Alligators Aside, You Might See More of This "New But Old" Religious Order
Sponsored
Catholic365 is sponsored by
Road to Purity
There is no telling (with certainty) whether “the end is near,” but one thing we can be certain of is that the death rate remains at 100%. Our personal end is always near, with our short time on earth. We know that God exhibits justice, but we also know that God is merciful, and we need to run to God every chance we can get.
Our latest chat takes on some incredibly sobering topics, such as the Last Things (death, judgement, heaven hell), eternal damnation and the reality of God’s wrath and “fury,” what will our glorified bodies be like, how to make a better confession, and helping awaken the conscience of others so they can cling to God’s mercy.
The Christian faith has a seeming paradox in that we purport an all-loving God and yet claim there is a place of eternal separation from God called Hell. But when you explore these topics, you will discover how they fit together. God offers grace, mercy, and sacraments to help us break from the slavery of sin. He offers the Holy Spirit to dwell in us to give us power over evil.
Don’t let another day of your life go by without coming closer to God through repentance. Start here with some friendly and familiar advice.
And consider joining our Living Jesus Chat Room of the Visitation Sisters. Each Sunday we read a passage of St. Francis de Sales and then gather great insights and sharing.
Question: How can we be best prepared for judgment (either at our death, or the final judgment at the end)?
Rose: Regular confession.
Bethany: I study the Bible and joined Father James Mary OSF EWTN mass this morning for lunch. He talks about the Eucharist congress from Indiana.
Rose: Daily examination of conscience.
Chrissy: Be as close to Christ as possible, confession, and relying on His grace.
Caroline: I think Rose is right.
Rose: Being faithful to your spiritual exercises.
Rose: Daily Mass, if possible.
Caroline: I have heard about the four last things. Do you know about those, Sister?
Visitation Sister: Yes, let’s see: death, judgement, heaven, hell.
Rebecca: All of the above.
Bethany: Have you gone to join the Eucharist Congress in Indiana, Sr Susan?
Visitation Sister: No.
Rose: Are cloistered nuns allowed to participate?
Visitation Sister: No, unless they have special permission. That’s one thing about being cloistered. The things you might have participated in before you don’t anymore. Internet use for such events is also usually limited, or it might be a whole community gathering together to watch.
Caroline: I think if you go to the revival website there are videos of everything.
Rose: Yes, we can do our Eucharistic Adoration too.
Question: Do you think the fire that will consume the earth at the end of time is figurative or literal, or both?
Caroline: Both.
Rose: I am thinking about both.
Rebecca: Perhaps both.
Chrissy: I think both I think the fire of the Holy Spirit, and fire has a cleansing purgative effect on souls and then literal for the earth.
Visitation Sister: Prophecies talk about earth consumed by fire.
Caroline: In Revelation and Ezekiel?
Rebecca: Sometimes it seems it is starting in California!
Chrissy: Lol.
Caroline: Seriously.
Visitation Sister: I meant private ones, but I can’t be more specific.
Rebecca: So many little deaths before the final one!
Rose: Yes, Sister, there is a lot coming out now.
Caroline: Oh, I know someone who insists I watch all those videos. Very disturbing.
Rebecca: Even if one stays far from the “fires” the smoke can be a purgatory.
Question: At the time of the resurrection of the body, we are told we will have “glorified bodies.” What does this mean?
Chrissy: I think like when Moses’ face shone with the brightness, they had to veil his face. I think we will shine like stars.
Rose: Like in the Transfiguration.
Visitation Sister: Like Jesus, in a way.
Chrissy: Yeah.
Rose: Very beautiful!
Caroline: Yes, He has a glorified body, but with His wounds.
Visitation Sister: Will our wounds be healed or glow like Jesus’ wounds, I wonder. Our beings will be so different and who knows what earth will be like. All will be renewed.
Chrissy: The most beautiful thing will be our wounds and brokenness and how God's love and faithfulness shaped us… I like to think the wounds we carry glorify God in heaven.
Caroline: I like that thought, Chrissy.
Rebecca: Crystal, surely he allows our wounds so that we can grow to love more nearly.
Visitation Sister: Our whole bodies glorified will glorify God in eternity.
Caroline: And we get to be with Him.
Chrissy: His love was made known to us by His Wounds.
Visitation Sister: Love will pour out of our whole being.
Rose: Like His Sacred Heart.
Rebecca: Even to Thomas who was not there the first time, Jesus appeared after his resurrection.
Chrissy: Yeah. He never hid them or erased them.
Caroline: He could appear and disappear yet eat physical food.
Visitation Sister: But we don’t know whether we will be back on earth as He was, or not.
Bethany: But Jesus will be back. We wait for him. Come, Lord Jesus; alleluia. Yeshua amen.
Question: Is it unloving of God to command some people to “depart” from him and call them “cursed” and cast them into eternal damnation.
Chrissy: I think Eden will be remade like the original idea but with everyone who could be.
Caroline: People who are sent away chose to go.
Rebecca: That lack of knowledge helps us to relativize the importance of things here on earth.
Chrissy: I think it’s a choice of rejecting God and choosing sin.
Rose: God has given us the time to repent and reconcile with Him. Now is the time of His Mercy. Then the time of Judgment comes too.
Visitation Sister: As Bethany said, we wait for Jesus to save us, but we need to accept salvation.
Rebecca: We await in joyful hope.
Caroline: He told St Faustina that those who did not accept His mercy would have to accept judgment.
Rose: Yes. God is outpouring His Spirit like never before now. So, we must accept His Mercy while there is still time. We are living in end-times now.
Caroline: He said that to St Faustina too.
Bethany: We accept him and his words; we wait for him to come to save us and his church.
Visitation Sister: Yes, Bethany, I agree.
Question: Why do you think God would end the world with such terrible fury?
Caroline: Purification?
Rose: God’s wrath is as great as His Mercy.
Rebecca: I like the line of John the Baptist in “The Chosen” just before he is beheaded, when he laughs, and when asked why he says, “You would not get it.” And the executioner repeats, “final words: ‘You would not get it.”.
Rebecca: John had seen the Lamb.
Visitation Sister: Maybe the fury is driven by the degree of sin.
Caroline: Like the flood.
Rose: Yes, Sister, our times are worse than Sodom and Gomorrah.
Caroline: Nineveh repented.
Chrissy: Maybe because of the cries of the innocent, the martyrs? “His little ones”.
Rebecca: Do we know that there will be terrible fury?
Visitation Sister: I think the fury was based on the idea of fire.
Question: St. Francis mentions hastening to Confession. How can we do a better job of reflecting upon ourselves and making better confessions?
Caroline: Using an examen and taking notes so we don’t forget. And remembering who we are going to see.
Rose: At the end of the day, it is good to examine your conscience. I find confession every two weeks to be very helpful.
Chrissy: Praying to saints and the Holy Spirit , a daily examine of our conscience. I had one priest say to do one by noon and again at night to stop and reflect where Jesus was in this moment.
Caroline: That would be so helpful, Chrissy.
Bethany: We need to do good things and obey Jesus. Even the church has to obey his law.
Visitation Sister: Bethany, you have a good sense there.
Rebecca: Even when God cast Adam and Eve from the Garden of Eden, he made them clothing first and he walked with them. Maybe the “Fury” comes from inside ourselves — the “parts” that we have not allowed to be healed.
Visitation Sister: Interesting, Rebecca.
Ines: Jumping in late… but I always wonder about “God’s fury.” It’s hard to imagine because of our emotions. God doesn’t want to send people to hell… yet this idea of the deluge of fire seems pretty clear… whether we do it ourselves and God permits it, or it comes from him.
Rebecca: However, we are made in God's image and likeness.
Ines: Yeah, but if I’m angry because someone rejects me, I’d like to think God can handle it better than I can.
Rose: God is both Merciful and Just.
Rebecca: ??.
Ines: Yes, just and merciful. I think we also cannot truly fathom what sin actually does and is… so perhaps what seems vengeful like smoking with fire is a just result. If we do it to ourselves (which I think is likely), then he permits it because it is a consequence of our sin, which is beyond what we can imagine.
Caroline: It is so very necessary to stay by Him every moment.
Chrissy: Very true.
Bethany: Sr Susan, I ask mom why God curses those people who reject him. She says in the Bible God gave the Ten Commandments warning to obey his law. Listen to him, but some people listen to evil spirits by rejecting Jesus when he tells us to do anything good, but they won’t listen. My mom says Jesus gave the Ten Commandments to tell them to obey him and his teachings, but some people walk away from him and do not listen to him, so they do not choose heaven, they choose hell.
Rose: Never lose sight of Him and do not let our eyes flutter elsewhere.
Ines: Rose – absolutely!!
Question: How can we help more people awaken their consciences and be concerned for how they stand before God, the Divine Judge?
Ines: Well, Sister, I’ve tried standing on street corners warning about the coming apocalypse, but that didn’t seem to do much good…. J/k.
Caroline: That's hard, Sister, because the direct pointing out of a fault is not usually welcome.
Ines: In all honesty, I have found it very difficult to talk about these realities with people who have steadfastly turned their backs on God. They want to follow their own way. So praying is what I can do for them. If there is still a relationship to be had, I make myself available to talk about things if the person wants to engage in a discussion, and of course to be honest about my own faith. But, Caroline, you’re right… pointing out faults is not a good way to go. I think as fellow Christians, we are obliged to do this in some way (according to St. Paul), but again, it must be done with charity.
Chrissy: Living by example of how Christ wants us to live. Give mercy and stand in truth, say the uncomfortable thing and realize a lot of people will be unhappy.
Ines: Chrissy — yes!
Rose: Prayers and sacrifices for the conversion of sinners.
Ines: Rose – absolutely!!
Caroline: Even me!
Caroline: And Jesus has His spot even in those hearts and knows what to say. And privately just with that person. No gossip.
Ines: Caroline, yes… He knows all hearts! If He can rescue me, He can rescue anyone! But still the heart has to be even a teensy bit open to God’s love. You mentioned no gossip… that is SO important. It’s easy to slip into without even realizing it.
Caroline: Yes, in our rule it says to go directly to the person we’re having a problem with and try to reconcile BEFORE involving anyone else, and even then, it’s still private.
Ines: YES… and I’ve been having to deal with that personally with my roommate, actually. So hard.
Rose: It’s really grace from God to be open to any discussion about God’s love for us and His Love is all that we need. So many souls are lost because of their search for love.
Caroline: Oh, roommates are so hard.
Ines: Dude… SO hard.
Caroline: You can’t get away from each other, kind of like the monastery.
If you enjoyed this article, why not join us at our Living Jesus Chat Room of the Visitation Sisters. Join us at 7:30 p.m. ET each Sunday! We read a passage of St. Francis de Sales and then gather great insights and sharing!
Kevin J. Banet is a journalist and publicist. He provides marketing for religious communities, non-profits and healthcare services. Kevin and his family live in the Chicago area. His website is VocationPromotion.com.
