Have you ever thought about the last part of the Hail Mary Prayer?
Holy Mary, Mother of God, Pray for us Sinners
Now and at the Hour of our Death
Amen
“At the Hour of our Death” – a time we don’t like to contemplate. Yet that is the moment in time that we are imploring Mary to remember and come help us. We ask that every time we say that prayer, especially during a Rosary.
I recently heard a talk about this. As we lay dying, the Devil will make one last attempt to sway us away from our salvation. He will lay seeds of doubt that we weren’t good enough, or that God doesn’t really love us. He may have demons come under the guise of a loved one to tell us these falsehoods. The Devil wants us to fall into despair. No wonder we spend a lifetime asking Mary to be there with us at the hour of our death.
St. Gertrude showed us that this is possible, and what we can do about it.
The Life of St. Gertrude
Gertrude was born in 1256 in the town of Eisleben, Germany. (Martin Luther would be born in the same town 200 years later). We don’t know anything about her parents. Gertrude later wrote down a vision where Jesus told her that he had separated her from family connection so that he would be her only family.
She entered a convent school at the age of 5 and received an excellent education. She was an serious and accomplished student with an outgoing personality to go with it.
But life was not just school and friends. Gertrude enjoyed reading non-religious literature and poetry. She had other interests besides her religion and theology. After her first personal encounter with Jesus, Gertrude considered this time of her life to be frivolous.
In 1281, Jesus appeared to Gertrude and said, ” I will save and deliver you. Fear not.”
An Encounter with Jesus
Now Gertrude was not a bad girl, by any means. But she wasn’t a great saint yet either. That mystical vision from Jesus was a turning point in her life. She wrote many of these experiences down. They have been compiled into a book called, “Revelations of St. Gertrude.”
Gertrude the Great
Gertrude went on fire for the faith! She studied scripture and theology and she recorded many of her theological thoughts.
She struggled with the idea of presenting herself unworthily for communion while at the same time realizing she needed the grace of the sacrament. Gertrude was also devoted to the Sacred Heart of Jesus and his mercy towards sinners. This was a big step away from viewing God as the final Judge, to God, merciful and loving Father.
But most interestingly, at the end of her life, Gertrude was tormented by doubts and fears. One of her last mystical visions was seeing Jesus and Mary with all of the souls she had saved from purgatory through her prayers. They surrounded her with prayer and kept her from a deathbed crisis of faith.
Because she recorded all of her mystical visions, and because they enlightened the church, she has the title “Great” in her name, one of the few women to have that honor.
How to Celebrate
Gertrude had a strong devotion to the poor souls in purgatory. She wrote this prayer. It is said that every time it is recited, 1000 souls are released from purgatory.
Eternal Father, I offer Thee the Most Precious Blood of Thy Divine Son, Jesus, in union with the Masses said throughout the world today, for all the holy souls in purgatory, for sinners everywhere, for sinners in the universal church, those in my own home and within my family. Amen.
If you’re still visiting cemeteries this month, this would be an excellent prayer to recite there. You could also add it to your litany of other daily prayers.
You can also venerate an image or likeness of the Sacred Heart of Jesus today.
For Further Reading
