The Blessed in Heaven Possess an Immediate, Intuitive Knowledge of the Divine Essence.
“…animas eorum, qui post susceptum Christi baptismum nullum omnino peccatum commiserunt, […] mox post mortem et purgationem […] visionem divinæ essentiae intuitive et etiam facialem sine aliqua creaturae specie vel imagine […] clare ac aperte vident.”
“…that the souls of those who have died without any sin after receiving the baptism of Christ, […] immediately after death and any necessary purification […] intuitively and face to face—without the mediation of any created image—clearly and distinctly behold the divine essence.”
The Church Teaches:
Whoever reaches heaven sees God Himself—directly, immediately, without any veil.
This “vision of God” is called the visio beatifica (beatific vision). It is not merely a “feeling” or a vague sense—but an intuitive knowledge of the divine essence itself.
Just as one recognizes a person “face to face”—so do the saints recognize God Himself.
This knowledge makes heaven a state of perfect blessedness.
Source (Latin):
Benedict XII, Constitutio dogmatica “Benedictus Deus” (January 29, 1336), in: Denzinger-Schönmetzer, DS 1000
Source (Systematic):
DS 1000 / CCC No. 1023