When one dies, one is judged and goes to Heaven, to Hell, or to Purgatory. Then, at the end of the world, all are judged. Is this correct, and isn’t this akin to double jeopardy?
I’ve watched enough Jeopardy on TV to know that you phrase your answers in the form of questions and the questions are the answers. So my answer is, “What is the Last Judgment?” But I think you are more likely referring to the legal term, double jeopardy, which is that a person cannot be tried twice for the same crime. Once we are acquitted or convicted of a crime, we cannot be tried or judged again for it. So my short answer to the question is that God can do what He wants, and no lawyer can stop Him!
Yet, as we draw near to the end of the liturgical year, the readings remind us also about the end of the world and judgment. You are correct that there is a particular judgment that occurs immediately after death where one goes before God. How this judgment exactly occurs, no one knows—perhaps it is solely God’s judgment, perhaps one’s soul is illumined and one judges him/herself, or perhaps we choose ourselves our final destination, either Heaven (sometimes via Purgatory) or Hell. I think all three ideas say roughly the same thing. Our whole life is a series of choices that form who we are. To love is to choose God, to sin is to choose against God. So, for instance, if we live a life of unrepentant sin, we have already chosen to turn away from God. It only makes sense that we would continue to choose separation from God (Hell) even in the afterlife.
There is not much in the scriptures about the particular judgment other than passages that refer to reward or punishment immediately after death. One is the parable Jesus told about the rich man and Lazarus. The rich man who ignored poor Lazarus in life went to a place of torment, while Lazarus died and went to a place of comfort (Lk 16:29-31).
There is much more in the scriptures about the general (last or final) judgment. This refers to the end of the world when Christ returns in glory and each of us will share in His Resurrection (our bodies will be raised up and reunited with our souls). All will appear before Christ for judgment. How is this judgment different than the first? I don’t really know, but I do know our final destination won’t change—no earlier judgment will be overruled. Perhaps this judgment is more about as the Catechism says that Christ “will pronounce the final word on all history. We shall know the ultimate meaning of the whole work of creation and the entire economy of salvation and understand the marvelous ways by which His Providence led everything towards its final end.” (CCC 1040) All of us will render an account of our deeds and all secrets will be revealed to everyone. Then the earth will be renewed. The righteous will go on to everlasting life with God, while the wicked will proceed to eternal punishment (Mt 25:31-46).
-Fr. Greg
