The French poet Lamartine wrote: “One being is missing and every place feels empty”. Those words have a profound echo for those who experience absence, silence, the void left by someone they loved. Is it really possible to achieve the…
What should we choose for funerals, a Mass or just a blessing? Less than half of the French wish to have a religious service for their own obsequies. Still, when a loved-one dies, the question of choosing between a Mass…
Mankind has been fascinated with the idea of communicating with the dead since the dawn of time. From shamanic practices to ancient societies through spiritualism sessions in the 19th century or recent apps imitating the voice of the deceased, this…
Does love end at death, or can it continue beyond physical separation?How can we go on living after the loss of a loved one? Can we still love the person with whom we shared daily life, intimacy and flesh for…
One of the lyrics of a song by Michel Berger goes like this: “Je m’en irai courir dans le paradis blanc, loin des regards de haine et des combats de sang” [I will go run across the white paradise, far…
Do we have a mutual connection in good as well as in evil? Do our actions influence only our own lives, or do they also affect the lives of others, including the dead?
Can we remain impacted by our ancestors’ sins? The subject of whether the consequences of sin are transmitted from one generation to the next raises a number of questions. Are we responsible, one way or another, of the actions of…
Who never wondered: "What's the use?" when faced to the ordeals of daily life? Georges Bernanos wrote: "The demon of our heart is called 'What's the use'." Why then choosing to be hopeful when everything falls apart? Father Charles Lenoir, chaplain at the shrine Notre-Dame de Montligeon, shares his insights on the virtue of hopefulness which changes our relationship to the future.
On the threshold of death, or when we’re thinking about death, certain things can weigh heavily on us. For example, a forgiveness not given or a bad deed, an infidelity, a hurtful phrase, a refusal to love, etc. Is it…
Cremation is getting more and more popular in France. Over 40% of the dead are now cremated. This funeral practice raises questions, particularly in the French culture where burial is the habit. How does the Church regard cremation? Don Axel…