etely and exclusively in the Beatific
Vision, that neither the resurrection of the body with its glorious
gifts, nor the communion of saints, nor heavenly music, nor any other
creature, can increase the happiness already enjoyed by the soul in
the possession of God. In this extreme and exclusive view of the
Beatific Vision, man is so completely absorbed in God, and so
perfectly happy in Him, that the whole creation is to him as if it
were not; and if he were the only man ever created, or the only one
in heaven, his joys would be precisely the same as they are, now that
he is surrounded with angels, saints, and other creatures of God.

They who hold such extreme views may be very holy persons; but their
opinions are far from being in accordance with sound theology. They
remind us of those unskilful guides who taught St. Theresa that, in
order to reach the most perfect contemplation in this world, we must
raise our minds so completely above every creature, "that although it
should be even the humanity of Christ, it is still some impediment
for those who have advanced so far in spirituality, and that it
hinders them from applying to the most perfect contemplation." It is
almost needless to add that she soon discovered this to be a very
dangerous error, and, as may be seen in the twenty-second chapter of
her life, she expresses the deepest regret for having, even for a
moment, entertained such an opinion. So will these persons of whom I
speak discover their error, if they view the whole happiness of
heaven, as it is taught by sound theology. Let us, then, see what
theology teaches on the resurrection of the body, as increasing the
happiness of the blessed, and on the accidental beatitude which comes
to man from creatures.

1. It teaches, first, that the resurrection is not a mere accidental
glory, which may or may not be given to the just, but that it is an
essential element of man's happiness.* The soul of Abraham, for
instance, that is now united to God in the Beatific Vision, is not,
properly speaking, Abraham himself, but only a part of him. In order,
therefore, to be perfect according to her nature, that soul must
again be clothed with her own body of real flesh and blood, so that
Abraham may again be a living man, and that God may be called, in the
fullest sense of the word, "the God of the living." Evidently the
same must be said of every other soul now basking in the light of
God's countenance.

* Anima corpori