{"id":153110,"date":"2019-07-16T09:30:43","date_gmt":"2019-07-16T13:30:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/"},"modified":"2024-10-22T15:09:01","modified_gmt":"2024-10-22T19:09:01","slug":"ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/","title":{"rendered":"“Ask a Priest: What If Heaven and Hell Seem Far-Fetched?”"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
Q: I\u2019ve been baptized for quite a while, and before that, my family and I were atheists. I know that there is a God and that Jesus died for us. I do pray and reach out to God when I\u2019m happy or depressed or whatever emotion I\u2019m feeling, to get help. Always on YouTube I would come across videos about how someone died, then saw God and came back to life or someone went to hell and came back, etc. Heaven is the place where I\u2019m aiming to go, but it just all kind of seems like a fantasy. Just like the flames in hell — I can\u2019t even imagine them to be realistic. Maybe it\u2019s all the memes I see on social media or something, but since my mind is so small it can\u2019t really imagine that kind of greatness that Jesus actually came down on this<\/em> earth to save us. It\u2019s just so materialistic and such a long time ago that I just can\u2019t actually picture him coming down here and doing all that. And there’s this this man who went to hell and shared it on YouTube and claimed that he saw prison bars and flames and reptile-like creatures. But if hell and heaven is something beyond what humans can feel and imagine, how are those even existent in places like that? I\u2019m seriously not doubting God\u2019s power or love in any way — I\u2019m just wanting to clear this fogginess. Thank you for helping me understand more. \u2013 K.S.<\/address>\n<\/blockquote>\n

Answered by Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC<\/em><\/p>\n

A:\u00a0It is good to learn that you believe in God and in Jesus and that you make prayer a part of your life.<\/p>\n

You find it hard to imagine that Jesus would come down to earth for our sake.\u00a0That is precisely why the love of God is so amazing. Each one of us is made in his image and likeness. Each of us is a son or daughter of a loving Father in heaven.<\/p>\n

That God is so great is evident by the beauty of the world around us — the mountains, the sun, the moon, the stars, the oceans, and, not least, each of us. We are remarkable creatures with intelligence and will and the capacity to love. All this came from God.<\/p>\n

God made us for a reason: to give glory to him and to be happy with him, ideally, forever in heaven.<\/p>\n

Now, those who reject God and who die unrepentant simply experience the consequences of their decision: eternal separation from God. This is what we call hell.<\/p>\n

God didn’t create hell to punish people, per se. Rather, hell is what people choose for themselves.<\/p>\n

Jesus himself describes what hell is like: “Better for you to enter into the kingdom of God with one eye than with two eyes to be thrown into Gehenna,\u00a0where \u2018their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched\u2019” (Mark 9:47-48). Even the image of fire and worms doesn’t quite capture the horrors of hell; Jesus is simply using language to transmit some idea of what awaits a lost soul.<\/p>\n

The important thing is that Jesus himself warned of hell. So it is something to be taken seriously and not wished away.<\/p>\n

As for Jesus walking among us so long ago: it’s not impossible to imagine the events of the Gospel happening 2,000 years ago. Think of the Great Pyramid of Giza, in Egypt, which predates the Gospels by 2,500 years. Or go to Rome and see the ruins of structures that were standing before the coming of Christ. Things of the past are closer to us than we think.<\/p>\n

We Christians look forward to seeing Jesus again, in his glory, which is why we have hopes of reaching heaven someday. The eternal happiness is what we were made for, after all.<\/p>\n

All of us are attracted to truth, beauty, goodness, love. If we seek the highest forms of these things, then it makes sense that they are “out there.” This is a way of thinking of heaven. It’s everything we could dream about.<\/p>\n

If all that seems too good to be true, then that gives you an idea of how good God is. (For more reading about heaven, see Peter Kreeft’s webpage at http:\/\/www.peterkreeft.com\/topics-more\/35-faqs_eternity.htm<\/a><\/strong>.)<\/p>\n

And a word of caution: Don’t take those YouTube videos too seriously.<\/p>\n

For some more trustworthy videos, you might want to take a \u201cSpiritual Smoothie\u201d a couple of times a week. One in particular might help: Is God Trustworthy?<\/a><\/strong>. You also might like our do-it-yourself Retreat Guides (with online videos). Here is one, for example, in which the second meditation is all about heaven and hell: Fire of Mercy: A Retreat Guide on All Saints\u2019 and All Souls\u2019 Day<\/a><\/strong>.<\/p>\n

It would be good to continue to make time for prayer each day. Try to read a bit of the Gospel daily, in order to know more about Jesus. By staying close to him, you will discover your own identity.<\/p>\n

Keep learning more with Ask a Priest<\/a><\/h3>\n

Got a question? Need an answer?<\/h3>\n

Today\u2019s secular world throws curve balls at us all the time. AskACatholicPriest is a Q&A feature that anyone can use. Just type in your question or send an email to AskAPriest@rcspiritual.wpenginepowered.com<\/a> and you will get a personal response back from one of our priests at RCSpirituality. You can ask about anything \u2013 liturgy, prayer, moral questions, current events\u2026 Our goal is simply to provide a trustworthy forum for dependable Catholic guidance and information. So go ahead and ask your question\u2026<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Q: I\u2019ve been baptized for quite a while, and before that, my family and I were atheists. I know that there is a God and that Jesus died for us. […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":362,"featured_media":145952,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"inline_featured_image":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[3718],"tags":[3034,3784,118,2227],"post_folder":[],"class_list":["post-153110","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ask-a-priest","tag-heaven","tag-hell","tag-jesus","tag-youtube"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"","pp_force_visibility":null,"pp_subpost_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_force_visibility":null,"pp_inherited_subpost_visibility":null,"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\n"Ask a Priest: What If Heaven and Hell Seem Far-Fetched?" - Regnum Christi<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\""Ask a Priest: What If Heaven and Hell Seem Far-Fetched?"\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Q: I\u2019ve been baptized for quite a while, and before that, my family and I were atheists. I know that there is a God and that Jesus died for us. […]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Regnum Christi\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/RegnumChristiEn\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2019-07-16T13:30:43+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2024-10-22T19:09:01+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Ask-A-Priest-Header.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"3750\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"2500\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@RegnumChristiEn\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@RegnumChristiEn\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"5 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8ad2d347644cc6887ae52670c470c68b\"},\"headline\":\"“Ask a Priest: What If Heaven and Hell Seem Far-Fetched?”\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-07-16T13:30:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-10-22T19:09:01+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":967,\"commentCount\":0,\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/Ask-A-Priest-Header.png\",\"keywords\":[\"heaven\",\"Hell\",\"Jes\u00fas\",\"youtube\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Ask a Priest\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/\",\"name\":\"\\\"Ask a Priest: What If Heaven and Hell Seem Far-Fetched?\\\" - Regnum Christi\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/Ask-A-Priest-Header.png\",\"datePublished\":\"2019-07-16T13:30:43+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2024-10-22T19:09:01+00:00\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/Ask-A-Priest-Header.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2024\\\/09\\\/Ask-A-Priest-Header.png\",\"width\":3750,\"height\":2500,\"caption\":\"Regnum Christi Spirituality Center Ask a Priest\"},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\\\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Portada\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"“Ask a Priest: What If Heaven and Hell Seem Far-Fetched?”\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"name\":\"RegnumChristi.com\",\"description\":\"Regnum Christi is a Catholic Community of Apostles including lay people, consecrated men and women, and the priestly order of the Legionaries of Christ\",\"publisher\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\"},\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Organization\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#organization\",\"name\":\"RegnumChristi.com\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/\",\"logo\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/07\\\/open-1.png\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2023\\\/07\\\/open-1.png\",\"width\":900,\"height\":600,\"caption\":\"RegnumChristi.com\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/logo\\\/image\\\/\"},\"sameAs\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/www.facebook.com\\\/RegnumChristiEn\",\"https:\\\/\\\/x.com\\\/RegnumChristiEn\",\"https:\\\/\\\/www.instagram.com\\\/regnumchristi_english\\\/\"]},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/8ad2d347644cc6887ae52670c470c68b\",\"name\":\"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/485147bd811c2a8642adf1f1806f85f0adef2b00ef8ccabc9b46f8420af19e16?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/485147bd811c2a8642adf1f1806f85f0adef2b00ef8ccabc9b46f8420af19e16?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/485147bd811c2a8642adf1f1806f85f0adef2b00ef8ccabc9b46f8420af19e16?s=96&d=blank&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC\"},\"description\":\"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC, ordained to the priesthood in 2001, taught theology and Scripture at the then Mater Ecclesiae College in Rhode Island and is now a part-time chaplain at Overbrook Academy in Greenville, R.I. He holds degrees from Holy Apostles College and Seminary in Connecticut, the Regina Apostolorum Athenaeum in Rome, and Northwestern University in Illinois. He was an assistant publisher of the National Catholic Register and Faith & Family magazine and an editor of the Zenit news agency\u2019s English edition. He has written for\u00a0SpiritualDirection.com\u00a0and\u00a0ePriest. Fr. McIlmail also worked in spiritual retreats in the Northeast, New England, the Midwest, and the South\u00a0and assisted with mission work in Mexico. Born in Philadelphia, he worked in journalism and was active in the pro-life movement before entering the novitiate of the Legion of Christ in 1992. His contributions to RCSpirituality include responding to\u00a0Ask A Priest\u00a0questions and sharing his insights in our\u00a0Weekly Newsletter.\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.regnumchristi.com\\\/en\\\/author\\\/emcilmail\\\/\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO Premium plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"\"Ask a Priest: What If Heaven and Hell Seem Far-Fetched?\" - Regnum Christi","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"\"Ask a Priest: What If Heaven and Hell Seem Far-Fetched?\"","og_description":"Q: I\u2019ve been baptized for quite a while, and before that, my family and I were atheists. I know that there is a God and that Jesus died for us. […]","og_url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/","og_site_name":"Regnum Christi","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/RegnumChristiEn","article_published_time":"2019-07-16T13:30:43+00:00","article_modified_time":"2024-10-22T19:09:01+00:00","og_image":[{"width":3750,"height":2500,"url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Ask-A-Priest-Header.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@RegnumChristiEn","twitter_site":"@RegnumChristiEn","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC","Est. reading time":"5 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/"},"author":{"name":"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/8ad2d347644cc6887ae52670c470c68b"},"headline":"“Ask a Priest: What If Heaven and Hell Seem Far-Fetched?”","datePublished":"2019-07-16T13:30:43+00:00","dateModified":"2024-10-22T19:09:01+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/"},"wordCount":967,"commentCount":0,"publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#organization"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Ask-A-Priest-Header.png","keywords":["heaven","Hell","Jes\u00fas","youtube"],"articleSection":["Ask a Priest"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/","name":"\"Ask a Priest: What If Heaven and Hell Seem Far-Fetched?\" - Regnum Christi","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Ask-A-Priest-Header.png","datePublished":"2019-07-16T13:30:43+00:00","dateModified":"2024-10-22T19:09:01+00:00","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Ask-A-Priest-Header.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/09\/Ask-A-Priest-Header.png","width":3750,"height":2500,"caption":"Regnum Christi Spirituality Center Ask a Priest"},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/ask-a-priest-what-if-heaven-and-hell-seem-far-fetched\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Portada","item":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"“Ask a Priest: What If Heaven and Hell Seem Far-Fetched?”"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#website","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/","name":"RegnumChristi.com","description":"Regnum Christi is a Catholic Community of Apostles including lay people, consecrated men and women, and the priestly order of the Legionaries of Christ","publisher":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#organization"},"potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Organization","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#organization","name":"RegnumChristi.com","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/open-1.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/07\/open-1.png","width":900,"height":600,"caption":"RegnumChristi.com"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#\/schema\/logo\/image\/"},"sameAs":["https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/RegnumChristiEn","https:\/\/x.com\/RegnumChristiEn","https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/regnumchristi_english\/"]},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/#\/schema\/person\/8ad2d347644cc6887ae52670c470c68b","name":"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/485147bd811c2a8642adf1f1806f85f0adef2b00ef8ccabc9b46f8420af19e16?s=96&d=blank&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/485147bd811c2a8642adf1f1806f85f0adef2b00ef8ccabc9b46f8420af19e16?s=96&d=blank&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/485147bd811c2a8642adf1f1806f85f0adef2b00ef8ccabc9b46f8420af19e16?s=96&d=blank&r=g","caption":"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC"},"description":"Fr. Edward McIlmail, LC, ordained to the priesthood in 2001, taught theology and Scripture at the then Mater Ecclesiae College in Rhode Island and is now a part-time chaplain at Overbrook Academy in Greenville, R.I. He holds degrees from Holy Apostles College and Seminary in Connecticut, the Regina Apostolorum Athenaeum in Rome, and Northwestern University in Illinois. He was an assistant publisher of the National Catholic Register and Faith & Family magazine and an editor of the Zenit news agency\u2019s English edition. He has written for\u00a0SpiritualDirection.com\u00a0and\u00a0ePriest. Fr. McIlmail also worked in spiritual retreats in the Northeast, New England, the Midwest, and the South\u00a0and assisted with mission work in Mexico. Born in Philadelphia, he worked in journalism and was active in the pro-life movement before entering the novitiate of the Legion of Christ in 1992. His contributions to RCSpirituality include responding to\u00a0Ask A Priest\u00a0questions and sharing his insights in our\u00a0Weekly Newsletter.","url":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/author\/emcilmail\/"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153110","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/362"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=153110"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/153110\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/145952"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=153110"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=153110"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=153110"},{"taxonomy":"post_folder","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.regnumchristi.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/post_folder?post=153110"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}