How to Prepare Yourself and Children for Mortal Death

LISTEN:  Vol 3 Bk 1 Chap 15 

 "That hour is the greatest trial of life, upon which depends the last sentence of eternal death or eternal life, of eternal suffering or eternal glory" 

 TEACHING OF MARY, THE QUEEN OF HEAVEN: PREPARATION FOR LAST HOUR OF EARTHLY LIFE

 “My dearest daughter, it was not without special reason that your heart was moved to great compassion and pity toward those who are at the point of death and that you are inspired with a desire to help them in that hour; for it is true, as you has perceived, that then the souls of men incur the most incredible and dangerous attacks from the demons, as well as from their own frailty and from the creatures around them." 

"That hour is the great trial of life, upon which depends the last sentence of eternal death or eternal life, of eternal suffering or eternal glory. As the Most High has condescendingly vouchsafed to fill you with these sentiments, I exhort you to exert all your powers and faculties to act accordingly." 

"Remember, then, my friend, that when Lucifer and his satellites of darkness perceive, by the course of natural events, that anyone falls a prey to a dangerous and mortal disease, they immediately prepare to assail the poor and unwary soul with all their malice and astuteness in order to vanquish them if possible by various temptations. Whenever they see an opening for attacking the souls, they try to supply in fury and malice the shortness of time. At such times they gather like bloodthirsty wolves and search out the natural and acquired failings in his nature, taking into account his inclinations, habits and customs, and where his passions cause him greater weakness, in order to direct toward this part the strongest battery and engines of war." 

"Those that have a disorderly love of earthly life, they persuade that there is not such great danger and they prevent others from undeceiving them. Those that have been negligent in the reception of the Sacraments, they try to make still more careless and they place obstacles and difficulties in the way in order that they may die without them, or in order that they may receive them without fruit and with a bad disposition." 

"Others they fill with false suggestions and shame in order that they may not confess their sins and open their conscience. Others they confuse and try to prevent from making proper restitution and thus unburdening their consciences. Others, who love vanity, they entangle, even at that last hour, in many vain and proud desires with regard to what is to be done for them after death."

"Those that have been avaricious or sensual, they seek to excite violently toward what they loved so blindly during life. 

"In short, of all the bad habits and customs this cruel enemy avails himself in order to fill their minds with images of creatures and draw them away from their salvation or make them incapable of it. All the sinful actions and vicious habits of their previous life have become, as it were, pledges in the hands of the common enemy for the possession of the sinner and weapons for assault and battery in this tremendous hour of death. Every appetite, which has been inordinately indulged, is an avenue or bypath by which he enters into the citadel of the soul. Once in, he breathes forth his pestilential fumes, and raises the clouds of darkness, his proper work, so that the soul may not give heed to the Divine inspirations, have no true sorrow for its sins, and do no penance for its wicked life." 

"Generally these enemies cause a great damage to the souls in that hour by exciting the vain hope of a longer life and being able to execute later on what God suggests to them by means of the holy angels. Giving way to this deceit, they find themselves afterwards betrayed and lost."

"Just as great is the danger of those who have shown little esteem for the saving graces of the Sacraments: for this contempt is very offensive to the Lord and to the saints, and Divine Justice is wont to punish it by leaving these souls to their own wicked counsels. This leads them to great neglect in profiting by this help." 

"Thus they are themselves forsaken by the Lord in their last hour, in which they expected to provide for their salvation."

 There are few among the just whom this ancient serpent does not furiously attack in their last agony. And if satan boasts of having ruined even saints at such times, what hope have the wicked, the negligent and sinful, who have spent their whole lives in making themselves unworthy of divine favor and grace, and who are devoid of meritorious works to offset the assaults of their enemies?" 

 
"My holy Spouse, saint Joseph, was one of those who enjoyed the privilege of neither seeing nor feeling the presence of the demon in his last hour; for as soon as they approached to deal with him as they do with the rest of men, they felt a powerful force, which kept them at a distance and the holy angels hurled them back into their abyss. Seeing themselves thus oppressed and crushed, they were seized with great uneasiness and confusion."

"Almost stupefied, Lucifer called a meeting of his followers in hell, in order to consult about this surprising event and in order to have them once more search the earth for the Messiah; and then happened what you shall relate later on in its place. Hence you will understand the great danger in the hour of death, when both the good works and the bad will begin to show their effects."

"I will not tell you how many are thus lost, in order that your sincere love of God may not cause you to die of sorrow at this loss. But the general rule is: a good life gives hope of a good end; all other reliance is doubtful, and salvation resting upon it is very rare and merely accidental." 

"The best precaution is to take a good start from afar; and therefore I admonish you, that, at the dawning of each day, when you look upon the light, you seriously consider whether it may not be the last of your life, and, if it should be the last (for you do not know), that you place your soul in such a state as to be able to meet death with a smiling face.  Do not delay even for one instant sorrow for your sins, and a firm purpose of confessing them as soon as you find thyself guilty of any, and of amending the least of your imperfections."

"In all this be so careful that you leave not upon your conscience the smallest defect without being sorry for it and without cleansing yourself by the blood of my most holy Son. Place yourself in such a condition that you are ready to appear before the Just Judge (Jesus), who is to examine and judge your least thoughts and all your movements." 

"In order that according to your pious wishes, you may help those who are in danger of death, you should give to others the same counsels that I have now given you. Exhort them to lead a careful life in order to secure a happy death. Moreover, say some prayers for this intention every day of your life, fervently asking the Almighty to disperse the deceits of the devils, to destroy the snares prepared against those who are in the throes of death, and that His right hand confound all the demons." 

"Know that I have directed my prayers to that end for mortals and in this I wish you to imitate me. That you may help them so much the more, I wish you to order and command the demons to depart from the sick and stop their persecutions; and you can very efficaciously use this power, even when you are absent from the sick, for you are to command them in the name of the Lord Jesus, and you are to compel them to obey you for His greater honor and glory." 

"When your own religious (or family) are in danger of death, without exciting them, instruct them in what they are to do. Admonish them and help them to receive the holy Sacraments, and see that they receive them frequently during life in preparation for a good end. Seek to encourage and console them, speaking to them of the things of God and His mysteries contained in the holy Scriptures.” 

“Exhort them to awaken their good intentions and desires and to prepare themselves to receive the light and the graces of the Most High. Excite them to hope, strengthen them against temptations and teach them how they are to resist and overcome them, seeking to divine them before they themselves manifest them to you. The Almighty will give you an understanding of them so that you may apply the right medicine to each; for the infirmities of the soul are hard to diagnose and cure.” 

 
“All that I now tell you, you must execute as the most beloved daughter of the Lord and in His service, and I will procure for you certain privileges for yourself and for those you desire to aid in that terrible hour. Do not stint your charity in these works for you shall work not by your own strength alone, but by the power which God wishes to exercise in you for His own glory.” 

“Remember He has granted me in mortal life to be the Refuge of the children of Adam, the Advocate and Intercessor of sinners; that my tribunal should be that of kindness and clemency for the refuge and assistance of all that seek my intercession; and that all should leave it with the assurance of pardon in the name of my Divine Son.” 

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READ: Preparation for Death  by  St. Alphonsus Maria De Liguori

Daily Prayer for the Dying and the Oppressed

O Lord Almighty, Defender of souls and Sovereign over death,
today and every day, I lift up Your sons and daughters who stand at the threshold of judgement for eternal life or death.
Grant them clarity, peace, and repentance, that they may embrace a careful life and secure a holy death.
Let Your mercy descend upon them like dew, softening their hearts and dispelling fear.

Disperse, O God, the deceits of the devils.
Destroy every snare laid against those in their final hour.
Let Your right hand confound the demons who seek to torment the dying.
May Your angels and the intercession of our Blessed Mother encamp around them, shielding them from despair and deception.

In the name of Jesus Christ, the Lord of Hosts, and Blessed Mary
I command every demon afflicting the sick to depart.
Cease your persecutions, for you are bound by His glory.
Even in my absence, I speak with the authority of His name—
Be gone, for the honor of the Crucified King!

Lord, make me a vessel of Your counsel.
Let my words exhort others to live wisely,
To repent their sins and walk in vigilance and grace,
So that when their hour comes, they may meet You the just Judge with joy.

I pray this not in my strength, but in Yours,
For Yours is the kingdom, the power, and the glory,
Forever and ever. Amen.