By Bishop Stephen Chow Sau Yan, SJ
“For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him might not perish but might have eternal life” — John 3:16-17
I have told this story before. It is about a Jesuit Father, Alfred Deignan. He was in and out of the hospital for some time before he passed away. On one occasion, he was hospitalised in a coma and woke up a few days later. When he woke up, he shared his near-death experience. He said that while in the coma, he went to heaven and that it was very bright. The light was so comforting and warm that he didn’t want to leave. He met his parents. He saw Jesus and the Virgin Mary. He really thought he was going to stay, but a voice said to him, “It is not yet your time to stay in heaven.” So, he came back to the world.
When he returned to the world, Father Deignan asked himself what the meaning of this rebirth was. The meaning was that he was born again, that is, he was living a second time. There is a mission behind it, and that mission is to testify to his first-hand experience of the Lord, by telling the world that heaven is real and God is real. That is why he saw Jesus and the Virgin Mary. And eternal life is true too because he saw his deceased parents, and we can really be reunited with our beloved ones in the kingdom of Heaven after this life.
Father Deignan came back to the world for a short time, he spread the message that the kingdom of heaven is real in his time of rebirth, and this experience was a great affirmation and a wake-up call for himself and others. He wanted to preach the gospel of the kingdom of Heaven to people, warning us not to live in confusion and not to focus mainly on immediate benefits, because these are not real and they are fleeting. Only eternal life is real.
Therefore, catechumens to be baptised, you will be born again after baptism, because your life will be in Christ, and you will die and be reborn with him. What is your mission? How will you use your life to spread the Good News of the kingdom of Heaven so that you can help those around you, and even yourself, to live with a greater sense of mission, meaning and fulfillment?
