Report on the Ladies Guild Retreat
What happens to us after death is a subject of interest to most of us, especially those who have suffered the loss of loved ones and who continue to struggle with that loss.
We wonder about so many things: Where are our loved ones at this moment? Were they judged worthy of heaven and are they with God? Are they aware of us still here on earth? Are they angels, protecting us from harm? Do they pray for us? Are they in the same body form as when they died, or have they been restored to their youthful unblemished selves? Will they recognize us when we meet again? The questions we ponder go on and on, very often keeping us from a peaceful night’s rest.
Father Keith Boettner and Father Brad Cunningham jointly planned and conducted a recent 3-day retreat in Hardy, AR, for the ladies of St. James Church. The lessons learned laid to rest many of our concerns.
The priests took turn conducting the sessions, which began on Friday morning with a Eucharist. The first session, "The Origin of Life and Death," dealt with man's fall from grace and expulsion from the Garden of Eden. It was a very sobering session but also an uplifting one that reassured us that God in Christ has done everything to keep us from punishment in Hell. We were told that His perfect plan includes a new heaven, a new earth, a resurrected people, and a life with the resurrected Jesus.
The second session dealt with the weighty subject of "Coping with Our Own Mortality and Death" and the five steps of preparing for death:
Acknowledging death
Gaining wisdom about death
Being prepared to withstand the judgment
Acknowledging Jesus Christ
Setting one's eyes on the prize - eternal life with Christ
This session was extremely enlightening as to why death is unnatural and how we must prepare to withstand the judgment.
In the third session, "Hope Beyond the Grave," we were told that at death the body goes to the grave while the soul rises to the Intermediate Heaven, a temporary state or descends to Sheol (a place of suffering), also a temporary state. Our place has been decided by our faith or lack of faith in Christ. We will then either live in the presence of Christ, joyful and comforted, or separated from Him in agony and despair.
We learned that while in the Intermediate Heaven, those who have died in Christ will be in spirit form having a relationship with the spirits of other saints while we grow in love of God, looking forward to the Resurrection when our souls will be joined with our bodies for eternity. This will not be a monotonous life of sitting on clouds and playing harps. It will be a productive existence in a beautiful place full of love and the light of Christ. We will go from “strength to strength.”
The fourth session, "Our Relationship with the Church Triumphant," dealt with the final judgment and resurrection. Satan and all people in Sheol will be sent to the place of eternal suffering and separation from God. All people in Paradise will be resurrected. Heaven and earth will be one. Life will be eternal, and mankind will live on a new earth. Man will be restored to his original position that he had before he sinned.
We then held a Requiem Mass, which gave us a great deal of comfort and peace as we prayed for all our loved ones in Paradise and knew that they were praying for us.
The retreat was not only a beautiful spiritual learning experience that has lifted a heavy weight from our minds, but it was also a time of good fellowship and fun, not to mention great food. The sessions were held at the home of Father Brad and Diana Cunningham where we listened to the Word of God as we enjoyed the view of the Ozark Mountains and the Spring River flowing just below their home. We are truly grateful to the Cunninghams for their warm hospitality.
However, this message cannot begin to touch on the knowledge we gained, the peace we felt, or the emotions that constantly rose up in us. There are plans for the retreat content to be offered again soon in Memphis so that others might share in a wonderful time of enlightenment, comfort, and healing.