Posted by Placenta Jones at dpsnet.detpub.k12.mi.us on December 01, 1999 at 12:15:11:
In Reply to: *spoiler* Answers re: Angels and Wisconsin! posted by Bethany27 on December 01, 1999 at 11:01:38:
And I mean that as the highest form of flattery!
Thanks for being all sleuthful and tracking down some answers to the angel/human questions we had. However, the angels becoming human thing is STILL (Dear Lord) still giving me some problems.
If by cutting off their wings, angels are able to "transubstantiate to complete human form then they become mortal", then WHY can't they repent and enter heaven like any other normal human after the wings are cut off?
In past threads, a lot of people theorized that this was because Bartleby and Loki weren't really sorry for what they had done and they wanted a way back into heaven WITHOUT having to be penitent. One problem with this theory was that there's not a lot of dialogue in the flick to back that up. The closest thing I can thing of is one of Bartleby's lines that Bethany27 pointed out:
BARTELBY:
"If you walk through the church's front door on the day of the re-dedication ceremony, your soul is wiped clean of any and all existing sin, moreso than the sacrament of penance could ever offer.
The last bit ("moreso than the sacrament of penance could ever offer") I think is key. Bartelby seems intrigued by the fact that plenary indulgence is a much more powerful means of soul-purifying than the act of penance. Why would he care about that? I can think of 2 possible reasons.
#1. They really wanted to get back into Heaven without asking for forgiveness and they believed that plenary indulgance was SO powerful that it could absolve them without them actually being sorry.
OR
#2. They were so terrified of God's wrath and the possibility of being sent to Hell, they never wanted to become human and ask for forgiveness because they thought it wouldn't be enough. They thought that even after they went through the sacrament of penance that God still could decide to block their entrance into Heaven. SO, once they found out about plenary indulgance, Bartelby and Loki assumed that "Hey, this is like penance times 1000" and that such an extreme act of absolution could not be rejected by the powers that be.
So...those are my theories. The whole "angels becoming mortal" and "were they really sorry" thing is a tough nut to crack. Oh well, maybe Kevin or Vincent could help us with their own theories because Jesus Christ...I've spent more time on this shit than I spent on my Senior thesis.
My best,
Placenta