Gaby
Something huge happened today: I helped a dying relative make a confession and receive communion.
It’s incredibly tough when someone close to you is dying, especially when you feel utterly helpless. It’s a close relative, and they’re very sick. They live in the apartment next door, and I often give them injections, so I’ve been witnessing everything firsthand. At some point, I realized that all I could really do for them was try to help save their soul.
I suggested we call a priest to administer confession and communion. As someone whose practice of faith mostly involved lighting candles at Easter, they didn’t really know what that meant and weren’t keen to learn. I prayed to every saint I knew to soften their heart and help me show how important it was. I read them a book about confession and was so glad when I noticed something stir inside them. Then I realized there wasn’t a minute to lose!
The next day, we arranged for the priest to come, but he couldn’t make it until the evening. I literally prayed they would hold on until then. All day I kept running next door to check if they were still breathing…
The priest was wonderful. He immediately connected with them, and their doubts vanished. Thankfully, it all worked out. The priest said it was a sincere, heartfelt confession. When I saw tears of joy on my relative’s face afterward, I couldn’t hold back my own. I hadn’t felt that kind of spiritual joy in a long time—this felt like a real battle for a human soul!
I’m grateful that a loved one had once explained to me that sacraments—marriage, communion, confession—often come with big challenges and require patience and perseverance. That warning helped me over the past few days. If I hadn’t known it, I would have had a breakdown, especially since so many circumstances seemed to conspire against it happening.
Today, with something like an inner vision, I saw and felt the whole process from the inside. I got goosebumps during the prayers and from suddenly realizing just HOW SERIOUS IT ALL IS!
One thing I want to say: remember what matters in life—don’t wait until you’re on your deathbed.
Iren
