Heaven -- Christianity; Near-death experiences -- Religious aspects; Private revelations
I can give only a brief outline of our conversation on that first happy
day. It is too sacred to be scanned by curious eyes. We talked until
the golden twilight fell, and we watched the little birds nestling in
the vines, and heard afar the solemnly joyous notes of the angels'
choral song, and joined our voices in the hymn of praise. Later we
went to my room, and lay down upon my dainty couch for rest, and the
last words I heard before sinking into heaven's blissful sleep were,
tenderly whispered: "Dear, dear little muzzer, I am so glad and happy
that you are here!"
More than once the question has been asked, "Was there night there?"
Emphatically, no! What, for want of a better designation, we may call
"day," was full of a glorious radiance, a roseate golden light, which
was everywhere. There is no language known to mortals that can
describe this marvelous glory. It flooded the sky; it was caught up
and reflected in the waters; it filled all heaven with joy and all
hearts with song. After a period much longer than our longest earthly
day, this glory mellowed and softened until it became a glowing
twilight full of peace. The children ceased their playing beneath the
trees, the little birds nestled among the vines, and all who had been
busy in various ways throughout the day sought rest and quiet. But
there was no darkness, no dusky shadows even---only a restful softening
of the glory.
CHAPTER X.
O sweet and blessed country,
The home of God's elect!
O sweet and blessed country
That eager hearts expect!
There stand those halls of Zion
All jubilant with song,
And bright with many an angel,
And all the martyr throng.
--[St. Bernard of Cluny.
Not long after this my brother said, "We will go to the grand
auditorium this morning; it will be a rare day even here. Martin
Luther is to talk on 'The Reformation; Its Causes and Effects,' and
this will be supplemented by a talk from John Wesley. There may also
be other speakers."
It was not the first time we had visited this great auditorium,
although I have not hitherto described it. It stood upon a slight
eminence, and the mighty dome was supported by massive columns of
alternate amethyst and jasper. There were no walls to the vast
edifice; only the great dome and supporting columns. A broad platform
of precious marbles, inlaid in porphyry, arose from the center, from
which the seats ascended on three sides, forming an immense
amphitheater. The seats were of cedar wood highly polished; and back
of the platform were heavy hangings of royal purple. An altar of solid
pearl stood near the center of the platform. The great dome was deep
and dark in its immensity, so that only the golden statues around its
lower border were distinctly visible. All this I had noted at former
visits.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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