Imagine releasing a soul from Purgatory so they can go to Heaven. You can!
Every Friday during Lent, you can receive a Plenary Indulgence which immediately releases a soul from Purgatory so they can go to Heaven. You can receive a Plenary Indulgence every Friday during Lent!
This indulgence can also be used on yourself.
But Wait, What’s a Plenary Indulgence?
A Plenary Indulgence releases a soul from Purgatory so they can immediately go to Heaven.
You an offer this indulgence for another person, or for yourself, but NOT for another living person.
By using it on yourself, the indulgence remits all temporal punishment due to sin up to that point.
Plenary Indulgences are a way the faithful can skip temporal punishment (Purgatory) due to their sins, with the sacrifice of Jesus and if that person has been forgiven of eternal consequences of sin through the sacrament of Confession.
Plenary Indulgences in the Catechism
According to the Catechism of the Catholic Church, “An indulgence is obtained through the Church who, by virtue of the power of binding and loosing granted her by Christ Jesus, intervenes in favor of individual Christians and opens for them the treasury of the merits of Christ and the saints to obtain from the Father of mercies the remission of the temporal punishments due for their sins. Thus the Church does not want simply to come to the aid of these Christians, but also to spur them to works of devotion, penance, and charity.” (CCC 1478)
This means we can pool our prayers and sacrifices and good works all together, with the prayers and sacrifices and good works of Christ and the saints, to gain a Plenary Indulgence.
By working toward indulgences, we are growing in wisdom and prayer, while also gaining a reward.
Plenary Indulgence Prayer During Lent
During Lent, you can receive one Plenary Indulgence every Friday by praying before a Crucifix.
This prayer asks us to place our hearts and minds on the sufferings of our Crucified Lord. This prayer is especially moving during Lent, and is ideally prayed between noon and 3 P.M. (when Jesus hung on the Cross), but can be prayed at any time.
Here is the prayer:
“Behold, O kind and most sweet Jesus, I cast myself upon my knees in thy sight, and with the most fervent desire of my soul, pray and beseech thee that thou wouldst impress upon my heart lively sentiments of faith, hope, and charity, with true contrition for my sins and a firm purpose of amendment; while with deep affection and grief of soul I ponder within myself and mentally contemplate thy five wounds, having before my eyes the words which David the prophet put on thy lips concerning thee: “My hands and my feet they have pierced, they have numbered all my bones.”
Other Requirements to Receive Plenary Indulgences
To receive this indulgence, you must also:
•Be free from attachment to sin by going to Confession. This can be done a few days before or after the actions for the indulgence (no more than 20 days.)
•Receive Communion (again, within a few days before or after.)
•Pray for the intentions of the pope by praying an Our Father or Hail Mary.
There you have it! A quick rundown of how to receive an indulgence every Friday during Lent. Now let’s get going!
