Joseph: God bless you. My dear brothers and sisters, I will once again try to show you the divine order and to give several friends an answer to a question they have pondered.

I will now tell you about a childless couple. They were both allowed to grow old, but neither of them had a deep faith, so life after death was anyway doubtful to them. But as they had heard all kinds of things on the subject from other people, and as there was a chance that life would continue, they had agreed on the following together: whoever died first would immediately have to give a sign. And, indeed, they had agreed upon several signs, because it might be that one of them could not manage a sign, so another would be needed. They both had enough time to talk about it, but they normally just made fun of it. Fundamentally, they did not believe that life goes on.

So, together they made an agreement. Whoever died first was to give the following sign: the closet door should open – and whoever remained behind must not forget to ensure it was always properly closed, because then they could be sure that it was an answer. It did not matter when the closet door should open but, if possible, very soon after death. Furthermore, they were to stop the clock; and should that not succeed either, there was a small box on top of the chest of drawers – they were to try to hide it somewhere. But the other would have to be able to find it again after a few days; this would mean that they had taken an interest in it and would find where this box had been hidden. Or something else: they could knock over a vase that was always in the same place. They both thought this would be a sufficient number of things – to do one of them would surely be possible; if life really did go on, then this should also be achievable.

They then decided on something else, and, indeed, this was the first thing they had discussed, it would actually be the most obvious thing to do: they should appear to the other in sleep, standing in front of the bed. And they agreed that if life were nice, pleasant, and full of surprises, if they were happy, then the person concerned should smile. But if life were not so, then they could make a serious face. This is how they arranged things, thinking that something of all this would certainly be possible to achieve.

The time eventually came, and the man was the first to die. Of course, he now experienced his first surprise. For as he opened his spiritual eyes, his parents were standing before him, they greeted him by name and said they were happy to see him there. But they did not have much time, they would soon have to return to work. They would surely have the opportunity to attend to him later on, but they could not now look after him. Well, he accepted this, but he was somewhat disappointed. He was anyway surprised that life really went on. His first thoughts naturally returned to the promise. He was no longer in his home – he did not recognize his surroundings at all, they were foreign to him. He had been led some distance away from his home and from the earth. This environment was naturally unfamiliar to him. It did, however, look like the world: it had gardens, trees, flowers; it had houses; animals and beings were wandering around – he actually had to ask himself, “Is it true, did I really die?” But he now knew: he had seen his parents, and they really had died, and what they said must be true.

He now wanted nothing other than to return to his former home and to keep his promise. But that was not possible – he was, after all, in a village. He thus experienced his first disappointment. Two unfamiliar beings approached him and told him that he now had a new home; his new home was in the next house – he would have to enter it. He looked at this house a little more closely. It really was not very beautiful, it actually looked like an institution or a schoolhouse or something like that; it was plain and modest. He then said, no, at the moment he could not fulfill their wish, but perhaps they could now grant him a wish – he had a promise to keep. The two beings, although they had long been aware of this whole arrangement, acted as if they knew nothing about it, “What kind of promise do you have to keep?” – “Well, I have to give evidence that I am alive. That is surely something important.” These two spirit beings then said, “It would certainly be very important to give evidence that you are alive. But there is no longer anything for you where you lived.” He replied that he absolutely had to return; they must grant him this favor, and afterward he would definitely cooperate with everything. But these two beings replied, “We say no, and besides, you will no longer find the way. There is really no point in trying. You cannot return, and you cannot keep your promise.”

He was not satisfied with this, saying that he had read and heard that, shortly after dying, human beings are able to give some kind of sign for those left behind as evidence that life goes on. And he had to keep his promise. “No,” he was told, “there is no longer anything for you on earth, and you will not give any evidence.” He wanted to know why he was not allowed to give any evidence, while others were permitted to do so. “Yes,” they said, “others may be allowed, but we will not permit you to do so.” – “Why?” he wanted to know. They then answered, “A person such as you” – and they said this very slowly – “such an ambitious, arrogant person as you, who only lived for himself, who was such a materialist, it can only be good for him when he no longer finds the way back.” He was rather taken aback. They continued, “You did not obey the laws of God at all, and your Christian faith was hardly worth mentioning. Now you must know that you are in the kingdom of Christ; but we do not consider you worthy, so you will remain outside for a while. And you cannot give us any commands – we will give them to you. You must first be taught.”

They then asked him about his spiritual possessions. Indignantly, he said, “What spiritual possessions? My wife now possesses everything I had, and my heirs will have it. I have nothing!” They replied, “Yes, exactly. Material things are of no value to us at all – they are all transient. You know, they have absolutely no worth and mean nothing to us. We would like to have other things from you: we would like you to have shown some understanding to your fellow human beings, some goodwill, some kindness. Have you ever actually been compassionate? Have you ever given something to someone, spoken kind words to them? How about these things?” Yes, certainly, he replied, he had spoken kind words. But they said they had absolutely no memory of these kind words.

They then showed him his earthly life, just as he had lived it. As if in a film, he was to see everything, and much else besides. He saw how an angel of God had stood next to him, and he was told, “That is your guardian spirit. He is sad and always was sad, because you did not listen to him much. He often admonished you. But you wanted to know nothing of it. You never cared about the welfare of others, always looking after yourself first. And now, now you must atone for this, and you cannot expect us to fulfill your wishes.” Well, he was rather disappointed. But he believed that he would eventually find an opportunity to escape. After all, where he lived everything was so similar to earth, and he reckoned that he could simply ask other beings which path led away from there; he would surely find the way to his home. That is what he believed; he absolutely had to keep his promise.

He never did. He could not keep his promise. And his wife, who had remained behind, constantly went from one object to another: to the closet, to see whether it had been opened; to the vase, to check whether it had been knocked over; even the box they had discussed had not been hidden somewhere; nor could she remember having seen her husband in a dream. Nothing that they had agreed upon was fulfilled. She was disappointed and had to say to herself, “If my husband were still alive, he would most certainly have made his presence known in some way. That is just how it is, life does not go on, and that is a shame. We lived a good life, but I do not need to worry about him anymore. That is the fate of every human being. Nor do I need to pray like others do. There is also no point for me to live in great longing. It is now clear that everything ends.” That was her conclusion.

And the man, he entered a spiritual institution, where there were spiritual teachers. He had done little for his Christian life; there was little to be seen in terms of higher virtues. He had been a real egotist and materialist. It was all about him! He had taken work away from others – others should have nothing. The nicest things were only good enough for him – the others could have the leftovers. He had simply been an egotist in the true sense of the word – everything just for him. And that is very bad. His soul was clouded, entirely dark. It had no opportunity to let even a single ray of light shine through. That is why he had to be taken to this institution, where he was to be thoroughly instructed, and he would have to work.

For some of the time he would be taught the fundamentals. He had to know about the laws and order of his new world, what he had to do. For the rest of the time he would be taken out into the woods together with others. There he had to work. And he was told beforehand, “The work you have to do here will be somewhat unusual for you. You must go into the woods with the others, and there is much to tidy up, to organize, to sort out. There are animals, and you will have to concern yourself with them; they, too, need to be organized.” Yes, essentially this work could have been rather interesting – but he had actually imagined something better, something more beautiful, because in life he had involved himself with other things; he had been very interested in art, and that would have appealed to him more. But now there was nothing of the sort. During earthly life he never had to work with his hands, and this was now required of him; it was now a matter of working hard.

You will perhaps find this somewhat surprising, that is, it surprises those friends who are unfamiliar with these spiritual laws and with the order of God as it is. This is precisely what hinders me somewhat from giving more detailed explanations, because I see that people are not able to understand it all. People simply imagine this other world in a way that is, I would almost like to say, implausible. Were I to say preposterous things people would be more inclined to believe it than when I explain something to you that has so much in common with your environment, with the world in which you live. People find it too commonplace, they do not want to believe it. What I must never neglect to say is that everything that exists around you human beings – what grows in the plant kingdom, for example, or what lives in the animal kingdom – everything, regardless of what it is, exists in an ethereal form in the spiritual realm. It first exists there before it grows and flourishes in this world. It first grows and flourishes in the world beyond – just not in this condensed matter as in your world, simply finer.

I would like to draw a comparison between a human being who is spiritually more highly developed and one who is somewhat, as you put it in your language, crude – that is a rather harsh way of expressing it. Well, here is a callous, rough person and alongside him a sensitive, noble person. Both are creatures of God, both of them. Both come from the kingdom of God, from the heavens. At one time, however, the creatures changed, and the heavens into which they enter changed for them. Human beings, who then came into existence, also have different levels of personal spiritual development; they have different qualities of mind, and their wills are not necessarily the same. In other words, one person can differ greatly from another. In this case: here the callous, rough person, and on the other side the refined, noble one. So, if you stand facing two such people, you yourselves will certainly have the feeling that the noble person really is something refined, much more refined than the other. With the concepts you have, you can perceive only this – he is simply more cultivated, his feelings are different, indeed, refined. But you lack other terms; you simply say he is a noble, refined person. With these words, however, what you are essentially bringing to expression is that this noble person bears an earthly body just like everyone else, but that even his body is more ethereal, more refined than the body of the one who is callous and rough – his body is much coarser, much rougher. This person is callous; this comes to expression in everything – in his movements, in his words. He is also not as sensitive. Rough weather does not affect him at all. He is so coarse.

And that, if I may explain it in this way, is precisely the difference. The rough, callous person is still so strongly bound to the coarsest matter. His soul is also of a low level of spiritual development. For it is the soul that gives the body the power; it is all connected. When the body dies it returns its coarseness to the soul, and the soul’s feelings are equally rough. The refined human being, however, has ennobled his inner being, his soul. His spiritual substance, his soul, has become lighter, spiritualized, closer to perfection. And this, in turn, is expressed or reflected in his body, in his conduct, in his movements, in his feelings, in his words. But he is also much more sensitive. Certain kinds of weather do not agree with such a person. He is sensitive. After all, he is not of the same coarse matter, he is not as closely related to, and united with, rough weather, with these forces that blow here and there. The refined person is not at one with the wildness of nature; he instead withdraws. He is more spiritualized, he is more refined, he is more sensitive, and his whole soul is attuned accordingly. It is a different situation here than with the rough, callous person. The difference is significant, and people ought to be able to recognize this.

And now to the spiritual beings in the world beyond: those who are still so bound to matter, to what is earthly, to what is worldly, they cannot do anything other than make the same choices and act as they did as human beings, and things are then hard for them. I have just contrasted a refined spiritual nature with a coarse one. Such a being enters the world beyond and expects the kingdom of heaven; they expect beauty and harmony. They immediately want to enjoy all the advantages enjoyed by a being who has actually earned it. And they cannot understand that in their world, where they have been placed, there are also spiritually coarse occupations to be performed. But beings who have a spiritual coarseness would never be able to take hold of ethereal matter and engage themselves with it. They lack the necessary understanding. They do not belong in a more refined world. That is why there are the various levels, why the world beyond is arranged in stages. And those who are so callous and lacking spiritual merit, whose souls are darkened, belong in this denser spiritual substance. And such beings must consequently do work of a corresponding nature. So they will, for example, be led into the woods. Here there is plenty of work to be done, hard work, and they become involved with the animals. All this happens under the direction of a divine being. This is how they must learn; they must gradually learn to change their feelings. But first their way of thinking must be changed; once the thinking has changed, the feelings become more refined. And this often takes a very long time.

This man now had to work hard in the woods, organizing and tidying up. These woods needed to be brought into a more well-tended condition. Here, too, there is a wild growth that must be cleared away, and even in the spiritual world, order is established everywhere. I will no doubt have the opportunity – perhaps at a later date – to return to this wild growth and to explain it in more detail, but I do not wish to do so today.

I would now like to return to the question of why this returnee was not allowed to keep his promise, whereas other spiritual beings – you have already been given many explanations on this – are able to visit human beings freely, to spend time among them, and to make their presence known to them if they want, if they succeed in doing so, if they have the possibility to do so. There are some – as I explained to you – who are allowed to leave, and there are some who are not. That is why no human being should think it possible for them to make a promise of this kind in the certainty that they will be able to keep it. As a human being, they cannot say this. It may be possible that they are given the opportunity to do something similar.

Well, the woman also had to leave this world, and her husband was allowed to greet her, but only briefly – just as his parents had greeted him. He had to tell her that he would perhaps have a chance to visit her on a later occasion, but he first had a great deal to do. He then had to leave her. And so, the woman also had her path to walk. She, too, was very surprised. She saw that life went on – although she had counted on the fact that there was no life after death. Her own reception had not been particularly loving either. This just as a side note.

I do not want to say anything more about her now; instead, I must tell you about another spiritual experience – about a woman. This woman was religious, devout, and she had a large number of children. She had to depart in the middle of life, leaving behind her children and her husband. Her pain in the spiritual world was severe as she realized she was separated from her loved ones. She did not know what would now happen to them. But she sensed and thought: “He has no other choice, he must look for a new wife.” That was her thought, and she hoped that he would find a good wife and, especially, a good mother for the children. She was welcomed in the spiritual world, and, as she was a self-sacrificing, good, and devout woman, the angels were also kind to her. She, too, had the desire to make sure everything was in order in her former home; she wanted to return to her family, thinking that she could guide her husband and support her children.

The angels took her into their care, for she was very unhappy and wept. When a mother has to leave her family with young children, this is certainly understandable. She was, so to speak, inconsolable. She asked for one thing only: to be able to return to her home; she believed that this would comfort her. But the angels said to her, “No. It would be of no help were you to go. They will not hear you, they will not see you, and the help you can offer would be ineffectual, because they will do as they please. It is better that you stay here and integrate into the new world.” It pained her greatly to hear this. But she was told, “You really do not need to be unhappy. Tell us: what should we do? How should we help and make ourselves known to your loved ones? We will go in your place, you will stay here. We will look after them as best we can. And we will make them feel as if you were there. But your task is more meaningful now in the world of God. Do not worry, we will bring you any news, and you shall be glad about it. We can do more than you, we have greater knowledge and will do our utmost. We will even look for a new wife for your husband and a mother for your children.”

This may have comforted her a little, but it was still necessary to lead her into a spiritual house of recovery, which was set in the middle of a glorious garden and bathed in sunlight on all sides. She was allowed to wander around this garden, and she was allowed to pick flowers. She did so, placing them in the room she had been given; she did so in memory of her relatives who remained behind. She was permitted to do so, she was allowed, she was meant to recover. And the angels made sure that she could sleep a lot. This was necessary, and not just one long sleep, as is usually the case – no, she was to sleep again and again. She was given a calming drink to facilitate this. And so, in time, she became more relaxed and free. The angels always came to her and explained any new developments. They even conversed with her very humorously, telling her how her relatives assumed that their mother was with them, and how they – the angels – really did try to do the same as she had done. So, she had her joy.

But the angelic world had something in mind for her. When it arranges things in such a way and does not permit something, saying, “It really does not make much sense for you to return,” then it has something entirely different in mind. It had seen how advanced the spiritual development of this mother soul was. She had been used to sacrificing herself for the children and the whole family. She had a heart full of goodness and love. If the world of God sees that it can utilize and put into service that which someone brings back, then it quickly sets to work and tries to make use of it. It also desires to profit from what a human being possessed in life, from the virtues they had; it desires to develop them even further in the divine world. And, in passing, I must add the following: it is the same with you – you lack the workforce, so to speak; you complain and lament that you have too few people working for you. Oh, we could also say that. We also have too few who really work for us. And that is why we make use of those who are something, who have the ability – just as you do.

That is how it was with this mother soul – she had brought something with her, and the world of God wanted to utilize it. She had entered a beautiful plane, a level of ascent where life was happy and joyful and harmonious. It was a colorful world, and, as you already know, every spiritual level of development where deceased human beings dwell, work, and progress upward also has a children’s paradise attached to it. For the children who die and return cannot enter the highest heavens simply because they died as children; rather, they will return to the place from where they set out. Thus, every spiritual level of development also has a children’s paradise attached to it.

It is of course much more pleasant to grow up and live in such a children’s world than to die in adulthood and then be taught, instructed, and purified in the levels of ascent and required to work hard. In the children’s paradises, this is naturally not the case. There the child is brought up with love. If these children’s paradises are in the lower levels of ascent, then one also has difficulties with the children. Indeed, it is the same with them as I explained earlier: the feelings of these children are not all the same either. Some are more sensitive, more delicate, and others are somewhat rougher, somewhat coarser, perhaps more callous, if you want to put it that way. Thus, these children will also be led into the world where they belong according to their spiritual development. But the advantage for them is that when they return to the world beyond as children, they will be raised by loving spirit brothers and sisters. These can be angelic beings, but they can also be – and this is what I would particularly like to emphasize now – ascending spirit brothers and sisters who have a willingness to be selfless and an ability to engage with children. For there is a big difference between raising one’s own child and having to raise and preside over other, unfamiliar children. In a children’s paradise they are not one’s own children – that is the difference. And that is why such a task is given only to spirit beings who possess these qualities of selflessness, love, understanding, and kindness. For in a children’s paradise no child should be favored in any way or treated preferentially. They must all be given the greatest attention. And this is primarily a matter of these spiritual teachers, or, let us say, the spiritual mothers, those who must take care of these children, really being able to show them true love. It is not possible to simply command any deceased human being from the same spiritual level of development, be that a woman or a man, to act as a teacher for the children. They may lack understanding for the children – they become impatient, they are not loving with them. The ability must be present in order for such beings, I could also call them spiritual teachers, to be sent to these children.

And these could also be children returning from this earthly world who belong to a lower spiritual level. They must be raised by these loving teachers, and through this they are taught. In the first instance, their feelings must be refined, and this can be achieved through this great selflessness and the understanding shown to each individual child. You can well believe that it is often very difficult with such children returning from this world. Some of them may have been spoiled, others neglected – they know no order, nothing. You should also reflect on this. When one enters the world beyond, one encounters a world of order. If children were neglected in life – they may be wild and disobedient, so to speak – then they must be educated with love, but occasionally also with strictness.

So, such kind souls are needed, be they male or female – both are called upon if they have the necessary qualities. First they will be trained. They will be taught by higher spirit beings on how to behave, how they must act toward these children. They cannot simply be dropped into it and told, “Now look after these children.” Here, too, there is order; there will first be a course of instruction. Only then will these helpful souls be sent to a children’s paradise, and there they will have to devote themselves entirely to the children. They must be so loving and so selfless toward them, as if they were their own human or spiritual children. It is not so easy, dear friends. That is why the spirit world of God intervenes when it recognizes that a soul with such abilities has returned. It wants to utilize them, it wants to profit from them. It is not simply the case that these brothers and sisters are just left to work in their surroundings, with the result that only a few benefit from their goodness. When necessary, each individual is led to their place – and that is why it is so important for us: every returning human being is carefully assessed and judged by the angelic world. Some of them can be expected to achieve something – they are sent to a special educational institution so that they can further enrich themselves spiritually in order to assist in God’s plan of creation. Through their work, through their commitment, they will acquire the greatest merits for themselves; indeed, they can thereby climb higher by their own efforts, and they help others.

And then, during the divine festivals in the heavenly world, when heavenly services are celebrated and, time and again, these spiritual beings are told about the great devotion, about the love, about the selflessness that Christ expressed, and that one should emulate him, then one can experience it, then it happens: whoever has achieved the greatest yield in their spiritual work – wherever that may be, simply where they are needed, where they are useful and where this has resulted in a yield – they are summoned by the high spirit world. They are rewarded. It can even be that they, according to the level of spiritual development they are on, end up very close to the house, or one of the houses, of the King – that they are invited to go to him, that they are called by name or given a new name, and that the King is told that they are one of those who are very productive and active in God’s plan of creation. Such things happen, such things do happen! But it is not commonplace; it is not something that could be said to happen continuously. Oh no, human beings must become much more virtuous for that.

I would now like to speak about this spiritual mother: she was first instructed, and she was then to enter a children’s paradise. There she had the opportunity to love and educate these children. She herself was on an elevated level, and she had to descend. That is, she had the right to enter and work in a children’s paradise on her own spiritual level, but she was asked whether it would not be possible for her to descend further and to carry out her activity there. She agreed to this, and she was thereby able to increase her own merits.

Thus, it is not always so easy for a spiritual being. Those of you who have children can understand that they, even if they are sweet-natured and likable, can sometimes be rather disobedient and that they must be guided to obedience and educated. They are also told about the heavenly world, about heaven; one also wishes to reveal this world to them to some extent. For the children’s paradise in which they live is limited. You should not, however, imagine that they perhaps have just a house or a garden. No, these children are permitted, for as long as they do not belong in a spiritual school, to enter the woods with their spiritual mothers. Woods also exist in the world of God, just as they do with you. And there is so much to experience in them, so many glorious things.

But order must also reign in these woods, among the animals as well. It is possible that animals from one level trespass into another – that they cross the boundaries during an unguarded moment. And this is what I hinted at earlier: the organizing, the sorting out, the ordering – this is also necessary. To be sure, one has the possibility to set fixed boundaries. This is done in various spheres, in others it is not – the animals are left among themselves, but they will then be separated again; but this also has a meaning. So, the children are allowed to enter these woods, and there they make all kinds of discoveries. But it is not only the woods that one enters with the children, it is the meadows and the fields, the pastures – one goes everywhere with these children, and there they are shown spiritual life, and they become familiar with it.

So, in time, this becomes entirely natural to these children. They are hardly able to remember that they once lived in a condensed, in a human world. This is so quickly forgotten by these little children. Very soon they also forget their parents or the surroundings in which they lived. This is also something that is noticeable when children who are not yet of school age come back to us: they also have a great longing at first, a homesickness, they also want to go back; they, too, must be comforted, they must also be helped. Even very young children notice this change. You should not suppose that they do not sense this, because it is the spirit that sees somewhat further, somewhat clearer – even if the spirit is not yet so trained and does not yet have the ability of assimilation, it still senses the changed atmosphere; it also senses that it is in a different environment. And so, one must help these young children to become familiar with it.

When spirit brothers and sisters, or, let us say, deceased human beings, are given such a beautiful task and are able to devote themselves to these children, they thereby refine their own feelings. Indeed, you yourselves can make this observation: you try to speak much more carefully and lovingly with children. Yes, a particular individual can become completely different around a child; they know that the child lacks the understanding, that they do not have the concepts of an adult. They will be somewhat more loving, more understanding with them. When a spiritual being in the spiritual realm constantly engages with children and has to look after them, they refine their own feelings in the process. They will no longer become agitated, perhaps I may use this word, or find themselves in a hectic hustle and bustle. No, the opportunity no longer exists, it is cleared away; they must take their time.

One also tries to create all kinds of novelties and surprises for the children. One wishes to entertain them, because their mind must become inspired and stimulated. One engages with the children, one must talk with them, because, after all, the little ones must learn to speak. These paradises are separated according to language. The spirit mothers speak the relevant language with the children. Only when these children are a little older and have the necessary ability are they able to grow up with two or three languages simultaneously. They learn quickly, because they also come into contact with spirit brothers and sisters in their world, with whom they can speak these languages. You always imagine that all spirit beings have white skin like you. Oh no, that is not the case. All the races found in this world also exist in spirit. Everyone speaks their own language exactly as they spoke it while in this world. But they must also come together with other spirit beings and communicate with them. So, a child also finds their children’s paradise, where members of the same race, the same nation, live together and where they speak the same language with their spiritual mothers and fathers. One also finds adults of the same nation interacting and engaging with one another.

If one takes an interest in learning other languages in the spiritual world, eventually one can open doors into another level in order to engage with the beings there. I can only tell you that the world beyond is such an interesting world, it is so diverse, so enlightening; no one who returns will be bored by it if they are just a little advanced in spirit. If they are just a little willing to collaborate, to accomplish something in the great creation of God, then life will become wonderful for them. It may well be somewhat hard in the beginning, because they will certainly have things to put right and to resolve. It is an advantage for every deceased human being if they have certain spiritual insights. They no longer need to be taught about everything. And that alone is a great step forward. For they know about the necessity of divine laws, of Christian laws and their order, they know what these laws demand and everything that belongs in this order. They will make more of an effort than if everything were unfamiliar to them. They have greater understanding; they do not need to first change their thinking and come to terms with this new reality, as would be the case if they were prejudiced by something during earthly life and if they do not manage to forget it in the spiritual world – which would only be to their detriment.

Spiritual language and spiritual teaching are something wonderful and can already mean much to a human being in this world. Human beings have the possibility to prepare themselves in this world for their time in the beyond – already here, they can make their preparations. Those who did not achieve what they wished for on earth can see to it that they achieve it in the world beyond. And this is certainly possible. Human beings who are rejected or who perhaps remain unvalued here, but who are good in heart and soul, have for the most part an advantage in the world beyond. It is not the case that those human beings who behave as if they own the place – to express it in your language – are also able to do so in the world beyond. No, no, that is not the case. I explained this to you using the example of the married couple: they lived a comfortable life, knew no hardship, but their thinking was materialistic and they were egotists. Here, in this world, they had status among people, but in the spiritual world things were quite different. Indeed, there is a big difference between this world and that world. Thus, as a human being, you should try to become familiar with that which is invisible. You should strengthen yourselves in your faith in that world – you will one day be glad for it. And that is what I wanted to tell you.

Returning briefly to this mother soul: during her earthly life she had been a good mother to her children, and she was the same to the children in the world of God.

I am not sure if I am saying too much now – we agreed with our spirit sister [Lene], we made visits to these various paradises. Perhaps she will tell you something about this when you are together. I accompanied her, we experienced beautiful things together, and I would like to hope – it is not up to me – that she will also tell you what she experienced.

Well, dear brothers and sisters, we, too, have our preparations [for the upcoming Pentecost festival] – that is, they have actually been made long ago. But we are still making arrangements, and we are very close to you. It should suffice for you to know this.

I would like to leave you with the blessing of God. May you all be protected and kept safe. May all who are sick recover in body and soul. God bless you.

Lecture by spirit-teacher Joseph, received in German through the medium Beatrice Brunner at the Academy of Music in Zurich, 6 June 1973