The Four Last Things

IV -- Heaven

Slides of this talk can be found here [https://qorbono.com/study/flt_heaven.pdf]. Also, if you wish to watch the video mentioned in the talk, you can see it here [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fFyC68CIEio].   What is Heaven? Where is it, and what do the saints do there? Is Heaven a boring place where all we do is pray? How can we develop an authentic desire for Heaven?  In this talk we go over the scriptural passages that speak of Heaven, highlighting the glorious and joyful titles associated with them, then we consider what the Church teaches about Heaven. Following we reflect on selected quotes on Heaven by the Church Fathers, then observe that the reason why so few of us authentically desire Heaven is closely related to our ignorance of what Heaven is like and our lack of faith. Speaking of faith, we take a brief detour at this point and examine closely the nature of Faith. Using insights from Math and common everyday life, we will deepen our understanding of the true nature of faith.  Next, we consider what Heaven is like and how to attain it.

III - Purgatory

You can find the associated slides here [https://qorbono.com/study/flt_purgatory.pdf]. We begin our study by defining what purgatory is and who it is for. Next, we consider the Protestant objections to the existence of Purgatory. We look at the beliefs of the earliest Christians and of the Church Fathers -- All before 450 A.D. In the third part of this study, we go over the Scriptural passages that require purgatory to make any sense. Subsequently, we look in detail at the objections and explain why they simply don't hold. Lastly, we focus our attention on what we can do to avoid purgatory.

II - Hell

You can find the associated slides here [https://qorbono.com/study/flt_hell.pdf]. In this second topic of the Four Last Things, we begin our study by considering the scriptural texts for the existence and eternity of Hell. Next, we establish the necessity of Hell and then discuss the relationship between Hell and God's Mercy. Following, we take a closer look at the nature of Hell, paying special attention to the suffering of the damned.  Finally, we close our study with a review of the discipline we need to establish in our lives to avoid Hell: Discipline of prayer, moral discipline that begins with an examination of conscience and ends with the corporate works of mercy.

I -- Judgment

You can find the associated slides here [https://qorbono.com/study/flt_judgment.pdf].  We first consider the actual meaning of Judgment, then we consider the various types of judgment that Scripture presents to us. Having gained a better understanding of the meaning of judgment we consider next the relationship between God's Judgment and His Mercy. Following that, we dive into the Particular Judgment and then focus on how best to prepare for our judgment.