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I agree with Paidiske. Closing off our hearts can be a protection mechanism, and it can begin at a young age. It might be worthwhile to talk with a Christian counselor, if you have not already.

Thank you. Their bookstore has a wonderful selection.

Does anyone know how the teaching on the Toll Houses compares with that of a purging by fire? Pope Saint Gregory the Great, Saints Gregory of Nyssa, Augustine, Isadore of Seville and others (I believe) wrote of this as well. And Saint Paul: “Every man’s work shall be made manifest ... because it...

That goes for you and me both, in terms of following Him. There are struggles and dry periods. Trusting Him is not easy for me. I can think of few times, across my life, when I truly opened my heart while seeking God’s direction. But the thing is, that He loves us. He will not let us go. God...

You can’t mean that. And there is not a love gene; probably not even one that causes us to seek or respond to God. Often, because of life experiences, we struggle to love. But when we open up our hearts and ask of the Lord, He will help us - change us. I’ll pray for you. Please do the same for me.

Thanks again. My dad was a career Army officer, by the way.

But those who died before Christ clearly were not dead, because Jesus went to preach to them while His Body lay in the tomb. Beginning again to read Fr Seraphim Rose - Referring to St Ignatius of Antioch (?), his book states that prior to the Atonement of Christ, heaven was closed to both the...

I’m sure that you all know, but the Ordinate of the Chair of Saint Peter was established for Anglicans who desired to be reunited with Rome. Their Liturgy is based upon that found in the Book of Common Prayer, I believe. There are also Western Rites celebrated in the Antiochian and...

We should be aware of their influence and presence now. I pray that God’s mercy is great enough so that we will not need to interact or converse with them when we leave this life. In thinking back, I do remember the Toll Houses being mentioned in hymns during the Divine Liturgy. These were...

Sorry ... but it’s an issue of concern (for me, anyway).

Thank you, and I pray so.

...which the Lord Himself admonished us to do. It just seems so much better to focus on Him and His words, rather than on the demons (and sad and wrong even to compare them).

Thank you for underscoring that. I have been reading ‘How Our Departed Ones Live,’ and the interpretation is very literalist regarding the Toll Houses, and how the soul moves through them.

I’m not so sure about that. Fear of demons - focusing on them - can be paralyzing, and can detract from our ability to serve God and others. Our motive to become more like Christ should be our love and need of Him, and the caring for our brethren. Yes, the evil one and his minions are present...

Thank you for your good wishes for my dad. I feel concerned for him, because (at the risk of seeming unbalanced) I have ‘seen’ him in my mind in a place that kind of resembles an underground parking garage. He is alone, but I’ve felt that his guardian angel is with him. My dad was a believer in...

Thanks so much for putting together all of the information in this thread. Sorry for posting instead on the other. The view of the immediate afterlife seems generally to have been somewhat different in the pre-Schism West when compared with the views flourishing at the same approximate time, in...

Thank you.

Thank you to the gentleman who shared the story and perspective in the now-closed thread. To the young man who began that thread: no, the Toll Houses aren’t really that funny. Or maybe it’s just me, since my dad passed away recently.

It has been many years since I read the book by Fr Seraphim Rose on this subject, but I’m going to try to locate it and give it another read. As I recall, the book was written as a response to the many ‘near death’ experiences that were being popularized at the time. In various accounts, people...

I’m so sorry for your loss. Being a ‘cat person,’ I completely understand. They are always our babies. I miss all of the kitties I’ve had through the years, but it’s been especially hard with the loss of Silver, who we had to put to sleep a few years ago. Like your Daisy, he was terrified of...