St Paul in his letter to Corinth asked: “Death, where is your victory? Death, where is your sting?” (I Cor 15:55). The pains of death are the pains of the loss of a beloved. The reality that we shall see them no more in this present life weakens us and traumatizes our existence. This was the same feeling that Jesus felt during the death of Lazarus. Jesus felt the pain that his beloved friend Lazarus whom he shared meals with, was no more. In his expression of the pain, grief and sadness, he wept. He felt the pains of death and the loss of Lazarus in the depth of his heart. He connected with our humanity and allowed his emotions to flow. We feel the same way at the demise of our loved ones. But the book of Wisdom encourages us that “the souls of the righteous are in the hands of God...”  When we live good and holy lives that are dependent on God’s grace, death is seen not as annihilation but as a transition into another phase of life, where we see God face to face to enjoy his beatific vision. Moreso, since nobody knows the hour he/she will be called home, let us learn to celebrate and appreciate one another while we are alive.

PRAYER: Lord, help me to live and lead a good and holy life dependent on your grace, so that whenever you call me to yourself, I will not be found wanting. Amen