Book: Hungry Souls... True?

[Jersey_Jeepster]

There is a book published by Tan Books titled, “Hungry Souls,” written by Gerard J.M. Van Den Aardweg. In it, he claims that suffering souls from Purgatory visit the living and ask them to pray for the suffering souls to get them through Purgatory and enter Heaven. Aardweg also provides pictures of physical evidence of these visits. There is a church in Rome that houses The Little Museum of Purgatory, where this evidence resides.

Is any of this faithful to Catholic teaching? Aardweg is a Lutheran minister, who claims that his book is based on Catholic teaching.

I thought that only angels could visit the living.

 

[GEddie]

There is a book published by Tan Books titled, “Hungry Souls,” written by Gerard J.M. Van Den Aardweg. In it, he claims that suffering souls from Purgatory visit the living and ask them to pray for the suffering souls to get them through Purgatory and enter Heaven. Aardweg also provides pictures of physical evidence of these visits. There is a church in Rome that houses The Little Museum of Purgatory, where this evidence resides.

Is any of this faithful to Catholic teaching? Aardweg is a Lutheran minister, who claims that his book is based on Catholic teaching.

I thought that only angels could visit the living.

No being from Eternity, whether angelic or dead human, can visit living persons without the will of GOD. But there is nothing in Church teaching that dead persons cannot visit under HIS will. Consider Samuel in the OT.

ICXC NIKA

 

[St_Francis]

It is definitely Church teaching that the Poor Souls in Purgatory can do nothing to help themselves but benefit greatly by our prayers on their behalf. We should each be praying for them every day to help them get out.

 

[TempleofTheSoul]

There is a book published by Tan Books titled, “Hungry Souls,” written by Gerard J.M. Van Den Aardweg. In it, he claims that suffering souls from Purgatory visit the living and ask them to pray for the suffering souls to get them through Purgatory and enter Heaven. Aardweg also provides pictures of physical evidence of these visits. There is a church in Rome that houses The Little Museum of Purgatory, where this evidence resides.

Is any of this faithful to Catholic teaching? Aardweg is a Lutheran minister, who claims that his book is based on Catholic teaching.

I thought that only angels could visit the living.

I have this book and you are mixing up one of the stories in the book concerning a Lutheran Minister with the author who doesn´t state whether or not he is Catholic.

It is possible that the holy souls in purgatory can appear before people if God so ordains it. In the book there are numerous stories of the saints being visited by the holy souls and asking to be prayed for. So it falls within Catholic teaching.

God bless

 

[Jersey_Jeepster]

I have this book and you are mixing up one of the stories in the book concerning a Lutheran Minister with the author who doesn´t state whether or not he is Catholic.

It is possible that the holy souls in purgatory can appear before people if God so ordains it. In the book there are numerous stories of the saints being visited by the holy souls and asking to be prayed for. So it falls within Catholic teaching.

God bless

Yes, I did mix up the story in the book with the author. I found out about this book through an email from The Catholic Company, an online merchant I use for Catholic goods.

But isn’t the book filled with stories of the damned visiting the living? Is the book faithful to Catholic teaching? I would like to read this book.

Here is the table of Contents:

• **Introduction: Purgatory and the Paranormal **
• **The Near-Death Experience - and Beyond **
• **Purgatory’s Pains and Joys **
• **Holy Soul, or Demonic Impostor? **
• **Apparitions of Damned Souls **
• **Evidence for Purgatory in Early Christian History **
• **The Church Fathers and Later Saints on Purgatory **
• **The Fire of Purgatory According to Catherine of Genoa **
• **The Exhibits of the Museum of Purgatory **
• **The Burned-In Hand of Czestochowa **
• **Other Examples of Burn Marks **
• **How the Poor Souls Appear, and to Whom **
• **Blessed Stanislaus Papczynski: An Extraordinary Friend to the Suffering Souls **
• **The Modern-Day Apparitions to Eugenie von der Leyen **
• **A Deceased Sister Visits St. Faustina **
• **A Ursula Hibbeln: The Simple Woman Who Helped Many Souls **
• **Two Apparitions to Padre Pio **
• **The Bohemian Widow Who Saw the Dead **
• **How We Can Help the Holy Souls **
• **Epilogue: A Poor Soul Appears in 1870 **
• **About the Author **
• **Notes **
• **Bibliography **

 

[TempleofTheSoul]

Yes, I did mix up the story in the book with the author. I found out about this book through an email from The Catholic Company, an online merchant I use for Catholic goods.

But isn’t the book filled with stories of the damned visiting the living? Is the book faithful to Catholic teaching? I would like to read this book.

No, the book is not about the damned in hell visiting the living. It is about the souls in purgatory visiting the living. The souls in purgatory are not damned but are saved… they just have be cleansed of their sins and ¨perfected¨ for whatever time God permits until their souls are then able to be in the presence of God in heaven.

The book is faithful to the teachings of the Catholic church.

God bless