Spiritual Care for the Sick and Dying

The Michigan Catholic Conference (MCC) just came out with an updated set of guidelines and resources for end of life decision. Click here to learn more.

The information on this page is based on a talk given by Fr. Gordon in 2019.  

We hope you will find this information helpful in knowing how to pray
for a loved one who is ill or dying.

 Knowing that priests can be difficult to find if one waits until the last minute to be anointed or has family members who don't practice and have no intention of calling a priest, I came up with a list of prayers and practices with which any lay person should be familiar.  It would be ideal if we could all receive our last sacraments from a priest, but given our limitations, we might have to make other arrangements and do the best we can.  Here are some of those practices to promote as well as the original handout.
 

What prayers do we pray when we can’t get a priest?  How to prepare?

§  Confess your sins to God privately & forgive all who have hurt you / reconcile with others – pray an  Act of Contrition / pray Psalm 51

§  Read Scripture – especially about the promises of salvation in the Gospels

§  Pray for mercy for yourself & for all the dying ( DVM Chaplet /  Rosary)

§  Profess your faith (pray the  Creed) – make Acts of  Faith,  Hope &  Love

§  Make an  Act of Spiritual Communion when you cannot receive physically

§  Ask protection of  St. Michael, your  guardian angel and patron saints (e.g., St. Joseph, patron of the dying   http://www.piousunionofstjoseph.org )

§  Pray a  Litany of the Saints

§  Wear the  Brown Scapular of Our Lady of Mount Carmel