Colin Donovan, Head Theologian at EWTN, believes in WHAT?

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I was out running some errands this afternoon and playing radio roulette in attempts to find interesting programming and an absence of commercials when I happened upon Catholic Answers Live broadcast on Relevant Radio.

The next call just came up and the lady asked if it was OK to believe in ghosts because she felt that one could be trying to contact a friend or relative (I’m making the question short here) :rolleyes:

I kinda smiled and thought to myself, “Self, ol’ Colin will make short shrift of her, this afternoon.” He’s a pretty straight arrow theologian and I admit to some difficulties with some of his statements (on peripheral issues, not dogma). :cool:

Well, I just about drove into a telephone pole when he replied to the lady that there were only three places we can go after death: Heaven, Purgatory, or the other place. Then he said that it was possible that the Lord might allow someone in Purgatory to return to Earth to contact people to ask them for prayers to get them out of Purgatory sooner. :eek:

He elaborated that there have been too many unexplained incidents over the years that theologians can’t explain and so they have left the question undecided.

He firmly stated, however, that if someone is contacted by a “ghost” or other paranormal being, they are not to be used for asking for information on the future or other “divination” which is strictly forbidden by the Church.

If contacted, he said prayer should be our only reaction, prayer for the being, and prayer for yourself. If necessary, contact your Pastor.

Hopefully, an Apologist will step in here.
 
Ray Marshall:
Then he said that it was possible that the Lord might allow someone in Purgatory to return to Earth to contact people to ask them for prayers to get them out of Purgatory sooner. :eek:
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There are claims of such private revelations. Fr. F. X. Schouppe, S.J.'s Purgatory Explained (published by TAN books) is full of them. Whether those claims can be verified is another question altogether.
 
Ray Marshall:
I was out running some errands this afternoon and playing radio roulette in attempts to find interesting programming and an absence of commercials when I happened upon Catholic Answers Live broadcast on Relevant Radio.

The next call just came up and the lady asked if it was OK to believe in ghosts because she felt that one could be trying to contact a friend or relative (I’m making the question short here) :rolleyes:
…If contacted, he said prayer should be our only reaction, prayer for the being, and prayer for yourself. If necessary, contact your Pastor.
Code: 
 Hopefully, an Apologist will step in here.
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Apologist here…to the rescue…
Ebenezer Scrooge had 3 ghosts…IN ONE NITE !
Code: 
 Have you ever read *PURGATORY* c1893 by 
 Fr F X Schouppe, SJ ?
 Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur..when it meant something.
Republished by TAN Books. Is the book Jacket.
Bunches of visitors to the Saints.
 
I believe the program you were talking about was EWTN’s Open Line, not Catholic Answere. Colin was not on Catholic Answers and I don’t know if he has ever benn on CA.
 
I think i’VE HEARd from my mother in the past. But I do’tknow what to make of it. Once I was asleep and she woke me up. Truly, she was beside me shaking my arem and clapping her hands and snapping her fingers like she wanted me to awaken in a hurry. There seemed to be another presence between her and me. :hmmm:
 
Ray Marshall,

You wrote,"I kinda smiled and thought to myself, “Self, ol’ Colin will make short shrift of her, this afternoon.” He’s a pretty straight arrow theologian and I admit to some difficulties with some of his statements (on peripheral issues, not dogma). :cool:

Well, I just about drove into a telephone pole when he replied to the lady that there were only three places we can go after death: Heaven, Purgatory, or the other place. Then he said that it was possible that the Lord might allow someone in Purgatory to return to Earth to contact people to ask them for prayers to get them out of Purgatory sooner".
Ray, I wish I could quickly find the websites that refer to souls in purgatory who can return to ask for prayers, I can’t do that quickly. But I have read that this is a very rare occurance**, but it does happen**. I will look for the story about the old Nun who died and reurned as aa vision in her monastary and she asked for prayer. Later.
 
When I was in high school, I asked a priest about ghost and he said we do not know what purgatory is. Perhaps it is what we consider ghost. In a book, that was an autobiography of a priest during Elizabeth the first reign, it told of a light that the priest said was a womans dead husband asking for prayers to be release from purgatory. After saying mass for several days for his soul, the light appeared along with two other lights that ascended upward and disappeared. The priest said that this was a sign that he was no longer in purgatory. What interested me was that my mother, who never read the book, told me about seeing a light and described it as this book did. My aunt told me the same story and she had told no one about it since it happened. Her account was identical to my mother’s. Their father had just died.
I am sceptical about so called hauntings but I do believe that it is within the scope of our faith. As the priest told me we realy do not know what purgatory is about.
 
The story I have to relate concerns my great grandparents. There were at least two witnesses present when it happened and the story has come down through the witnesses.

My great-grandfather James Buckley, was struck by a train whilst he was working on the track somewhere between Flinders Street Station and Spencer Street station. He did not die immediately but was rushed to the Royal Melbourne hospital and he died within two days of the accident. The story of the accident was reported in the Age newspaper in August 1906.

At the time of the accident, my great grandmother was in her lounge room with two of her children, one of them being Isabella. She saw the ghostly appearance of her husband near the fireplace and he smiled at her.

One of my distance cousins has reported similar phenonema had reported seeing the ghosts of people he knew not long after they had died.

So yes it is possible to see these things. Note that my grandmother did not talk to the ghost that she saw, and my grandfather was still “alive” when the incident happened.

Maggie
 
Ghosts and other things are real phenomena. Not the Hollywoodised versions so much.

leprechauns and poltergeists seem to be possibly real. So many reliable eye witnesses through the centuries.
No where does it say that other spirits or beings cannot exist other than those we know.
And even if there is 9 choirs of Angels. As far as I know humans have only had contact with 2 types- Guardian and Archangels.
Who knows what else is out or up there.
 
Have you ever read PURGATORY c1893 by
Fr F X Schouppe, SJ ?
Nihil Obstat and Imprimatur…when it meant something.
Republished here by TAN Books.
“When I was praying before the Blessed Sacrament on the Feast of Corpus Christi a person enveloped in fire suddenly stood before me. From the pitiable state the soul was in I knew it was in Purgatory and I wept bitterly” -** St. Margaret Mary Alacoque.**
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I’m really surprised that I have never heard anything about this before.

I’m a certified geezer and have dabbled in a lot of things the past 62 years, some of which were frowned upon. And I’m a big Art Bell fan (not so much Noory) (we’re talking overnight radio here). I generally turn it off when they talk about ghosts. I might have to listen to a few tales.

Thanks for all your sharing.

I’m definitely going to have to get that Schouppe book. I see I can pick one up used on the internet for a few dollars.
www.alibris.com www.abebooks.com

And actually, I had an experience a few years after my Mom’s death, when I woke up with an absolutely certainty that she had made it into Heaven. I didn’t see or hear anything, but I knew that it was so.

And yes, thanks for the correction; the program was EWTN’s Open Line on Friday when Donovan is the host.
 
A soul in purgatory was allowed to ask St.Padre Pio for Masses so he could be released from purgatory.God Bless
 
Ray Marshall:
Well, I just about drove into a telephone pole when he replied to the lady that there were only three places we can go after death: Heaven, Purgatory, or the other place. Then he said that it was possible that the Lord might allow someone in Purgatory to return to Earth to contact people to ask them for prayers to get them out of Purgatory sooner. :eek:
Click to expand...
In Sr. Faustina’s Diary she explained several visions in which souls form Purgatory appeared to her so that she woudl knwo to pray for them.
 
John Russell Jr:
leprechauns and poltergeists seem to be possibly real. So many reliable eye witnesses through the centuries.
No where does it say that other spirits or beings cannot exist other than those we know.
Click to expand...
Leprechauns, are there really stories about leprechauns? I have never hear of this, anyone know more about such claims?
 
Ray Marshall:
I’m really surprised that I have never heard anything about this before.

I’m a certified geezer and have dabbled in a lot of things the past 62 years, some of which were frowned upon. And I’m a big Art Bell fan (not so much Noory) (we’re talking overnight radio here). I generally turn it off when they talk about ghosts. I might have to listen to a few tales.

Thanks for all your sharing.

I’m definitely going to have to get that Schouppe book. I see I can pick one up used on the internet for a few dollars.
www.alibris.com www.abebooks.com

And actually, I had an experience a few years after my Mom’s death, when I woke up with an absolutely certainty that she had made it into Heaven. I didn’t see or hear anything, but I knew that it was so.
…
Click to expand...
Well, you sure brought the “GHOSTYS” on this Forum.
They converted you in less than 20 posts!
 
Fr. Paul Dtenhouse, M.S.C., Ph.D., Editor of “Annals Australasia” has printed thirteen accounts of the preternatural in “Annals” over the years.

Written by one of “Annals” former Editors, Dr. Leslie Rumble, M.S.C. (the great "Radio Replies priest) - here are the articles:

Spiritism Seances and Mediums - #1 April/May 1993

The Case of the Dead Boy’s Return - #2 June 1993

The Note in the Coat Pocket - #3 July 1993

The Case of the Soldier’s Ghost - #4 August 1993

The Case of the Indian Tribe - #5 September 1993

You’ll Remember Nothing of This - #6 October 1993

The Curious Case of Maria Talarico - #7 Jan./February 1994

The Bishop and the Archduke - #8 April/May 1994

Who Wrote on the Slate? - #9 June 1994

Can Some People Read Minds? - #10 July 1994

Hypnotist’s Marionette - #11 August 1994

The Clarivoyant and the Thief - #12 September 1994

Kissed By A Ghost - #13 October 1994

The last article is on-line at
jloughnan.tripod.com/ghost.htm
 
Just a little aside …
"Well, I just about drove into a telephone pole when he replied to the lady that there were only three places we can go after death: Heaven, Purgatory, or the other place."
Do you mean Hell? If so then say so. Do not omit these words from your vocabulary. By omitting them we forget to use them and then people start to forget about them and over time question, or worse still, lose belief in these real places.

I know some folks will not mention Heaven, some will not mention Purgatory but the frightening majority of folks do not use words associated with satan and hell. Heaven Purgatory and Hell must become part of our vocab without shame.
 
Dear Stumbler . . .

Thank you very much for the website and links. I always thought The Church did not believe in ghosts (but I have not read all the links as yet). If The Church does believe, then it could explain a rather strange happening here in my home when we heard cups moving on the sink (we were in the lounge) a couple of times, which we initially thought must have been my cat - who proved to be outside. Then without any explanation a picture fell off the wall in the spare room - but investigation proved it had to have been lifted off the hook as the wire on the back was still intact. My visitor who was a very practical person was spooked - I found it rather funny and just left it at funny. It only ever happend that one night about 12 years ago. I feel about ghosts the way I do about aliens . . . if I see one, then I will believe I saw one - until then I suspend an opinion, holding one does not HAVE to have an opinion on all matters. I neither disbelieve nor believe in aliens or ghosts! I do however choose to be absolutely obedient to The Church in all matters of Faith and Morals . . . and to be guided most often by her thoughts in matters on which I may have a suspended opinion for one reason or another i.e. I would lean towards The Church’s advice or opinion in the face of the lack of a firm one of my own.

Regards on wings:whistle:
BarbaraMary
 
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