On Preparing for Death
January 3
By Archpriest Victor Guryev
January 3
By Archpriest Victor Guryev
We are constantly taught how to live in this world, and certainly, that is a good thing; for there is nothing better in life than knowing how to live well. All of this is true, but here is what is regrettable: why are we either not taught at all or taught very little about how we should prepare for death, how we ought to die? And, in our opinion, this latter teaching is more important than the former. "Every mistake in life," says one of the preachers, "can be corrected, but we die only once; each of us is destined to die once, and then comes the judgment. And just as one dies, so shall one appear before this judgment." Therefore, we repeat, the teaching on death is perhaps more useful than the teaching on life. And if that is so, then let us consider the teaching on death, and for the first lesson on death, let us take it from the following instructive narrative, placed in the Prologue.
There were two brothers who had many children. They taught their children a special diligence, and through this, they became wealthy. One day, the following occurred in this family: one of the brothers called in the children of his brother and said to them, "My brother, your father knows of a day, on which if one works, one can become rich forever and then live without labor; I myself have experienced this, but now I have forgotten which day it is. Therefore, go to your father, he will tell you about this day." The children gladly went to their father and earnestly began to ask him to indicate the day, after which they could live without labor. The father replied, "I too, children, have forgotten this day, but go and work for a year; in that time, perhaps you yourselves will discover the day that brings a carefree life." The children worked diligently for a whole year, but did not find such a day, and reported this to their father. The father gave them their due for their labor and said: "Do this: divide the year into four seasons — spring, summer, autumn, and winter — work diligently, and you will find that day." The children worked, but they did not find such a day on which they could become wealthy forever and cease working. At the end of the year, the father again rewarded them for their efforts and added: "For the future, proceed as follows: divide the year into twelve months, work once more, and you will find that day." The children followed their father's instruction, yet again they did not find a day on which they could amass wealth and thereafter cease working. Then the children said to their father, "And once again we did not find the day you indicated, and since we have become weary, yet have also earned the means for our sustenance, we will no longer labor." The father replied, "The day I pointed out to you is the day of death, and that is why you did not find it, for it comes upon us very often, even when we do not think of it at all. Therefore, one must labor for the salvation of the soul day and night and prepare for death."
What, then, does this parable teach us? It is clear that the day of death, if we prepare for it with good deeds, will truly be for us a day on which we will consider ourselves forever enriched, after which we will no longer need to suffer or toil. For through death we pass from darkness to light, from prison to freedom, from a foreign land to our native country... We will enter that city where we will be freed from every earthly burden, from sorrow, illness, and death. "There God will wipe away every tear from our eyes, and death shall be no more; for the former things have passed away" (Rev. 21:4). Amen.
Source: Translated by John Sanidopoulos.