Search Page
Showing 521 - 540 of 1276
Mortal sin is like a whirlpool. It is easy to be swept into it, and it is impossible to escape disaster. In the life based on the Sacred Liturgy, however, we can be carried powerfully along by the sacraments and holy habits, until we arrive on the shore of Heaven.
We are right to pray for souls in Purgatory, where good people are made perfect. No-one wants to leave Purgatory who cannot yet gaze upon God with child-like joy and gratitude.
It is a marvellous 'moment', when a soul is shown that he is perfectly purified, and is ready to leave Purgatory and enter Heaven. There, in the Father's light, he will meet his Saviour, Christ.
Any priest who offers the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, yet rushes away to fulfil his own selfish plans, or to continue a sinful lifestyle, moves as if from Heaven to Hell in a few minutes, leaving the 'Heaven' which is Christ's Real Presence to the 'hell' which is human life when the 'door' has been shut to God.
Only in Heaven, Christ explained, is everybody perfect, so though we should all aim for perfection, none should grow despondent about our tiny faults, nor imagine that Christ is displeased with our efforts. (It is always possible, with God's help, to avoid mortal sin, if we wish).
Though we must pray and work to help the needy all over the world, we must keep our thoughts also on Heaven, lest we become despondent, forgetting the glory and joy that await God's friends. Yet we must think, too, about our preparation. Only the pure and holy are ready to enter.
Parts of the earth lie in darkness, again. For God, looking at the earth, it is as if lights on the earth which normally shine out to Heaven, are extinguished, where Catholics routinely go against the Commandments, particularly about chastity and about married love. It is just as when people working for the National Grid see large, un-lit areas suddenly appear on their screens.
In Baptism a person is made God's own child - 'adopted' - transformed, empowered by the Holy Spirit, made a member of the Church, freed from sin and made an heir or heiress to the Kingdom of Heaven, if faithful to the end.
Christ showed me in Holy Communion that the Father in Heaven gazes with delight upon all who work to see the sacraments - including the Mass - celebrated with due reverence and gratitude, and to ensure that the Faith is taught in its fullness and not watered down to 'fit in' with what others think.
Those who try to live independent of God, His Church, and His laws, are living as if on a sheet of melting ice. A broad road nearby leads to Hell, whereas a steep path leads to a fruitful land at the top of a mountain, which represents a state of grace.
Catholics who want to do more than fulfil ordinary duties with little enthusiasm should follow the 'ladder' to Heaven, which consists of three stages: purgation, illumination and union. These lead to the heights of contemplation, and to eternal bliss in Heaven.
The souls of those who live in serious sin, without following God's laws and the Church's teachings, are like a sea of melting ice, in which there is no hope of life; the souls of those in a 'state of grace', however, are like a land of fruit trees, cornfields, rivers and blue skies, far above the icy wastes, close to a mountain whose top lies in heaven.
Life lived in union with God through Baptism is like a journey in a seat on a monorail; the train arrives at an airport, which represents a happy death; for there is a flight waiting, which will end in Heaven. Those who cannot be bothered to take the train are doomed. Those who wanted to, but could not, will be 'parachuted' into the airport by a merciful God.
When we pray in the name of Jesus to our Heavenly Father it is as though the 'door' to Heaven opens. The Father hears us; and the light of the glory of Heaven shines upon us.
The Father hears the prayers we offer in Jesus' name. Jesus is living to intercede for us, and does so not just in Heaven, but also here upon earth in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass.
God, the King of Kings, lives in Heaven, yet has an 'outpost' in a foreign country, Earth, where His ambassadors keep a special residence, with a throne-room, which He can visit. Hence the reverent silence appropriate for that place: a Catholic church.
It is as though, to reach Heaven, we must deliberately aim for Heaven, swimming against the powerful current that might draw us into a 'whirlpool' of evil that leads to Hell. Baptism is like a set of water wings that hold us up and give us confidence about life in Christ, and the power to become holy and to persevere.
As we 'aim' for Heaven, we are like swimmers trying to avoid the currents that can sweep us away from our destination. Baptism is like a pair of waterwings that makes possible our safe arrival.
I saw a soul rising up from Purgatory like a man waking from a bad dream, who then gazed around him in wonder. On seeing Heaven's glory, he was amazed at its beauty, and full of joy that, in his purified state, he was about to enter.
Christ spoke to me from the sanctuary, where He was Present in the tabernacle. He showed His delight in the forthcoming news about greater reverence in the Sacred Liturgy; and He turned towards His Father in Heaven, to Whom greater glory will be given by the changes.
Showing 521 - 540 of 1276