of death, Merciful Jesus,

the pangs
have mercy on me.

When the last tear, the forerunner of my dissolution, shall drop from my eyes, receive it as a sacrifice of expiation for my sins; grant that I may expire the victim of penance, and in that dreadful moment, Merciful Jesus, have mercy on me.

When my friends and relations, encircling my bed, shall shed the tear of pity over me, and invoke thy clemency in my behalf, Merciful Jesus, have mercy on me.

When I shall have lost the use of my senses, when the world shall have vanished from my sight, when my agonizing soul shall feel the sorrows of death, Merciful Jesus, have mercy on me.

When my last sigh shall summon my soul to burst from the embraces of the body, and to spring to thee

on the wings of impatience and desire, Merciful Jesus, have mercy on

me.

When my soul, trembling on my lips shall bid adieu to the world, and leave my body lifeless, pale, and cold, receive this separation as a homage, which I willingly pay to thy divine Majesty, and in that last moment of my mortal life, Merciful Jesus, have mercy on me.

When at length, my soul admitted to thy presence shall first behold with terror thy awful Majesty, reject me not, but receive me into thy bosom, where I may for ever sing thy praises, and in that moment, when eternity shall begin to me, Merciful Jesus, have mercy on me.

Let us pray.

O God, who has doomed all men to die, but hast concealed from all

the hour of their death, grant that I may pass my days in the practice of holiness and justice, and that I may deserve to quit this world in the peace of a good conscience, and in the embraces of thy love. Through

Christ our Lord. Amen.

PREPARATION FOR THE HOLY
VIATICUM.

The Viaticum is the holy Eucharist administered with the intention of preparing the sick for death. This blessed Sacrament is indeed the bread of life, of which every good Christian frequently partakes during health; but when the soul is about to pass from the body, there arises a new and peculiar obligation of receiving it. This obligation is founded on the abundant graces which this holy Sacrament, above all the rest, is capable of imparting, and which are at that time so necessary. It is the safeguard that must preserve the soul on its journey to heaven, it is the pledge of immortal glory. "He that eateth this bread shall live for ever (St. John vi.). And so urgent is the obliga

tion of receiving it at the approach of death, that the Church dispenses with her rule in behalf of those who are dangerously sick, and allows them to communicate after having broken their fast. The sick person will, therefore, use his best endeavour to make a worthy preparation for this blessed Sacra

ment.

A Short Exercise in preparation for the holy Viaticum, and which may be used every day.

1. My heart is ready, O God, my heart is ready; not my will but thine be done. O my Lord, I resign myself entirely to thee, to receive death at the time and in the manner it shall please thee to send it.

2. I most humbly ask pardon for all my sins committed against thy sovereign goodness, and repent of them all from the bottom of my heart.

3. I firmly believe whatsoever the holy Catholic Church believes and teaches; and, by thy grace, I will die in this belief.

4. I hope to possess eternal life by thy infinite mercy, and by the merits of my Saviour Jesus Christ.

5. O my God, I desire to love thee as my Sovereign Good, above all things, and to despise this miserable world. I desire to love my neighbour as myself, for the love of thee, and to forgive all injuries from my heart.

6. O my divine Jesus, how great is my desire to receive thy sacred Body! O, come now into my soul, at least by a spiritual communion! O, grant that I may worthily receive thee before my death! I desire to unite myself to all the worthy communions which shall be made in thy holy Church, even to the end of the world.

7. Grant me the grace, O my divine Saviour, perfectly to efface all the sins I have committed by any