Going to Heaven

Easter is a good time to wonder what we know about the eternal life that Jesus has promised us.

Note first that He was not talking about some vague, mythical state. He was talking about life -about what we experience as infants, children, grown ups, and elderly.

That means, second, the we will find ourselves surrounded by people. Not strangers: our mother and father, our siblings, our spouses, children, grandchildren our friends.

And since He was, Himself, the way, the truth, and the life, He was ultimately referring to His human life—the One who lived surrounded by family, townsfolk, and crowds. He loved always, never hated, never felt vengeful. On the contrary, He was always doing the next good thing, the thing He must do, and He was aware of pleasing His almighty Father. That’s how it will be for us.

And then, there’s this bombshell: We’re not going somewhere else. Jesus made it very clear: He is coming back to this earth, with angels and saints. When He comes, as God had revealed to His apostle Paul, everything will be made new. All the splendors of this earth – the northern lights, the graceful gardens and fields ripe with grain, the magnificent mountains and thunderous seas---all of them will appear in their glorious magnificence—and no hurricanes, no tornadoes (no mosquitoes?)—only peace and plenty.

We don’t know everything about going to heaven, but we do know all of this. Certainly something to look forward to.

Fr. Joe Tetlow, S.J.