720. Yet it must not be thought that the Lord shuts heaven against those who approach the Holy Supper unworthily. He does not do this to any person up to the very end of his life in the world. It is the person who shuts heaven to himself, and he does this by rejecting faith and living a wicked life. Still the person is constantly kept in a state where it is possible for him to repent and be converted. For the Lord is perpetually at hand, urging His acceptance; for He says:
I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and dine with him, and he with me. Rev. 3:20.
The blame, therefore, lies with the person himself, if he fails to open the door. After death the situation is different. Then heaven is shut and cannot be opened to those who right to the end of their lives have unworthily approached the Holy Table; for then the interiors of their minds are fixed and consolidated.
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