This comforting collection of prayers, blessings, Franciscan wisdom, and heartwarming photos is the perfect gift for anyone who is grieving the loss of a beloved cat. Every page is filled with reassurance that we will see our feline friends in heaven. The death of a beloved animal friend can be one of the most difficult events we face, often surprising us at the depth of the grief and emotion we feel. It can be very comforting to know that the animals we love so much are safe with God, who created and loves them. Throughout his many years as a Franciscan friar, Jack Wintz came to know—the Bible gives us many clues that we will be with our pets in heaven for eternity! St. Francis himself shared a close relationship with animals, preaching to the birds, releasing Brother Rabbit from a trip, or letting Sister Raven awaken him for early morning prayer. Franciscan spirituality tells us that all creatures form one family of creation, and God’s plan of salvation includes the whole created world. This new, expanded edition of the original bestseller Sections of the book With it reassuring message of God’s eternal love and care for all creation, I Will See You in Heaven helps us to know that we are not alone in our grief, and that our “goodbye” is not forever.
A beautiful Biblically based book about God’s love for the animals and how they will indeed be in heaven.
So nice to see this kind of book written from a Christian perspective, using sound scripture to show us God’s plan of redemption not only for believers, but also the animals. How they indeed have souls and praise their Creator.
I also liked the inclusion of St. Francis’s teachings and life.
This cat lovers’ edition is interspersed with photos and recollections of specific cats from their guardians. I believe there is a dog lovers’ edition available.
I've come to this book at a strange time in my life... My wife and I purchased this book after we had to put down one of our cats, hoping that we might find some comfort in it. We never got around to reading it. Less than two years later, we had to put down another cat, one we had a much stronger bond with. So now I'm getting around to reading this book.
Unfortunately, I'm reading this book at a time when I'm not sure what I believe about God or heaven or any form of afterlife. But I still gave it a chance to see if I could still find some comfort in its pages. The first few pages were difficult, not just because of the memories it brought back of my cats, but because of thoughts and feelings about death and a possible afterlife that I still needed to process and work through. After all that, things got easier.
The bottom line is, yes, I found some comfort. Maybe not as much as some other people may find, but I did. This book helped me see that the authors of the Hebrew Bible believed that all creation is good in God's eyes, including the animals. Many people have a very human-centric view of religion, and this book helps to remind us that all creation glorifies God. At least it does in the view of the Bible's authors.
The book also provides a fascinating look at St. Francis of Assisi, a figure I knew very little about (I was not raised in the Roman Catholic tradition). If I take anything from this book, it's an interest in this monk and a desire to learn more about him. If the legends are true, he embodied a love for man and all of creation that gives me hope for Christianity and humanity.
Despite all my praise, I have rated this book 3 stars to reflect where I personally stand in my relationship with Christianity, but it's certainly not without its merits. Friar Wintz has convinced me that if there's an afterlife, I will see my Bean and my Sunny again.
Written by a Franciscan Friar, this gentle book delivers the message that God loves all creatures and will ensure our beloved pets have a place with us in Heaven. Friar Jack backs up his theories by sharing elements from the life of St. Francis, plus specific Bible verses. Those, especially, are enlightening.
I’ve always held my own beliefs about pets and Heaven, and it was encouraging to see those beliefs backed-up with scripture. If you’ve ever lost a pet, this book will touch your soul and offer comfort in knowing you’ll see them again.
I would give this book more stars if I could! It was written by Friar Jack Wintz, a Franciscan Friar, and includes several stories about St. Francis of Assisi and his close relationships with animals, as well as several songs lyrics. It addresses something that I have always wondered and thought about....will I see my much loved dogs and cats in heaven? "We have a deep desire to know if we will see our pets again, and all the other lovely creatures alongside whom we now inhabit this planet.What will become of them after they die?" Friar Jack makes some excellent points about our pets being in heaven with us. After all, he had Noah take 2 of each of the animals on the ark with him. He includes other Biblical examples, and even quotes children when they say what happens to their pet(s) when they die. Of coarse, the book made me cry, because I love my own cat so much, and have kept ashes of some of my other pets. They are, and have been, friends to me, and a huge part of my life. Friar Jack's final quote, "I have come to believe, "Yes, with heartfelt thanks to God's saving love for the whole family of creation, I will see my cat in heaven!".
I have always believed that our beloved pets will be in heaven when we get there… I will hold onto this book a little longer as a reminder that our pets are part of our family and will be waiting for us at heaven’s gates.
Even now, if we are trying to live our lives out of love for God, and according to God‘s plan, we would be enjoying a heaven like state, would we not? – Or at least a foretaste of the heaven still to come?
As children of God, why wouldn’t He, Creator of all things, want to bring all of creation to live in the heavens?
When I saw this online, I thought it would be a cute read. I knew it only had 100 pages but it appeared to be the size of a regular book. It's about half the size and some pages were blank. It is also over 11.00. Too pricey in my opinion. I actually read this in 25 minutes while at the Dr. Also, it really wasn't that interesting to me.
Don't let the treacly title fool you, this is book is no lightweight. Richard Rohr speaks of it approvingly and that, but itself, is endorsement enough. While I suppose it was written to console those grieving the loss of a cat, the book is really for anyone interested in the universalist implications of the gospel.
I recently lost my beloved cat, Oliver. While sorting through some books, I came across this book that I had purchased a while back. So, it was time to read it. There was so much comfort in these pages! I recommend this book to anyone who loses a beloved fur baby. Even though this one is slanted towards cats, it works for any beloved pet/companion. There is also a separate volume for dogs.
Fun simple book written by Father Jack. if you buy the book new, a part of the proceeds will fund Scratching Post, a no-kill shelter in the inner-city of Cincinnati, Ohio. I found my copy in a thrift store in Danville, CA.
This review originally appeared in the International Cemetery, Cremation & Funeral Magazine (www.iccfa.com)
The first best-selling volume in the I WILL SEE YOU IN HEAVEN series, by Franciscan friar Jack Wintz, was dedicated to dog owners. Since the most popular pet in America is the cat, a feline edition was a no-brainer.
As you might expect from the author, both volumes have a fairly Catholic slant, with prayers for animals in sickness or at the point of death. However, there is no doctrine or difficult theology. The Bible gives us many clues that we will be with our pets in heaven for eternity, Wintz assures the reader. Even if animals lack a soul, they are loved by us, and this gets them into heaven. Although this is a hot point of contention among church scholars, none of that heat leaks through here.
The book is soothing and calming, focused mainly on comforting anecdotes about cats and what they have meant to their owners. Slim and printed in a large accessible font, it is designed for gift-giving. Any Christian cat owner would find this book comforting after the loss of a beloved feline.
After losing my best friend, Sylvester, about a week-and-a-half ago, I began reading many of my cat books that I had put off seeing that many of them end up with the passing of beloved feline. This book was the first one I dived into.
The book is short, but to the point, and provides numerous examples of where Scripture clearly proves God also loves the animals of this world and they will be a part of the new Heaven and new earth.
Friar Jack Wintz's book is a tremendous blessing for anyone who has lost a beloved cat or dog. It truly has been a blessing for me. Someday, I will see my buddy, Sylvester, in Heaven!
I enjoyed this book where biblical quotes are used along with stories to make the point that,yes,we very well may see our pets in Heaven.God cares about all his creations.