Previews of Heaven for a Wary Traveler

Not surprisingly, I have been reproached by many readers for my recent confession that heaven is not my destination.

To quote the Bard, though, their tone is more in sorrow than in anger. Some even profess to regret that they will not see me there. Either that, or they are simply sorry that I will not enjoy eternal bliss.

Most, however, remonstrate with me for thinking that, because of my sins, I would probably be excluded. They remind me that the gates will be open to all who believe. Faith is the ticket.

Moreover, they cite chapter and verse to dispel my fears that the place will be too dull and pious for my liking.

“There are no stiff entrance requirements,” I am assured by Divinia R. Jaurigue of Lancaster. “Heaven is not reserved for an exclusive few. . . . No Brownie points for being ‘good’ will do, nor will you lose your admission pass because once in a while you slip and slide. . . . Everyone is invited to come, but no one will be forced to enter. It is a personal decision. What will yours be, Mr. Smith? . . . Who knows? There might be a publication up there called The Heavenly Times. Wouldn’t it be fun to write a column titled Out of the Blue?”

My friend Rabbi Alfred Wolf, who is also, though he may not know it, my spiritual adviser, writes with his usual tolerance: “You have proved again that thinking about what happens to us after death can be good clean fun.”

Rabbi Wolf also assures me that I can get in, enclosing a pamphlet on Salvation and Redemption prepared by the Los Angeles Priest/Rabbi Committee. He has underscored two passages. One, of Catholic origin, says: “God’s saving work in and through Jesus is not limited to those who are Christians.” The second, Jewish, says: “Jewish tradition has taught that salvation is available to all human beings.”

Michele Lane writes, “It’s not our sins that will keep us out of heaven, but our unwillingness to acknowledge them and ask forgiveness for them. . . .”

“To get your name on the guest list in heaven you need to pray to God,” writes Tammy L. Cameron of Fountain Valley, “tell him that you know you are a sinner and that you know Jesus died for your sins and that you believe that he is the only one that can save you. . . .”

“The fact that you are even thinking about this issue,” writes Michele Lane, “is a good indication that you are doing what we call ‘searching.’ ”

“Grace,” writes Willard Hunter of Claremont, “plays hob with the good-guy, bad-guy syndrome. Grace means you can get in no matter what you’ve done, even if you are Adolf Hitler . . . although repentance might be a prerequisite. . . .”

Pauline French reassures me about one of my worries: “God is not puritanical; he created sex. Jealousy and envy are non-enhancements: Try trust and love. Also, God is not without humor. . . .”

I say that is reassuring because there was no way I was going to heaven if there wasn’t any sex there. Nevertheless, wherever you have sex, as I said, you are going to have longing, rejection, jealousy and pain. Trust and love are not dependable.

Jean Spencer of Camarillo recalls that G. K. Chesterton once engaged in a witty debate, in the London press, with a prominent disbeliever. Chesterton wrote, “Religion is exactly the thing that cannot be left out--because it includes everything.”

She concludes: “Despite your recent protestations, I have read too many of your columns not to know that you would undoubtedly enjoy the wit of G. K. Chesterton . . . and that, should you permit yourself someday to meet the Creator, you will write your finest column.”

But of course, it wouldn’t be an exclusive. A lot of other people, including Oral Roberts, have already interviewed him.

It probably wouldn’t be fair of me not to include a paragraph written by Earl Scott of Chatsworth, which I find provocative but ambiguous: “Any proof that is found in this world is proof, only, of this world and is not true. Truth is prior to thought and must be found there. . . .”

The Rev. Mr. C. Luff Johnson of the Loraine Avenue Baptist Church in Glendora quotes what he evidently considers a pertinent line of Scripture: “. . . a dumb ass spoke with human voice.”--II Peter 2:16.

I may reconsider. I like the idea of that column called Out of the Blue.