Readings: Wis 3:1-9 / Ps 22:1-6 / Rom 5:5-11 or 6:3-9 / Jn 6:37-40
Overcoming the Fear of Death
By Fr. Eugene Antwi Boasiako
May the Lord give you His peace!
Today we celebrate our unflinching hope in the resurrection of the dead and earnestly pray that all departed sons and daughters of God may, by the merits of the Holy Eucharist we offer, pass over to a dwelling place of light and peace.
It is an indispensable duty of every living Christian to pray for the departed and continually offer Holy Mass for them, for they can no longer do that for themselves. Above all, they were once like us—and we shall surely be like them one day. Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let Your perpetual light shine upon them. May they rest in peace.
We are all familiar with death, yet the thought of it often frightens us. Curiously, though we grieve deeply when someone dies, we soon forget death’s reality—until it strikes again. We tend to think of it as someone else’s experience, something far away. But when death touches someone we love, it suddenly becomes real. We begin to ask, “Why did he or she have to die now?” In such moments, we are compelled to reflect on the inevitability of our own death.
Death spares no one. Imagine, one day—or one night—you will be out of this world. When that permanent transition occurs, where will your journey lead? Are you afraid of that unknown, inescapable moment?
St. Augustine reminds us: Incerta omnia – sola mors certa; mors certa, hora incerta! — “Everything is uncertain except death; death is certain, but the hour uncertain.” The Gospel of John in today’s reading offers us the key to preparing for a happy death and escaping the fear of it. It shows us how we can confidently pray the Anima Christi after Communion.
Life in Christ, the Antidote to Fear
We must acknowledge that without the Lord Jesus we cannot have real life—life that is far more than physical existence. According to the Gospel of John, true life begins with our relationship with God, marked by obedience, trust, and love.
This new relationship is only possible through Jesus Christ (cf. Jn 14:6). Without encountering Him, we merely exist without life. That is why Jesus solemnly declares that He is the Bread of Life—the essential of life that no one can do without (cf. Jn 6:35). By embracing this new relationship with God, we can overcome the fear of death (cf. 1 Cor 15:55–57) and, like St. Francis of Assisi, even dare to call death our “sister.” Truly, Jesus is the antidote to the fear of death.
Encountering the Lord Daily
We receive this new life when we encounter the Lord each day—through Sacred Scripture, the Sacraments, the teachings of the Church, and in the many faces and circumstances of life. To believe in Him and submit wholly to Him is to enter into this new way of life.
Through Jesus, we come to know God as our loving Father, our constant Companion, and our eternal Friend who desires only our good. No human search or intellectual pursuit can bring about this discovery—it comes only through the Bread of Life.
God’s Initiative and Our Response
To know and follow Jesus is open to all—it is absolutely gratuitous. Yet it begins with God’s initiative (cf. Jn 6:37). It is God who inspires our hearts to desire life and gives us grace to obey His Son. Without grace, the human heart remains restless and proud, unable to accept or submit to God. God first finds us before we can say “yes” to Him (cf. Jn 6:44).
Ultimately, we are free to embrace life or reject it. When we freely respond to God’s invitation in Christ Jesus, true life begins—and with it comes inner peace and contentment.
From Fear to Hope
The fear of death is vanquished when we can pray with conviction: “At the hour of my death call me and bid me come to Thee.” Our readiness to meet death peacefully is grounded in faith—that in Christ, life changes but does not end.
The Good News is clear: it is God’s will that His Son should lose none of those entrusted to Him (cf. Jn 6:39–40).
Therefore, today’s commemoration should not lead us to despair but to renewed hope. In Christ Jesus, we have life both now and for eternity (cf. Jn 10:10). We shall one day embrace our departed loved ones again in heaven.
Let us, then, be pilgrims of hope.
May the Lord give you His peace!
