Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Catholic
Blessed Is The Kingdom

Blessed Is The Kingdom

Last updated on: August 3, 2016 at 2:31 pm by Mary Pezzulo

Blessed Is The Kingdom 2016-08-03T14:31:25-04:00 Mary Pezzulo

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

“I’m going to tell God to send me to hell,” she said.

I was shocked. I didn’t even remember telling her about Hell. She’s just at the age where she knows about God and Heaven, but I couldn’t think of a way to tell her about the place you go if you choose not to go to Heaven. Why would anyone want to do that?

“Ezra has nothing to do with God,” Rose tried to explain in her earnest, worried four-year-old way. “I just… I just hate red and blue!”

I understood, then. “The ambulance scared you. Are you afraid that Ezra will die… and go to hell?”

Rose cried in my arms without a word for a very long time. I didn’t know quite what to say. What can I say about death? I don’t understand death. I fear it, as everyone does. The Son of God Himself feared death. He wept tears of blood and wished there was another way. It was my fear He bore, and Rose’s fear, and here I was bearing fear with my daughter. Rose was in Gethsemane for the first time. There was nothing to do but suffer with her.

I don’t understand where people go, when they disappear from the earth. I’ve been parroting Catechism lessons about Heaven, Hell and purgatory since I was her age, but I haven’t understood. How can you understand what you’ve never seen? How can you understand what happens when people go away and you don’t see them again?

“It’s so scary to think that friends might die,” I said, praying empathy would serve in the place of an explanation. “Are you afraid Ezra will go to Hell?”

“He has nothing to do with God. He’s a bad boy.”

I held her again.

The neighbor children think that Ezra is a bad boy; they can’t see anything but naughtiness in his disability. Their parents have told Ezra’s mother he’s not to play on their property anymore. I’ve tried to talk about him differently, but Rose had heard what they said.

“Rose,” I said, “Ezra will go to Heaven. We have hope that all the children will go to Heaven. God said to let the children come to Him. Especially children with… with Ezra’s difficulties. But he probably won’t go for a long time; he’ll grow up to be a man first. You’ll grow up to be a woman. Don’t be afraid. Please, don’t be afraid of Heaven.”

“He won’t like it in Heaven,” said Rose.

I prayed for words. “Rose… there’s a huge playground in Heaven. It’s bigger than you’ve ever seen. And there are balls to play with there, more than you’ve ever seen in one place. And when Ezra throws them on the roof, the angels will throw them down and not get angry with him. Children can play all day long, and the angels play with them, and nobody calls them bad or calls the police. Okay? That’s Heaven.”

Rose smiled.

She’s asked me about the park several times since then, and the angels who throw balls for children.

It was Ezra’s house that caught fire earlier this summer. Ezra and his family are living somewhere else while the house is being cleaned out; they have to rip out the drywall and get rid of the drenched furniture. After that, I don’t know what they’ll do. The house was a rental that they hated anyway. The landlord sprayed roach poison where the children could get into it and put off repair projects until the porch nearly caved in. I don’t know if Ezra and his family will move back to that house.

I don’t know if I’ll see them again. They may disappear, as poor people do, leaving a pile of trash that the city won’t clean up in front of their house, and I’ll wonder if they’re homeless or what became of them.

It’s not that I’ve never been to Heaven; it’s only that I’m blind. I go to Heaven when I go to Divine Liturgy, but I can’t see it. I see shining gold and bright colors on wooden icons, and I know that it will be bright and glorious there. But I don’t know what glory means. I pray “Amen” when Father prays “Blessed is the kingdom of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and forever,” and in doing so I profess that the kingdom there is blessed, and it is blessed forever. But I don’t know what it means to be blessed. I don’t know what forever means. I’ve never seen forever.

I read about goodness, good deeds, souls who pour themselves out until nothing remains, and I know that in that country the souls are always pouring themselves into one another, but without suffering. But I can’t imagine what that’s like.

I can’t imagine a kingdom where the poor go and stay, where no one comes to take what they cannot pay for; where no misfortune will drive them away; where red and blue lights will not frighten them out of bed to stand on the sidewalk, watching, wondering who’s hurt. I can’t imagine a place worth staying in forever, let alone such a place given freely to hungry souls with no rent to pay and no fear of eviction.

I believe that children can play unbothered there, with no one to call them bad. I think spirits far more majestic than we are will show us that there is nothing more noble and glorious than rejoicing in children, and letting them play.

So, I believe I told my daughter the truth.

Someday, I will disappear from the earth, and you will not see where I go. Rose and Ezra will disappear as well, in their time. So will you. Pray with me that we will find the kingdom that is blessed forever, where the angels play with children, and there is no one to call them bad.

I’ve been there, but I couldn’t see.

(Image Via Pixabay)

mourn with those mourn

kingdom. kingdom of heaven

Previous Post

August 1, 2016

Pope Francis says, "If I Speak of Islamic Violence, I Must Speak of Catholic Violence."

Next Post

August 2, 2016 On Trump, Babies, and The Marginalization of Women

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category abortion Abuse Advent America American Christianity angel angels Annunciation Appalachia apparition apparition chaser apparition chasers apparition culture art art review babies baby baby Jesus Bad Lip Reading bad statue contest bath beauty Bible story blog blogkeeping blood book review Brandon Sanderson breastfeeding bus Catholic catholic conspiracy alarmism Catholic Oppositional Disorder Charismatic Renewal Charlie the Cat chastity Christ Christian idenitity Christianity and Judaism Chronic Illness clean clothing COD piece comedy compassion conscience conspiracy theory conversion cop-on-black violence Crucifixion cry of the poor culture Daesh Daily Saints death death penalty devotional diaconate diaper diapers dirty disability Donald Trump Dorothy Day dream drugs Eastern Catholicism Eastern Christianity education election election update Elsewhere on Patheos empathy environment Fear feminism film review fish flashback fluffy buns food Franciscan University of Steubenville Friendship Room fun Gabriel gardening gospel hair-splitting Heaven hell heresy Hillary Clinton history Holly the Witch Holy Spirit holy war Homeschooling homosexuality horror human dignity humor Icon idol immigrants infection inter-religious dialogue Interpretation of Scripture Islam Jesus Jihad Joseph joy laity and lay vocations lamb dinner laundry lent lgbtq literature love manners Mary Medicine and Science Meditation mercy mess milk misogyny Missouri monasticism monster motherhood mourn with those mourn movies movis music mystery nature neurodiversity New Pro-Life Movement news nonsense nostalgia O antiphons obituary objectification Ohio Valley Ordinary Time ordination Ordo Amoris parable paradox Passover peanut butter personal beliefs pets philosophy Planet Charismatic poetry politics polls poop Pope Francis Pope Leo power in the Church prayer prayer request prayers preferential option for non-violence president presidential election priest primary private revelation pro-life prophecy Public face of Catholicism Pure Flix Q and A race racism random rape rape. sexuality reader's request Reckoners refugee religious trauma ressurrection Right to life Saints saints and celebrations same-sex same-sex marriage satire scandal secular feasts seder Seven Joys Seven Last Words sex sexual ethics sexuality silencing six months skid row slavery social justice Speculative fiction spiritual abuse spoon stain story suffering suffrage suffragette Sunday Gospel temple Tenebrae Responsories Terror the exorcist The Friendship Room The New Pro-Life Movement Things I Learned on the Internet tin cup traffic true story tv review Uncategorized USCCB vice and temptation violence Virtue virtue and vice war Way of the Cross whimsy whole life women's ordination work of mercy Year A

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 August 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 June 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

True or False: Samuel was dedicated to the Lord's service before he was born.

Select your answer to see how you score.

TRUE FALSE