Memento Mori

I know not the hour
I know not how
I know not where
But I shan’t be alone.

One foot here
One foot there
I hover, delicately,
In the space between.

There need be no fear
Not where Love is
Love that created
Love that will call.

You know the hour
You know the how
You know the where
I shan’t be alone.

There are those that will say that thinking about death, particularly one’s own death, is morbid. I happen to think differently. It wasn’t always that way, though. Death and anything related to death, quite frankly, used to scare me to death (obvious pun here!) What changed?

My closest encounter with death was when my mother died nine years ago. I walked into her hospice room in the early hours of the morning shortly after she had passed not knowing what to expect. There was a deep sense of peace that hung in the air, despite sorrow, and her presence filled the room. Moved by what could only have been the Spirit, I found myself on my knees beside her bed, praying aloud, words spilling from my lips inspired by the soul. The experience made a profound impression on me. If this was what dying was, then perhaps my fears only touched the human side of death.

Those of us who have been baptized have been marked as ones destined to participate in Christ’s death - and His resurrection. It is human to fear the manner of death, but faith assures us we shall not be alone, accompanied on the journey passing from this life to the next by a company of souls who have gone before. If we look at death from the spiritual side, our souls, whether we are aware of it or not, are drawn to Love - the Love that created us and will call us at the perfectly ordained time. As with anything in life, if we take steps to prepare, we are more likely to be ready. The same principal applies to our death.

Memento Mori - remember your death - has been a subject of contemplation in philosophy, religion, and secular society since Roman times. An internet search lends itself to a vast treasury of writings and art, as well as the history and myths of the movement (such as The Hermits of St. Paul, a/k/a the Brothers of Death, who embraced it in every aspect of their order). I was introduced to the phrase by my youngest daughter, who cued me in to the trending YouTube Channel Unus Annus (One Year), with its the tagline Memento Mori. Although frequently unconventional, one can’t ignore the fact that it brought the idea of contemplating on one’s death to more than 4.8 million subscribers.

The more I looked into the history and art, the more I was intrigued. Further delving led me to discover the work of Sr. Theresa Aletheia, a nun on a mission to rekindle the practice of meditating on one’s death. Her personal story is a compelling one - an atheist convert to Catholicism - who is now a sister with the Daughters of St. Paul, a/k/a the Media Nuns. In 2017, she began tweeting about the skull on her desk and she hasn’t stopped since. Her passion about death isn’t about dying. It’s about living now to live in eternity. And that’s what changed.

My experiences with death since my mother’s passing have been varied, but they have all left their mark. There is sadness, yes, but there is an increasing awareness of the spiritual realm that touches our humanity in a unique way at death. A few months ago, I sat at a table where a young woman (with spiritual, not religious beliefs) shared a very personal account of dying ~ and coming back. That sense of the Spirit I felt in my mother’s hospice room seemed to fill the space and wove around the words she spoke. They weren’t words of death, but life. Life into love eternal.

This coming Advent, I’m taking the plunge. Not into decorating and shopping and the other myriad of holiday preparations, but into The Last Things - death, judgment, heaven, and hell, thanks to Sr. Theresa’s new book Memento Mori: An Advent Companion. (And if you are an art lover, the art work is a fabulous compilation of many talented artists!) Christ’s birth is the beginning of his journey to death, one that brings our death to a journey of life everlasting. Happy month of All Souls ~ Memento Mori!

Resources:
Sr. Theresa’s website, including her story and online store https://pursuedbytruth.com
Daily Stoic’s interview with Sr. Theresa https://dailystoic.com/sr-theresa-aletheia-noble-interview/
Baritus Catholic - Memento Mori sticker and more! (his work is also featured in Sr. Theresa’s new book) https://www.etsy.com/market/baritus_catholic

Contemplation:
What are my thoughts and beliefs on death?
What have my personal experiences been concerning death?
Have I ever reflected on my own death? Why or why not?
What did that reflection reveal?
Today, I will spend a few quiet moments and open my mind and heart to explore death without fear…