Confession ought to be made within the time appointed in the grant of such Indulgences: this is evident from the decree of the Holy Congregation of Indulgences dated December 9, 1763, approved by Pope Clement XIII.
Secondly, as regards the Communion which has to be received, especially for gaining Plenary Indulgences:—this ought to be made on the days themselves specified for the Indulgences on high festivals. However, when the Indulgence time begins with First Vespers of the Feast, the Communion may be anticipated on the Vigil or day preceding the festival, according to the declaration of the said Holy Congregation in their decree of June 12, 1822, confirmed by Pope Pius VII.; and Pope Gregory XVI., of blessed memory, by ​another decree of the same Holy Congregation, of March 19, 1841, declared, that by a Confession and Communion made on Easter Day, a Plenary Indulgence may be gained by assisting devoutly at the Papal Benediction, and that the Paschal precept might be fulfilled at the same time.
And thirdly, as regards the prayers which are directed to be said for gaining Indulgences:—these may be recited by two or more persons alternately in prayers such as the Rosary, Litanies, the Angelus, the De profundis, and other suchlike prayers. This is expressly declared by the above named holy Pontiff Pius VII., in a decree of the S. Congregation, under date Feb. 29, 1820.
As a third and last condition of gaining a Plenary Indulgence and remission of all sins, venial included, it is required that we detest those said venial sins, and moreover lay aside every affection to all such sins in general, as well as to each in particular. God grant us of His holy grace that such dispositions be found in all those Christians who are desirous of gaining these Indulgences; and grant us likewise to remember, that whilst we do our utmost to gain them, we ought always, notwithstanding, to endeavour at the same time to do worthy fruits of penance, and by means of other wholesome penal works, as well as works of mercy and devotion, pay to the Divine justice some satisfaction for the misdeeds we have done.
This, devout reader, is all I have to say to you in presenting to you this collection of prayers and pious exercises, to which Sovereign Pontiffs have granted holy Indulgences, Plenary and Partial. It is a treasure neglected by many of the faithful, partly because its existence, and partly because its value, is not knowm, hence men take not that account of it which they ought. I have given it the name of "A Collection of Prayers," &c., because I should indeed have taken on myself too arduous a task had I endeavoured to gather into one volume all the prayers and pious works to which Indulgences are annexed. Accordingly I have restricted myself to those alone which can be practised for the most part by all faithful Christians; and I have specified the Indulgence annexed to each such prayer or work, by quoting distinctly the constitutions, briefs, or rescripts of the Sovereign ​Pontiffs by whom they were conceded, after having verified them with the greatest exactness. Marvel not, dear reader, that in this last edition you find not, as you have heretofore found in other editions of this collection, the historical account of the origin of certain devotions to which afterwards Indulgences were annexed, since, as I have had to add for your benefit the last grants made by the kind care of our present holy Pontiff Pius IX., I was afraid lest, by making the Raccolta too bulky, I should prevent some from using it so frequently as they otherwise would, as very often occurs in the case of large books intended for daily use. This is the reason also why you will find that in mentioning the grant, brief, or rescript, I have left out the words "for ever," since, in order to obviate the necessity of this constant repetition, it is enough for you to be told once for all, that all Indulgences in the present Raccolta were granted by the goodness of Sovereign Pontiffs for ever; and I have therefore contented myself with inserting these words only where such grants were once made for a certain term. Moreover, without repeating the words, "these Indulgences are applicable to the Holy Souls in Purgatory," or "these prayers may be said in any language, provided the version be correct, and approved by the S. C. of Indulgences," I think it enough to say, once for all, that our holy Father Pius IX. made these two concessions in favour of all Indulgences in this book, by a decree of the said S. C. of Indulgences, dated Sept 30, 1852.
And now I will beg you, dear reader, to select out of this Raccolta for your own use those prayers and pious works which God moves you to adopt, or which your own devotion points out to you as most adapted to your state; and I entreat you also to use them with perseverance for your own spiritual welfare, and in suffrage for holy souls in purgatory, renewing every morning the intention of gaining those Indulgences to which you may be entitled by the prayers or good works which you do that day, according to the advice of Blessed Leonard in his Sacred Manual, § xxii. Thus cleansing more and more your soul from sin, you may hope with confidence after death that you will soon arrive at the enjoyment and love of God for ever in Paradise. May that blessing be to thee, reader, and to me also!