Prayed in life, for the hour of death

Asking now for the grace you will need then.

A happy death, in Catholic language, means dying in a state of grace, with the sacraments, at peace with God and with people. It is prayed for long before it is needed — traditionally every day. The Church has never thought it morbid to prepare for the one appointment nobody misses.

The Prayer

O Lord Jesus Christ, God of goodness and Father of mercy,
I come to You with a contrite and humble heart.

To You I commend the last hour of my life,
and the judgment that follows.

When my feet, benumbed with death,
remind me that my course in this life is drawing to an end —
merciful Jesus, have mercy on me.

When my hands, cold and trembling,
can no longer clasp the crucifix —
merciful Jesus, have mercy on me.

When my eyes, dim with the shadow of death,
fix themselves on You —
merciful Jesus, have mercy on me.

When my face, pale and livid, inspires the bystanders with pity,
and my hair, bathed in the sweat of death,
stiffening on my head, foretells my approaching end —
merciful Jesus, have mercy on me.

When my imagination, agitated by dreadful spectres,
is sunk in mortal anguish;
when my soul, affrighted at the sight of my sins
and terrified at the thought of Your justice,
struggles with the angel of darkness —
merciful Jesus, have mercy on me.

Jesus, Mary and Joseph,
I give you my heart and my soul.
Jesus, Mary and Joseph,
assist me in my last agony.
Jesus, Mary and Joseph,
may I breathe forth my soul in peace with you. Amen.

The Short Invocation

Jesus, Mary and Joseph, I give you my heart and my soul.
Jesus, Mary and Joseph, assist me in my last agony.
Jesus, Mary and Joseph, may I breathe forth my soul in peace with you.

About This Prayer

The imagery is unsparing, and deliberately so — this is a prayer written by people who watched others die at home rather than in hospitals. The three-line invocation carries a partial indulgence and is the form most people pray daily. St. Joseph is patron of a happy death because, by tradition, he died with Jesus and Mary beside him.