There can be a sense of loss that marks today’s memorial because we commemorate the departed. I want to assume that a good number of people have experienced the loss of a loved one and the experience is not an easy one to handle. I have wrestled with the reality of death for a long time.
I remember during my college years when one of my classmates, a dear friend, suddenly died. All I kept thinking during the intense mourning time that followed was how to retrieve the good times we shared—post-lunch long walks with deep conversations we had almost about everything, including death and dying; the reality of eternity with God, et cetera. I also remember some of our conversations about why no one comes back to tell us what heaven looks like.
Dreams
One day he shared with me how a friend of his would always see his late dad in dreams. But the dreams seemed so real that he would look forward to them, presumably because he feels connected with his late father that way. I can recall being very uncomfortable when he shared that story with me, but I did not know why I felt a deep discomfort about that story. It took me a few days to say something to him about that story.
When I finally gathered the courage, I told him I felt his friend’s experience was not good. He asked why, but I did not have any articulated reason(s). However, I remember saying that I don’t think souls have independent power to float around the universe. If they possess such power, would they need so many prayers from us especially if they are still on their way to heaven? Surprisingly, he prayed with his friend, asking the Lord to stop that dream if it was not from him, and the dream stopped.
Questions and Answers
How about those souls already with God—beholding the beatific vision whom we are yet to recognize as Saints? Could such holy souls be allowed to communicate with us sometimes about their state of being—that they are in a “better place”? Here is another story that might shed a light on the above question.
One day, I went to our parish school for a regular quick visit with our school children. I was immediately called into one of the administrators’ offices. There was a young lady (let me call her Mary here) in there, crying uncontrollably. She was very inconsolable. Something reminded her of her beloved grandfather, who had passed. From every sign, it was clear she was close to her grandpa. As we know, no words are enough in situations like that. So, I asked if we could pray. She agreed. After a very brief prayer, Mary’s tears vanished, and she looked so normal and bright (happy might be too strong here). I like to ask people I pray with about their experience while we prayed. So, I did. Mary said as we prayed, her grandpa joined us. He was beautifully dressed in white wearing a big smile and said, “stop crying. I am in a better place.”
Resist Temptations
What do we make of experiences like these? To be very safe, please do not go searching to communicate with a loved one who has passed. Some people have desperately gone to mediums and opened very dangerous doors. Please resist such temptations. When a departed soul communicates with us, it could be good or bad. It is good if Jesus has sent an angel who might have taken the “form” of the person we knew. In such a case, the message is always good and meant to enhance our faith in Jesus Christ.
On the other hand, if one is receiving messages from the dead that have nothing to do with the faith, it is not from God. The safest way to communicate with a loved one is through prayer because the link between us and the faithful departed is Christ. Jesus says, “I will not reject anyone who comes to me (John 6:37). If they are with Christ, then nothing is better to communicate with than Christ.
I had a dream about my dad after he did. he come to me as I was in the old grammar school building which I went to as a child and he seem upset and we talked. he was lost and did not know what to do. I showed him the classrooms and reminded him of his gift with children. he was a plumber and when he worked my little ones would especially the boys would watch him and talk to him. the town called him grandpa bang bang. he could help the little ones who died. and he came back to me when I was dreaming again one night but at our old house in the lane and he wave to me and I ask him to talk but he said, I have no time. I must to and be with Jackie, my sister and Tim who was her husband. Tim’s mother died and I need to be with them when they find out. when they called I told them that I knew and that dad was there with them.