The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1895-03-21
WHAT THEY TnoraHr ABOUT HEAVEN.

WHAT THEY THorGHT ABOUT HEAVEN.
We recently asked number of college
young ladies' and gentlemen to write on. the
| spur OF the moment, their ideas of Heaven.
| We know nothing of their early education IDOL
| their religious preferences Perhaps these Can
be inferred from their replies. About five
minutes were given for writing the answers
Ansuers.
l. Heaven is q place of entire perfect hap
piness, nothing being present to mar the pleas.
ure of existence. Everything there is bright
| charming, delightful. All the good people Of
| this earth will DO there in a spiritual or a
| bodily form. Everything will be in perfect
harmony. Everyone will be perfectly happy.
| 1t is the end after which all should strive-the
summwn bonum of eternity. 1t lasts forever.
9. Heaven, to my mind, is place where
| the thinking part of man, freed from imper-
| foctious may pursue its own bent without lim-
| itations of time aud space-a place where the
nh ysical if it exist, shall be lost in the men
| tai. the spiritual. the apotheosis OF reason.
3. / think of Heaven a place of supreme
| bliss and happiness the quietness of which is
| never disturbed by wiciSedness in any form
place where we shall see and recognize
! our dear friends and relations and above all see
our crucifed Lord, who ever sttetlI at the
right hand of the Majesty on High. to make in
| tercession for us. The streets are made of gold
where every body delights In worshiping the
| Supreme Being, who made Heaven and earth,
and who is worshipcd day and night. There
| is no moro sorrow there-no moro toars. for
God himself shall wipe away all tears. Heaven
| is place where the troubled rest at peace and
shall have life everlasting.
4. Heaven is where the soul shall know the
essence of all things.
s. Heaven is a condition of the soul. as is
also its opposite. Complete harmony with the
Soul of the universe is perfect Heaven. One
can have it on earth as well as in the future
| state, though complete harmony Is hard to OBJ
tain here, because We have not taught the soul
to dominate the body. We grow toward
Heaven all the time, and ss we have all
eternity in which to grow, We must expect
everyone at some timo to reach q perfect
Heaven. By harmony. mean perfect trust in
God and perfect love of Him, and perfect knowl-
edge of ones own soul.
6. Heaven il the seat of our future happiness,
If the course of our life upon earth shall war
rant our earning this promised reward. Our
hopes are that We may see there our Heavenly
Father and His Son receiving tho homage of
cherubim and seraphim, the angels being the
embodiments of our friends who have departed
this life before we left it. We shall be without
desires for everything will be happiness.
There will be no envy. We shall not be
Obliged to worry about food nor Tament. IL
shall be life of eternal bliss.
Z. Ny idea of Heaven, though only faint and
Uniformed yet, is that it is place where per-
feet rest and peace are the principal sensa-
tions-Dot only rest from pain. but even rest
from intense pleasure-a place where there is
absolutely sensation except the feeling that
81 last we can feel no more 1 look forward
with longing to that rest after finishing this
life. / believe that, when / reach our Lord
and. look upon his face. every sensation except
that Of perfect rest and cohtentment will pass
away in an instant Like q cloud removed.
8. condition of society now aud here on
earth whore righteousness reigns, where is seen
the Fatherhood of God aud the brotherhood Of
man, each for all and all for each. Christ came
not to persuade men Of doctrines and crseds,
but to give US Heaven, by making society better
at large. Such condition. or an approach 70
it. is tho inspiration of my life, not future de-
light in some imagined realm OF bliss while
part of humanity grban in so-called hell
Whether there be a future life or not should
be none of our concern as to our life here.
8. Heaven may be termed that more blessed
state of future existence in which the sou, which
has passed successful probationary life here. is
put in direct contact with tho truth, both spirit
ual and physical, aud Is released from the
trammels OF this physical existcnce. SO that
the pure spirit. which has taken its correct
start in this life, may have a greater scope for
usefulness, for receiving knowledge, for aPpre-
cizting holisr and more aud morn spiritual
joys. The soul passes into an entirely higher
plano Of existence. Whether there be a spirit
ual body We are hardly able to decide. But
If there be, / think it will be so adapted to the
new stats Of conditions "a to enable the soul
to pursue its new life successfully.
10. My idea of Heaven is that it is place
where the soul goes when 1t leaves the body.
believe it is simply space.
IL. believe that after death there will be
life of the SOUL the good and puro assoeiating
together, and the evil cast out from among
them to q m iserable existence with one another.
constantly excluded from the society of all
those good friends whom they had in life,
and realizing that they are deprived of them.
IL. Heaven 10 the state in which the soul OF
him who has cultivated Its highest qualities
while on earth enjoys intercourse with the Di-
vinity.
b. cannot think that anything. even
though so significant as st. Johns Revelation,
can describe Heaven. That it must be place
of perfect bliss is hard to doubt. Whether time
will be spent there in praisipg the Divine Be-
ing. or in following, in o spiritual way, of
course, the pursuits of our earthly life, are
questions as to which it is difficult to decide.
We see now that some Of US would not, think,
believe the former to be- their idea Of perfect
happiness.
IA. Heaven is the place where all souls, after
their religious standard OH earth has been ex-
amined into and found to be sufficient as con-
ditioH of admission thereto, shall rest in ever
lasting peace and happiness.
Is. i am scarcely able to express my ideas OF
Heaven. l havo always considered it place
of indescribable beauty and dazzling bright
Mesa place where only the good can enter
where Christ reigns supreme at the right hand
of God. 1t is q city where the redeemed with
the angels are ever singing the praises of Him
who died that we through Him might have
eternal life. 1t must be place of beauty and
3 joy forever.
16 Heaven is the place where God Ia. 1t Is
often called Paradise; also, the Promised Land.
1t is the place where all good people go after
they die. There is nothing there to worry
anyone-nothing there but complete happiness.
Our whole existence on this earth should be
preparation for that place.
IL. My idea of Heaven is very vague and in
definite. / think 1t is place whore every
thing is in perfect harmony, and every ons
works for the happiness OF the others.
Deduction.
What of Heavenf Do these answers throw
any light on the subject? Do they not show
we are on no common ground as to that place
Some do not even believe it is place-it is a
state, they say. Not any one of the II denies
the fact there is something-place, or state, or
space-corresponding to tile word Heaven. All
hold IL il great Improvement In condition.
1t means, to everyone, happiness. Most per-
sons hold it is exclusively for the good alone.
Opinion is unanimous shat 1t is eternal. There
is no knowledge as to what our condition shall
be there as to the physical. There is quite
general expectation wo are to meet again our
friends and be able to Recognize them. Christ |
ha .Jor- ~