I wonder sometimes with God if HE does not often laugh at us. His ways are certainly not ours. The older I get the less I understand I know as far as God is concerned.But knowing how little we know is a form of Wisdom in itself. How God Judges men is a great mystery but the closest I think are the word of St John of the Cross at the end of the day we will all be judged in love. But we judge the outside as scripture tells us, God judges the heart. Which of us can judge a man's heart or his love? God is full of surprises.
I was listening to a talk from a young American Doctor . He has spent most of his working life in Africa helping Ebola victims. It was breath taking. So humble. He never mentioned God once, but how could God not be delighted with such a wonderful man? I know I was delighted with him and so inspired. You just never,ever know.
Romans 11:33: "Oh, the depth of the riches of the wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable his judgments, and his paths beyond tracing
I had a dream last night I was back in the 16th century and a group of men and women stood around me shouting and pointing at me. Then I dreamt St Teresa of Avila walked through the door, threw her arms around me and gave me a great big hug. A lovely dream. I think it came because I am reading her at the moment.
When I read her book “Way of Perfection” I wanted to be her friend. She just resonated with me and I learned so much from her. Wow you are blessed to have that dream!
I was getting masses for deceased souls one time in my parish office. The lady was writing the names in a folder. She then asked what address would she write. I said, most likely it would be Purgatory." Then she asked, " how do you spell that?!"
I have not been following this thread so I don't know what's in here. It's just that I had a very strange dream last night or more like a snippet of a dream. I dreamt I was suddenly in a church to one side of the altar, up near the front. It's a very murkey, hazy dream without a lot of detail, but anyway, I looked over towards the altar I had the impression that a Mass was going on. But to my surprise there was a woman at the foot of the altar, with her back towards the people. I thought she was what looked like confecting the Eucharist. I didn't hear the words of consecration but she was holding a host, and then she went down on one knee to genuflect in front of the host. I was a bit horrified to see this. I was thinking - 'her arms are bare!' but she was waring a rather tight fitting green vestment on top. Her hair was quite long but her neck was very visible. And her vestment only went to her waist and she had what seemed to me stylish black trousers. I was upset by what I was seeing and I got up to leave. I crossed in front of the altar without genuflecting in front of the altar which I would normally always do. I went down to the back of the church through a corridor on the right side of the church and came to an exit door. It was lashing rain outside. Another man was exiting at the same time and he said to me, 'let's go over there'. So we dodged the rain by walking along the wall of the church and went towards what seemed to be an adjoining building. Then the other man said to me, 'watch this'. He pressed some lever and the whole wall which was about 6 foot thick started to move. I asked him if this would not cause the church to collapse? He said 'don't worry' and beckoned me to go in a nearby door. He touched something again in the room inside and again another piece of thick wall started to slide across the floor until it met the block of wall approaching it, which had already been set in motion. But when the two blocks of wall met they did not stop. The blocks started to crack due to the opposing forces and debris started shattering and falling all around the place as if the building was coming down around me. Then I woke up. A very strange dream indeed!
The blocks cracking under opposing forces seem to symbolize the schism emerging along two divergent fronts within the Church: the liberal wing and the ultra-traditionalist wing, represented in part by groups such as the FSSPX. The strange figure of the woman celebrating Mass facing the altar with her back to the faithful seems to symbolize this division.