When Before and After No Longer Exists
MOSAIC, Summer 2009

Very Rev. Msgr. Jeffrey M. Monforton

"Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen" (Hebrews 11:1).

Eschatology, or the study of the "last things," has intrigued us throughout history. This is especially true regarding the four last things of death, judgment, heaven and hell.'

We "citizens of the New Jerusalem," residing in that which does not resemble terribly the New Jerusalem, keep our eyes focused on the presence of our Lord Jesus in this world. In his February 13, 2008, address at Sacred Heart Major Seminary, His Grace, Archbishop Thomas Collins of Toronto, repeated the mandate you and I received at the Sacraments of Initiation: "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem throughout Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth" (Acts 1:8). Our earthly mission is to witness to the presence of our Lord Jesus and the coming of the Heavenly City among the people of God.

Instead of fearing the end times, we fellow believers are to be full of hope. In his encyclical letter Spe Salvi (On Christian Hope), our Holy Father teaches that eternal life is like "plunging into the ocean of infinite love, a moment in which time—the before and after—no longer exists" (no. 12). Jesus makes the promise to all that "(He) will see you again and your heart will rejoice, and no one will take your joy from you" (John 16:12).

As a Catholic institution, Sacred Heart Major Seminary is charged with the task to teach our faith in Christ Jesus in and out of season. Sacred Heart happily embraces the task to make Christian disciples. It is my hope that you will find in our latest edition of the Mosaic our common vision as Christians concerning the Four Last Things: death, judgment, heaven and hell.

As we celebrate our Risen Lord, please know of my prayers for you and your loved ones. I am, 

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Very Rev. Msgr. Jeffrey M. Monforton
Rector/President