temporal punishment of his infant son’s death even after being forgiven for
the murder of Uriah (2 Sam. 12:13ff.). Mary, the sister of Moses, was
forgiven by God for complaining against her brother. Nevertheless, God
still imposed upon her the temporal punishment of leprosy and seven days’
exile from the Chosen People (Num. 12). Similarly, Moses was forbidden
to enter the Promised Land after being forgiven for striking the rock twice
at the Waters of Contradiction (Num. 20:12).
One may also question why God leaves temporal penalties in place after
removing eternal penalties for sins. It is, firstly, a question of discharging a
debt of honor, making a reparatory gesture after the real reparation has been
completed. Penance also has rehabilitative benefits. It teaches us to learn
from our sins: “For the Lord disciplines him whom he loves, and chastises
every son whom he receives. It is for discipline that you have to endure.
God is treating you as sons; for what son is there whom his father does not
discipline? … he disciplines us for our good, that we may share his
holiness. For the moment all discipline seems painful rather than pleasant;
later it yields the peaceful fruit of righteousness to those who have been
trained by it” (Heb. 12:11). Penance restores the loss or damage caused by
sin. For example, a thief may be sorry for stealing a large sum of money
from some one else, but is still required to return the money taken and even
do time in prison. Finally, penance satisfies the human need to mourn for
tragedies and sin, particularly mortal sin, which is the greatest tragedy.
Furthermore, Catholics believe that many of the faithful throughout the
centuries––virgins, martyrs, confessors, saints––have performed penances
and good works far in excess of what was due as temporal punishment for
their own sins. Their merits, in union with the infinite merits of Jesus
Christ, form a “spiritual treasury” which the Church can draw upon to
assist other members of the Church in general or, in particular, pay the debt
of temporal punishment both for the living and the dead. This can be done,
for every good action possesses a double value––that of merit and that of
satisfaction. The meritorious value of an act is the reward given by God to
the performer of the act and cannot be transferred, while the satisfactory
value of an act is the intention sought after by the petitioner which can be
directed to benefit others. We see an example of this in the following words
of St. Paul: “I am now rejoicing in my sufferings for your sake, and in my
flesh I am completing what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions for the sake of
his body, that is, the Church” (Col. 1:24). St. Paul knew perfectly well that
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