Are we watching for those who may be watching us? A question that many might be considering if we spend time in prayer for souls in Purgatory.

Are we watching for those who may be watching us? A question 

that many of us might be considering if we spend time in prayer for souls in Purgatory.

There is an interest regarding the souls in Purgatory as I have seen other writers submitting articles regarding the souls alive and waiting for the opportunity to be accepted into paradise.  Reading the book titled Purgatory by Fr. F. X. Schouppe, S. J.recounts a number of stories where living religious nuns and or priests  have seen and spoken with souls who somehow have entered our human space.

After writing at least seven articles about purgatory I only touched lightly on the different occasions where my wife and I have encountered some but never had a verbal encounter with any of them.  I bring this up because most of the stories in the book mentioned relate these souls speaking with the living persons.  Almost all of them said they needed masses or at least prayers to help in their expiation for unresolved penance.  

One time I asked the Blessed Mother if I could see them or converse with them and she told me “I wouldn’t want to be able to do that.”  I took her advice and left that alone.  However, the number of times that we saw some of these souls was not frightening or even unexpected and I will mention the times we saw them.

My reason for this is to clear my own thoughts and noises that are common at night usually after retiring to bed.  The most verbal occasions are in the morning when I hear a woman’s voice calling me by saying Ralph.  Never a sentence; just my name.  Of course I think it’s my wife waking me up until she either says she didn’t call me or she has already left the apartment and after I said what do you want there is silence.  One time it was a man’s voice calling me. If it was too early for me to get up I went back to sleep.

I realize that one or more souls are trying to get my attention for prayers and never have I become frightened.  I do not know if they can read my mind so if not they must just watch as I pray using the rosary beads and assume they know what I am doing.  

The first time I saw a man was in the parking lot at St. Bernard parish and as related before, he was standing a few cars away from mine and we nodded to each other.  After helping my wife out of the car I turned to look and he was gone.  Because there was no possible way for him to leave the lot without me seeing him I presumed he was my guardian angel.  Why I don’t know but that was my inclination.  Some days or weeks later I awoke during the night and saw him standing beside the bed looking at me as if to say I am watching over you.  

As I wrote in a previous article, we watched a documentary on EWTN regarding Purgatory. It was then that I realized this man was not my guardian angel but a soul reaching out for prayer.  There were a few times after that my wife saw at least twice either he or another male figure standing over the bed staring down at me and the second instance as I was up writing there was either him or another man standing in my office watching me type.  

My title for this article “Are we watching for those who may be watching us?” tells us they might not be in fire or some tortuous position but are free to reach out for prayer from those God has allowed or send them with intentions of using the gift of mercy for the ones that are waiting.  These are questions that cannot be answered but know that if you encounter one or more reaching out to you consider it a blessing that God has sent them to you for helping in their expiation.

Ralph B. Hathaway