Death Prayer – Bereavement – The deceased slowly detaches from body and mind and is born into a new responsibility!
The moment of death is not an end – it is a transformation. The prayer for the dying helps us to enter this moment consciously, tenderly, and with reverence. Master Reding from the Nigredo Monastery accompanies individuals and families through the dying process and in the sacred hours that follow – during the vigil or time of repose.
Through prayer, meditation, and silence, he helps create a space of peace, where death is no longer seen as a failure of the body, but as a passage into a greater mystery.
Too often, the hours after a death are filled with administrative tasks — calls, documents, decisions. In this haste, the heart finds little time to grieve, to feel, to understand. The prayer for the dying restores this lost space — it gives time for the soul to be accompanied, for the living to release, and for love to complete its circle.
The Prayer of My Great-Grandmother (1901)
This prayer was passed down in my family. It comes from the prayer book of my great-grandmother — a devout woman of deep Catholic faith. Whenever sickness or death visited the home, she would open her worn book and recite these words aloud.
Most merciful Jesus,
you love all souls.
For the agony of your sacred heart
and the sorrows of your immaculate Mother,
I ask you: cleanse with your precious blood
all sinners throughout the world
who are now in their final struggle
and will die today.Amen.
The Bread of Life
“I am the living bread which came down from heaven;
whoever eats of this bread shall live forever.”Truly, divine Friend of humankind,
you are the Bread of Heaven —
your Word is truth, your Word is life.Behold, one of your brothers lies in the agony of death.
Show him your power and your love.Be for him the strengthening Bread of eternal life.
Nourish his faith, that he may overcome the world.
Nourish his hope,
that he may leave the body in peace and joy.Feed his love,
that before death he may die to sin
and live only in you.Let him feel your living strength,
that he may live in eternity.Let him know and feel
that you are the Life and the Resurrection.Amen.
Reflection – The Passage
Death is not the end. The soul slowly loosens from the body, like a bird unfolding its wings after a long rest. Layer by layer, it releases itself and is born into a new responsibility — a new form of being. This transition deserves presence and reverence. A candle, a prayer, a moment of stillness — they become bridges for the soul. The prayer for the dying creates a sacred space, where life, death, and eternity quietly meet.
Blessing and Farewell
Peace be with you on your final journey,
and rest in the eternal calm of the Father’s hand.May your hope be nourished,
your heart comforted,
and your soul led home
into the light of love
from which you came.