Dont confuse souls with ghosts--Catholic priests
By Beverly T. Natividad
Inquirer.net
Last updated 06:42pm (Mla time) 11/01/2007
MANILA, Philippines -- The Catholic Church is calling on the
faithful to offer sincere prayers for the souls of their departed
relatives on All Souls Day (November 2), instead of scaring
themselves with the usual ghost stories.
Noting that Filipinos have become fond of sharing ghost stories and
even trying to communicate with the dead during All Souls Day,
leaders of the Catholic Church reminded the flock on Thursday that
souls in purgatory need prayers, not the livings growing curiosity
for the occult.
According to Msgr. Pedro Quitorio, spokesman of the Catholic
Bishops Conference of the Philippines (CBCP), belief in ghosts and
paranormal activities are not Catholic beliefs since the faith
teaches that souls are kept intact in purgatory after death.
The Catholic doctrine teaches that purgatory is the spiritual place
where the soul is purged of all sins and unsettled issues before it
goes to heaven and reunites with God.
Quitorio reminded Catholics that ghost stories are focused on
entities other than their dearly departed and it would be against
their faith to confuse the souls of their loved ones with
ghosts.
Ghost stories, which are usually about creatures who cannot cross
over, are either products of psychological projections or products
of evil, according to Quitorio.
This is why the Catholic Church has exorcism rites to free a person
of evil possession by Satan himself, Quitorio explained.
A soul cannot do that [scaring the living or taking control over
another persons soul]. It has no capability of doing that. In
fact, our souls direction is to be with God in heaven. They dont
meddle anymore in our affairs, said Quitorio.
These souls leave these worlds affairs for a higher purpose that
is God, said Quitorio.