The same help, here as well as there

“Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4: 12). The most recent divine service for the departed on 5 July 2020 in Zurich-Seebach in Switzerland was based on this Bible text.

The biblical context is as follows: Peter had healed a man who was paralysed from birth on. And he had explained to an amazed crowd that this was not due to his own power, but that salvation was only possible through faith in Jesus Christ.

“The mission of the apostolate today is the same as what Peter did then,” Chief Apostle Jean-Luc Schneider said. The Apostles are to proclaim: “Jesus Christ is the Messiah, only He can grant salvation, and He will come again to those who believe in the resurrection of the dead.”

“There is surely also great spiritual distress and great pain in the beyond. Jesus Christ can alleviate this pain in those who believe in Him,” he said and mentioned seven examples.

• Fear of punishment: “If I had to come before God now to be judged—good versus bad—what have I done in my life?”
  However: “Those who believe in Jesus Christ know the nature of God. He is a God of love, and He is a God of grace.”
• Disappointment:“Many think that when they die and have led a good life they will enter paradise. But then they find themselves somewhere completely different, not with God.” There are people for whom life has become so impossible that they take their own life. But then they realise that things haven’t changed. “Death is not deliverance. The resurrection is the final deliverance. Believe in Jesus Christ and follow Him, then you will be delivered from suffering forever.”
• Reproaches: “When you look at the fate of some people you realise that their life was anything but beautiful—it was nothing but misfortune, suffering, hardship, illness, and worries. You could really run into a problem with God.” However: “That is why Jesus Christ came: to liberate mankind once and for all from the dominion of evil. Then you will receive so much that you will no longer even think about all that you experienced on earth: you will enter God’s glory.”
• Feeling unloved: “Some souls enter the beyond in great spiritual distress. They have never felt love.” However: “Jesus Christ can heal even this. He can tell them: ‘I love you, you mean so much to Me that I gave My life for you, for you personally.”
• Remorse: “There are people in the beyond who are aware that they have done wrong. They have caused a great deal of suffering and have hurt many. And they have no possibility of making amends.” However: “The fact that they themselves can receive grace and can trust in the love of Jesus Christ is something wonderful for a remorseful person. They know: He can make people happy in spite of my wrong-doing and my mistakes.”
• Separation: “A pain we all know and can relate to is the pain of separation. Even here Jesus Christ can comfort and uplift us. He gives us so much peace with His presence, His grace, and His blessing that the soul has peace in spite of everything. And He creates hope: the separation is only for a little while.”
• Ignorance: “There are so many people, probably the majority of humankind, who have never heard of Jesus Christ. This is something that really preoccupies me. That is why we are convinced that people in the beyond also have the possibility to get to know Jesus Christ, are able to come to Him, and can receive salvation from Him.”

“The rule is: there is no salvation outside of Christ,” Chief Apostle Schneider confirmed. “Salvation cannot only be imparted on earth, but also in the beyond, also during the thousand-year kingdom of peace. This is our faith in His plan of salvation.”