Does Jesus Still Appear to Man Today?

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rmcmullan

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I’m probably going to end up really hating myself for asking this but I do feel compelled. Last night I was sitting in the General Conference preisthood meeting and the Prophet Gordon B. Hinkley was telling a story about one of the former missionaries in Hawaii who had a vision where he went to what appeared to be a temple, washed himself clean, and joined in with all the righteous saints he’d known in his life. He was very relieved to find that although he was late to whatever meeting it was, he had kept himself clean. And then the talk continued about the importance of “keeping ourselves clean” from the sins of this generation.

Since I am an occasioanl poster here, I was wondering what my Catholic friends would think about such a talk. Many of them are peppered with appearances of Jesus (especially at the temple) or visions of a religious nature. As I understand it, the Catholics teach that there is no more public revelation but that private revelation is still wide open.

So, how many of you believe that that Jesus still visits His children today? Do you believe that if you purified yourself sufficiently, you would get a personal visit? Have you ever know anyone that claims to have seen Him (and weren’t an obvious nut)?

I do have to tell you one story. It’s a missionary story, back when I was doing my two years. I met a man who was a temple worker in the Los Angelos temple and he used to invite me and my companion to dinner occasioanlly. On one of those occasions, he told us that he was sleeping in his bed one evening and was awoken by a “visitor”. This “visitor” took him to the seashore, walked out on the water and bade him to follow. Much to his surprise, he was able. Because of the sacred nature of this dream, I am leaving out tons of detail. He said that for three days after this dream, he was too weak too get out of bed.

Anybody else have a story to share?
 
The way I see it, is that Angels could, and maybe Christ could, but not Heavenly Father, for NO human can look apon the Father and live. It may have happened that Servants, in the form of Angels may have visited Joseph Smith, that they Represented The Father And the Son, when visiting Josepth. Even in the numerous Near Death Experiences, many have seen Christ, but not the Father himself. Much of this is theory and conjecture on my part. I myself, have never had a full NDE, so even I cannot comment on this either. If I did have an NDE I might have been able to give a better answer.
Geoff
 
For starters it is against forum policy here at CAF to discuss what we Catholics call ‘unapproved’ private apparitions or messages.

Not that they don’t happen - far from it, countless Catholic saints have been gifted with such visions and messages. But they are just that - gifts, that we don’t presume will happen at our behest or summoning or through any action or inaction of our own.

God is not to be ordered about in this fashion, and our faith is about ‘those who have not seen, and yet believe’. There are numerous examples of Christ refusing to perform signs and wonders precisely because people were too ardently seeking after them.

In addition, such matters when they do happen or are claimed to happen are minutely investigated by the Church - firstly to discount the ‘obvious nuts’ to whom you refer 🙂 and secondly to discount any possible diabolical or malicious influence.

Scripture speaks of the Evil One being able to disguise himself as an ‘angel of light’ in order to achieve his purposes. Moreover, plenty of people see that there is money and fame to be gained by claiming such visions and messages and will falsify them.

Thirdly - you are correct, we do believe that all public revelation ended with the death of the last apostle, and that private revelation is still possible though such does not bear on the essentials of faith and morals.

It’s a little unfair on the early Christians, I think, to assume that that public revelation didn’t end with Christ and those taught by him. It seem to assume that God can and will at any point completely change his mind, and completely change the rules of the game, and makes him seem just a tad too arbitrary.
 
Ooops, busted am I? I apologize, I didn’t know that this was against policy. I never read the small print.

GeoCacher - First off I like your handle. Geocaching is great fun. I have read both of the NDE books Embraced by the Light and Saved by the Light but I consider this to be something different. I’m talking about something with a religious purpose. And I really wonder about that Dannion Brinkley guy (Saved by the Light), I’m filing him in the Obvious Nut file.

LilyM - I didn’t really follow what you said about changing the rules of the game. I’m not really looking to stir up yet another conterversy about whether it’s possible to see God or the “continuing revelation” issue. We’ve certainly been over those subjects often anough. I mostly wanted to know if what people really believe. Maybe I should have done a poll? How do you do those?
 
certainly the history and writings of saints who have been mystics is enough to show that it is certainly possible for a holy, virtuous person, whose life is steeped in prayer, scripture and work for the Lord to experience the presence of God, of Jesus, of the Holy Spirit, even in ways that appear to involve the senses, and even to hear, in the heart if not through the ears, messages. There is no reason why such a mystic must be Catholic, although it is out of this tradition–Eastern and Western–that mystics have come. These experiences however are not induced by anything the mystic does, they are sheer gift, and in a mystical state no real saint will hear anything from God that contradicts Divine Revelation as handed on through Church teaching and doctrine.

It is also well witnessed in the writings of other holy men and women, who while never being declared saints, certainly gave evidence in their lives of love and service to the Lord, that they may also experience at times a closeness to the Lord, or as in OPs first example, a dream or a scene in imagination or meditation that includes appearance and even communication from the deity. Such experiences may by the product of the unconcious but may nonetheless be valid spiritual experiences producing good in the person.

When it comes to taking such appearances or communications as actual revelation, originitating with God the Church is exceedingly careful in discerning, but that does not lessen the value of the experience for the individual, and does not demand that the person be Catholic (or Orthodox).

OPs anecdotes are not really about private revelation, in that the seers are not attempting to convince anyone else they should act on the basis of the individual’s experience, they are more likely relating genuine spiritual experiences allowed by God for the benefit of the individual.
 
rmcmullan said:
GeoCacher - First off I like your handle. Geocaching is great fun. I have read both of the NDE books Embraced by the Light and Saved by the Light but I consider this to be something different. I’m talking about something with a religious purpose. And I really wonder about that Dannion Brinkley guy (Saved by the Light), I’m filing him in the Obvious Nut file.
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I did not feel right with that same book either, and it eventually hit the circular file.

I attended Palm Sunday MASS this morning prior to going to LDS General Conference today, this is easier for people in the Eastern Time Zone to do, like me.
 
rmcmullan said:
I’m probably going to end up really hating myself for asking this but I do feel compelled. Last night I was sitting in the General Conference preisthood meeting and the Prophet Gordon B. Hinkley was telling a story about one of the former missionaries in Hawaii who had a vision where he went to what appeared to be a temple, washed himself clean, and joined in with all the righteous saints he’d known in his life. He was very relieved to find that although he was late to whatever meeting it was, he had kept himself clean. And then the talk continued about the importance of “keeping ourselves clean” from the sins of this generation.

Since I am an occasioanl poster here, I was wondering what my Catholic friends would think about such a talk. Many of them are peppered with appearances of Jesus (especially at the temple) or visions of a religious nature. As I understand it, the Catholics teach that there is no more public revelation but that private revelation is still wide open.

So, how many of you believe that that Jesus still visits His children today? Do you believe that if you purified yourself sufficiently, you would get a personal visit? Have you ever know anyone that claims to have seen Him (and weren’t an obvious nut)?

I do have to tell you one story. It’s a missionary story, back when I was doing my two years. I met a man who was a temple worker in the Los Angelos temple and he used to invite me and my companion to dinner occasioanlly. On one of those occasions, he told us that he was sleeping in his bed one evening and was awoken by a “visitor”. This “visitor” took him to the seashore, walked out on the water and bade him to follow. Much to his surprise, he was able. Because of the sacred nature of this dream, I am leaving out tons of detail. He said that for three days after this dream, he was too weak too get out of bed.

Anybody else have a story to share?
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angelfire.com/ca3/rafaelmarie/ThePieta/ojususletter.html

This little book is about the most famous Catholic Mystics, and private revelations of the Church and why I came back to the
Catholic faith, it’s called: The Pieta Booklet. 👍
 
rmcmullan said:
Do you believe that if you purified yourself sufficiently, you would get a personal visit?
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Jesus appears to whoever He pleases. He had appeared to sinners as well as holy ones; however, it is not to conclude that Jesus would appear to me as a person if I am purified sufficiently enough.

Thanks to the Lord, Jesus does dwell within me every time I receive the Eucharist. That is the greatest gift nowadays that I receive.
 
I see Jesus frequently. In the Blessed Sacrament of the Eucharist, which I visit in adoration as often as I can, and in the people around me. I’m not very good at seeing Jesus in the people around me, though. I have to ask Him for the grace to do that, because I’m not a natural lover, the way He is.

But no, I’ve never had a vision of Jesus the way St. Paul did. He was blinded by it, and I’m sure I’d be struck dead by it, but I’d welcome it all the same!
 
Remember that song?

If God had a face what would it look like
And would you want to see
If seeing meant that you would
have to believe
In things like heaven and in
Jesus and the saints
and all the prophets?

I think about that line a lot. I know a lot of people don’t really want to know and this is the reason why.

Another thing I think about is what if this really happened. What would you ask? The more I think about it the more I come to the conclusion that I’d want to know if my sins were forgiven.
 
rmcmullan said:
Another thing I think about is what if this really happened. What would you ask? The more I think about it the more I come to the conclusion that I’d want to know if my sins were forgiven.
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As a Catholic, I believe and know 100% for sure that when I go to the confession, my sins are forgiven.
 
water said:
As a Catholic, I believe and know 100% for sure that when I go to the confession, my sins are forgiven.
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I know, that’s what we’re taught, but are you that sure? Wouldn’t you really like to know? What else would you ask?
 
rmcmullan said:
I know, that’s what we’re taught, but are you that sure? Wouldn’t you really like to know? What else would you ask?
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I for one am absolutely sure! I am one who has lived a seriously sinful lifestyle. I’m talking about serious, down-dirty, mortal, sexual sin (all hetero, don’t jump to any conclusions, LOL). It is the thorn in my flesh, if I could be so bold as to lay claim to having a thorn in my flesh on the order of St. Paul’s. I’ve asked the Lord not merely three times, but three thousands of times to relieve me of this thorn, but it is still there. Lately, I’ve come to regard it as Paul did, he hearing the Lord say, “my grace is sufficient for you, for power is made perfect in weakness.”

This is one way I see confession. It is our submission in weakness to the reality of sin, over which we can have no domination outside God’s grace. If we were so strong within ourselves that we could conquer sin, we wouldn’t need a savior. God deliberately set it up in such a manner that we would have to come to him, not once or twice, but over and over again, seeking forgiveness for daily sin. That is confession. And I can tell you that when I hear the priest pronounce the absolution I feel it. It is like taking a shower after a long dirty day.
 
If Jesus still appears to Man today, I’m still waiting with baited breath for my turn to see him. Or any actual proof that he has appeared to anyone else for that matter.
 
rmcmullan said:
I’m probably going to end up really hating myself for asking this but I do feel compelled. Last night I was sitting in the General Conference preisthood meeting and the Prophet Gordon B. Hinkley was telling a story about one of the former missionaries in Hawaii who had a vision where he went to what appeared to be a temple, washed himself clean, and joined in with all the righteous saints he’d known in his life. He was very relieved to find that although he was late to whatever meeting it was, he had kept himself clean. And then the talk continued about the importance of “keeping ourselves clean” from the sins of this generation.

Since I am an occasioanl poster here, I was wondering what my Catholic friends would think about such a talk. Many of them are peppered with appearances of Jesus (especially at the temple) or visions of a religious nature. As I understand it, the Catholics teach that there is no more public revelation but that private revelation is still wide open.

So, how many of you believe that that Jesus still visits His children today? Do you believe that if you purified yourself sufficiently, you would get a personal visit? Have you ever know anyone that claims to have seen Him (and weren’t an obvious nut)?

I do have to tell you one story. It’s a missionary story, back when I was doing my two years. I met a man who was a temple worker in the Los Angelos temple and he used to invite me and my companion to dinner occasioanlly. On one of those occasions, he told us that he was sleeping in his bed one evening and was awoken by a “visitor”. This “visitor” took him to the seashore, walked out on the water and bade him to follow. Much to his surprise, he was able. Because of the sacred nature of this dream, I am leaving out tons of detail. He said that for three days after this dream, he was too weak too get out of bed.

Anybody else have a story to share?
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Have you ever read about Saint Faustina?

catholic-forum.com/catholicteacher/divinemercy.htm
 
can Jesus appear to someone today, he is God so yes.

Did Jesus appear to Joseph Smith, ah NO. He taught a false gospel ( gal 1:6-8) and Jesus warned us about false christs ( Matt 24 ).

Satan appears as an angel of light ( 2 cor 12 )
 
Daniel Marsh:

If He ever appears to you, maybe you can make that your question!
 
rmcmullan said:
I’m probably going to end up really hating myself for asking this but I do feel compelled. Last night I was sitting in the General Conference preisthood meeting and the Prophet Gordon B. Hinkley was telling a story about one of the former missionaries in Hawaii who had a vision where he went to what appeared to be a temple, washed himself clean, and joined in with all the righteous saints he’d known in his life. He was very relieved to find that although he was late to whatever meeting it was, he had kept himself clean. And then the talk continued about the importance of “keeping ourselves clean” from the sins of this generation.

Since I am an occasioanl poster here, I was wondering what my Catholic friends would think about such a talk. Many of them are peppered with appearances of Jesus (especially at the temple) or visions of a religious nature. As I understand it, the Catholics teach that there is no more public revelation but that private revelation is still wide open.

So, how many of you believe that that Jesus still visits His children today? Do you believe that if you purified yourself sufficiently, you would get a personal visit? Have you ever know anyone that claims to have seen Him (and weren’t an obvious nut)?

I do have to tell you one story. It’s a missionary story, back when I was doing my two years. I met a man who was a temple worker in the Los Angelos temple and he used to invite me and my companion to dinner occasioanlly. On one of those occasions, he told us that he was sleeping in his bed one evening and was awoken by a “visitor”. This “visitor” took him to the seashore, walked out on the water and bade him to follow. Much to his surprise, he was able. Because of the sacred nature of this dream, I am leaving out tons of detail. He said that for three days after this dream, he was too weak too get out of bed.

Anybody else have a story to share?
Click to expand...
Jesus apparently appeared to St. Margaret Mary telling her to make the Sacred Heart of Jesus icon.
 
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