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The smoke from volcanoes can endanger aircraft. People are understandably sad and upset when their earthly plans are foiled by upheavals in the natural world, yet those are comparatively minor tragedies when compared with the loss of God, which occurs when a person dies without having repented of serious sin; and the great cloud of smoke that rises from Hell obscures from them, forever, the sight of God in His glory and beauty.
There are far-away countries where some communities are so isolated that some people in power permit horrible injustices against the powerless, who become deprived of all hope. Cruel people who do not repent will find themselves isolated after death, themselves at the mercy of creatures stronger than they: the demons in Hell.
No-one can please God by a life that consists of an outward appearance of piety, combined with a hard heart and cruel actions. Those who treat other human beings as slaves, or beasts as burden, and have no intention of showing compassion, can only fall down into the pit, when they die, to be lost forever.
By our own freely-made choices, we alter our destiny. Those who persist in selfishness and sin, despite the help given by God to reflect upon their lives, and to turn to Him in contrition and trust, will find themselves led, at death, into total alienation and spiritual hopelessness, as if through a dark doorway, unlike those who have persevered in faith and love, and who are raised up in the glorious life of Heaven, to share the joy of the Saints, forever.
Whenever we offer up, in prayer, in union with Christ our Saviour, whatever sufferings we currently try to endure with patience, we are helping souls in danger of spiritual disaster. It's as if we are calling out - by the power of Christ - to someone who is about to descend a flight of steps that lead down to Hell. It's as if we are calling out - 'Don't go down there; it's a dead end!' By the grace of Christ, and our prayer, we can help people to turn back to Christ.
Catholics who choose to disbelieve major truths of faith and morals are in danger of going astray, further and further away from Christ. For example, anyone who approves of abortion, which is the equivalent of throwing away a baby into a deep pit, or who herself thinks she will choose an abortion, is in danger of falling in herself, or, rather, of falling into the pit that, for her, would represent Hell.
There is a horrible surprise in store for a person who has deserted Christ and the Church, and who arrives at the moment of death, then finds himself helpless between the Evil One who had been leading him astray, and the pit into which he might soon fall, to remain there forever. But Christ appears, with a merciful face, to ask: 'Is that really your wish: to go to Hell? If you reach up your arms to me, I will save you.' He must choose well, and reach up in humility, if he wishes to reach Heaven one day.
It is because we have free will that God allows people to ignore Him. Those who choose to ignore the light of truth about God, which shines out from the Catholic Church, are as if walking away into darkness, on a self-chosen route towards Eternal Life without God, unless they repent before they die; and that loss-of-God, known as Hell, is what Christ wants us to avoid; but many do not listen to Him.
We must encourage one another really to believe in Jesus Christ. If I am one of those fearful Catholics who constantly feels trapped between the memory of my sins, which we feel will bring us to Hell, and the assaults or temptations of the evil one - like a roaring beast, trying to devour us - I should look away from myself, upwards, to Jesus. If we call on Him, He is powerful enough to help us. But, to call, we first need faith in Him.
Each of us needs to remember that we shall one day die. Shall we go to the grave in the love of God, confident that He will rescue us, and bring us up to Heaven, or shall we die when we have, at some stage of life earlier, cut ourselves off from Him? By our decisions and our behaviour today, each of us is making our way towards Heaven or towards Hell.
If we are serious about wanting to avoid serious sin, we should act firmly, to avoid occasions of sin. Just as a sailor makes sure he keeps away from the currents that could draw him towards a whirlpool, where he would be sucked down and lost, so people attracted to evil images should avoid television and the internet, or be very careful, if they long to watch pornography, or love to watch violent films. Are we drawn towards Heaven or Hell by all we allow to influence us?
Until we are safely in Heaven, by God's grace and mercy, we must remain vigilant. Our enemy, the devil, prowls around like a hungry lion, seeking someone to devour, which means, he wants to draw us into Hell. We must pray and strive to avoid all evil, and to do only good, in union with Christ.
The newspapers depict, from time to time, horrible pictures of cellars where sadistic men have entombed helpless victims, for the satisfaction of their perverted plans. If they do not repent before they die, such men will find themselves 'entombed'. by their own choices, in Hell, where the 'treatment' inflicted by the demons is worse than anything suffered on earth.
This man had entombed himself within the sins of which he refused to repent. When he died, the sins in which he had blanketed himself burst into flame, enclosing him in fire, cutting him off from the love of God which, time and time again, he had rejected.
He who had carried out the wishes of the Beast in his own life was seized immediately after death by that same Beast, and carried away to his lair, which is Hell.
Some people, through their obscene conversations and sinful desires, proceed in a way of life which leads towards Hell - unless they are fortunate enough to realise it, and to change.
Some souls have not heeded the warning that the evil one, like a lion, prowls around seeking those he can devour. They do their own will, not God's Will, until death; then are horrified to enter the 'lion's mouth', which is the evil one's 'embrace'.
The Purpose of the Priesthood, by Elizabeth Wang
‘The Purpose of the Priesthood contains encouragement and advice for Catholic priests. It reminds them about the central meaning of the Priesthood, and about the need to teach the Catholic Faith in it…
How to Pray: Perseverance, by Elizabeth Wang
This text is published as Chapter 3 of How to Pray (Part One: Foundations), pages 19-30, entitled 'How to Persevere'. An introduction to the life of prayer with much practical advice about how to deep…
Autobiography of Elizabeth Wang, Part 1
This text forms part of Elizabeth Wang's Falling in Love: A Spiritual Autobiography (1999). It tells the story of her life and of her spiritual journey as she came to know Christ and His Church.
You …
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