A talk given by Fr. Marbendear Morallas to the Divine Mercy In My Soul Community regarding eschatology

1. The Last Things

2. One of man’s fundamental Questions is
the question about the future...
 Where
we are going to?
 What is our ultimte destiny?
 What are the ends that affect our
every beginning?
 Where will these all end?

3. 
And every time we enter into a new beginning, we always love to have
a happy ending.

We hope that every «once upon a time» will end with «happily ever
after»

But life is not a fairy tale, that we are assured of happy ending no
matter we read or listen well. In life endings are always depenent on
the quality of actions and decisions we take..

In man there is also an assurance of happy ending. Not in the form of
magical land. But a matter of faith...salvation.

An end that must affect our every beginning, an end that we live here
and now.

4. Eschatolology

This refers to the the ultimate destiny of
humandkind and the world, as plan by God.

It includes questions on death, judgment, heaven,
hell, purgatory and Christ’s Second Coming.

The Teaching of the Church about the end of
mankind and of the whole created things.

5. Not Christian Concept
Re-incarnation
Pantheism
Nihilism
(Karma)

6. «I believe...in the resurrection of the body
and the life everlasting.»
The Christian end
centers on Christ
promise of new
life, a sharing in his
resurrection, and a
promise of eternal
life with the divine
Trinity.

7. Death

Death as natural. «a time to be born, and a time to die» (Eccl 3:2). In one
sense death is th natural end of human life: Our lives are measured by time
and pass throguh a natural cycle of birth, growth and final decline. The
shortness of life calls us to live it meaningfully. Death here gives meaning to
every birth, and makes time a gift for us.. «I will never pass this way again.»

Death as a Consequence of Sin. Death experienced precisely as a violent
rupture, a painful loss of life filled with anxiety about the future, is the
result of sin, human kind’s alienation from God, the source of all life. «God
did not make death, nor does he rejoice in the destruction of the living. He
fashioned all things that they might have being...It was the wicked who with
hands and words invited death,...and made a covenant with it.» (Wis 1:13,
16)

8. Christian Death

Christ transforms Christian death into a path to
Resurrection. «If we have died with him, we shall
also live with him; if we perserve we shall also reign
with him» (2 Tim 2:11)

Christian funeral is a celebration of life, its songs,
prayers and symbols point out to life after death.

Christians do feel sad and do cry in the face of death
but always hopefully...

9. From death to...

10. HEAVEN

«This day you will be with
me in paradise» (Lk 23:43

Heaven is a state of being
with the Lord. Living with
him in whom the blessed
find perfection of their
identity.

Heaven is often described
as th «beatific vision»,
the vision that makes
happy...

11. Heaven is where man lives in God’s embrace

12. Therefore, heaven is alreay with us, when we
live in God’s presence...we touch heaven
already...
«You are made not
for the comfort of
the world...you are
made for
greatness...»
- Benedict XVI

13. HELL

The bible speaks of a place
of eternal damnation
(gehenna) «out of my sight,
you condemned, into that
everlasting fire» (Mt.
25:41; Mt 5:22, 29, 13;42,
50; Nk 9:43-48)

The point of this teaching
on hell, then, is to
underline the ultimate
accountability of what we
do with our earthly lives, as
well as the finality of
death. Put briefly, God
odes not force His love to
anyone.

Hell is the absence of God.

14. Private revelation of Fatima

"She opened Her hands once more, as She had done
the two previous months. The rays [of light]
appeared to penetrate the earth, and we saw, as it
were, a vast sea of fire. Plunged in this fire, we
saw the demons and the souls [of the damned]. The
latter were like transparent burning embers, all
blackened or burnished bronze, having human
forms. They were floating about in that
conflagration, now raised into the air by the flames
which issued from within themselves, together with
great clouds of smoke. Now they fell back on every
side like sparks in huge fires, without weight or
equilibrium, amid shrieks and groans of pain and
despair, which horrified us and made us tremble
with fright (it must have been this sight which
caused me to cry out, as people say they heard
me). The demons were distinguished [from the
souls of the damned] by their terrifying and
repellent likeness to frightful and unknown
animals, black and transparent like burning coals.
That vision only lasted for a moment, thanks to our
good Heavenly Mother, Who at the first apparition
had promised to take us to Heaven. Without that, I
think that we would have died of terror and fear."

15. Prayer of Fatima...a prayer for salvation from
hell...

PARDON PRAYER. My God, I believe, I adore, I hope
and I love Thee! I ask pardon for those who do not
believe, do not adore, do not hope and do not love
Thee.”

From The Angel. “Most Holy Trinity – Father, Son
and Holy Spirit- I adore Thee profoundly. I offer
Thee the most precious Body, Blood, Soul and
Divinity of Jesus Christ, present in all the
tabernacles of the world, in reparation for the
outrages, sacrileges, and indifferences whereby He
is offended. And through the infinite merits of His
Most Sacred Heart and the Immaculate Heart of
Mary, I beg of Thee the conversion of poor sinners.

From Mary. Oh my Jesus, I offer this for love of
Thee, for the conversion of sinners, and in
reparation for the sins committed against the
Immaculate Heart of Mary.

16. We create our our hell…

17. Purgatory

Purgatory is the state of final
purification.

This teaching is based mainly on Church
ancient liturgical practice of offering
prayers for the dead.

Thus he (Judas Maccabaeus) mad
atoement for the dead that they might
be freed from sin.» (2Mc 12:46)

The Bible also speaks of purifying fire.
«He himslef will be saved, but
only...through fire.» (1 Cor 3:15; cf. 1 Pt
1:7)

Salvation is not about having a
minimum passing mark. To gain eternal
life, one must be totally pure no trace
even of a small remaining sinfulness.
The blessed can be permeated
completely by the light and love of the
Lord.

18. It Calls us to live in a constant process of
purification and to live in the hope of God’s
abiding help

Live in the grace of the
Sacrament

Always choose the way to
holiness

Be charitable and patient

Enduring the pains and
difficulties of the world as a
saving experience

To engage always in a honest
examination of conscience.

19. It calls us to be charitable to those who
suffering souls...

Prayer for the
dead is an
expression of the
communion of
saints.

Its also an act of
charity

It help us grow in
our own spiritual
life.

20. The Beatitudes
Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are they who mourn, for they will be comforted.
Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the land.
Blessed are they who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be satisfied.
Blessed are the merciful, for they will be shown mercy.
Blessed are the clea of heart, for they will see God.
Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.
Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven.
Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you falsely
because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. (Mt 5:3-11)

21. THE PAROUSIA
The General Resurrection and Last Judgment

22. Christian hope:
The New Heaven and the New Earth

The Old Testament
speaks of awaiting for
the coming of the Lord.
(cf. Am 5:18)

In the New Testament
this becomes the
Parousia, the Second
Coming of Christ (Phil
1:6)

In the Creed we say: «He
will come again to judge
the living and the dead
and his kingdom will
have no end.»

23. The Parousia
«The Hour is coming in which all
those in their tombs shall hear his
voice nd come forth. Those who
have done right shall rise to live;
the evildoers shall rise to be
damned.» (Jn 5: 28-29)
«The lives of all of us are to be
revealed before the tribunl pf Christ
so that each one may receive his
recompense, good or bad, according
to his life in the body.» (1 Cor 5:10)

24. Salvation as a Communitarian Event
The Trinitarian God
forms a people to
share in God’s divine
life.
The People of God
lives in a pilgrimage
as a community
towards the Kingdom
of God.

25. Christian Challenge: To live with our
eyes fixed towards heaven

Evaluating our relationship.
Every relationship must be a
partnership for heaven.

Judging our proirities.

Ever confident of God’s saving
presence.

Trusting always in God’s
providence

Living while leaving a footprints
of heaven