“…when, from the land of the future life, we are the witnesses and actors in that supreme drama–the whole span of humanity will seem so short to us that we shall scarcely consider it to have lasted a single day…”
Fr. charles arminjon, pg 28
Preface
- “Father Arminjon’s writings had nourished in Therese an “impatience for the joys of Heaven and a paramount esteem for a life wholly consecrated to Divine Love.” – pg x
- “It is very profitable for us to keep in mind what is traditionally referred to as “the four last things”: death, judgment, heaven, and hell — and Father Arminjon’s conferences are a powerful aid in bringing these four last things to mind in a very unforgettable way! This book encourages us to live in this world with our hearts set on the life to come — with our “eye on the prize,” so to speak. It inspires us to prepare our souls for God, to strive more earnestly to attain everlasting life with Christ, and to help save souls who will love Him eternally. It encourages us to avoid the pitfall of being overly preoccupied with the many distractions, anxieties, pleasures, and pursuits of this fleeting life on earth.” – pg xiii
Foreword
- “The earth is afflicted with a dreadful desolation, because the majority of men, fascinated by the lure of fleeting pleasures, and absorbed in their worldly interests and the care of their material affairs, no longer fix their thoughts on the principal considerations of the Faith, and stubbornly refuse to recollect within themselves.” – pg xvii
First Conference – The End of the World: The Signs That Will Precede it and the Circumstances That Will Accompany It
- “…the present world is an immense laboratory where all of nature is in great unrest and in labor until the day when, freed from all bondage and corruption, it will blossom out into a radiant and renewed order.” – pg 5
- “…after a long period of centuries, the visible order of things on earth will give way to a new and permanent order, and the changing era of time will be replaced by the era of stability and repose.” – pg 6
- “Christian reason and the common ascent of all nations thus bear witness that the world must end and that there will be a new order. This truth is also in conformity with science and observed facts” ; “…it is certain that our earth no longer possesses the same fecundity or vegetative strength it had in the first ages of the human race. Just as the world had its youth, so there will come a time when the world will have its twilight, when it will hasten toward its evening and decline – pg 9-10
- “For this hope we are indebted to Christ, whose promise permits us to expect, after the final crisis, a new earth and new heavens.” – pg 10
- “If we can be taken by surprise at any time, there are, nevertheless, signs that attest that our final hour is imminent, and that we would be laboring under a crass illusion if we imagined that we had a long stretch of life still awaiting us here below.” – pg 10
- “Such were the dispositions that Christ endeavored to arouse, seeking to instruct them and lead them away from gross earthly hopes, rather than excite their curiosity by disclosing to them the hidden secrets of the future.” – pg 13
- “It is clear from their testimony that there will come a time when all heresies and schisms will be overcome, and when the true religion will be known and practiced by all places illumined by the sun.” – pg 18
- “Christianity, in our day, is being attacked everywhere: in the arts and sciences, in Church and state, in Europe as well as Asia, in the old and new world: a sure sign that it will triumph everywhere.” – pg 20
- “Yet, even if the end of the world were to be deferred for many centuries, what are centuries compared with the years of eternity? They are a second, an instant, more fleeting than lightning. When the Son of God was raised up to heaven, seated upon a cloud, the Apostles could not take their eyes from the place in the sky where He had vanished. Suddenly, two angels in white garments appeared to them, and said, ‘Men of Galilee, why do you stand here looking up at the skies? This Jesus who has been taken from you will return, just as you saw Him go up into the heavens.’ Elsewhere, Christ says, ‘Within a short time, you will lose sight of me, but soon after you shall see me again, because I go to the Father.'” – pg 21
- “On the day of judgment, however, it will be as described in the preceding story: it will all happen with unparalleled promptness and violence.” – pg 24
- “In truth, if the earth and all it contains must one day disappear by fire, the goods of this world are no more to be esteemed than wood and straw. What point is there, then in making them the object of our desires and cares? Why seek to build and leave marks of our genius and power where we have no permanent abode, and where the form of this world will be removed, like a tent that has no travelers to shelter?” – pg 28
- “…when, from the land of the future life, we are the witnesses and actors in that supreme drama–the whole span of humanity will seem so short to us that we shall scarcely consider it to have lasted a single day.” – pg 28
- “Compared with this inevitable ending of human destinies, our political controversies are nothing but idle noise.” – pg 32
- “There will then be no other distinction between men than that of merit and virtue. All vain and ambitious thoughts will have vanished. Politics will have ceased. Science itself will be destroyed.” ; “Happy those who have heard the divine Word, and kept it faithfully in their hearts. Happy those who, awakening from their sleep, shall have walked honestly and openly, following the apostle’s recommendation.” – pg 33
Second Conference – The Persecution by the Antichrist and the Conversion of the Jews
- “Holy Scripture gives us three main features that will mark the dominance of the Antichrist. First, he will be emperor and absolute master of the universe. Secondly, he will have Jerusalem as his capital. Thirdly, he will be as clever as he is violent, and the war he will wage against the saints will be, primarily, one of deceit and seduction.” – pg 59
- “The triumph of the wicked one will be of short duration, but the consolations that follow will be universal, abundant, proportionate to the extent of the tribulations the Church will have suffered.” – pg 68
Stay tuned for highlights/quotes from the remaining chapters/conferences of “The End of the Present World!”
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