Where Is My Loved One Now? | The Catholic Church’s Teachings on the Afterlife

Hell

⦁ Catechism 1033: “we cannot be united with God unless we freely choose to love him. But we cannot love God if we sin gravely against him, against our neighbor or against ourselves…to die in mortal sin without repenting and accepting God’s merciful love means remaining separated from him forever by our own free choice. This state of definitive self-exclusion from communion with God and the blessed is called hell.”

⦁ CCC 1035: “the chief punishment from hell is eternal separation from God”

⦁ CCC 1037: “God predestines no one to go to Hell, for this, a willful turning away from God (a mortal sin)”

⦁ The Lord does not want any to perish but all to come to repentance (1 Tim 2:4, 2 Pet 3:9)

“I saw the torments of hell and those of purgatory; no words can describe them. Had poor mortals the faintest idea of them, they would suffer a thousand deaths rather than undergo the least of their torments during a single day.” - St. Catherine of Siena

Purgatory

⦁ CCC 1030: “all who die in God’s grace and friendship, but still imperfectly purified, are indeed of assured of their eternal salvation; but after death they undergo purification, so as to achieve the holiness necessary to enter the joy of heaven.

⦁ YouCat 159: “Just such a purgatory probably awaits most of us at the moment of our death: the Lord looks at us full of love and we experience burning shame and painful remorse over our wicked or merely unloving behavior. Only after this purifying pain will we be capable of meeting his loving gaze.”

Heaven

⦁ CCC 1023: “those who die in God’s grace and friendship and are perfectly purified live forever with Christ. They are like God forever, for they “see him as he is”, “face to face.””

⦁ CCC 1024: “heaven is the ultimate end and fulfillment of the deepest human longings, the state of supreme, definitive happiness.”

" November 27, 1936. Today I was in heaven, in spirit, and I saw its unconceivable beauties and the happiness that awaits us after death. I saw how all creatures give ceaseless praise and glory to God. I saw how great is happiness in God, which spreads to all creatures, making them happy; and then all the glory and praise which springs from this happiness returns to its source; and they enter into the depths of God, contemplating the inner life of God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, whom they will never comprehend or fathom. This source of happiness is unchanging in its essence, but it is always new, gushing forth happiness for all creatures. Now I understand Saint Paul, who said, “Eye has not seen, nor has ear heard, not has it entered into the heart of man what God has prepared for those who love him.” And God has given me to understand that there is but one thing that is of infinite value in His eyes, and that is love of God; love, love and once again, love; and nothing can compare with a single act of pure love of God. Oh, with what inconceivable favors God gifts a soul that loves Him sincerely! (Diary of Saint Faustina 777).

November 15, 2020 - 33rd Sunday in Ordinary Time

Dear Friends in Christ:

As we continue in this Month of Remembrance I hope many of you have taken the time to visit your loved ones cemetery sites. As I mentioned a couple weeks ago, the Vatican has extended the Plenary Indulgence normally obtained from November 1 to 8 to the entire month. The necessary requirements for the Indulgence are: to visit the cemetery, have a spirit detached from sin, go to confession as soon as possible, receive the Eucharist as soon as possible, pray for the pope's intentions, and be united spiritually with all the faithful. By fulfilling these requirements, an indulgence can be obtained for our loved ones who are in Purgatory and get them closer to their entrance to the heavenly kingdom!

Perhaps you have visited our own St. Bridget Cemetery on Higgins Road and noticed some changes? As I announced in May, in the midst of the Pandemic, we had put together a New Cemetery Advisory Committee for St. Bridget Cemetery, a mission of Saint Bridget of Sweden Parish. Even during a Pandemic our new committee hit the ground running and began making improvements that were long overdue. I am so grateful to each and every one of them for their tremendous efforts in improving the condition of our parish cemetery and ensuring that it is a comforting and prayerful setting for our parishioners to visit and pray for their loved ones.

Some of the improvements have been very visible from painting the maintenance garage there to installing a wrought iron fence along the roadside in the front. Other improvements have been noticeable but not as visible such as clearing land in the back and behind the maintenance garage, seeding it, and preparing it for future gravesites. They also have plans to repair and replace other sections of the fencing where damage has occurred through the years. And they have been working diligently on the Cemetery Rules and Regulations. This is no small project. A week does not go by when I do not receive an email from someone who wishes to complain about the trinkets, overgrown plantings, or other decorations on some of the headstones.

I realize that implementing new Rules and Regulations is not going to be an easy project but I am confident once they are implemented many of these issues will be resolved. As final drafts are being put together, I wanted to let you know that we will be announcing these Rules and Regulations in the Bulletin, on our Social Media, and through an Ad in the Cheshire Herald. It is my hope that we can start publishing the new Rules and Regulations by January sometime and then have an effective date sometime in March or April as to when we will begin to enforce them so families have time to get their loved ones gravesites within code.

A question about Perpetual Care Funds for the Cemetery. Recently I have been questioned regarding the perpetual care funds and what their purpose is. There is confusion about the idea of perpetual care and it is important to know what is and what is not covered. Perpetual Care Funds are used for the general maintenance, care, and management of the cemetery and grounds. For example, mowing and lawn care during the growing months, and snow clearing and road treatment during the winter months would fall under perpetual care, as would the up-keep of our maintenance garage in the cemetery, fencing, road work, signage and record keeping. What is NOT covered is the upkeep of family monuments or flesh markers, nor the planting, cutting, watering or care of any privately planted shrub, flowers, or ornamental plants. I hope this clears up what is the responsibility of the cemetery and proper use of perpetual funds, and what is the responsibility of the family who owns a plot in the cemetery.

LAST SUNDAY WAS AMAZING! Father Federico and I were very ex-cited about the special opportunity we were offering our parishioners to come and receive Holy Communion. Even a couple hours before we were talking with Tony, our Sacristan, and trying to figure out how many would come and guessing of course. We decided to consecrate a few hundred hosts thinking well maybe we will get a good crowd. It was even said that even if only a few come who really de-sired to receive the Eucharist then the effort would be worth it. WOW were we blown away when we had about 150 cars come through! Some had only one or two people in them, others had whole families and multi-generations. Some people were crying, others were almost speechless. Some were vocal about their appreciation, others were visibly touched by the whole experience. We were so touched too. The whole experience and the looks on our people’s faces as they came through just made all the planning and effort so worth it.

WE WILL BE DOING IT AGAIN! STAY TUNED!!!

Happiest Congratulations...go to Meghan C., age 6, from our parish family whose artwork has been chosen as this year’s parish Christmas card. It is well done! It is bright and colorful and a wonderful expression from one of our young artists of the birth of Jesus Christ. Expect to see one in your mail-box this coming Christmas! Congratulations Meghan! We hope you spend your Amazon Gift Card on something you can enjoy! A special word of gratitude to you and the many others from our school and parish families who contributed artwork for consideration. We are blessed with so many young artists!

JOIN ME ON MONDAY, NOVEMBER 30th AT 7PM for a short video and discussion on the life of Blessed Father Michael J. McGivney! As a parish priest and as the State Chaplain of the Knights of Co-lumbus, I am very excited to welcome you to join me in viewing a short video on the life of Father Michael McGivney: An American Blessed. This powerful documentary highlights Father McGivney’s inspiring example of fraternal charity, evangelization, and empowerment of the laity, from his humble beginnings as the son of Irish immigrants to his founding of the Knights of Columbus. The video also explores the heartwarming story of Michael McGivney Schachle, the child whose healing is attributed to the inter-cession of Blessed Father Michael J. McGivney.

DUE TO COVID PHASE 2.1 regulations, we are limited to the first 25 people to sign-up, so sign-up today through the parish web-site. CALLING ALL PARISHIONERS TO CONSIDER VOLUNTEERING AT MASS!!! As you are aware, with COVID and the rules surrounding our re-opening, we are in need of volunteers at EVERY Mass to check people in, sanitize the pews following Mass, and assist in other small tasks associated with our opening. We have a core group of people who volunteer frequently and for that I am most grateful. But as this pandemic continues I realize we need more volunteers to lighten the load. Most especially as we approach Christmas and prepare to make plans for Christmas Eve Masses and Christmas Day Masses, we will need additional volunteers. Please consider helping out! Email Jim Mitchell at Jim@mydglm.com and let him know what times work for your schedule. Thank you for considering helping your parish family through this time of pandemic.

Finally, I must make a comment on the release this past week of a report from the Vatican regarding Theodore McCarrick. What another tragic and sad occasion for the Catholic Church and a stark re-minder of the importance of ensuring we ALL do our part to offer safe environments for our people. I am sure this document over 400 pages in total is a very painful reminder to the many victims of clerical sexual abuse. I have no doubt that this has retriggered their horrific experiences. This is a very clear indicator that past practices and policies failed to ensure the safety of God’s children. It also underscores the painful realization that some in the Church did what they could to ignore problems they knew existed. I hope and pray that this report reminds us all that in a sinful world each of us has a role to play in protecting and safe-guarding the people entrusted to our care. Let us ALL pledge to pray for the victims, protect the children and vulnerable of today, and continue to seek to bring healing to the Church we all love.

As always, remember to pray and ask God’s blessings upon our family of faith as we build His kingdom here. Please know that I am praying for you, and I ask for your prayers for me, that together through the intercession of Saint Bridget of Sweden, our Patroness, and united in the Eucharist, we will reflect the presence of Jesus to the world.

"Hope is a dangerous thing, my friend."

"Hope is a dangerous thing, my friend, it can kill a man..."

"Hope is a good thing, maybe even the best of things. And good things never die."

If you don't recognize this quote, you need to stop reading this article and go watch The Shawshank Redemption right now. Trust me, you won't regret it. It's a beautifully told tale of redemption (go figure), friendship, and hope. Seriously, it's one of the 10 best movies ever made. Tell your dad you want to watch it, he'll be thrilled!

In the scene in question, Morgan Freeman's Otis "Red" Redding is speaking to Tim Robbins' Andy Dufresne in the first line. They're both inmates at Shawshank State Prison, and Red is suggesting to Andy that the hope of release or escape will drive a man mad, as it's immensely unlikely to come true. Andy disagrees.

Andy, in a mildly cheesy but still moving turn of phrase, argues that "hope is a good thing, maybe even the best of things. And good things never die." He's spot on about hope here; it is a good thing, perhaps the best of things. Hope keeps us going. Hope is the manifestation of our belief that God is in control and will use all things for His purposes.

Perhaps the most prolific writer of all time on this subject is Saint Paul. I want to draw your attention to two of his best writings on hope. Firstly, from his magnum opus: the Letter to the Romans. "We know that all things work for good for those who love God, who are called according to his purpose (Romans 8:28)."

This is why we hope. We hope because we, as Christians, know that God is in control. Jesus has, in fact, taken the wheel. All things do indeed work for good for those who love God. For those who are called. Even if you don't consider yourself a Catholic, you're reading this for some reason! In some small way, you're being called.

The other passage I want to draw your attention to is the most prolific reading at weddings (and likely always will be): 1 Corinthians. This is the "Love is patient, love is kind" reading. In 1 Corinthians 13:13, St. Paul ends the passage by saying, "So faith, hope, love remain, these three." I believe that he's saying that all we need to live a joyful, Christ-centered life is these three things.

Alright, I've been talking about hope for a while without telling you why. So, why? Why bring this up now? Well, if it ain't obvious, allow me to clue you in. There's a lot of reasons that hope might be hard to come by right now. We are seeing a big surge of Covid cases, for starters. Some schools are moving to short-term virtual learning, and that's scary!

On top of this, there's the fallout from the election. While most major news outlets have projected a winner, we're facing a likely lengthy process of court challenges and discussions about alleged voter fraud and the like. Again, that's scary! This has been a contentious election, and the fact that it may drag out even longer is not a happy thought.

Clearly, there are reasons that some of us may be tempted to lose hope. That's okay. Temptation is a part of all of our lives. As I said in a previous blog post, the devil loves times of strife and difficulty because it's when we're at our weakest. And he's really good at his job of tempting us to despair. But, as I've also said before, God is infinitely better at His job.

Hope is not something we should forsake during times like these. On the contrary, hope is what allows us to weather these storms! Without hope, all is lost. Without hope, we are just like Red from The Shawshank Redemption. We become empty, hollow shells of ourselves. Even worse, we can even discourage others from hope like Red does with Andy.

Hope is a dangerous thing, but not to everyone. Hope is dangerous to those who sow fear and distress. Hope is dangerous to the naysayers, the rabble rousers, and those who want us to believe that the world and those who inhabit it are not fundamentally good. Yes, hope is dangerous. But it's dangerous like the Cross.

One of the reasons that the Jewish authorities wanted Jesus crucified was that He undermined their authority. If there's someone here who can heal the sick with a word, command nature itself, and forgive sins, what do the people need us Pharisees for, right? Jesus is the physical, incarnate embodiment of hope.

And so they crucified Him, and everyone thought that was the end. We, of course, know that it was not. The Cross, seemingly the darkest moment the followers of Christ could have imagined, worked for good for those who loved God and were called according to His purpose. Sounds like Saint Paul knew what he was talking about!

And so, even in these dark times, let us not lose hope. Let us remember that all of these things, no matter how terrible they may seem, are working together for the good of those who love God (that's us, hopefully). I don't know how. My guess is you don't either. But neither did those at the foot of the Cross. Look how it worked out for them! In my book, that's good company to be in.

Continue to pray for unity and peace in our country, no matter who you voted for. Remember that humble victory and charitable defeat are good ideals to strive for. Also, stay safe out there with these rising virus cases. Take proper precautions, and be charitable to each other. We will come out of this storm. You have God's Word on that.

God bless you,

Regis