A growing group at my Catholic church prays for people in hell, and my mother wants to join. What is your opinion?
A viewer says there is a group in his Catholic church that prays for people in hell, the group is growing in numbers, and his mother is planning to join, and he asks Robert's opinion.
Answer
I have never heard of this before. You think you have heard every wrinkle until one you have never heard of comes along, and this is it. You can pray for anything you want, so if they are praying that God would somehow lessen the physical punishment of the damned, I do not think God will answer that prayer, but the real issue is always whether God will answer, not whether you can ask. I would never direct anyone to pray for someone in hell, because that is what hell is: there is no hope, no possible way to mitigate the suffering; it is the biggest 'over' we know as human beings. Nowhere does the Church teach us to pray for people in hell, not one Father even suggested it, not even the most merciful of them. Where the Church does teach us to direct our prayers is toward the souls in purgatory, because they have hope and are waiting to be released and go to heaven. That is where this group should be putting its energy, because praying for someone in hell is a waste of time.