Prayer for a good death — under the patronage of St Joseph

The good death — in Latin bona mors — is, in the Catholic tradition, that which occurs in a state of grace, with the Sacraments received (Confession, Communion as Viaticum, Anointing of the Sick), at peace with God and with the neighbour, and abandoned to the will of the Father. St Joseph is par excellence the patron of a good death, because pious tradition represents him dying in the arms of Jesus and Mary, according to the meditation of St Alphonsus Maria Liguori († 1787) and the writings of Blessed Anne Catherine Emmerich († 1824). Pius IX, in 1870, proclaimed St Joseph Patron of the Universal Church, and the Sacred Congregation of Rites in a decree of 1859 indulgenced the prayer for a good death under his protection. St Camillus of Lellis († 1614) and St Joseph of Cupertino are also patrons of the dying. St Alphonsus Maria Liguori († 1787, Doctor of the Church) wrote the work Preparation for Death which universally diffused this devotion. This prayer is personal — for oneself — in remote preparation for the supreme hour, and may be recited every day of life.

Lord Jesus Christ, Judge of the living and of the dead, who made death — the entry into eternal judgment — a confident passage for those who die in your grace: grant me now, in the full enjoyment of health and reason, the unique grace of a good death.

May I die, Lord:

• In a state of sanctifying grace, free from all mortal sin; and, if possible, free also from the penalties for my venial sins, forgiven through the plenary indulgence in articulo mortis.
• Confessed sacramentally before the passage, with sincere and integral confession.
• Strengthened by Holy Viaticum — the Body of Christ received as bread for the eternal journey.
• Anointed with the oil of the sick, according to the prescription of Jas 5:14-15, by the priest called in time.
• Reconciled with all whom I have offended and forgiving all who have offended me.
• At home, if possible, in my bed, surrounded by the family praying in silence.
• With the crucifix in my hands and the Name of Jesus on my lips, repeating the supreme invocation that the Church teaches: «Jesus, Mary, Joseph, I love you, save souls. Into your hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit» (cf. Lk 23:46).

St Joseph, patron of a good death, who died in the arms of Jesus and Mary: obtain for me the grace to die as you did. Mary Help of Christians, St Michael Archangel, and my Guardian Angel, come to me in my final agony to defend me from the assaults of the enemy.

Amen.

Our Father. Hail Mary. Glory be.