THE MOST BEAUTIFUL DEATH

by Very Reverend Monsignor Matthew T. Long, Diocese of Shreveport Vicar General

ONE OF THE GREAT PRIVILEGES OF BEING A PRIEST IS THAT YOU ARE INVITED INTO THE LIVES OF YOUR PARISHIONERS. They welcome you not as a stranger, but as a member of the family. You participate in the most joyous moments of their lives: marriages; baptisms; Communion; and reconciliation. You are also honored to be a part of some of the saddest moments of their lives, and the most frightening. This time is a sacred time at the hour of their death.

There’s truly no more holy time in a priest’s life than when he stands at the bedside of a member of the flock as they prepare to cross the river Jordan and enter into the Promised Land. You get to stand beside those courageous individuals who know that their Vindicator lives and they fear nothing as they face death. You also get to stand beside those racked with fear, whose faith is wavering as they prepare to enter uncharted waters. Whether you are standing with the fearful or the courageous, you offer them the same things that Holy Mother Church provides: the holy anointing that prepares the mind, body and soul for eternity; the opportunity to lay down their burdens in the sacrament of Reconciliation; one final time you remind them of the promises made at their baptism when they were claimed for Christ; you offer them the Apostolic Pardon for the full remission of all of their sins, and; then you are able to give them in those final moments food for the journey. Knowing full well that this will be the last time they gaze upon and receive the Eucharist and the next time they see Jesus, they will see Him face-to-face. There is no more sacred time in the life of a priest than to stand at the bedside of a member of the flock as they face death.

The most beautiful death I was ever privileged to witness, was the death of Sr. Pasquina, OLS. I was called on Memorial Day by Sr. Margaret and told that she was dying. I rushed from my parents’ house in Plain Dealing to the convent, praying all the way that I would reach her before the angel of death. When I arrived at the convent, I went down the hallway to her room to find that it was filled with all the sisters of the congregation. We performed those ancient and mystical rights that the Church has freely given us, and then we began to pray commendation of the dying.

Normally, when you are at the bedside of someone dying, there are those nearest and dearest present, spouses and children and grandchildren. The group is relatively

small and only some of them respond to the prayers. For Sr. Pasquina, OLS, those nearest and dearest were her sisters, and they all responded. We prayed and called upon the Angels and Saints of Heaven to assist her. The sisters’ voices rang out “Pray for her, pray for her”, and as we reached the conclusion of this beautiful prayer Sr. Pasquina died. I remember thinking in that moment how beautiful this was. As her life of service and devotion to our Lord came to an end, what she heard in those last moments were the voices of her dear sisters, invoking prayers for her.

Death is not something to be feared, nor is it something that we should run towards. It is a reality given to us by our first parents. But our Lord and His mercy triumphs over death through the power of the Resurrection. This truth gives each of us hope that no matter that this earthly life has come to its conclusion, because of His promises, the promises of Jesus Christ and our faith, eternity awaits us.

During this month of November, this month of remembrance, this month that begins with us, praising the Saints and praying for the dead, let us remember our beloved dead. Let us offer up a prayer for them so that they can slip finally from the last vestiges of sin that hold them in purgatory and enter the Kingdom of Heaven. That glorious place that we all long to be, not because of gates of pearl or the streets of gold, or the walls of jasper or the crystal river flowing by the throne of God but because our God dwells there and He is surrounded by the greatest beauty of all, the angels and saints of heaven.