Death is when the soul and the body are separated. Our body becomes lifeless and, in fact, substantially becomes a different thing. We are no longer a living human; our former body becomes a cadaver. Where then does our soul go?
At the moment of our death, we come before the judgment seat of God. The events of our life are reviewed, inclusive of every choice that we made. Then, the judgment is rendered and we go to heaven or hell. Because nothing unclean can enter heaven, there may also be a need for purgation. In purgatory, we are purified of any attachment to sin and we pay restitution for the temporal punishment due to sin. Though, in the end, those who are bound for heaven will ultimately be there and those bound for hell will immediately be there. All of this is called the particular judgment.
But there is another judgment at the end of the world known as the universal judgment, last judgment, or general judgment. This judgment at the end of this world, following the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, is spoken of as the Parousia (The Day), the “Day of the Lord”, “that Day”, “the day of the Son of Man,” and “the last day.” This is what we refer to in the Apostles’ Creed when we say: “He ascended into heaven. From thence He shall come to judge the living and dead.”
The Roman Catechism goes into some detail as to why the the general judgment is necessary:
"The first reason is founded on the circumstances that most augment the rewards or aggravate the punishments of the dead. Those who depart this life sometimes leave behind them children who imitate the conduct of their parents, descendants, followers; and others who adhere to and advocate the example, the language, the conduct of those on whom they depend, and whose example they follow; and as the good or bad influence or example, affecting as it does the conduct of many, is to terminate only with this world; justice demands that, in order to form a proper estimate of the good or bad actions of all, a general judgment should take place. . . . Finally, it was important to prove, that in prosperity and adversity, which are sometimes the promiscuous lot of the good and of the bad, everything is ordered by an all-wise, all-just, and all-ruling Providence: it was therefore necessary not only that rewards and punishments should await us in the next life but that they should be awarded by a public and general judgment."
In other words, all of God’s inscrutable plans, the ways that He has brought justice, and the ways that He brings good even out of the evil we have done, need to be laid bare for all to say. And so, the souls in heaven and in hell will be resurrected and take part in the general judgment. Nothing of the particular judgment of each soul will be overturned or modified. But the goodness, justice, and mercy of God will be made exquisitely clear for all - it will confirm the particular judgment of each.
The resurrection of the body which happens at the time of the general judgment means that the souls in heaven and hell will receive their bodies again. We do not know what this will look like, whether they are the same bodies we died with or new perfected bodies. What we do know is that the bodies of those in heaven will be similar in nature to the glorified, resurrected body of Jesus Christ after His Resurrection.
We say the resurrection of the body because the human soul cannot die. In other words, we say that we return to life, a properly human life anyway. The souls in heaven, even now without bodies, are still very much alive in God.
If we have trouble believing in the resurrection of the body, then we ought to remember the words of St. Paul to the Church in Corinth:
“If Christ be preached, that he rose again from the dead, how do some among you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there be no resurrection of the dead, then Christ is not risen again. And if Christ be not risen again, then is our preaching vain, and your faith is also vain.” (1 Cor. 15:12)
The perpetual separation of the soul from the body would be unnatural. In order for the body and the soul to be truly happy, they must be together. Further, because the body and the soul are one in life in terms of both virtue and sin, then it is just to have the body share in the soul’s punishment or reward.
The resurrected bodies of the just and the damned alike will have three characteristics: identity, entirety, and immortality. So, our bodies will be our own and recognizable, they will be whole and entire, and they will not die again. Beyond those characteristics, the souls of the saints will have four transcendental qualities: impassibility, brightness, agility, and subtility.
Impassibility denotes that the bodies of the just will be incorruptible and beyond the reach of pain and inconvenience. The bodies of the damned will be incorruptible but will nonetheless be subjected to pain, heat, cold, and the like. The second is brightness in which the bodies of the saints will shine like the sun. The third is agility in which the bodies of the just will have the capability of moving with ease and quickness wherever they please. And then fourth is subtility in which the body comes under the absolute dominion of the soul. Our natural bodies are weak and prone to sin; the spiritual bodies of the just will be immune from such weakness.
As in all things, as Padre Pio said: pray, hope, and do not worry. We do not know the day or the hour when Christ will come again. But we should be striving every day to draw near to Him, especially in the Sacraments. So, if you have not made a good confession in a while: do so! Go to Mass at least weekly on Sundays and on Holy Days of Obligation. Fulfill the other precepts of the Church. Do good, avoid evil. Trust in Jesus. Then, one day, God willing, we will enjoy the resurrection of the body together in heaven, worshiping God and living in a perfect society forever.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now, and ever, and forever. Amen.