'Follow me,' the angel told them, 'and I shall take you where you can experience your idea of joy.' He took them into a small town, in the middle of which there was a church, and all the houses were called sacred buildings. They saw in the town crowds coming from every corner of the surrounding country, and amongst them a number of priests. These received and greeted the new arrivals, and taking them by the hand brought them to the doors of the church, and from there to some buildings around it, and introduced them to the constant worship of God. They told them that this town was a forecourt leading to heaven, and its church was the entrance to a magnificent, vast church in heaven, where the angels glorify God with prayers and praises for ever. 'The rules here and also there,' they said, 'are that people must first enter the church and spend three days and three nights there. After this initiation they must go into the houses of the town, which are all sacred buildings dedicated by us; and then moving from one to another, they must join the congregations there in prayer, shouts of praise and the repetition of sermons. But above all you must be careful not to think to yourselves or say to companions anything but what is holy, pious and religious.'

[2] After this the angel took his party into the church, which was packed full with many who had held high rank in the world as well as many ordinary people. There were guards at the doors to prevent anyone leaving before spending his three days there. 'Today,' said the angel, 'is the second day since these people came in; look carefully at them, and you will see how they glorify God.'

When they looked, they saw that most were asleep, and those who were awake could not stop yawning. As the result of constantly keeping their thoughts raised to God, and never allowing them to drop back to the body, some appeared to themselves and so also to others as if they were faces shut off from the body. Some were wild-eyed from constantly withdrawing their eyes. In short, all were depressed at heart and weary in spirit from boredom. They turned their backs on the pulpit and shouted: 'Our ears are stunned, put an end to your sermons; we cannot hear your voice any longer and the sound of it is beginning to become hateful.' Then they got up, rushed in a body to the doors, broke them open and by pressure on the guards drove them out of the way.

[3] On seeing this the priests followed them and coming close beside them kept teaching them amid prayers and sighs. 'Keep the festival,' they said, 'glorify God, sanctify yourselves. In this forecourt to heaven we shall initiate you into the everlasting glorification of God in the magnificent, vast church which is in heaven, and so you will enjoy everlasting happiness.' But they were unable to grasp this and hardly heard it, because two days of keeping their thoughts raised and removed from domestic and everyday matters had dulled their minds. But when they tried to snatch themselves away, the priests caught hold of their arms and their clothes too, pressing them to enter the buildings where sermons were being delivered. All to no avail; the people cried, 'Leave us alone; we feel in our bodies as if we are fainting.'

[4] As soon as this was said, four men were seen, dressed in white robes and mitres. One of them had been an archbishop in the world and the other three had been bishops; all had now become angels. They called the priests together to address them. 'We have seen you,' they said, 'from heaven with this flock of yours, and what sort of pastors you are. You are driving them mad. You do not know what glorifying God means; it means bringing forth the fruits of love, that is, faithfully, honestly and painstakingly doing the work demanded by one's occupation. For this is a part of loving God and loving the neighbour; it is the bond which holds a community together, and it is the good it performs. By this God is glorified, as well as by worship at fixed times. Have you not read the Lord's words:

In this is my Father glorified, by your bringing forth much fruit and becoming my disciples. John 15:8. [5] You priests can devote yourselves to worship and glorification, because this is your duty, and it brings you honour, glory and reward. Still you could no more than they devote yourselves to that glorification, if honour, glory and reward did not attend upon your duty.'

With these words the bishops ordered the guards on the doors to allow everyone to enter or leave. 'For,' they said, 'there is a vast number of people who are unable to imagine any joy in heaven other than constantly worshipping God, because they knew nothing about conditions in heaven.'