Once again Fr John Flader presents us with an extremely easy to read but deeply thought-provoking book, which will appeal to people of faith and also to many others who have either suspended their faith practice, or who may never have given faith much thought.
The book follows on from his two excellent previous books, Dying to Live—Reflections on Life After Death and The Final Exam—Preparing for the Judgment. It does so by bringing together two important aspects of those books.
The first book shows the reader that there is indeed life after death, using a variety of compelling arguments.
Among them are quotes from some of the thousands of documented near-death experiences of people with and without faith who have been to “the other side,” and have been distraught at having to leave the sheer joy of being in the presence of their creator and having to return to earth.
Their experiences fundamentally transformed their lives, for the better, as they changed the way they related to their fellow human beings and readjusted their priorities.
The second book deals with how we should lead a moral life and pay attention to our conscience, striving to grow in the virtues. It discusses all the important moral issues, based not on the Bible but on the natural law.
From Time to Eternity brings the two earlier books into sharp focus by helping the reader keep the goal of eternal life in mind on a daily basis.
It recalls the key point made in Dying to Live, that there is life after death, as well as some of the obstacles pointed out in The Final Exam that could divert us from reaching our ultimate goal, eternal life with God.
The book is easy to read because Fr Flader has logically used everyday examples with which readers will readily identify, and it explains both the pitfalls and the suggested solutions to keep us on track.
It begins with a discussion of the reality of the destination and the thoughts of those who have returned from their near-death experiences. Of course, there are two possible destinations, heaven and hell, and I think even people of little faith would find these first chapters extremely thought-provoking.
Having established the most desirable destination, the book then sets out how we might best achieve this goal, with several chapters on what we could do to improve our chances of reaching heaven and on the obstacles along the way.
I found the chapter on “The God Who Awaits Us” a particularly wonderful one, especially the section entitled “God is Love,” a strong and immensely comforting reminder to all of us of God’s infinite love.
The final chapter compares our efforts to live a good life with those of a sportsperson who wants to excel, showing the many parallels between the sporting life and the spiritual life and encouraging us to adopt a sporting spirit in our spiritual life.
From Time to Eternity is for all people, those with religious beliefs and those with few or none, because eternity is a reality for everyone.
This book will assist many to keep their ultimate destination in mind as they go about their daily life. I highly recommend it.