«Iustorum animae in manu Dei sunt, non tanget illos tormentum malitiae; visi sunt oculis insipientium mori; illi autem sunt in pace» — "The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and the torment of malice shall not touch them; in the eyes of the unwise they seemed to die, but they are in peace" (Wis. 3:3).
Point I
«Iustorum animae in manu Dei sunt» — "The souls of the just are in the hand of God." If God holds the souls of the just clasped in His hands, who could ever snatch them from His hands? It is true that hell does not cease to tempt and to insult even the Saints at their death, but neither does God cease to assist them and to increase His help to His faithful servants as their danger grows: «Ibi plus auxilii, ubi plus periculi; quia Deus adiutor est in opportunitatibus» — "There is more help where there is more danger, for God is a helper in times of need," says St. Ambrose (On Joseph, ch. 5). When the servant of Elisha saw the city surrounded by enemies, he was terrified; but the Saint gave him courage, saying: «Noli timere, plures enim nobiscum sunt, quam cum illis» — "Fear not, for there are more with us than with them" (2 Kgs. 6:16). And then he showed him an army of Angels sent by God for his defense. The devil will indeed come to tempt, but the Guardian Angel will also come to comfort the dying person; the holy Advocates will come; St. Michael will come, who is appointed by God to defend His faithful servants in the last struggle with hell; Mary Most Holy will come to drive away the enemies, placing her devotee beneath her mantle; above all, Jesus Christ will come to guard from temptations that little sheep of His — innocent or penitent — to save whom He gave His life: He will give her the confidence and the strength she needs in that combat, so that, full of courage, she will say: «Dominus factus est adiutor meus» — "The Lord has become my helper" (Ps. 29:11). «Dominus illuminatio mea, et salus mea, quem timebo?» — "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear?" (Ps. 26:1). Our salvation matters more to God, says Origen, than our perdition matters to the devil;
for God loves us far more than the devil hates us: «Maior illi cura est, ut nos ad salutem pertrahat, quam diabolo, ut nos ad damnationem impellat» — "He has greater care to draw us to salvation than the devil has to drive us to damnation" (Hom. 20 on Numbers).
God is faithful, says the Apostle; He does not permit us to be tempted beyond our strength: «Fidelis Deus non patietur vos tentari supra id quod potestis» — "God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above what you are able" (1 Cor. 10:13). But you will say: Many Saints died in great fear of their eternal salvation. I reply: few are the examples one reads of such persons, who led a good life and then died with this fear. Vincent of Beauvais says that the Lord permits this in some, in order to purge them at death of some fault of theirs: «Iusti quandoque dure moriendo purgantur in hoc mundo» — "The just are sometimes purged in this world by a hard death." For the rest, of nearly all the servants of God we read that they died with a smile on their lips. The divine judgment inspires fear in everyone at death; but whereas sinners pass from fear to despair, the Saints pass from fear to confidence. St. Bernard was afraid while ill, as St. Antoninus relates, and was tempted to distrust; but thinking of the merits of Jesus Christ, he drove away every fear, saying: «Vulnera tua, merita mea» — "Your wounds are my merits." St. Hilarion was afraid too, but then he joyfully said: «Egredere, anima mea, quid times? Septuaginta prope annis servisti Christo, et mortem times?» — "Go forth, my soul; what do you fear? For nearly seventy years you have served Christ, and do you fear death?" And he meant to say: My soul, what do you fear, having served a God who is faithful and knows not how to abandon one who has been faithful to Him in life? Father Giuseppe Scamacca of the Society of Jesus, when asked whether he was dying with confidence, replied: Have I then served Mohammed, that I should now doubt the goodness of my God, that He should not will to save me?
If ever at death the thought of having offended God at some time should torment us, we know that the Lord has declared that He will forget the sins of penitents: «Si impius egerit poenitentiam, omnium iniquitatum eius non recordabor» — "If the wicked man does penance, I will no longer remember all his iniquities" (Ezek. 18). But, someone will say, how can we be certain that God has forgiven us? St. Basil asks the same question: «Quomodo certo persuasus esse quis potest, quod Deus ei peccata dimiserit?» — "How can anyone be firmly persuaded that God has forgiven him his sins?" And he answers: «Nimirum si dicat: iniquitatem odio habui, et abominatus sum» — "Doubtless, if he can say: I have held iniquity in hatred and have abhorred it" (In Reg., q. 12). Whoever hates sin can be certain that God has already forgiven him. The heart of man cannot be without loving: either it loves creatures or it loves God; if it does not love creatures, then it loves God. And he loves God who keeps the commandments: «Qui habet praecepta mea, et servat ea, ille est qui diligit me» — "He who has My commandments and keeps them, he it is who loves Me" (John 14). Whoever dies, then, in observance of the commandments dies loving God; and whoever loves God does not fear: «Caritas mittit foras timorem» — "Charity casts out fear" (1 John 4:18).
Affections and Prayers
Ah, my Jesus, when will that day come when I can say to You: My God, I can lose You no more? When will it be that I shall see You face to face and be certain of loving You with all my strength for all eternity? Ah, my sovereign good, my only love, as long as I live I shall always have to remain in danger of offending You and of losing Your beautiful grace! There was an unhappy time when I did not love You and despised Your love; now I repent of it with all my soul, and I hope that You have already forgiven me; and now I love You with all my heart, and I desire to do all I can to love You and to give You pleasure. But I am still in danger of denying You my love and of turning my back on You once again. Ah, my Jesus, my life, my treasure, do not permit it. If this greatest of misfortunes were ever to befall me, let me die at this very moment by the hardest death You will; I consent to it, and I beg it of You. Eternal Father, for the love of Jesus Christ, do not abandon me to this great ruin. Chastise me as You will; I deserve it and I accept it; but deliver me from the chastisement of seeing myself deprived of Your grace and of Your love. My Jesus, recommend me to Your Father.
Mary, my Mother, recommend me to Your Son; obtain for me perseverance in His friendship and the grace to love Him, and then may He do with me whatever He wills.
Point II
«Iustorum animae in manu Dei sunt, non tanget illos tormentum malitiae, visi sunt oculis insipientium mori... illi autem sunt in pace» — "The souls of the just are in the hand of God, and the torment of malice shall not touch them; in the eyes of the foolish they seemed to die... but they are in peace" (Wis. 3:3). To the eyes of the foolish it seems that the servants of God die afflicted and unwilling, as worldlings die; but no — God knows well how to console His children at their death; and even amid the pains of death He lets them taste certain great sweetnesses, as foretastes of the paradise He is about to give them. Just as those who die in sin begin, even upon that bed, to feel certain foretastes of hell — of remorse, of terror, and of despair — so, in contrast, the Saints, by the acts of love they then make more frequently toward God, and by the desire and the hope they have of soon possessing Him, already begin before death to feel that peace which they will afterward enjoy fully in heaven. Death for the Saints is not a punishment but a reward: «Cum dederit dilectis suis somnum, ecce hereditas Domini» — "When He gives sleep to His beloved, behold the inheritance of the Lord" (Ps. 126:2). The death of one who loves God is not called death, but sleep, so that he may well say: «In pace in idipsum dormiam, et requiescam» — "In peace, in the selfsame, I will sleep and I will rest" (Ps. 4:9).
Father Suarez died with such peace that, while dying, he came to say: «Non putabam tam dulce esse mori» — "I did not think that dying was so sweet": I could never have imagined that death would prove so gentle to me. Cardinal Baronius, admonished by the physician not to think so much about death, replied: Why, do I perhaps fear it? I do not fear it, but I love it. Cardinal Ruffense, as Santero relates, when he went to die for the faith, took care to put on the best clothes he had, saying that he was going to a wedding. When he came within sight of the scaffold, he threw away his little staff and said: «Ite, pedes, parum a paradiso distamus» — "Onward, my feet; we are but a little way from paradise." And before dying he intoned the "Te Deum," in thanksgiving to God, who was making him die a martyr for the holy faith; and thus, all joyful, he laid his head beneath the blade. St. Francis of Assisi sang while dying and invited the others to sing. "Father," Brother Elias said to him, "in dying one must weep, not sing." "But I cannot" (the Saint replied) "help singing, seeing that shortly I must go to enjoy God." A Teresian nun, dying as a young girl while the other nuns stood weeping around her, said to them: "O God, why weep? I am going to find my Jesus Christ; rejoice with me, if you love me" (Dising. Parol. I. § VI).
Father Granada relates that a certain hunter found a leprous Solitary who was dying, and was singing. "How," said the hunter, "can you sing, being in such a state?" The hermit replied: "Brother, between me and God there stands only the wall of this body of mine; now I see it falling to pieces and the prison being dismantled, and I am going to see God; and for this I console myself and sing." This desire to see God made St. Ignatius the Martyr say that if the wild beasts had not come to take his life, he would have provoked them to devour him: «Ego vim faciam, ut devorer» — "I will use force, that they may devour me." St. Catherine of Genoa could not bear that some regarded death as a misfortune, and she said: "O beloved death, how ill-regarded you are! And why do you not come to me, who call you day and night?" (Life, ch. 7). And St. Teresa desired death so much that she deemed it her death not to die; and with this sentiment she composed that celebrated song of hers: «Muoio, perché non muoio» — "I die because I do not die." Such is death for the Saints.
Affections and Prayers
Ah, my sovereign good, my God, if in the past I have not loved You, now I turn wholly to You. I take my leave of all creatures, and I choose to love You alone, my most lovable Lord. Tell me what You want of me, for I want to do it. Enough have I offended You. This life that remains to me, I want to spend entirely in pleasing You. Give me strength, so that with my love I may make up for the ingratitude I have shown You until now. For so many years I deserved to burn in the fire of hell, and You followed after me so much that You have already drawn me to You; now make me burn in the fire of Your holy love. I love You, infinite goodness. You want to be the only one loved by me, and You are right, because You have loved me more than all, and You alone deserve to be loved; and I want to love You alone; I want to do all I can to please You. Do with me whatever pleases You. It is enough for me that I love You, and that You love me.
Mary, my Mother, help me; pray to Jesus for me.
Point III
And how can one fear death who hopes after death to be crowned king of paradise? «Non vereamur occidi» — "Let us not fear to be slain" (said St. Cyprian), «quos constat quando occidimur coronari» — "for we know that when we are slain, we are crowned". How can one fear to die who knows that, dying in the grace of God, his body will become immortal? «Oportet mortale hoc induere immortalitatem» — "This mortal body must put on immortality" (1 Cor. 15:53). Whoever loves God and desires to see Him counts life a pain and death a joy. «Patienter vivit, delectabiliter moritur» — "He lives patiently, he dies delightfully", says St. Augustine. And St. Thomas of Villanova says that death, if it finds a man sleeping, comes like a thief: it strips him, kills him, and casts him into the pit of hell; but if it finds him watchful, like an ambassador of God it greets him and says to him: The Lord awaits you at the wedding feast; come, and I will lead you to the blessed kingdom you desire: «Te Dominus ad nuptias vocat, veni, ducam te quo desideras».
Oh, with what joy does he await death who finds himself in the grace of God, hoping soon to see Jesus Christ and to hear it said to him: «Euge serve bone et fidelis, quia in pauca fuisti fidelis super multa te constituam» — "Well done, good and faithful servant; because you have been faithful over a few things, I will set you over many" (Matt. 25:21). Oh, how consoling then will be the penances, the prayers, the detachment from earthly goods, and everything one has done for God! «Dicite iusto, quoniam bene, quoniam fructum adinventionum suarum comedet» — "Say to the just man that it shall be well with him, for he shall eat the fruit of his doings" (Isa. 3:10). Then whoever has loved God will taste the fruit of all his holy works. For this reason Father Ippolito Durazzo of the Society of Jesus, when a religious friend of his was dying with signs of salvation, did not weep, but rejoiced with all his heart. But what an absurdity it would be, said St. John Chrysostom, to believe in an eternal paradise and then to pity the one who goes there: «Fateri coelum, et eos, qui hinc eo commearunt, luctu prosequi?» (John Chrys., To a Widow). What consolation especially will it be then to remember the devotions paid to the Mother of God: those rosaries, those visits, those fasts on Saturdays, having frequented her Congregation! «Virgo fidelis» — "Virgin most faithful" — so Mary is called; oh, how faithful she is in consoling her faithful servants at death! A certain devout servant of Mary Most Holy said as he was dying to Father Binetti: "Father, you cannot believe the consolation that the thought of having served Mary Most Holy brings at death! Oh, my father, if you knew what joy I feel for having served this Mother of mine! I cannot express it." And what joy will it bring to one who has loved Jesus Christ, who has often visited Him in the Blessed Sacrament and often received Him in Holy Communion, to see his Lord enter the room with the Holy Viaticum, coming to accompany him in the passage to the other life! O happy is he who can then say to Him with St. Philip Neri: "Behold my love, behold my love; give me my love!"
But who knows (someone will say) what lot will befall me? Who knows whether in the end I shall make a bad death? But to you who speak thus, I ask: What is it that makes death bad? Sin alone; sin alone, then, must we fear, not death. «Liquet acerbitatem non mortis esse, sed culpae; non ad mortem metus referendus, sed ad vitam» (says St. Ambrose, De bono mortis, ch. 8) — "It is clear that the bitterness belongs not to death but to guilt; fear should be directed not to death but to life." Do you wish, then, not to fear death? Live well. «Timenti Deum bene erit in extremis» — "For him who fears God, it shall go well at the end."
Father de la Colombière held it to be morally impossible that anyone who has been faithful to God in life should make a bad death. And St. Augustine had said it before him: «Non potest male mori, qui bene vixerit» — "He who has lived well cannot die badly." Whoever is prepared to die does not fear any kind of death, even a sudden one. «Iustus quacunque morte praeoccupatus fuerit, in refrigerio erit» — "The just man, whatever death overtakes him, shall be at rest" (Wis. 7:7). And since we cannot go to enjoy God except by means of death, St. John Chrysostom exhorts us: «Offeramus Deo, quod tenemur reddere» — "Let us offer to God what we are bound to render to Him." And let us understand that whoever offers his death to God makes an act of love the most perfect he can make toward God; for by willingly embracing that death which pleases God, and at the time and in the manner that God wills, he makes himself like the holy Martyrs. Whoever loves God must desire and sigh for death, because death unites us eternally with God and frees us from the danger of losing Him. It is a sign of little love for God to have no desire to go soon to see Him, and thus to make sure of never being able to lose Him again. Meanwhile, in this life let us love Him as much as we can. For this alone must life serve us: to grow in love; the measure of our love with which death finds us will be the measure of the love with which we shall love God in blessed eternity.
Affections and Prayers
Bind me, my Jesus, to You, so that I may never be able to separate myself from You again. Make me wholly Yours before I die, so that I may see You appeased, O my Redeemer, the first time I see You. You sought me when I was fleeing from You; do not cast me out now that I seek You. Forgive me all the displeasure I have caused You. From this day forward I want to think of nothing but serving You and loving You. You have bound me by too great a debt: You did not refuse to give Your blood and Your life for love of me. I would therefore consume myself entirely for You, O my Jesus, who consumed Yourself entirely for me. O God of my soul, I want to love You much in this life, in order to love You much in the next. Eternal Father, draw my whole heart to Yourself; detach it from earthly affections, and wound it, inflame it wholly with Your holy love. Hear me through the merits of Jesus Christ. Give me holy perseverance, and give me the grace always to ask You for it.
Mary, my Mother, help me and obtain for me this grace of always asking Your Son for holy perseverance.