The Extraordinary Jubilee Year of Mercy Dec. 8, 2015 - Nov. 20, 2016 With All Souls Day (November 2) and the close of the Year of Mercy (November 20, 2016) occurring in November, it is a good time to give special and added attention to those who have gone before us.
There are many reasons to pray for the dying. One very good reason was given by our Lady of Fatima on July 13, 1917: “Many souls go to Hell because no one prays and sacrifices for them.” What can be more important than to save a soul from eternal damnation?
The Year of Mercy has taught us much about God’s endless mercy.
We can practice devotion to the dying by praying the Morning Offering daily, making sacrifices for the conversion of dying sinners, sending our Guardian angel to the dying, praying the Divine Mercy Chaplet, praying the Rosary daily, praying to St. Michael, the Archangel, and to St. Joseph, Patron of a Happy Death and more. St. Alphonsus Liguori stated that: “There is no greater act of charity than to assist the dying.”
Praying for the dying is an excellent means of preparing for our own death. St. James (5: 17) states: “Whoever brings back a sinner from the error of his way will save his own soul from death and will cover a multitude of sins.” Pope Francis stated: “There are no walls or distances which can prevent the Father’s mercy from reaching and embracing us.”