Have you ever had a profound mystical experience?

[Robert_Sock]

I’ve been wondering how many people have these sorts of experiences as well… I’m not even sure how to explain my situation, really, but I guarantee it’s not in a boastful manner. If anything, most of my life I’ve regarded it as more of a burden (or curse even, when I was younger), but now that I’m older and a part of the Catholic Church things have become much more clear. Also, this sort of thing, on a much much smaller scale, seems to run in my family.

I have had these experiences as long as I can remember… So many of them that I couldn’t even begin to recount them all, but my first involved me collapsing to the floor after a large church event, and having a grand vision of heaven. The premise was that ‘no matter what happens to you in life, you will always have a place here with me.’ Retrospectively, I guess that should’ve warned me about how extremely difficult my life was going to be!

However, not all of them are good. I had many experiences seeing demons throughout my youth as well. It’s like I have an antenna and pick up everything. So I’ve seen angels, demons, deceased family members (okay, I can HEAR my deceased family members at times, such as after a recent death or when someone’s going through a really tough time), I’ve had visions of heaven, seen unbelievable things that kept me going through especially difficult times, but also horrible, horrible things that surfaced to purposely try to terrify me during times of conflict. I’ve seen religious leaders in the past about this, some would say I had a “special gift”, some would decide to perform an impromptu ‘exorcism’ of sorts (no, it didn’t work because I’m genuinely not possessed, lol), all manner of opinions.

However, since I’ve become pregnant (a small miracle in itself considering my health- I have a genetic disorder) things have been through the roof. I’ve been praying about this for many years and I do know how to keep dark spirits/demons away, but have only recently began to pray that if this is something of God, then I am open to it, but for him to not let anything corrupt come in and try to fool me into things.

I don’t seek these experiences out, I don’t call upon anything besides our Father, besides my prayers for intercession by the Saints or praying the rosary. I’ve been given much advice on how to identify spirits (those which ever cause any amount of anxiety or fear, even indirectly, are never of God) and I have only found peace and direction back to God and the church from my recently deceased family members (sounds scary, I know).

Recently (during these experiences) I’ve been told to see a priest about my concerns over spirits coming to me. I’m not ever troubled by any vision or visitation from angels or the Holy Spirit, because they come with a calm and peace that surpasses my ability to describe in human terms… There is simply no mistaking that, ever. But these other things… I’m worried that whatever this spiritual antenna is that I seem to have also attracts demons and the spirits of people I’ve never met, and which I do not feel that I have any need to communicate with. I need to talk to a local priest, but I’m honestly embarrassed/afraid of what they might think…

I don’t have a desire to be a medium, I don’t have a desire to be overly preoccupied with the spiritual world either because I already know for a fact that for people like me, when we start to pay attention, spirits notice. I left the church for many years and simply pretended/shut out/shut off this ability, because it scared me too much.

Sorry, this is my first post and I know it’s very long… But I’m just unsure now. It seems that the closer I become to God and the church, the more intense these things become. I don’t want to reject an opportunity/potential gift from God, but I’m not even sure if the Catholic Church believes in these things, or rather, feels that it’s okay for someone to have these recurrent experiences without being some sort of spirit-seeker, or demonically afflicted person.

Does anyone have any experience with this sort of situation??? What sort of priest to talk to about this sort of thing?

I grew up Methodist, and then my mother took me to an evangelical Protestant church for years where they just scared the mess out of me, lol.

I will say that I truly feel our pregnancy was a miracle, and shortly after (but before I knew) I believe I had a visitation from the blessed mother while praying the rosary and asking for guidance. Come to think of it, it was only AFTER that visitation that I suddenly began hearing from my family members with much greater intensity.

Lord knows, I’m still constantly praying about this…

My advice would be to keep REACHING HIGHER, into the loving arms of God. I’m not sure where all your negative experiences mean, but do not give up on God. Keep praying, and going to Mass. Take the time to meditate on holy things.

If it’s any comfort, I was an Atheist and it was not until I saw myself at the gates of Hell that I returned to God. I experienced Satan before I began to experience God.

Talking to a priest may be beneficial. You have nothing to be embarrassed about in these experiences.

LOVE!

 

[Padster]

During the very difficult delivery of my first child, I wound up in the hospital after attempting a home birth…on one of the cabinets in the hospital room. I saw the face of Jesus like I had seen on medallions before. I knew that it was Jesus but only realised later that it was the face on Shroud of Turin. It was very comforting.

It is interesting to me to hear other people’s experiences in order to understand how much God is doing to reach out to us in very concrete and human ways. That is incredible.

This happened almost 13 years ago and I have only shared it with one person, one time.

Although agree that we should heed the warning about spiritual pride, if many people are having these experiences shouldn’t others know about them? if only just to send the message that God is alive and well and working His wonders in our world today!

 

[Casilda]

(okay, I can HEAR my deceased family members at times, such as after a recent death or when someone’s going through a really tough time)

I don’t seek these experiences out, I don’t call upon anything besides our Father, besides my prayers for intercession by the Saints or praying the rosary.

That’s the only closeness I’ve ever sought out, Our Father in heaven, Jesus, and more recently His mother through praying the rosary, too. It might help others to know that I dont seek these things out either, it is as if my, and now that I see there are lots of others whose ‘radar’ seems spiritually focused have these experiences, too.

I ‘hear’ from my dead relatives, too. I wont relate the specifics but I’ve stepped up my rosary devotion since then.

Thanks for sharing. I thought it was more of a rare and unique thing, but its much more comforting that there are so many others who do experience these things.

 

[Robert_Sock]

That’s the only closeness I’ve ever sought out, Our Father in heaven, Jesus, and more recently His mother through praying the rosary, too. It might help others to know that I dont seek these things out either, it is as if my, and now that I see there are lots of others whose ‘radar’ seems spiritually focused have these experiences, too.

I ‘hear’ from my dead relatives, too. I wont relate the specifics but I’ve stepped up my rosary devotion since then.

Thanks for sharing. I thought it was more of a rare and unique thing, but its much more comforting that there are so many others who do experience these things.

“A perennial link of charity exists between the faithful who have already reached their heavenly home, those who are expiating their sins in purgatory, and those who are still pilgrims on earth. Between them there is, too, an abundant exchange of all good things.”
-Catechism of the Catholic Church (paragraph 1475).

 

[Padster]

Does anyone have any experience with this sort of situation??? What sort of priest to talk to about this sort of thing?

I have experience, and the relative anonymity of an internet forum is the only place I can talk about it. My family became very angry towards me when I told them what was happening, and I can’t even tell my priest (who I have known for over 20 years) for fear he may think I am insane or put it down to the medication I am on. (I received a kidney transplant 2 years ago and am on immuno-suppressants, amongst other things). I don’t wish to go through specific details on an open forum, but I too am visited by spirits/angels, though I can feel them but cannot see them. They seem very kind, but I have a niggling doubt in the back of my mind that it is all some elaborate trap set up for me to fall into. (again, too much detail for me to go into here). The dreams started last autumn (I hadn’t dreamt for years thanks to medication and suddenly I was having lucid dreams) and they began with a narrow doorway which I unsuccessfully tried to get through on two occasions (I could actually feel the brickwork, it felt solid). Since then I have had three horrendous experiences at night which blurred the lines between dreams and reality.

I have had to go through all this on my own. It is sad to say, but the internet is my only lifeline in all this, even prayers do not appear to garner knowledge. I don’t understand what it is all about, I really don’t. And if I don’t understand it, how on earth can I ask others to? Which is why most people choose to stay quiet about their experiences in the company of others, lest they wind up drugged into a stupor on a psychiatric ward.

Best wishes,
Padster

 

[JessJK]

Thanks for the reassuring words, guys

No Padster, I completely understand what you mean… My first horrible experience was when I was only 13 and I believe was partially a product of the less than ideal home environment I was in at the time. Major depression, fighting, etc among family members seems to be the catalyst to my own bad experiences. I actually believe this thing that runs in my family causes it to be that much more powerful when we’re together. I’m not assuming that this is at all relevant to your case, but in the past I have noticed that when I don’t seem to have full control over the situation it’s because someone else’s demons are involved too. I’ll say a prayer for you tonight… I know how upsetting those dreams are, I was plagued by night terrors for years and only ever found relief when I moved back into my grandparents’ home, where they prayed over me and their house daily.

Honestly, it’s those exact experiences which contributed to my staying away from the church, as it seemed that I could pretend they weren’t real if I just chose not to believe so. It didn’t really work out, to say the least…

I also understand about the meds and being afraid that people will assume the worst. My husband actually used to think the same until he realized that it was even worse when I wasn’t medicated, hahaha… surprise!

 

[JessJK]

Also, one thing my grandparents always used to tell me (before they passed, lol) was to pray over my dreams every night (which of course I didn’t do) and to ask for those to be taken away from me… Now, for some reason I just felt like this was ridiculous, since God obviously already knew that, right?, and because it wasn’t just in my sleep. That there was something out THERE trying to really ruffle my feathers.

Well I just got to the point to where I started speaking aloud to the room and telling them where to go, that I didn’t have the time nor the patience to deal with their ‘mess’, and if I still felt oppressed I began asking for St. (Angel) Michael’s intercession, and I honestly feel that several times God has allowed some terrible heavenly angel to come to my aid. The biggest deception sometimes is just convincing us that we’re powerless to stop it, but when we aren’t strong enough, there’s always someone else who is. I’m not afraid to ask for help nowdays, that’s for sure… Best of luck, I’ll be praying for you.

 

[Padster]

Thanks for your comments. I continue to have the occasional bad experience at night; as recently as the early hours of Monday morning I had a deeply unsettling experience which again blurred the lines between dreams and reality. There are other disturbing things happening to me which I do not wish to recall in an open forum.

I am quite lost in all this now. I just try to find distractions to keep my mind occupied because it is constantly trying to figure out what is happening. When I am not doing that I am trawling the internet searching for any help I can find. There is nowhere else to turn.

Best wishes,
Padster

 

[Googler]

Check out this callers experience of the Eucharist, on Relevant Radio’s The Inner Life, at 14:45 of the radio stream, Click HERE .

 

[WilT]

Admittedly, I have honestly had several starting from when I was very young; but I generally don’t talk about them. Whenever I do, I feel almost like I’m boasting or drawing unnecessary attention to myself. I’ll pray about it a little. Maybe I will come back later to share.

I must agree with Ophelia. It may come across of boasting not of Christ but of ourselves.

 

[WilT]

Once I heard a voice in my head that said very clearly “Everything will be all right”, and I felt that everything would be all right. Another time I experienced something similar to what another poster related, in that I began to see things “differently”, as if they were infused with love,

I don’t mind relating these experiences as a witness to God, but I don’t do it indiscriminately , o

 

[Marie5890]

I agree with Michael Mayo, who is so very wise and pure hearted in spirit. One is best to be silent about spiritual graces received from God or mystical experiences, so as to avoid the temptation of spiritual pride, which is the greatest enemy of the holy life. As Meister Eckhart once said: "The finest thing that we can say of God is to be silent concerning him from the wisdom of inner riches".That is, unless one, with the approval of the Church or out of a desire to aid another person who needs guidance or requests it, decides to relate their experiences for the common good.

It is not wrong, however, to seek guidance on spiritual experiences one has had or to share them for the benefit of others.

^^^^^^this…

Be silent unless under obedience to do otherwise

 

[somebodystopme]

I’ve been wondering how many people have these sorts of experiences as well… I’m not even sure how to explain my situation, Also, this sort of thing, on a much much smaller scale, seems to run in my family.

I have had these experiences as long as I can remember…

However, not all of them are good. I had many experiences seeing demons throughout my youth as well. It’s like I have an antenna and pick up everything. So I’ve seen angels, demons, deceased family members some would say I had a “special gift”, some would decide to perform an impromptu ‘exorcism’ of sorts (no, it didn’t work because I’m genuinely not possessed, lol), all manner of opinions.

recently began to pray that if this is something of God, then I am open to it, but for him to not let anything corrupt come in and try to fool me into things.

you might find Blake heley and his book the “vail” interesting-- i went to 2 of his teaching sessions–

In this engrossing and enlightening debut, Blake Healy shares the story of his unusual gift. Having been born with the ability to see angels and demons as regularly and clearly as anything else in waking life, his journey has been one of unique perspective and unique challenge. It is an amazingly clear view into the realm of the spirit, as well as a true testamant to the power of living a life in pursuit of deeper relationship with God. Full to the brim with amazing stories and stunning experiences, “The Veil” is an incredible look into the world of the spirit.

and you might find the training of john paul jackson- on understanding- dream and visions – interesting and – as i have found – people with spiritual giftings-- are only confortable with other people with spiritual giftings

3 The Mystery of Prophets & Psychics - John Paul Jackson

youtu.be/nb1u1ju0ROU

the spiritual real-- is just like the internet–

it is always there-- and depending on what God gifted you with-- and if you are born again- and “activated” well this is why – praying in tongues-- is the least of the gifts–

dreams and visions-- is what Saint Paul said would happen-- on the day of penecost-as in joel 2;28

I don’t have a desire to be a medium, I don’t have a desire to be overly preoccupied with the spiritual world either because I already know for a fact that for people like me, when we start to pay attention, spirits notice. I left the church for many years and simply pretended/shut out/shut off this ability, because it scared me too much.

Does anyone have any experience with this sort of situation??? What sort of priest to talk to about this sort of thing?

I grew up Methodist, and then my mother took me to an evangelical Protestant church for years where they just scared the mess out of me, lol.

I will say that I truly feel our pregnancy was a miracle, and shortly after (but before I knew) I believe I had a visitation from the blessed mother while praying the rosary and asking for guidance. Come to think of it, it was only AFTER that visitation that I suddenly began hearing from my family members with much greater intensity.

Lord knows, I’m still constantly praying about this…

 

[somebodystopme]

Thanks for your comments. I continue to have the occasional bad experience at night; as recently as the early hours of Monday morning I had a deeply unsettling experience which again blurred the lines between dreams and reality. There are other disturbing things happening to me which I do not wish to recall in an open forum.

I am quite lost in all this now. I just try to find distractions to keep my mind occupied because it is constantly trying to figure out what is happening. When I am not doing that I am trawling the internet searching for any help I can find. There is nowhere else to turn.

Best wishes,
Padster

you might find Blake heley and his book the “vail” interesting-- i went to 2 of his teaching sessions–

In this engrossing and enlightening debut, Blake Healy shares the story of his unusual gift. Having been born with the ability to see angels and demons as regularly and clearly as anything else in waking life, his journey has been one of unique perspective and unique challenge. It is an amazingly clear view into the realm of the spirit, as well as a true testamant to the power of living a life in pursuit of deeper relationship with God. Full to the brim with amazing stories and stunning experiences, “The Veil” is an incredible look into the world of the spirit.

and you might find the training of john paul jackson- on understanding- dream and visions – interesting and – as i have found – people with spiritual giftings-- are only confortable with other people with spiritual giftings

3 The Mystery of Prophets & Psychics - John Paul Jackson

youtu.be/nb1u1ju0ROU

the spiritual real-- is just like the internet–

it is always there-- and depending on what God gifted you with-- and if you are born again- and “activated” well this is why – praying in tongues-- is the least of the gifts–

dreams and visions-- is what Saint peter said would happen-- on the day of penecost-as in joel 2;28

 

[Googler]

St. John of the Cross said some of the faults and signs which need purging are:
o Roughness and impatience
o A strong attachment to our own point of view
o We imagine we have received a special inspiration from God, but in reality we are victims of satan or our own lively imagination
o We are puffed up with presumption, spiritual pride, and vanity
o We depart from the true path or lead others astray
o We are filled with the sisters of spiritual pride; intellectual pride, jealousy, and hidden ambition

St. Teresa of Avila said that some souls who think they have intellectual visions of God in reality have an “imagination that is so weak, or their understanding is so nimble, or for some other reason their imagination becomes so much absorbed, that they actually think they see everything that is in their mind. If they had ever seen a true vision they would realize their error beyond the possibility of doubt.” One clue that the soul has fallen for this trick of the mind is that a true vision will be extremely brief. “When the soul is able to remain for a long time looking upon the Lord, I do not think it can be a vision at all. It must rather be that some striking idea creates a picture in the imagination: but this will be a dead image by comparison with the other [a real vision].” A true image is very fleeting, often like lightening, during which God communicates great and secret things about Himself instantly through infused contemplation.

 

[JessJK]

It’s strange that people come here seeking help for things which they’ve been either afflicted by or unsure as to the Catholic church’s interpretation of certain things, and yet so many (who really have no idea as to the authenticity of the other person’s experience) would try to seemingly shame them into thinking they have some “puffed up” idea of themselves… Whaaat?

I think it’s obvious that we don’t share these experiences just anywhere but this is a very specific forum which would obviously attract those seeking answers or wondering if others have shared experiences.

I’ve seen similar responses from family members which is why we generally don’t share these things, but to presume that people aren’t having authentic experiences or are feeling self-important is ridiculous.

I can’t remember how many times I prayed and cried NOT to have these experiences myself, as they scared me when I was young and encountered unexplainable things. I think it’s important to remember that our job as members of the church is to love and draw others towards Christ, and not to just reflect our own attitudes and create more distance between believers.

What a shame.

 

[JessJK]

As to my own most recent experience, I believe I mentioned seeing the Holy Mother a little over a month ago when she basically have me a lecture on relying on God and not men for the basis of our self worth and faith, well come to find out my husband and I are now not only pregnant, but are actually expecting twins- although I’m quite ill, had been told by my doctors that I couldn’t even get pregnant, and neither of us have any history of twins in our families!

Now who in the world could have made that up? And why would we ever be ashamed to share certain blessings given to us by our Father? It still baffles my mind to think about it all, and of course I don’t go running around telling everyone about this situation, but I do feel safe to share it with other Catholics whom I know closely, and would especially think that on a forum such as this one that it would be acceptable (if not even rejoiced over) to hear about the miraculous blessings of our Father in heaven… I guess it’s just not often that we get to hear about those these days, it just seems to be nonstop bad news on my own newsfeeds…

 

[blueshells]

I am so glad to find this thread! I had an experience about 6 months ago that I’d been struggling to figure out, and finally yesterday I stumbled across St. Teresa of Avila’s writings on locution: turns out, after comparing her writings to what I have written in my journal and conversations with a close friend and my spiritual director, I experienced a locution! Finding out that I’m not the only who’s experienced this makes me feel like I’m not completely crazy…

 

[tafan]

I think to have a profound mystical experience, one has to be a mystic. Tough going that. I am glad to see so many on this forum are so holy.

 

[WilT]

I am so glad to find this thread! I had an experience about 6 months ago that I’d been struggling to figure out, and finally yesterday I stumbled across St. Teresa of Avila’s writings on locution: turns out, after comparing her writings to what I have written in my journal and conversations with a close friend and my spiritual director, I experienced a locution! Finding out that I’m not the only who’s experienced this makes me feel like I’m not completely crazy…

Locutions do happen to a chosen few although one must be careful with them since they can come from a most excellent source or a source of pride or imagination. The best thing to do with it is determine the message whether good or of bad and pray in thanksgiving and in humility. God loves you and wants to bring you to HIM. Pax