Monday, May 18, 2015

What is heaven like?

This morning at 4am Accidents & Emergency called - a middle-aged man had died suddenly. I was there within 12 minutes and administered the rites of the Church. His wife was there and her fourteen year old son. When the mother was called in to fill out some hospital forms I got to have a 40 minute chat with the boy, who told me all about himself and his dad. After a while he asked, 'So what is heaven like?' I told him a story someone once told me.

"A man died and came to the pearly gates. St Peter showed him to a huge brick wall with doorway in it. They went in and there was a table and a chair beside a mountain of blank sheets of paper and a mountain of pencils.

St Peter told the man that he should sit down and write on the paper all the things he wanted - houses, cars, servants, and so on. He said, 'When you've finished yell out and the angels will set it all up for you. Then we'll give you some more time to think of other things you might have overlooked and then we'll have to brick the door in and you'll stay there behind the wall for all eternity.'

The man set to work and didn't stop writing for weeks and weeks until finally he couldn't think of a single thing more he might want. He called St Peter and was amazed to see all his wishes fulfilled in an instant. It was magnificent, beautiful, incredible! What he liked most of all were all the people he had asked for to just be his servants.

After living in his paradise for some weeks he had filled another small mountain of paper sheets with things he had thought of. Then St Peter came to close up the doorway. The man was delighted with himself and his wonderful world. He said to St Peter, 'You know, when I was on earth I have to admit I did some pretty evil and rotten things, and I was never sorry. How come I get to go to heaven?'

St Peter answered abruptly, 'But this is not heaven'.

'But I have everything I've ever wanted,' said the man, 'so what is heaven like?'
St Peter told him, 'When they were making this wall, I noticed one of the angels was a little careless and left a tiny pinhole in the mortar. I think if you pull that cart up against the wall and put a barrel on it, and stand on tippy toe, I think you might be able to see a micro dot of heaven.'

The wall was sealed and the man immediately did as St Peter had suggested. He climbed up on the barrel and peered through the tiny hole. 'Wooooooooooooow!' he exclaimed and his mouth fell open. 'Woooooooooooooow!' he cried again.

Do you know, that man never got off that barrel. He has been standing there ever since, just staring at that microscopic bit of heaven."

2 comments:

  1. Nice story.

    I often wonder what is heaven like; what will "present time" be like there compared to here. Do you ever think back and reflect on things when you're in heaven? Will there be any memory of this world?

    Sometimes the descriptions I hear of heaven are quite anthropomorphic. I should search to find the writings of a great mystic to see what he or she has to say.

    Again, very nice story:0)

    Blessings,
    Tom

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  2. Thanks for adding that story in!
    I love it.
    For me...after that story, you need say no more about what Heaven is like.
    Although, with that being said, I am still curious! Hehe:)

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