Meditation on Death

Photo: R. Massaro Cathedral of the Incarnation Nashville, Tennessee





MEDITATION ON DEATH
IMITATION OF CHRIST, CHAPTER 23

The hour of death will soon come for you. See to it that you spend your time here well. There is a common saying that human beings are here today and gone tomorrow. And once they are out of sight, they are soon forgotten.

How dull we are and hard of heart, for we think only of the present and make little provision for the life hereafter! If you were wise, you would so order your life as though you were to die before the day is over.

If your conscience were clear, you would not be afraid of death. Better to give up sin than to fear death. If you are unprepared to face death today, how will you be tomorrow? Tomorrow is uncertain and you may not be here to see it.

What good is a long life if we do not use it to advance spiritually? Sad to say, it often happens that a long life adds to our guilt and not to our amendment. If only we could point to one day in our life that was really well spent! Many count the years of their conversion, but often there is little to show for it.

If it is frightening to die, it may be more dangerous to live long. You are truly blessed if you keep the hour of your death before you and prepare yourself for it...

Peace be with you!

Rosemarie, OCDS