The priest, vested in surplice and violet stole, enters the room of the dying person, saying:
Peace be unto this house.
R. And unto all who dwell therein.
He then sprinkles the dying person, the chamber, and the bystanders, with holy water in the form of a cross, saying the Asperges.
Thou shalt sprinkle me, O Lord, with hyssop, and I shall be cleansed: Thou shalt wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow.
Have mercy upon me, O God, according to Thy great mercy.
Glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Ghost. As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, world without end. Amen.
Ant. Thou shalt sprinkle me, O Lord, with hyssop, and I shall be cleansed: Thou shalt wash me, and I shall be made whiter than snow.
He next presents a crucifix to the dying person to be kissed, and exhorts him to look forward to everlasting life; leaving the crucifix before him, that, beholding it, he may be encouraged to hope for eternal salvation. Then, having lighted a candle, the priest kneels, and with the bystanders devoutly recites the Shorter Litany, as follows:
The Litany for the Dying
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Holy Mary, pray for him.
All ye holy angels and archangels,
Holy Abel,
All ye choirs of the just,
Holy Abraham,
St. John the Baptist,
St. Joseph,
All ye holy patriarchs and prophets,
St. John of God,
All ye holy monks and hermits,
St. Mary Magdalen,
St. Lucy,
All ye holy virgins and widows,
All ye holy saints of God, make intercession for him.
Be merciful, spare him, O Lord.
Be merciful, O Lord, deliver him.
Be merciful, O Lord, deliver him.
From Thy wrath,
From the peril of death,
From an evil death,
From the pains of hell,
From all evil,
From the power of the devil,
Through Thy birth,
Through Thy Cross and Passion,
Through Thy death and burial,
Through Thy glorious Resurrection,
Through Thine admirable Ascension,
Through the grace of the Holy Ghost the Paraclete,
In the Day of Judgment,
We sinners, beseech Thee, hear us.
That Thou spare him, we beseech Thee, hear us.
Lord, have mercy.
Christ, have mercy.
Lord, have mercy.
Then, while the soul is in the agony of its departure, the priest recites the following prayers:
Go forth, O Christian soul, from this world, in the name of God the Father Almighty, Who created thee; in the name of Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, Who suffered for thee; in the name of the Holy Ghost, Who was poured forth upon thee; [‡in the name of the glorious and ever Blessed Virgin Mary, Mother of God; in the name of St. Joseph, chaste spouse of the same Virgin;] in the name of the angels and archangels; in the name of the thrones and dominations; in the name of the principalities and powers; in the name of the [‡heavenly forces,] cherubim, and seraphim; in the name of the patriarchs and prophets; in the name of the holy apostles and evangelists; in the name of the holy martyrs and confessors; in the name of the holy monks and hermits; in the name of the holy virgins and of all the saints of God: may thy place be this day in peace, and thine abode in holy Sion. Through the same Christ Our Lord. R. Amen.
O merciful God, O gracious God, O God, Who, according to the multitude of Thy tender mercies, blottest out the sins of the penitent, and graciously remittest the guilt of past offenses; look favorably upon this Thy servant N., and in Thy mercy hear him as he craves, with heartfelt confession, the remission of all his sins. Renew within him, O most loving Father, whatsoever hath been corrupted through human frailty, or violated through the deceit of the devil; and associate him as a member redeemed to the unity of the body of Thy Church. Have pity, Lord, on his groanings; have pity on his tears; and admit him, who hath no hope save in Thy mercy, to the Sacrament of Thy reconciliation. Through Christ Our Lord. R. Amen.
I commend thee to Almighty God, dearly beloved brother, and commit thee to Him Whose creature thou art; that, when thou shalt have paid the debt of humanity by passing through death, thou mayest return to thy Maker, Who formed thee from the dust of the earth. When, therefore, thy soul goeth forth from thy body, may the glorious company of angels meet thee; may the council of the apostles who shall judge the world greet thee; may the triumphant army of white-robed martyrs come out to welcome thee; may the band of shining confessors, crowned with lilies, encircle thee; may the choir of joyous virgins receive thee; and unto the bosom of blessed rest may the embrace of the patriarchs clasp thee;
[‡may St. Joseph, most consoling patron of the dying, lift thee up in holy hope; may Mary, the holy Mother of God, mercifully turn her eyes upon thee;] gentle and joyful may the face of Jesus Christ appear to thee, and may He award thee a place among those who stand before Him forever. Mayest thou never know aught of the terror of darkness, the gnashing of teeth in the flames, the agonies of torment. May Satan most foul, with his wicked crew, give way before thee; may he tremble at thy coming with the angels that attend thee, and flee away into the vast chaos of eternal night. Let God arise, and let His enemies be scattered; and let them that hate Him flee from before His face. As smoke vanisheth, so let them vanish away; as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God; and let the just feast and rejoice before God. May, then, all the legions of hell be confounded and put to shame, nor may the ministers of Satan dare to hinder thy way. May Christ, Who was crucified for thee, deliver thee from torment. May Christ, Who vouchsafed to die for thee, deliver thee from everlasting death. May Christ, the Son of the living God, place thee within the green pastures of His paradise, and may He, the true Shepherd, acknowledge thee as one of His sheep. May He absolve thee from all thy sins, and set thee at His right hand in the portion of His elect. Mayest thou behold thy Redeemer face-to-face; and, standing ever before Him, gaze with blessed eyes on the Truth made manifest. And set thus among the choirs of the blessed, mayest thou enjoy the sweetness of divine contemplation forevermore. R. Amen.
Receive, O Lord, Thy servant into the place of salvation, which he hopes for from Thy mercy. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant from all the dangers of hell, and from the bonds of its punishments, and from all tribulations. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver Henoch and Elias from the common death of the world. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver Noah from the flood. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver Abraham from Ur of the Chaldeans. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver Job from his sufferings. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver Isaac from being sacrificed by the hand of his father Abraham. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver Lot from Sodom and from the flame of fire. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver Moses from the hands of Pharaoh, king of the Egyptians. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver Daniel from the lions’ den. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver the three children from the burning fiery furnace, and from the hand of a wicked king. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver Susanna from a false accusation. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver David from the hand of King Saul and from the hand of Goliath. R. Amen.
Deliver, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, as Thou didst deliver Peter and Paul out of prison. R. Amen.
And as Thou didst deliver Thy most blessed virgin and martyr, Thecla, from three most cruel torments, so vouchsafe to deliver the soul of this Thy servant, and make it to rejoice with Thee in the bliss of heaven. R. Amen.
We commend unto Thee, O Lord, the soul of Thy servant, N., and we beseech Thee, O Lord Jesus Christ, Savior of the world, that Thou wouldst not refuse to place in the bosom of Thy patriarchs a soul for whose sake Thou didst mercifully come down upon earth. Acknowledge, O Lord, Thy creature, made, not by strange gods, but by Thee, the only living and true God: for there is no other God besides Thee, and none that doeth according to Thy works. Make glad his soul, O Lord, with Thy presence, and remember not his old sins, and the excesses which wrath or heat of evil desire may have aroused. For though he has sinned, he has not denied the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Ghost; but has believed, and has had a zeal for God, and has faithfully worshipped God, the Creator of all things.
Remember not, O Lord, we beseech Thee, the sins of his youth nor his ignorances; but, according to Thy great mercy, be mindful of him in the brightness of Thy glory. May the heavens be opened unto him, may the angels rejoice with him. Into Thy kingdom, O Lord, receive Thy servant. May St. Michael, archangel of God, prince of the heavenly host, receive him. May the holy angels of God come forth to meet him, and lead him into the heavenly city, Jerusalem. May blessed Peter the apostle, to whom were given by God the keys of the kingdom of heaven, receive him. May St. Paul the apostle, who was counted worthy to be a vessel of election, assist him. May St. John, the chosen apostle of God, to whom were revealed the secrets of heaven, intercede for him. May all the holy apostles, to whom the Lord gave the power of binding and loosing, pray for him. May all the saints and elect of God, who, in this world, suffered torments for the name of Christ, intercede for him: that, being loosed from the bonds of the flesh, he may come to the glory of the heavenly kingdom, through the grace of Our Lord Jesus Christ, Who, with the Father and the Holy Ghost, liveth and reigneth, world without end. R. Amen.
[‡May the most clement Virgin Mary, Mother of God, loving consoler of the afflicted, commend to her divine Son the soul of this her servant N., so that, through her maternal intercession, our dying brother may be freed from the terrors of death and in her company joyfully enter the desired heavenly home. R. Amen.
We fly to thee, St. Joseph, patron of the dying, and we earnestly commend to thee, whom Jesus and Mary assisted at thy happy death by this twofold pledge most dear, the soul of this thy servant N., now in his last agony, so that, under thy protection, he may be freed from the snares of the devil and from everlasting death, thus reaching the eternal joys of heaven. Through the same Christ Our Lord. R. Amen.]
Here, if the soul still linger, may be read the seventeenth chapter of St. John’s Gospel, and the Passion of Our Lord, according to St. John.
