Tag Archives: heaven

Lessons from the Transfiguration

Transfiguration by Raphael

The Transfiguration of our Lord

Our Lord’s Transfiguration on Mount Tabor can teach us many lessons. In this meditation, we use passages from Scripture to consider some of them:

  • The climbing of the mountain calls to mind the difficulties in our own life in climbing the mountain of holiness
  • Seeing Christ transfigured in his divinity is a reminder that we too will see him transfigured in glory in heaven
  • This should spur us on to lift our thoughts above to the goal of life, especially when we are bogged down in the here and now
  • When Peter says “It is well for us to be here” we are reminded that we should often say the same thing, in good times and in bad
  • When the Father says, “This is my beloved Son with whom I am well pleased; listen to him” we should listen to Christ often:  in our prayer, in our conscience throughout the day, in the Scriptures, in Mass…
  • Like the apostles, we should share our faith with the many others who do not know Christ

Lesssons of the Assumption of Mary

Assumption of Mary Rubens

A depiction of our Lady’s Assumption painted by Rubens

Our Lady’s Assumption into heaven teaches us many lessons. In this meditation we use a text from the book of Revelation to consider some of these lessons:

  • Mary sanctified herself in her ordinary life in the home, as we do
  • She is the new Ark of the Covenant, bringing the very Word of God into the world
  • Mary is rewarded for her humility and docility to God
  • Mary’s Assumption fills us with hope for our own resurrection to eternal life
  • Mary had many crosses on the way, as we will
  • The woman in the book of Revelation overcomes the attacks of the devil, as we must
  • Mary’s intercession for us is all-powerful

With Christ in Lent

Face of Christ in the Passion

A depiction of Jesus Christ’s passion

Lent presents a splendid opportunity to grow closer to God spiritually, to accompany Our Lord through the Cross to the Resurrection. In this meditation we consider how:

  • Lent symbolises our life on earth with its trials and tribulations  and Easter symbolises the joy of our life with God in heaven
  •  In Lent we quicken the pace of our life towards our encounter with Christ at the end of our life
  • Our prayer and fasting with Christ in his forty days in the desert strengthen us to resist temptations, as Christ did
  • Christ’s love for us “to the end” moves us to show our love for him by living Lent well
  • Lent is a time for repentance and the resolution to try harder to avoid sin
  • We can live Lent through the three traditional ways of prayer, fasting and works of charity

My new book: Dying to Live

Dying To Live: Reflections on Life After Death

After many months of work, I am happy to announce the proximate publication of my latest book, “Dying to Live – Reflections on Life after Death”. As you will see by clicking on the title, the book has been written primarily for people who don’t know what awaits them when they die.

It begins by arguing from reason and experience, and then progresses to the Catholic Church’s teaching on the question, which should fill everyone with hope. The book should be out in the next few weeks, and you can order it online at the link above, or obtain it from a bookshop. We all think this book can do a lot of good and I ask your prayers for that intention.

I trust that you will get some helpful insights from reading the book and I thank you for your support.

United in the Communion of Saints

A depection of the Communion of Saints

Communion of Saints

One of the most consoling truths of our faith is the reality of the Communion of Saints – the Church triumphant in heaven, the Church suffering in purgatory, and the Church militant on earth, all helping one another. In this meditation we use texts from Scripture, the Catechism, St Bernard, St Thomas More, St Therese of Lisieux and St Josemaria to consider how:

  • The saints in heaven “fix the Church more firmly in holiness” by their example and prayer for us
  • We should have as the goal of our life to be with them for all eternity
  • The souls in purgatory suffer greatly and are exceedingly happy, relying on our prayer for them and interceding for us before God
  • In the Church militant, we are helped by the prayers of all in this Communion and we should feel responsible to help the others by our struggle for holiness and our prayers and works.

The Spiritual Olympics

Athletes go through a rigorous training regime in order to achieve their goal of competing, or winning a medal, in the Olympic games. The goal of Christians is much higher: eternal life with God in heaven, and we too need a training regime. In this meditation we use texts of Scripture, St Augustine and St Josemaria Escriva to consider how, like athletes, we need:

  • Determination, singlemindedness, to reach our goal
  • Commitment to training, involving regular times for prayer
  • Self-discipline
  • A spiritual diet of grace from the sacraments
  • A doctor to heal our injuries: the sacrament of penance
  • A coach, in the form of a spiritual director
  • Knowledge of the rules of morality
  • The support of others in the Communion of Saints

 

The Communion of Saints

Pope Francis called the Communion of Saints one of the most consoling truths of our faith. Indeed it is. In this meditation we use texts of the Catechism of the Catholic Church, St Bernard, St Therese of Lisieux, St Josemaria, Pope Francis and Kimberly Hahn to pray about this union of the saints in heaven, the souls in purgatory and the faithful on earth, all helping one another on the way to heaven. We consider how:

  • The Communion of Saints is both communion in holy things and communion of holy persons.
  • We should endeavour to grow in holiness and increase our desire to be one day with the saints in heaven.
  • We should pray much for the souls in purgatory.
  • We should pray for those on earth and help them to come close to God so that they too may be one day in heaven.
  • By our good deeds we contribute to the Communion of Saints and by our sins we withdraw from it.

The Last Things

One day God will call each of us through the gateway of death into the next life where, after a particular judgment, we will enter into heaven, either immediately or through the purification of purgatory, or we will go to eternal damnation in hell. Meditating on these realities helps us to focus our lives so that we can be found worthy of heaven when we die. In this meditation we use the Scriptures, the Catechism of the Catholic Church and the writings of saints to consider:

  • Death is not the end but the beginning of eternal life
  • In the particular judgment we will see our life as God sees us and we can prepare for it by being sincere here on earth
  • Hell is a reality and we should do everything possible to avoid going there
  • If our soul is not completely pure when we die we will be purified in the fire of God’s love in purgatory
  • We should pray very much for the souls in purgatory
  • Our goal is the supreme, definitive happiness of heaven, where we will see God face to face.

Save us from the fires of hell

 

In this meditation we continue our journey through the Last Things,  praying today about hell. Hell is a reality and if we pray about it from time to time we are most unlikely to end up there. But God needs us to help others avoid hell too. In this meditation we use texts from Scripture, the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and the writings of saints like St John Vianney to consider:

  • Christ’s teaching on hell
  • God’s mercy and desire to save all souls
  • That those who go to hell choose it by failing to repent of their serious sins
  • The vision of hell seen by the three children at Fatima
  •  How we can avoid hell and help others to do so