By Fr. Victor Feltes
Jesus teaches that “there are many dwelling places” in his Father’s house. He says “I am going to prepare a place for you… [And] I will come back again and take you to myself, so that where I am you also may be.” The eternal dwelling place of our Father is heaven, and Jesus prepares a place for us and desires to take us there. But when can we arrive?
The Seventh-Day Adventists and Jehovah’s Witnesses believe in versions of “soul sleep” and think deceased Christian souls are not yet conscious in heaven; they both hold that experiencing heaven begins after the resurrection of the body. I have heard other Christians question whether we will still recognize or remember our loved ones in heaven. Some have wondered if we will be so overwhelmed experiencing God’s glory that we won’t think or care about anyone else. So are there saints in heaven now who are thinking about and caring about and praying about us?
In the Book of Revelation, St. John beholds visions of heaven where human souls are aware and active there even before Christ’s Second Coming, the General Resurrection, and the Last Judgment. In his sixth chapter, John recalls, “I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slaughtered because of the witness they bore to the word of God. They cried out in a loud voice, ‘How long will it be, holy and true master, before you sit in judgment and avenge our blood on the inhabitants of the earth?’ Each of them was given a white robe and they were told to be patient a little while longer until the number was filled of their fellow servants and brothers who were going to be killed as they had been.” In the previous chapter, John saw people offering prayers in heaven: “Each of the elders held a harp and gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of the holy ones.” So saints are now conscious and praying in heaven, but do they still remember and love those of us on earth?
How could a closer union with the All-Knowing One in heaven make us more ignorant? How could a closer relationship with the God who is Love make our love for all people colder? In one of Jesus’ parables, even a condemned rich man suffering in the netherworld remembered his five living brothers and prayed (or asked) for a messenger to be sent to warn them. The fact that miracles have followed from praying to saints in heaven asking for their intercession before God shows us that the holy dead continue to be aware of us, care about us, and pray for us.
Donna’s two sons, Tim and Ron, have shared a number of beautiful stories about her. They both mention her prayerful devotion and loving concern. Tim says the two core things in his parents’ lives were their devotion to Jesus and their dedication to family. Ron notes she was “always praying… always interested.” When Ron was experiencing hard times at chiropractic college far away in Iowa, his mom called every night to help him through it. Donna also spent hours on the phone with other relatives and friends, eventually becoming a texter and learning how to FaceTime on an iPod in order to stay in touch. She could always patiently listen and provide good counsel to help others with struggles but she would discern her advice with prayer and support those people with her prayers.
Pray for Donna’s soul, for “as gold in the furnace” God tries and purifies us in this world or in purgatory as needed, so “that we might no longer be in slavery to sin” and he may take us to himself in heaven as perfect offerings. But also remember that Donna does not forget you, she will continue to love you and continue to pray for you. Follow and cooperate with Jesus Christ, so her prayers for you shall not be in vain.
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