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A person who is sorry for his sins, at death, will be saved in Christ. But some people refuse to repent. One who says, "I have no sin" makes God to be a liar, and can certainly not be saved, nor find joy in Heaven. No-one receives an unjust judgement.

Christ said that in looking at my Last Judgement people will see in an instant what is important about life. Through seeing the three main areas - Heaven, earthly life, and Hell, they will straight away receive His message, which is that only the virtuous go to Heaven - through the grace of Christ - when they die, whereas unrepentant sinners go to Hell.

No-one can enter Heaven by beating on the great doors, and demanding to be let in. Those who love God are willing to trust, to adore, and to wait in humility and repentance; then He lifts the patient soul over the gates, in prayer, to see the beauty of God's glory, and to prepare him for permanent union.

There are many people who seek out counselling or therapy whose problems could be solved by the repentance that leads to Confession, and a state of grace, and the peace and freedom which came from being forgiven. Many people, Christ observes, make excuses for themselves when they became downcast through grievous sin, and a failure to repent.

Some priests mistakenly see themselves as counsellors rather than priests. In their misguided view of pastoral care they forget that they have been called to be 'other Christs' who teach the truth about sin and holiness, who invite people to repent and to receive forgiveness, freedom and peace.

A person who says, with sincerity, 'Lord, have mercy', allows the Father to lavish upon her the sweetness of His forgiveness and love, whereas the person who refuses to repent shuts his heart to the Father and therefore to the gifts which He would lavish upon him for his consolation and salvation.

Christ wants people to reflect on my Last Judgement painting, and to ponder how they will feel when they come at last into the presence of God the Father, whose glory I have seen in prayer, and who is awesome in His holiness and beauty. Christ wants everyone to repent of their sins, while there is still time.

When a person repents of serious sin, and is reconciled with God, his Father and Creator, it is as marvellous as a raising-from-the-dead miracle worked by Elijah and by Jesus. That soul, in an instant, can rise up by the Spirit's power, in prayer, in the freedom and joy of a fervent child of God.

Christ sees that there are many who come to church and to Holy Communion who are still in their serious sins. It is true that He loves everyone; but He invites to Holy Communion those who are sorry for their sins, and who have been reconciled with Him through His Church, and who have been purified by His grace and their penances.

A person with a tender heart must weep, when considering the sufferings of Jesus; yet a true follower knows that the Cross is the centre-piece of His message. He showed us that even in the extremes of suffering He still trusted in the Father's love and goodness, and believed that good can come out of evil. The same can be true for us, if we believe in Jesus, and do as He asks, by repenting and being Baptised. Through Him, we can overcome sin, and even have Eternal Life.

There is no doubt about it. By uniting ourselves with Christ, in prayer, and in patient acceptance of our sufferings and humiliations, for love of Him, and by our intercessions for people in need, we are saving many from committing mortal sin, or from dying unrepentant and falling into Hell.

By Sincere repentance, expressed in Confession to a priest, we take such a powerful step towards the Lord that it's as if the soul soars like a rocket, into the heart of the Godhead, to be met with cries of joy amidst the glory. If everyone knew the great benefits of sorrow-for-sin they would repent more frequently and do so with gladness!

We need to be 'washed' before we work for others. Christ's main message for His disciples to share, and for us to follow, is about repentance. Unless we are reconciled to God, we cannot do good work for God in the world. It is foolish to try to 'save the planet' if we have not taken steps to accept salvation from God. A cookery teacher who never washes her hands before class will probably poison as many pupils as she feeds.

When someone we care for seems to be 'lost' in sinful behaviour, or alienation from the Church, it's as though he seems to be drowning: but Christ is there with a net, acting to rescue him, if he will allow it. As long as a person is alive, there is hope that he will repent and be saved.

Far above the City of God on earth, where people live who do God's Will, God the Father reigns, His hand held up in blessing, as He gazes upon all who love Him. God loves everyone; yet those who choose to live beyond the City, in the darkness of serious sin, did not receive that blessing; nor will they join the Saints in Heaven, unless they repent.

Many people live parts of their lives in a cellar, keeping hidden various thoughts or activities or memories which they do not want anyone to bring out into the light. These are precisely what need to be dealt with before a person can lead a carefree life in Christ, as if in the happy home above the cellars.

One of the darkest cellars in which people choose to live is the 'cellar' of disbelief which is atheism. A person who refuses to believe in the existence of God cannot therefore thank God for the gift of life, or turn to Him in sorrow-for-sin. By his own acts, he locks himself in a dark cellar, perhaps loses the key, and is unable to follow Christ when, at the end of his life, Christ calls to him.

Christ invites every woman who has had an abortion to turn to Him, and not to lose hope. He loves her. She need only say to Him: "I did wrong, and I am sorry!" to show her regret and repentance. Christ wants the Clergy to speak more about the Sacrament of Penance, and about how the sin of abortion can be forgiven.

Many people have tried to 'flush away' from their minds the memories of sins committed, and neither confessed nor forgiven - rather as tiny babies are flushed away from life, by abortion. It is better to repent now, than to look sadly upon our whole lives when we die.

As people grow old, there is something more important to think about than pensions, grandchildren or hobbies. What state shall we be in, when we die, and go to God? Shall we be able to meet Him with joy and gratitude, or shall we be ashamed of our hidden sins, hidden no longer?