Daylight enters a monumental Catholic chapel and falls toward the crucifix above the altar.

Judgment

You will stand before
Christ the Judge.

At death your soul will be judged by Jesus Christ. Every thought, word, deed, and omission is known to Him. The Redeemer who now offers pardon will pronounce a just judgment: prepare while there is time.

Begin the meditation Pray an act of contrition

“For we must all be manifested before the judgment seat of Christ”

2 Corinthians 5:10 · excerptDouay-Rheims, Challoner revision; DRBO transcription

Christ will judge every life

At death your soul will be judged by Jesus Christ. Those who die in His grace enter Heaven, immediately or after the purification they still need; those who die in unrepented mortal sin suffer everlasting damnation. The particular judgment settles our eternal destiny. Do not put off the repentance and reconciliation that are offered to you now. (Benedict XII, Benedictus Deus.)

You will answer to Christ for the life you have lived. The Gospel’s account of judgment includes the mercy shown or refused to those in need. Examine your words and actions, but also the duties and works of charity you have neglected. Let this examination lead to repentance and amendment now. (Matthew 25:31–46; 2 Corinthians 5:10.)

The Last Judgment follows the resurrection of all the dead. Aquinas explains that a person’s influence continues after death: teaching, example, injury, and charity bear further fruit in other lives. At the end, Christ will manifest the full order of His justice. The general judgment makes public the truth already settled for each soul and the consequences that unfolded in history. (Summa III, q. 59, a. 5, answer.)

The Judge is the Redeemer who shed His blood for you. His mercy now calls for a truthful return to Him. Alphonsus asks whether our life is being conformed to Christ; the Council of Trent teaches that Penance applies the benefit of Christ’s death to the baptized who have fallen. Bring your sins to this sacrament with sorrow and a sincere purpose of amendment. (Preparation for Death, XXIV, Second Point; Trent, Session XIV, chapters I, IV.)

Follow the sources

At the close
of your life.

At death your soul stands before Jesus Christ. The time for repentance and merit is ended; His judgment determines your eternal lot.

Benedict XII · Benedictus Deus

At the fulfillment
of history.

Christ will return in glory and raise the dead. The good and evil of every life, with their consequences through history, will be laid bare before all. God's justice will be manifest.

St. Thomas Aquinas · Summa III, q. 59, a. 5

Before the judgment

St. Alphonsus de Liguori
Preparation for Death

Open quiet reading

The Gospel and our conscience will bear witness before Christ. Alphonsus calls us to settle our accounts now through repentance, Confession, and amendment, while God grants us time for pardon. Ask for the grace to face the truth about your life.

Consider the accusation and scrutiny: “The judgment sat and the books were opened”—Dan., vii. 10. There shall be two books, the Gospel and conscience. In the Gospel shall be read what the accused should have done, and in his conscience, what he has done. Each individual, says St. Jerome, shall see what he has done. In the balance of divine justice, neither riches, nor dignities, nor nobility, but works only, shall have weight. “Thou art weighed in the balance,” said Daniel to Balthassar, “and art found wanting”—Dan., v. 27. Neither his gold, says Father Alvarez, nor his wealth, but the king alone, is weighed.

…

In fine, to obtain eternal life, the soul must be found at judgment to have led a life conformable to the life of Jesus Christ. “Whom he foreknew, he predestinated to be made conformable to the image of his Son”—Rom., viii. 29.

…

At present it depends on us to choose whatever sentence we please. It is in our power, says St. Eligius, to determine the character of the sentence which we shall receive. “In potestate nostra datur qualiter judicemur.” What then must we do? We must adjust our accounts before judgment. “Before judgment, prepare thee justice”—Eccl., xviii. 19. St. Bonaventure says that, to escape the danger of failing in business, prudent merchants frequently review and settle their accounts. Let us then say with St. Bernard: “Volo judicatus praesentari, non judicandus.” O my Judge, I wish to be judged and punished during life, which is a time of mercy and pardon; for, after death shall be the time of justice.

Read the source & edition details

Consideration XXIV, Second and Third Points, pp. 293, 296, 299 · selected passages. Dublin: James Duffy, 1843. Translated by A Catholic Clergyman (as credited on the title page). Selected historical passages, not a complete chapter. Wording and spelling follow the 1843 printing; line breaks, quotation marks, spacing, and typographic ligatures are normalized. Ellipses mark omitted material. Scripture references and secondary attributions are retained as printed; the latter are Alphonsus’s attributions. The short reading title and introduction are editorial.

Open the historical source

Act of Contrition

O my God! I am heartily sorry for having offended Thee, and I detest all my sins, because I dread the loss of Heaven and the pains of Hell, but most of all because they offend Thee, my God, Who art all-good and deserving of all my love. I firmly resolve, with the help of Thy grace, to confess my sins, to do penance, and to amend my life.

Baltimore Catechism No. 4, Prayers, “An Act of Contrition” · historical English form

Seek His mercy before judgment

Examine your life before Christ. Be sorry for your sins, resolve to amend, and confess remembered mortal sins honestly by kind and number. Make the restitution and reparation that justice requires. Seek His mercy now, while repentance is possible.

Prepare for Confession

Examine thoughts, words, deeds, omissions, and the duties of your state of life.
Confess remembered mortal sins honestly by kind and number.
Make restitution and correct a harmful falsehood or example as far as you can.
Forgive an injury and fulfill a work of mercy you have neglected.

Continue the journeyHell

Further counsel on judgment

Begin with the truth.

Examine your conscience by God’s commandments and the obligations of your state of life. Look also at the good you knowingly failed to do: worship, care of those entrusted to you, truth, justice, and mercy. The Gospel’s judgment includes neglected charity. A definite examination should lead you to confession and amendment, with the priest’s help where needed. (Matthew 25:31–46; Preparation for Death, XXIV–XXV.)

Consider what your life is teaching others. A parent’s example, a repeated lie, a refusal to forgive, or a work of mercy can continue to shape another soul. Repair scandal and injury as far as you can: correct a falsehood, make restitution, and replace harmful example with fidelity. Aquinas’s account of the Last Judgment gives lasting weight to these responsibilities. (Summa III, q. 59, a. 5.)

Let the certainty of judgment free you from living for human approval. God sees both concealed evil and the good that receives no recognition. Accept correction, confess honestly, and persevere in duties that others overlook. We await Christ’s judgment with reverence and hope, seeking His mercy for ourselves and the salvation of our neighbor. (Preparation for Death, XXIV, Second–Third Points)

Examine your conscience