said the Spirit of God, "your reward is gone, you have already anticipated it in life."
But since this soul still believed that her wrong was being done, the Spirit of God explained further:
"You had an acquaintance whom you never liked to suffer because, as you said, she was far too good with her fellow men, and her goodness was only foolishness. This friend will come near you."
The angels of God had already arranged for this meeting. But this acquaintance, named Helga, came not alone, but arm in arm with one of her former servants. These two were dressed so brightly and lightly, and they looked so distinguished that one could take them for sisters. Here the Spirit of God said:
"This is she, who has made her goodness seem foolish."
And to the servant with whom she had come arm in arm, said the angel of God:
"Now you will see your former mistress again, but you will be better off with your new employer, with whom you are here now."
The homecomer, who had been so domineering and selfish in life, still looked confused at her former servant and her acquaintance. How beautiful she looked! Now Doris recognized that there is a retribution in the heavenly world for life on earth.
Then the angel told her clearly:
"You also remember your former servant Anna, whom you chased out of your house because she became ill. But you accused her of being too lazy to work. Your friend Helga had taken her in out of pity, and the two of them got along well all their lives. Together they had done good works, and servant Anna had a more pleasant better life as a result."
Now the wretched Doris saw how those in the heavenly world had been rewarded, and she saw herself. She saw that there was no point in rebelling any longer, but she wanted to try it differently. She believed that she could still claim her servant who had served with her until her death. She should now help and guide her further.
At first the spirits of God did not agree, for they had already prepared the way that this domineering being was to go. But then it was the servant Karin who begged and pleaded for her former mistress:
"Let me at least be with her for a while. I will try to teach her something of heavenly bliss and give her something of what she had never known in life, namely love, understanding, forbearance, peace and goodness.
Upon this request, the spirits of heaven gave permission to stand by the poor soul and guide her. But these high spirits knew in advance that this would not change for the better, for the lust for power cannot so easily be discarded. But the good servant's wish was fulfilled, but it happened as these saints of heaven had foreseen. This burdened soul could not give up her lust for power, she even demanded that her former servant give her beautiful garments to her, for she was not willing to go around in her poor worn out clothes any longer. She also demanded to be led out of this humble environment of affliction. Her former servant Karin had to enlighten her and tell her
"Only gradually will you be able to escape from this confined world. You will first have to change your thinking and your whole being before you can come out of your distress.
But Doris still believed she could rule over her former servant and be entitled to her clothes. But the good soul didn't agree and said:
"The angels of God have given me this," and "It is my property. I cannot give it to you."
The former mistress, however, became more and more obtrusive and dissatisfied with her very changed existence, which she had to endure. When her former servant saw that she could not do anything about her, she left the incorrigible. Then her great patience and understanding was no longer sufficient, and she recognized what the angels had foreseen, that this soul could only reach a different way of thinking through pain and privation. And so she went back to her exalted brothers and sisters and explained to them
"With the best will in the world I am not able to guide her, but I will go to her from time to time, comforting her and drawing her attention to the obedience that she must render in the heavenly world.
The angels agreed with her. Now this domineering soul had to take the path of tribulation prescribed by them. She had to be humiliated by suffering and pain until she came to her senses. So she was led into the tribulation, into a place of solitude. There she was completely abandoned, nobody was in her immediate surroundings. She had no idea where she was and could never know, for it was so dark there and she felt only an abyss around her.
Here she should be humiliated in her spiritual body.
An angel of God had led her into this abandonment and had still taken the shoes off her feet, and when she complained about it, he said to her
"In human life you have taken so much from others and done so much suffering and had hardly rewarded others for their services. "You have taken from them in abundance, and now I am taking your shoes."
Where she was standing, the spiritual ground was covered with sharp splinters, so that her feet hurt when she walked back and forth in her limited surroundings. The angel of God told her..:
"Now we will give you ample time to think. You will not be liberated until you have become more humble and humble and realize that you have made many mistakes in life and that your servant has rightly received her heavenly reward.
Thus this soul remained banished on this level of torment, and her former servant was not allowed to bring her comfort for the time being. Thus she was given the opportunity to reflect on the life she had lived and to recognize the power of God.
Now also for her the time came that she became clear and agreed to work like her servant had worked and that she would allow herself to be humiliated like them, if only she would be freed from this frightening environment.
Then after a long time of suffering and distress, the angel of God went to her again and brought her back her shoes. But her robe had not yet changed. The angel spoke to her, now she had to prove that she was really willing to do what she had promised. Then he led the burdened soul to other burdened brothers and sisters and she had to live with them and work hard with them. She was also forbidden to talk to others about who she had been in her last life. If she would inform the others of this, they would be influenced and she herself would have to be put back into loneliness. So she, like everyone else, had to do the work assigned to her. It was suggested to her that in the spiritual life, in the hereafter, there was no such prestige of the person, and she, like the others, would have to pay off the debt as equal.
Now she obeyed. She did not talk about her earthly life and did her work, even though it was difficult for her. When she had passed this test she was led away by the Spirit of God and taken up a step further where she found relief. Here again she was not to speak about her life on earth but to devote herself completely to the spiritual life.
Then the angel revealed to her:
"If you fulfill what we tell you and prove yourself obedient, you will be forgiven another part of your guilt. But you still have a large portion left to make amends which cannot be obtained in eternity. You must be born again into a new life on earth and prove anew as a human being that you can do better.
And the angel of God said to her:
"You will only make it better if you are truly filled with the desire to do only the good. First you must practice a task that awaits you in human life, here in the hereafter. You must practice the virtues, and you must cultivate love and understanding.
Your inner being should be filled with the fact that your vices in human life will not be able to break through again. "
That's how it was clearly set apart from her:
"You can pay off a part of your guilt here in the spiritual world, another part will be forgiven you out of God's goodness if you are obedient, and the last part you must make good in a future human life. And so now this soul thought about all this and had many questions. But it also reproached all those who proclaimed Christian doctrine but knew nothing of these truths.
Thus, in the spiritual realm, forbearance and humiliation, which one has patiently endured, are rewarded.