After he hears the pleas of the souls asking for prayer, Dante turns again to his guide Virgil. Dante is confused for a few moments, as he had heard from Virgil (Aeneid VI, 373ff) that it is vain to think that heaven is actually moved by the prayers of those on earth. For some brief background, see this post in my series on Virgil's Aeneid: pt 10: Aeneas descends to the underworld. Remembering this, Dante asks:
It seems to me that somewhere in your verse
you, O my Light, deny explicitly
the power of prayer to bend the laws of Heaven;yet these souls ask precisely for such prayers.
Does this, then, mean their hopes are all in vain?
Or have I failed to understand your words?
Purgatorio VI. 28-36
Since it is divine justice that has placed these souls in these various stations of purgatory, how would it be possible ("just") that their state could be changed by prayer? Virgil anticipates Dante's concern and gives him a reply:
..."What I once wrote means what it says;
yet, if you think about it carefully,
you must see that their hopes are not deceived.High justice would in no way be debased
if ardent love should cancel instantly
the debt these penitents must satisfy.These words of mine you cite apply alone
to those whose sins could not be purged by prayer,
because their prayers had no access to God.Do not try to resolve so deep a doubt
wait until she shall make it clearer - she,
the light between truth and intelligence.You understand me: I mean Beatrice..
Purgatorio VI. 37-46
The problem here is about the relationship between justice and mercy. Virgil begins by reaffirming what he himself wrote. Only, here is the qualifier: Virgil wrote of pagans' inability to access Heaven because their prayers were not uttered from a state of grace. As a side note, this does not mean for Dante that pagans are beyond God's redemptive power - we will see this later. The problem here is how to reconcile God's absolute justice with the canceling of "debt" for the penitents. Now I must add that perhaps in modernity there is no such problem, but for all the wrong reasons. We tend to think of divine justice in a different way (as all our views of God's character are limited). Justice is often seen more in terms of "righting wrongs" than in punishing evil or evildoers. I have sometimes heard that it is impossible that a "loving God" could in any way participate in the "punishment" of evildoers. To some people, it seems a contradiction. To answer this from Dante's perspective, one must go back to the Inferno. God does not force anyone into hell; it is by our own free choices that we land there. So the idea of an irrational and arbitrary "vengeful" God is really just a poor caricature. Second, it raises the question; on what basis do we deem it appropriate that the state can enforce punitive sentences? Surely we cannot say that God is not allowed to "punish" offenders; that such an action is really only in our domain and power?
Be that as it may, Virgil points to another principle: only in grace (Beatrice) can things which appear to human reason as contradictions be understood and resolved. Virgil himself, as a figure of human reason, cannot plumb the depths of the mind of God. Dante must wait for divine illumination. The canto ends with a rebuke and lament over the state of Italy, which has strayed so far from justice that Dante asks:
O Jove Supreme, crucified here on earth
for all mankind, have I the right to ask
if Your just eyes no longer look on us?
Purgatorio VI. 118-120
It is interesting to note that the name of "Christ" is only uttered by poet in the Paradiso. Here, as elsewhere, Dante will refer to Christ using other imagery and language. There is also no mistake about Dante's views on the divinity of Christ.
In Canto VII the two poets continue their conversation with one Sordello, who is much impressed with meeting a fellow Mantuan (Virgil). But there is a simple sadness in Virgil's answer to Sordello's enquiry.
I am Virgil. The reason I lost Heaven
was through no other fault than lack of faith.
This was the answer my guide gave that shade.
Purgatorio VII. 7-9
The two poets learn from Sordello that it is impossible to climb Mount Purgatory after dark ("at night it is forbidden to ascend" VII.44). The reason for this is evident from the consideration of what repentance involves. They are able to climb when the sun is shining. That is, when God's power and grace are upon them, they can move up the mountain. While the ascent involves an effort of their own will, such an effort will prove fruitless unless it is guided and empowered by grace. Once the sun has set, the symbol of God's grace and power is absent from the mountain, and no further progress is possible during the night. Sordello explains it this way: "the darkness of the shadows...afflicts the will with impotence" (VII.37). Not only is human reason incapable of ascending on its own, but human willpower is incapable as well.
As they continue along their journey, two more songs have been heard: the Salve Regina (being sung by the "negligent rulers") and then as we come to Canto VIII we hear the strains of the Te Lucis Ante (traditionally a late evening hymn for protection against the darkness, VIII.13). As night approaches, they will discover another feature of antepurgatory: the serpent. It is an interesting feature of this section of Mount Purgatory that the figure of a serpent should be able to roam into the regions at night. As an image, it reminds us that the path of repentance is not without temptation. The pilgrims are not in such a state of grace that they cannot fall and sin. Such a state will come, but only much later. However, as the serpent makes its way into their presence, two angelic beings come to drive it away. We may be tempted, but with the aid of grace, even in our "night", we may be preserved from sin. Thus Dante and Virgil wil begin to take their rest, until we see them emerge in Canto IX ready to pass through the gate through which there is no looking back. This is a wonderful pairing with the entrance to the Inferno, where we might also say there is "no looking back".
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