Author: Paul Chaloux of St. Agnes Church in Arlington.
What is your home parish and how did you become associated with the Diocese of Arlington? I have been a daily communicant at St. Agnes since moving to Arlington in 2015 to pursue my doctorate at the Catholic University of America in Washington. I served as a parish catechist for 10 years after serving as a catechist for 15 years at my previous parish, St. Columba Church in Hopewell Junction, NY
Why did you write this book? “Heaven’s Coin: A Study of Love” is the final book in a trilogy about life’s great mysteries and is a direct outgrowth and culmination of my previous two books, “Why All People Suffer” (1991) and “Dying without Fear ” (1993). ). I couldn’t have written it if I hadn’t written the other two books first, because the topics are very connected.
Can you summarize the book? “Heaven’s Coin: A Study of Love” completes a trilogy about life’s great mysteries. This latest work explains how the mysteries of love, suffering and death are synergistic and critical in leading us to God and heaven. The book delves into the underlying reasons for painful times and debunks common misconceptions that often result in the application of false attributes to God. It tells real-life stories of those who experienced brokenness, but found healing and joy through God’s love, even in moments of great need.
This study of the mystery of divine love explains the nature of love and how it manifests itself in seven relationships known to us since ancient times. It explains that love is an ability to grow, not an asset to accumulate. Therefore, it increases rather than decreases as you use it, and can be lost forever if we choose not to share it.
“Heaven’s Currency” expresses what all love is like drenched brought into us by God, to be shared as widely as possible. The book uses the works of saints, such as the writings of St. Thomas Aquinas on the Order of Love, to reveal how divine love, or charity, is the true currency of heaven. It comes from God and is indeed the only thing that can be shared by both the living and the dead, even after death. “Heaven’s Coin” explains that following the Ten Commandments, the Beatitudes and the Works of Mercy teaches us to love others and become the best versions of ourselves.
What’s something else the average Catholic in the pew should know about it? I started this series after being convinced by my neurologist at my first appointment after being diagnosed with early-onset Parkinson’s disease that I should change my doctoral studies to “Why All People Suffer.”
To buy
Go to paulchaloux.com.