Ghosts Among Us - James Van Praagh [17]
THE LADY IN THE CHURCH
Some souls wait around for that special someone to come for them and bring them into the light. Others return to the place where they died because it brings them much comfort. Some are confused and go through the same routine as if they were still alive, as you will see from the following.
I flew back to New York to attend my cousin’s wedding. On my way into the church, I noticed an elderly lady kneeling in a pew on the left side of the last row. She seemed to be completely unaware that a wedding was about to take place.
I sat down in one of the front pews and looked back. The woman in the last row was gone. I wondered where she went, so I glanced around the church. The organ music started, and the procession began. During the ceremony, I would occasionally crane my neck around toward the back of the church to see if the old woman had come back. On one of these instances, I saw her sitting in the last row. However, I also saw a man walk right through her to sit down. That’s when I realized that I had been seeing a ghost.
When the wedding was over and everyone was on the front steps taking pictures, I walked back inside the church to see if the ghost was still there. Indeed, she was. This time I noticed that she was wearing a black dress and black sweater and holding on to a pair of black rosary beads. When I knelt down next to her, she looked my way. I looked right at her and sent her a message that I could see her. She told me, There is no speaking in church, young man.
I realized that she did not know that she was dead. I asked her, How long have you been here?
She mentally whispered, Come to seven o’clock Mass every morning. Haven’t missed one yet. Afterwards, I stay and say the rosary.
What’s your name? I asked.
Shh…Hilda. She was quiet for a few minutes before saying, Father Pat doesn’t look good. I think he might be sick.
Hilda continued to say her prayers, and I sat with her for a while. Then she disappeared, and I got up and walked out.
At the reception, I mentioned my ghostly encounter to one of my relatives. Soon the word got around, and everyone asked me questions about the ghost in church.
An elderly gentleman came over and introduced himself. “My name is Ed. I used to be an usher at the church. When someone told me what you saw, I thought I might talk to you about it. Everyone knew about Hilda. She came to church every morning dressed in black.”
“Do you know when she died?” I asked.
“She died in March 1970, a week after Father Pat died. She had a heart attack right there in the pew.”
I wondered why she acted as if she were still alive. I was sure that by then Father Pat would have escorted her into the spirit world.
Months after the wedding took place, my cousin sent me photos. Someone had taken a picture of me kneeling in the back of the church. Next to me was a bright, round orb of light. It had to be Hilda.
I believe that Hilda loved her daily early morning Mass so much that she stayed confined to the earth realm because of it. When a soul like Hilda is tied so strongly to earth through beliefs and habits, it can take a while to move into the heavenly realms. Through prayer and other means, the living can help those between dimensions to move on. That was my hope for Hilda.
DEATH BY SUICIDE
Sometimes I bring through messages from souls who took their own lives. It’s always difficult to talk about suicide. When I wrote my first book, Talking to Heaven, I explained that people who commit suicide sometimes find themselves in a limbolike existence. Unfortunately, some readers thought I was referring to the state of “limbo” that is part of the Catholic belief system. That’s not exactly what I meant.
When a person commits suicide, sometimes the soul feels a tremendous amount of guilt and anguish until it understands the effects of its suicide