Page 17
also be buried in Hell?
St. Thomas explains that
the envy of the damned is such that they would
prefer to see all men lost, even their own parents;
but since this is impossibly and, rooted as they
are in self love, they would rather see their parents delivered from Hell in
preference to
strangers,
for they would be still more tormented by envy should they behold their own
loved ones damned and
others saved. This, then, is the reason for the concern of the rich man over the
salvation of his
brothers. The Angelic Doctor adds that this reprobate desired to see his
brothers escape Hell,
lest his own punishment be aggravated by their damnation, for by his bad example
he had given oc
casion for their damnation.
Do the Damned Repent of Sin?
It might also be asked whether the damned repent of their sins. St. Thomas
answers that a man can
repent of his faults in two ways: directly or indirectly. He can repent directly
insofar as he
repents by a sentiment of hatred for the sin committed; in this sense the damned
cannot repent of
his sin, for since he finds himself confirmed in his perverse will, he loves the
malice of his
fault. But he can repent indirectly, insofar as he detests his punishment, of
which his sin is the
cause. Thus the damned will their sin, insofar as its malice is concerned, but
detest its
punishment, which, nevertheless, can never cease because their sin endures
forever.