From a Quora reader Ann in our "Hacking the Afterlife" forum on Quora: "Wonderful glimpse and remembrance. Thank you. I would like to share a flipside story because my brother was also a Catholic priest. I would say he was cut from the same cloth as Fr. Connell. Humble, helping everyone, standing up to even his own superiors in order to meet the needs of those in his care. He passed in the first few months of the pandemic. It was at the time of the lockdowns and there were no in person funerals. However, his bishop and several priests were allowed to say the funeral mass, though it had to be virtual from the church. Well I was exhausted from having been on vigil his last days and ended up oversleeping. The funeral was scheduled for 10am. At 9:45 or so I saw my brother. Sitting in his recliner, sounding like himself when upset with someone, he just said very loudly “ Well, are you going to get up!!?”

I jumped up just in time to tune in to the mass. Subsequently he has spoken asking me to let everyone know he is ok. I found grief was different as I know where he is and what’s happening. The feeling of continued connection is present.

Thank you for your work. Blessings😇