I have prayed the Divine Mercy at the beds of those who were dying. When I couldn't be at the bedside, I sent my angel to pray with me at the bedside of the person who was dying. This quotation is taken from the Diary of Saint Faustina regarding the importance of the Divine Mercy and the Value of it to the one who is passing into eternity! St. Faustina often prayed for dying souls, even bi-locating to their bedside to pray for them. Here is an account of night time prayer for a soul: During the night, I was suddenly awakened and knew that some soul was asking me for prayer, and that it was in much need of prayer. Briefly, but with all my soul, I asked the Lord for grace for her. The following afternoon, when I entered the ward, I saw someone dying, and learned that the agony had started during the night. When I verified it - it had been at the time when I had been asked for prayer. And just then, I heard a voice in my soul: Say the chaplet which I taught you. I ran to fetch my rosary and knelt down by the dying person and, with all the ardor of my soul, I began to say the chaplet. Suddenly the dying person opened her eyes and looked at me; I had not managed to finish the entire chaplet when she died, with extraordinary peace. I fervently asked the Lord to fulfill the promise He had given me for the recitation of the chaplet. The Lord gave me to know that the soul had been granted the grace He had promised me. That was the first soul to receive the benefit of the Lord's promise. I could feel the power of mercy envelop that soul. When I entered my solitude, I heard these words: At the hour of their death, I defend as My own glory every soul that will say this chaplet; or when others say it for a dying person, the pardon is the same. When this chaplet is said by the bedside of a dying person, God's anger is placated, unfathomable mercy envelops the soul, and the very depths of My tender mercy are moved for the sake of the sorrowful Passion of My Son. Oh, if only everyone realized how great the lord's mercy is and how much we all need that mercy, especially at the crucial hour! (Dairy, 809-811)
Over the past 18 months, I have been blessed to be with my mother and both of my grandmothers at or near the time of their death and to pray the Divine Mercy Chaplet for them during those moments. You are absolutely correct, Rosebud- the Divine Mercy Chaplet is a tremendously valuable prayer... such an awesome gift from Jesus!! It was a tremendous blessing and a great grace for me to be present and pray those prayers for those three ladies who have meant so much to me over my life, and given so much to me.
Love St Faustina! Yes, I also was able to pray it at both my parents dying bedsides within the last several years. I used to always pray it every Friday, but lately have been praying everyday for several months and promised to do so until the Warning just for souls everywhere.
I pray it driving my car, whenever I wake up at night. It's becoming more and more. Must be in response to the times. Mary
My dad died suddenly over two years ago and I regret never having the chance to pray by his bed. However, that didn't stop me from offering up the chaplet for the repose of his soul on the way to the hospital. I know that God is not limited by time, and I like to think that He would have applied my future prayers to assist my dad at the hour of his death!
I'm with you Miriam. My husband's death was such a shock that it wasn't until I was in the car headed home that I realized I hadn't said the Chaplet for him. I applied the same principle. I know God hears our prayers and knows our hearts. My brother had never heard it and was fascinated by it. Perhaps seeds were planted that drive.
Death is such a drama, the ultimate moment in story of a souls life. The final account of our lives. As a Catholic, believing as we do that the persons soul is heading for judgement I think we can only be filled with a huge awe. The last two souls I sat with were my father and mother. Both died of cancer and both died relatively longish death over several months. Yet it is sitting and praying by their death beds as they passed on I recall most. Both of them were very good Catholics, very devout and full of faith. They had lived lives of very deep service having raised ten children, and seen grandchildren and great grandchildren. But looking back on it I think their two deaths were not the same. My mother was a very deeply prayerful, peaceful person, deeply loving and kind. I remember at her funeral a lady I did not know but who had known my mother as a child saying to me with great emphasise, 'You know , Padraig your mother was a deeply good person even as a child. We other kids used to talk about her in this way. She always stayed the same'. But even she I think struggled somewhat with death. I think she was adding her life up and considering it and in conversation s with her I was struck that, even though she was in her 80's how much she wanted to live. She asked for prayers for healing but I was very conscious from prayers to Our LAdy that heaven was insistent she be called home. Her death at the end was gentle and she reminded me of a rich apple tree that drops its fruit, with grace and gentleness in the fullness of Autumn. With my father though it was somewhat different. He was as I say a good Catholic who gave of himself generously. But he had a certain angry Old Testament spirit. He tended to see things with a certain fiery rigidity and interpret life n terms of rules and laws. I told him several years that all the Books in the Bible, all the writings of the Fathers and saints and all the teachings of the Church could be summed up in one sweet word, 'Love' and that if we were to sum it all up in a few words it would be to love God , love ourselves and to love all humanity as much as our hearts were capable. That life is, in fact a school for love. My father of course was appalled at this idea and saw it as smaltzy emotional nonsense. However a short while before his death he came up to me in the street with a funny little boy smile as though he had just discovered something wonderful and rather amazed said, 'You know Padraig, when you talked about love I thought it was nonsense , but you were right!' ..and you know that look of dazed delight on his face on discovered this is my richest memory of the man. But I was conscious at his death bed of a great struggle by the devil to make his final attempt on my father. At the end as it turned out I was the only one there at his death bed praying as he died. I can really just before he died quite clearly seeing the figure of a large black dog slinking from beside his bed and leaving his room and knowing it was the devil retreating defeated but having struggled right to the end for his soul. These things and witnessing other deaths have left me with he knowledge that some day my own accounting will come. That it is no accident we pray to Mary , 'Pray for us sinners...now at the our of our death'. For one day our own drama will dawn. We must be ready. We must love. Forgive. All. Without exception.
We should all pray for a 'holy death' as the old folk used to do and again it is all grace - God is generous and provides for all of our needs in both life and death. But as Padraig says death is the ultimate test of faith - but there is really only a thin curtain between this world and the next. It's amazing though how few in this generation believe in the Catholic position of judgement and the last things - heaven, hell and purgatory. The world would be in a better shape if people believed that there was a judgement on the other side.
