Matt C. Abbott column
'Hungry Souls'; Helping Haiti
Matt C. Abbott
Matt C. Abbott
January 15, 2010
January 15, 2010
The following is the Introduction (minus endnotes) to the book Hungry Souls: Supernatural Visits, Messages, and Warnings from Purgatory, by Gerard J.M. van den Aardweg, Ph.D. Thanks to Lesly Bratt of TAN Books for allowing me to reprint this material.
INTRODUCTION: PURGATORY AND THE PARANORMAL
For those who [at death] find themselves in a condition of being open to God, but still imperfectly, the journey towards full beatitude requires a purification, which the faith of the Church illustrates in the doctrine of purgatory. This is how Pope John Paul II explains why purgatory is necessary. For, he continues, we are called "to be perfect like the heavenly Father during our earthly life... sound and flawless before God the Father 'at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints' (1 Thess 3:12)."
Here John Paul re-affirms the old wisdom concerning the existence of a "state of purification" after death. Purification means atonement for sins and their effects on the soul. It is not a painless, automatic process of "growing" the soul, of attaining full "self-realization" through the acquisition of ever more insight after death, as is the soothing theory of some spiritualists. It is not an accumulation of learning, through a series of "reincarnations," until some point of perfect wisdom is reached, as in the fantasy of some Western New Age disciples. Such are childish attempts to suppress man's deep awareness that the basic dimension determining his destiny in the next world is not knowledge or experience, but moral purity: sin, and the traces it leaves on the soul, versus holiness. Continue reading Here:
http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/abbott/100115
Related links: "Visions of 'dead' lead to insights on purgatory" Catholic Answers tract on purgatory
For those who wish to assist the many victims of the catastrophic earthquake in Haiti, the following are three good organizations to which you can donate: Aid to the Church in Need Cross Catholic Missionaries of the Poor
For those who [at death] find themselves in a condition of being open to God, but still imperfectly, the journey towards full beatitude requires a purification, which the faith of the Church illustrates in the doctrine of purgatory. This is how Pope John Paul II explains why purgatory is necessary. For, he continues, we are called "to be perfect like the heavenly Father during our earthly life... sound and flawless before God the Father 'at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints' (1 Thess 3:12)."
Here John Paul re-affirms the old wisdom concerning the existence of a "state of purification" after death. Purification means atonement for sins and their effects on the soul. It is not a painless, automatic process of "growing" the soul, of attaining full "self-realization" through the acquisition of ever more insight after death, as is the soothing theory of some spiritualists. It is not an accumulation of learning, through a series of "reincarnations," until some point of perfect wisdom is reached, as in the fantasy of some Western New Age disciples. Such are childish attempts to suppress man's deep awareness that the basic dimension determining his destiny in the next world is not knowledge or experience, but moral purity: sin, and the traces it leaves on the soul, versus holiness. Continue reading Here:http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/abbott/100115
Related links: "Visions of 'dead' lead to insights on purgatory" Catholic Answers tract on purgatory
For those who wish to assist the many victims of the catastrophic earthquake in Haiti, the following are three good organizations to which you can donate: Aid to the Church in Need Cross Catholic Missionaries of the Poor
Matt C. Abbott is a Catholic columnist with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication, Media and Theatre from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, and an Associate in Applied Science degree in Business Management from Triton College in River Grove, Ill. He has worked in the right-to-life movement and is a published writer focused on Catholic and social issues. He can be reached at mattcabbott@gmail.com
No comments:
Post a Comment
Please no anonymous comments. I require at least some way for people to address each other personally and courteously. Having some name or handle helps.
Note: Only a member of this blog may post a comment.