Part seven (7): Conclusion of the Exercise

Xxx. Conclusion of the Exercise

At the end of these exercises on the subject of death, you.should thank Our Lord for the graces He has given you through them, and beg Him to forgive the faults you have committed in their performance. Ask Him to compensate for your deficiencies, and to accomplish in you the fulfilment of His words: "Blessed i s that servant, whom when his lord shall come he shall find so doing. Amen I say to you: he shall place him over all his goods" (Matt. 24, 46-47). Pray that He may ever watch within you and for you, lest you be taken by surprise. Beg Him to keep these exercises and preparations in store for you against the hour of your death and to be Himself your disposition and preparation.

Follow the same procedure proportionately, invoking the Blessed Virgin, the angels and saints, especially the saints on whose feast day the Lord knows you are going to die.

Xxx1. Some Other Points of Advice and Necessary Dispositions for a Holy Death

I shall here add a few other suggestions and practices which may prove useful to you, when you sense that your life is approaching its end.

The chief thing for you to do, when you feel that you are nearing the end of your life, is to devote yourself as much as possible to acts of love of Jesus, ever uniting humility with love. There is no more powerful and effective means of quickly wiping out our sins, advancing with great strides along the road to God, and giving Him pleasure than the divine exercise of active love.

If you are worried by the fear of death or by qualms of mistrust by reason of your past sins, ask some' kind person to read to you the passages about confidence contained in 'Part One" of this book.

If you are not too sick to listen to reading aloud, ask some kind friend to read to you, from time to time, the foregoing meditations on death, and the exercises of praise and glorification of Jesus which are to be found in 'Tart Five" of this book.

Let him also read passages from the Lives of the Saints or some other book of devotion, but particularly the Passion of Jesus Christ, the seventeenth chapter of the Gospel of St. John and the prayers for the agonizing soul, as on the seventh day of the "Exercise of Preparations for Death." Do not forget, when you are at the end of your life, to remind one of your friends to gain a plenary indulgence for you, not in your own interest but for the pure glory of God, according to the method suggested in 'Tart Six," where indulgences are discussed.

Frequently clasp the Crucifix in your hands, so that you may from time to time make acts of love while kissing the Cross and the Five Wounds, as I explain in "Part Five!' Let the Holy Names of Jesus and Mary be ever in your heart and frequently on your lips. Renew the desire to pronounce them with the intentions recommended for the Rosary of Jesus and Mary in 'Part Three.' Pray with St. Francis: "Lord, release my soul from the prison of this body that I may praise Thy Holy Name with all the just who await me in heaven." Constantly invoke the Blessed Virgin, using the words of Holy Church: Maria Mater gratiae, Mater misericordiae, tu nos ab hoste protege et hora mortis . S suscipe: "0 Mary, Mother of Grace, Mother of Mercy protect us from the enemy and receive us at the hour of death." 0 Mother of Jesus, be a mother to my soul. Monstra te esse Matrem. "Show thyself my Mother." Monstra to esse Matrem Jesu. "Show that thou art the Mother of Jesus," by destroying in me, by thy prayers and merits, all that is contrary to the glory of thy Son Jesus, and causing Him to be loved and glorified perfectly in me.

Repeat with St. Stephen: Domine Jesu suscipe ~spirituum meum: "Lord Jesus, receive my spirit " (Acts 7, 58).

As you say all these words, ever unite yourself with the devotion,

the love and die other holy dispositions with which they were first pronounced.

Accept your suffering in union with Jesus, in agony in the garden of Olives: Pater, non mea voluntas sed tua fiat: 'Father, not my will but thine be done" (Luke 22, 42). And again with Jesus agonizing on the Cross, say: Pater, in manus tuas commendo spiritum meum. 'Father, into thy hands I commend my spirit " (Luke 23, 46).

Constantly lift up your heart to Jesus, saying to Him with the beloved disciple St. John: Veni Domine Jesu: "Come, Lord Jesus" (Apoc. 22, 20).

Repeat with St. Peter: Domine, tu scis quia amo te. "Lord, thou knowest that I love thee" (John 2 1 , 16).

Say with the good thief: Memento mei, Domine, dum veneris in regnum tuum: "Lord, remember me when thou shalt come into Thy Kingdom" (Luke 23, 42). And as you pronounce these words, unite yourself with the, heartfelt contrition of the good thief, contrition so deep and moving that he merited the infinite grace to hear from the lips of the Son of God: "Amen I say to thee: this day thou shalt be with me in paradise" (Luke 23, 43).

Humbly repeat with the poor publican in the Gospel: Deus propitius esto mihi peccatori. "0 God, be merciful to me a sinner" (Luke 18, 13).

Let your heart chant with King David: Miserere mei Deus, secundum magnam misericordiam tuam: "Have mercy on me, 0 God, according to thy great mercy" (Ps. 50, 3). Suscipe me secundum eloquium tuum et vivam, et non confundas me ab expectatione mea: "Uphold me according to thy word, and I shall live: and let me not be confounded in my expectation" (Ps. 118, 116). In te Domine speravi, non confundar in aeternum: In thee, 0 Lord, have I hoped, let me never be confounded" (Ps. 30, i).

You may also make use of these little aspirations: "0 Jesus, love Thy Father and Thy Holy Spirit for me." "0 Father of Jesus, 0 Holy Spirit of Jesus, 0 Mother of Jesus, 0 angels of Jesus, 0 saints of Jesus, love Jesus for me." Volo Domine Jesu te regnare super me: "Lord Jesus, I will to have Thee reign over me."

Dominare in medio inimicorum tuorum: "Lord Jesus, reign over me in the midst of all Thy enemies." "0 my Dear Jesus, be Jesus to me; 0 my all, be all to me, for the past, present and future." Unum necessarium, unum volo, unum amo, unum quaero: "One thing alone is necessary. Farewell to all things else; speak of them no more to me. I desire but one thing, I seek but one thing, I love but one thing, which is all to me, and all else is nothing to me. It is my sweetest Jesus Whom I desire, my Dearest Jesus whom I seek. Him I love and Him I long to love with all the love in heaven and on earth." Jesus meus et omnia: "My Jesus is all to me. Once more, farewell to all that is not Jesus. My Jesus is sufficient for me. I desire nought but Him in heaven and on earth." Veni Domine Jesu: "Come Lord Jesus, enter into me, there to love Thyself to perfection." "0 Jesus, my all, be Thou my preparation for my death. 0 Jesus, I give myself to Thee to die with Thee, in Thee and by Thee." "0 Jesus, I give myself to Thee to unite myself, at the moment of death, with all the dispositions of love and sanctity which ennobled the death of Thy divine humanity, Thy holy martyrs and all the other saints." "0 Jesus, 0 Mary, Mother of Jesus, I implore you to give me your holy blessing." Finally, try to make your last word he the Holy Name of Jesus and the sweet name of Mary: Jesus, Mary! or else, Live Jesus! or Jesus, be Jesus to me!

Thus, you may converse with Our Lord with profound devotion and consoling ease by means of frequent ejaculations. But if you wish Him to give you the grace to make these loving aspirations at the hour of your death, you must develop the habit of saying these words and pronouncing these ejaculations frequently during your life, especially at night, lying in bed before falling asleep, using now one, now another, according to the inspiration of the spirit of God.

It would also be well to ask those present around to assist you during your last sickness, to read and reread frequently the above prayers. And if by chance you should lose the power of speech, let them diligently continue to make these acts on your behalf, particularly if it

should happen that you lose the use of your senses or your reason. Once you have made the request and expressed to your friends that it is your will for them to make acts of love in your name and for you, Our Lord will accept these precious acts as if you yourself were making them, since they are made at your request and on your behalf.

Pray also to the Blessed Virgin and your special angels and saints to carry out all these things for you, together with everything else they know God expects of you on the last day of your life. But above all , supplicate Jesus Himself to do this for you, and put great trust in His infinite goodness, that He will be your all, and will do on, your behalf everything that is required of you for a holy and happy'death. And I pray you to note this last point well.

Even though you should prepare yourself for death with all possible care and devotion, by means of these exercises, none the less, after having done all that has been suggested, you should not rely or rest upon your own acts, exercises and preparations, but rather place all your reliance and trust in the pure goodness and mercy of our Lord Jesus Christ, ever imploring Him to be your preparation, your virtue , your sanctification and your all.

For after all is said and done, to Jesus Christ alone does it belong to be all and accomplish all, in all men and all things that He may have the glory Of all, according to the divine words of St. Paul, with which I began this book, and by which I wish to finish it: Omnia in omnibus Christus: "Christ is all and in all " (C0L. 3, 11). Oh, Let Him then be all, in time and in eternity!

0 Jesus, be all, be all on earth as Thou art in heaven: be all in all men and things. Be all in this little book. Everything it has Of good is all from Thee. It speaks but of Thee and for Thee; it aims only at forming and establishing Thee in the souls of those who use it. Let its readers see in it nothing but Jesus, seek in it nothing but Jesus, and learn from it nothing but to love and glorify Jesus. Be all to him who has written this book and to those who shall read it; for Thou knowest, 0 Jesus, my dear all, that it is my will never, in life or in death, to have any other object or desire but to see Thee live and reign in all men and all things. Live then, Jesus, live and reign in us. The wretched Jews cried: Nolumus hunc regnare super nos: "We will not

have this man to reign over us." We, on the contrary, desire to proclaim in the face of heaven and on earth: Volumus, Domine Jesu, te regnare super nos. "We want Thee, Lord Jesus, to reign over us." Reign, therefore, 0 King of Souls, dwell perfectly and absolutely in thy Kingdom in our hearts that we may forever sing the divine canticle: Omnia in omnibus Jesu: "Jesus is all in all things!" Live Jesus! Live Thou great all! Live great Jesus, Who art all! Live this great all, which is Jesus! Live Jesus! Live Jesus!

Live Jesus and Mary