A high drama at the gates of Heaven

                                  A high drama at the gates of Heaven

           John and Karthick, in their 20’s,  were great friends and class mates in BA final year in Hindusthan University. Their thoughts were one on many issues except religion;  each held to his own belief adamantly.  John was a Christian, a believing Christian with full faith and trust in his Lord Jesus Christ while Karthick was a staunch Hindu.

           They went out always together.During their usual motor bike ride, Karthick sitting on the pillion,  would keep  cautioning  John to mind the traffic signal and the pedestrians who had the nasty habit of jay walking. John listened to this advice, but he handled the machine as he wished and sometime accelerated  rashly as well.

          On a certain day, the road traffic was  thick with vehicles of all varieties. Some ten minutes into the journey, Karthick from behind shouted, “There, there, be CAREFUL, he is a small …. school… “  Even before  Karthick conveyed his instructions  John had crashed into a heavy vehicle coming opposite him. “Ah !” John yelled as his own bike fell  right on his head. Feeling dizzy, he shouted , “ Karthick, jump,.jump . jump off the bike ….”  Then he went silent and Karthick too found himself thrown  off to the extreme side of the road – dead.

        Seeing blood spots on the metalled road, a large crowd gathered to help out the two youngsters. But their souls had already left  the world and their bodies lay still on the ground. Karthick and John  saw the sympathetic bunch of people  down below but  couldn’t talk to them.

        “Welcome,” John heard a greeting from two strange beings dressed in white. “Hey, you are angels, aren’t you?” John observed,  which was duly acknowledged by the heavenly beings. Soon the  hosts picked him up in their arms saying,  “No Sir, you  aren’t allowed to walk.  We are here to carry you to the gates of Heaven.”

         “What?  What? Am I in the next world or what…….?”
         “Of course, you are.  You had died in a motor bike accident, remember?”
         “Yes, I was trying to avoid a small school boy and then… then… I am here. Where is Karthick?” John enquired.
         “Don’t worry, he is following us on foot.”
        “Walking?  Why aren’t you carrying him Mr. Angel?
        “No way, Sir. He is not entitled to that privilege.”
       
        By now, Karthick had caught up with the small  squad. “Where are we going?” he demanded of the angels.

        “To the junction point over there.” The senior angel showed a finger at a grand looking cross road point which was well lit with myriad lamps throwing shafts of light beams all round. To a query from Karthick as to why he was not being  ferried by the white men like his friend, the junior angel replied, “You don’t belong to us, man. You are not a ‘saved soul’!”

          Within minutes the party had arrived at the beautiful junction point where John was transferred  to another pair of angels headed on the road to the gates of Heaven. Then there  came in view a tough looking angel, who was directing the traffic of dead human beings. He signalled to  Karthick , “ Hey you over there, that way, fellow, to your right, the Way to hell. The other road is not for you.  OK?”

          “What?” Karthick  hollered.  “Am I going to hell? Why?”
          The traffic cop answered, “Sure.  You have worked for it all your life while on the Earth?”
          “But I have been a good young man, Sir.  I have very few crimes and charges against me. Don’t I deserve to go to Heaven along with John?”

          “No, dear fellow.  In order to walk into Heaven, you have to be a hundred percent holy man, like John  Understand?.

           “But, John hadn’t been all that blameless at all.  He used to be naughty at times;  often he too teased the girls in the class.  Then why have you selected him to go to Heaven?”

          “He repented and sought forgiveness every time for all his misdoings. Further,  he has been made hundred percent holy by Lord Jesus Christ because he trusted in the power of the Blood shed on the cross at Calvary.”

          Karthick wouldn’t give up.  He was known to be a fighter and argued forcefully to win every case. “Yes, I know, John too told me that.  But I have been a believer in Lord Rama and Lord Krishna, my gods.  Where are they?”

          “Never heard of them, fellow.  They are nowhere around here anyway. Now, will you get going? There is a long line of people behind you.  You are holding them up.  Walk on…”

         Interrupting the cop, Karthick asked, “Could I have a word with John before he disappears from view?”

         “As a special case, ‘yes’.  Only 20 seconds.”    Karthick craned his neck to locate John among a galaxy of angels lined up on the path to Heaven. “Hi John. Are you surely on your way to Heaven?”

         John was permitted to answer Karthick.  “ Absolutely Karthick. I told you friend that this is what would take place after we die, didn’t I?  You never believed.  You said that your gods too could give you a place in Heaven, didn’t you?”.

         “I know.  I know, John. I was very casual about it. Could you inform our other classmates about what happens here?”

          Instead of John an angel gave the reply. “Impossible Karthick.  There is no telephone service  between Heaven and Earth, no cell phone network for that matter.  If they had refused to heed to all the warnings contained in the Holy Bible, nobody  here is authorized to give them another chance for accepting the true God. That right is available only on the Earth. It’s too late now. From this instant onwards, even   you can’t communicate with  your friend John. Both of you are in two different sections of the ‘world beyond’.  We are taking John to see Lord Jesus Christ, who is the supreme head over here. Good bye.”