Thursday, November 20, 2008

The Holy Man.

A holy man was having a conversation with God one day and said, ' God , I would like to know what Heaven and Hell are like.'

God led the holy man to two doors.

He opened one of the doors and the holy man looked in.

In the middle of the room was a large round table. In the middle of the table was a large pot of stew, which smelled delicious and made the holy man's mouth water.

The people sitting around the table were thin and sickly. They appeared to be famished.

They were holding spoons with very long handles, that were strapped to their arms and each found it possible to reach into the pot of stew and take a spoonful.

But because the handle was longer than their arms, they could not get the spoons back into their mouths.

The holy man shuddered at the sight of their misery and suffering.

God said, 'You have seen Hell.'

They went to the next room and opened the door. It was exactly the same as the first one.

There was the large round table with the large pot of stew which made the holy man's mouth water.

The people were equipped with the same long-handled spoons, but here the people were well nourished and plump, laughing and talking. The holy man said, 'I don't understand.'

It is simple,' said God . 'It requires but one skill.

You see they have learned to feed each other, while the greedy think only of themselves.'

Remember that I will always share my spoon with you.

6 comments:

Michele said...

excellent!!

A Bit of the Blarney said...

A truly beautiful analogy! This is how we are to live. Helping one another! Thank you! Cathy

Gina said...

Brilliant, brilliant post!
I had to have a chuckle, imagining the long spoons attached to their arms, and trying to feed themselves.
Haha!
Great message in there too.

Athanasis Contra Mundum said...

What a great story! That's a great example of the self-imposed misery caused by not looking outside of one's self.

Bonita said...

What a beautiful story and reminder to think of others, not just ourselves.

Anonymous said...

I eckon I heard this one about 25 years ago, but it's always been a potent image of both Heaven and Hell for me.

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Please pray for a cure for Type One Diabetes
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