"The small number of those who are saved." Saint Leonard of Porto-Maurizio:

Saint Leonard of Port Maurice was a very saintly Franciscan friar who lived in the monastery of Saint Bonaventure in Rome. He was one of the greatest missionaries in the history of the Church. He used to preach to thousands of people in the squares of every city and town where the churches could not accommodate their listeners. So brilliant and holy was his eloquence that once when he was on a two-week mission in Rome, the Pope and the College of Cardinals came to hear him. The Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin, the adoration of the Blessed Sacrament and the veneration of the Sacred Heart of Jesus were his crusades. He was in no small measure responsible for the definition of the Immaculate Conception made just over a hundred years after his death. He also gave us the divine praises, which are said at the end of the blessing. But Saint Leonard's most famous work was his devotion to the Stations of the Cross. He died a holy death at the age of seventy-five, after twenty-four years of uninterrupted preaching.

One of the most famous sermons of Saint Leonard of Port Mauritius was “the small number of those who are saved”. It was the only one based on the conversion of great sinners. This sermon, like his other writings, underwent canonical examination during the canonization process. It examines the different states of life of Christians, and concludes with the small number of those who are saved, in relation to the totality of men.  The reader who meditates on this remarkable text. He takes advantage of the strength of his argument, which has earned him the approval of the Church. Here is the vibrant and moving sermon of this great missionary. 

  Introduction:

Thank God, the number of the Redeemer's disciples is not so small that the wickedness of the scribes and Pharisees is able to triumph over them. Although they strove to slander his innocence and deceive people with their treacherous sophistries to discredit the doctrine and character of Our Lord, looking for points even in the sun, many still recognized him as the true Messiah, and, without fear or of punishments or threats, they openly joined his cause. Did all those who followed Christ, followed him to glory? ¡Ah, this is where I venerate the deep mystery and silently adore the abysses of divine decrees, instead of deciding on this great point! The topic that I will be dealing with today is very serious, it has caused even the pillars of the Church to tremble, it has filled the greatest saints with terror and populated the deserts with hermits. The purpose of this instruction is to decide whether the number of Christians who are saved is greater or less than the number of Christians who are damned, and I hope that this may produce in you a healthy fear of the judgments of God.

Brothers, because of the love I have for you, I would like to be able to assure each of you, with the prospect of eternal happiness, saying: It is certain that you will go to paradise, the greatest number of Christians are saved, so also you will save yourself But how can I give them this sweet guarantee if they rebel against God's decrees as if they were his worst enemies? I see in God a sincere desire to save you, but I find in you a decided inclination to be damned. So what am I going to do today if I speak clearly? I will be unpleasant for you. But if I don't speak up, I will be unpleasant to God.

Therefore, I am going to divide this topic into two points. In the first, to fill you with terror, I am going to let the theologians and the Fathers of the Church decide on this question and declare that the greatest number of adult Christians are damned, and, in silent adoration of this terrible mystery, I am going to keep my feelings to myself. In the second point, I will try to defend the goodness of God against the wicked, by showing them that those who are damned are damned by their own malice, because they wanted to be damned. So here are two very important truths. If the first truth scares you, do not turn against me, as if I wanted to make the path to heaven narrower for you, because I want to be neutral in this matter, but turn against the theologians and the Fathers of the Church, who will engrave this truth in their hearts by the force of reason. If you are disappointed by the second truth, thank God for this one, because He only wants one thing: that you give your hearts totally to Him. Finally, if you force me to say what I think clearly, I will do it to your consolation.

  The teaching of the Church Fathers:

  It is not idle curiosity, but a salutary precaution to proclaim from the top of the pulpit certain truths that wonderfully serve to curb the indolences of libertines, who are always talking about the mercy of God and how easy it is to convert, who live mired in all kind of sins and fall fast asleep on the way to hell. To your disappointment and to awaken you from your lethargy, today we are going to examine this great question: Is the number of Christians who are saved greater than the number of Christians who are damned? Pious souls, you can go; this sermon is not for you. Its sole aim is to contain the pride of the libertines who cast the holy fear of God out of their hearts and join forces with those of the devil who, according to Eusebius' sentiment, damn souls by securing them. To resolve this doubt, we are going to put the Fathers of the Church, both Greek and Latin, on one side; on the other, the wisest theologians and learned historians, and let's leave the Bible in the center for all to see. Now, do not listen to what I am going to say - that I have already said that I do not want to speak for myself or decide on the matter - but listen to what these great minds want to tell you, they who are beacons in the Church of God to give light to others so that they do not lose their way to heaven. In this way.

Note that we are not dealing here with the human race as a whole, nor with all Catholics without distinction, but only with adult Catholics, who have freedom of choice and are therefore able to cooperate in the great matter of their salvation. First we are going to consult the recognized theologians to examine things more carefully and not exaggerate in their teaching: we are going to listen to two wise cardinals, Cajetan and Bellarmine. They teach that the greatest number of Christian adults are convicted, and if I had the time to point out the reasons behind them, you would be convinced of this yourself. But I will limit myself here to quoting Suárez. After consulting all the theologians and making a diligent study of the matter, he wrote, "The most common feeling is that, among Christians.

Add the authority of the Greek and Latin fathers to that of the theologians, and you will find that nearly all of them say the same thing. This is the sentiment of Saint Theodore, Saint Basil, Saint Ephrem, and Saint John Chrysostom. Moreover, according to Baronius, it was a common opinion among the Greek fathers that this truth was expressly revealed to St. Simeon Stylites and that after this revelation, in order to ensure his salvation, he decided to live on top of a pillar for forty years, exposed to weather, a model of penance and holiness for all. Now we are going to consult the Latin Fathers. You will hear Saint Gregory clearly saying: "Many attain faith, but few reach the heavenly kingdom." Saint Anselm declares: "There are few who are saved." Saint Augustine states even more clearly: “Therefore, Few are saved compared to those who are damned.” The most terrible, however, is Saint Jerome. At the end of his life, in the presence of his disciples, he said these terrible words: "Out of a hundred thousand people whose lives have always been bad , hardly one is found who is worthy of indulgence.

  The words of Holy Scripture:

But why seek the opinions of the Fathers and theologians, when Holy Scripture settles the question so clearly? Search the Old and New Testaments, and you will find a multitude of figures, symbols, and words that clearly point out this truth: very few are saved. In Noah's time, the entire human race was submerged by the Flood, and only eight people were saved on the Ark. Saint Peter says: “This ark is the figure of the Church”, while Saint Augustine adds, “and the eight people who were saved means that very few Christians are saved,  because there are very few who sincerely renounce the world, and those who renounce the world with words alone do not belong to the mystery that this ark represents.” The Bible also tells us that only two Hebrews out of two million entered the Promised Land after leaving Egypt, and that only four escaped the fire of Sodom and the other cities that burned and perished with it. All this means that the number of the damned who will be thrown into the fire like chaff is far greater than that of the saved, which the heavenly Father will one day gather into his barns, like precious wheat.

It would not end if I had to point out all the figures, by which the Holy Scripture confirms this truth, we are going to content ourselves with listening to the living oracle of Wisdom incarnate. What did our Lord reply to that curious man in the Gospel who asked him: “Lord, are there few who are saved?” Was he silent? Did he answer with difficulty? Did I hide the thought from him for fear of scaring people? No. Questioned by only one, he addresses all those present. And he tells them: “You ask me if only a few are saved? Here is my answer: Strive to enter through the narrow gate, because many, I tell you, will try to enter and will not be able to. Who speaks here? He is the Son of God, the Eternal Truth, who, on another occasion, says even more clearly: "Many are called, but few are chosen." He doesn't say that he calls everyone and that, Of all men, few are chosen, but many are called, which means, as Saint Gregory explains, that of all men, many are called to the true religion, but few of them are saved. Brothers, these are the words of Our Lord Jesus Christ. Are they clear? They are true. Tell me now if it is possible for you to have faith in your heart and not tremble.

Salvation in the different States of Life:

  But, Ah, I see that in speaking in this way to everyone in general, I am missing my point. So we are going to apply this truth to various states, and you will understand that you must throw away the reason, experience and common sense of the faithful, or else confess that the greatest number of Catholics are condemned. Is there any state in the world more favorable to innocence in which salvation seems easier and of which the people have a higher idea than that of the priests, the lieutenants of God? At first glance, who would not believe that most of them are not only good but still perfect, yet I am horrified when I hear Saint Jerome declare that although the world is full of priests, barely one in a hundred is living in a way according to your status.

Look even higher, and look at the prelates of the Holy Church, the shepherds who are in charge of souls. Is the number of those who save each other greater than the number of those who are damned? Listen to Cantimpré; he will tell an event to you, and you will be able to draw the conclusions. There was a synod held in Paris, and a large number of bishops and pastors who had charge of souls were present: the king and princes also went to add luster to this assembly by their presence. A famous preacher was invited to preach. While he was preparing his sermon, a horrible demon appeared to him and said, “Put your books aside. If you want to give a sermon that will be useful to princes and prelates, be glad to tell them this from us: We princes of darkness thank you, princes.

Woe to you who command others! If so many are condemned because of you, what will happen to you? If few of those who are first in the Church of God are saved, what will happen to you? Take all estates, both sexes, all conditions: husbands, wives, widows, young women, young men, soldiers, merchants, craftsmen, poor and rich, nobles and commoners. What can we say about all these people who are living so badly? The following account of San Vicente Ferrer will show you what you may think of it. It relates that an archdeacon at Lyons resigned his office and retired to a desert place to do penance, and that he died on the same day and hour as Saint Bernard. After his death, he appeared to his bishop and said: "You know, Monsignor, at the very moment that I died, thirty-three thousand  people also died. Of this number, Bernardo and I went to heaven without delay, three went to purgatory, and  all the rest fell to hell . Our chronicles relate an even more terrible event. One of our brothers, well known for his doctrine and holiness, was preaching in Germany. He portrayed the ugliness of the sin of impurity so strongly that a woman fell to her death in sadness in front of everyone. Then, coming to life, he said, "When I stood before the Court of God,  sixty thousand  people came at the same time from all over the world, of this number, three were saved by going to purgatory, and the rest were damned." .

¡O abyss of the judgments of God! Out of thirty thousand, only five were saved! And out of sixty thousand, only three went to heaven! You sinners who are listening to me, in what category are you going to be numbered?... What do you say?... What do you think?...

I see almost all of you lower your heads, full of amazement and horror. But let's put our stupor aside, and instead of flattering ourselves, let's try to make some profit out of our fear. Isn't it true that there are two paths that lead to heaven: ¿innocence and repentance? Now, if I show you that very few take one of these two paths, as rational people you will conclude that very few are saved. And to talk about the tests: at what age, job or condition are you going to find that the number of the bad guys is not a hundred times greater than the good guys, about whom you could say, "The good guys are so rare and the evil guys they are so great in number.” One could say of our time what Salviano said of his: it is easier to find an innumerable multitude of sinners, immersed in all kinds of iniquities than a few innocent men. How many servers are totally honest and faithful in their duties? How many merchants are fair and equitable in their trade?How many  exact and truthful craftsmen, how many disinterested and sincere sellers? How many men of the law do not abandon fairness? How many soldiers do not step on the innocent? How many  teachers do not unfairly withhold the salary of those who serve them, or do not try to dominate their inferiors? Everywhere the good are rare and the bad in great numbers. Who does not know that today there is so much licentiousness among mature men, freedom among young women, vanity among women, licentiousness among the nobility, corruption among the middle class, dissolution among the people, impudence among the poor? I could say what David said of his time: "All alike have gone astray...there is not even one that does good, not even one."