Regis Flaherty

Do not fear death

While it is understandable for us to be afraid because of our fallen nature, we need only to see the hand that reaches out to us and fall into the arms of the one who loves us

Fear was not a part of man's original nature. In fact, Adam and Eve walked in the Garden with beasts and God and felt no dread. Fear only became a factor when sin entered.

During the first meeting between God and man after that primal sin, Scripture tells us that Adam and Eve tried to hide from God. Responding to God's questioning, Adam gave the reason, "I was afraid" (Gn 3:10).

The root of the Greek word for fear in this passage is phobos -- the same root from which we get the word phobia. "Unnatural" fear, a phobia, became part of the human condition because of sin. Now fear is a part of our unnatural -- that is, fallen -- nature.

As we know, there were many consequences to the rebellion of our first parents against God. One result was death. Our bodies return to the dust of which they were made (see Gn 2:19). Both of these consequences -- fear and death -- have been joined ever since. From the time that our forebears walked out of the Garden of Eden, mankind has been plagued by the fear of death.

Saintly responses

So, if you have a fear of death, welcome to the human race. Even great saints struggled with this fear. St. Therese of Lisieux told her fellow sisters as they gathered around her bed, "I have feared death." St. Teresa of Avila admitted that she had viewed death with "a great apprehension."

Yet, it is equally true that many Catholics have overcome their fear of death. The martyrs willingly embraced death rather than deny the Lord. The early martyrologies provide ample examples.

For instance, St. Arcadius, whose feast is celebrated on Jan. 12, faced the Roman governor who gave him an option to death: "I am willing to pardon ... you ... on condition that you will sacrifice to the gods."

Take note of Arcadius' reply: "How can you propose to me such a thing? Do you not know the Christians, or do you believe that the fear of death will ever make me swerve from my duty? Jesus Christ is my life, and death is my gain. Invent what torments you please; but know that nothing shall make me a traitor to my God."

Faithfulness to Christ

This faithfulness to Christ unto death was not just a masculine quality. Sts. Agape, Chionia and Irene were roughly contemporaries with Arcadius. They could have avoided death if they ate some food that had been offered to pagan gods.

The judge cajoled them with the rationale: How bad could it be just to eat the food and thereby avoid death? All three women withstood the enticement. Agape said, "I believe in the living God, and will not by an evil action lose all the merit of my past life."

Chionia agreed. She would not take the food for she desired "to save [her] soul." It was Irene who gave the fullest answer: "Almighty God ... has commanded us to love him even unto death; on which account we dare not betray him, but rather choose to be burnt alive, or suffer any thing whatsoever."

What of our two saints Theresa? Little Therese (of Lisieux) told her fellow nuns that she feared death "less and less" as it grew nearer. Big Teresa (of Avila) said that it was a vision of heaven that put her prior fear into perspective. In fact, she wrote that it was worth enduring any and all suffering that could be imagined to attain even the "lowest place in heaven."

Christ clears our vision

So, the saints leave us with a challenge. As fallen human beings, fear, particularly the fear of death, is our condition. Yet our heavenly brothers and sisters point to freedom from the fear that could paralyze and consume us. Their road to overcoming fear of death can be ours as well.

There are two primary helps that are available to us.

Jesus told his followers, "The truth will set you free" (Jn 8:32). Our vision in this world is clouded and confused. As Paul writes, "At present we see indistinctly" (1 Cor 13:12).

However, when we turn to Jesus and the truth he gave -- truth that is preserved and transmitted through the Church -- our vision becomes clearer. In Christ, who has died and risen, we find a hope that is sure. Rather than just taking my word, read God's Word and let the truth speak to you (see sidebar).

The truth is that Jesus has us covered: "Do not be afraid. I am the first and the last, the one who lives" (Rv 1:17). When we encounter the temptation to give into the fear of death, speaking the truth is a strong antidote. If we are in the state of grace, we can be confident in the promises of God.

Trust in loving God

"There is no fear in love, but perfect love drives out fear" (Jn 4:18) -- so our Lord told his disciples when he walked this earth and so he continues to tell us.

Jesus loves us. We hear the phrase so often that it can rob it of its power. So it's worth saying it again thoughtfully. Jesus loves us -- perfectly.

That love is trustworthy. It can quiet our anxieties and bring us peace, especially as we grow closer to him and our own love deepens.

Surely we would fear to entrust our wealth to an infamous thief. However, we have no such concern when leaving it in the hands of some person who loves us. To fall into the unknown would fill anyone with fear.

However, if we know that our beloved is there to catch us, the dark no longer makes us tremble. St. Therese of Lisieux grew less fearful as she approached death because she saw that the one she loved was awaiting her: "He is at the door; He has entered."

The suffering, the pain, the confusion that surrounded death tempted Therese to fear, but she saw the one who waited for her. She told her sisters, "I am not afraid of what happens after death; that is certain! ... What happiness if I could die right now!"

Remember Peter and his failed attempt to walk on water? When he looked at the circumstances (the waves and the wind), he feared and began to fall. All was well only when he looked at Jesus. And when he began to stumble, it was the hand of his Lord that led him back to safety. It was the strong hand of Love that grasped him.

We shouldn't be surprised if we fear death. It is part of our fallen nature. However, that fear will never overwhelm the Christian who sees the truth revealed in the life, death and resurrection of the God-man. And if we feel we are sinking in fear, we need only to see the hand that reaches out to us and fall into the arms of he who loves us.

Saintly insights into last things

"Our Redeemer took death upon him that we might not be afraid to die; he showed us his own Resurrection that we might hope that we too shall rise again."
-- St. Gregory the Great

"For what is sleep but a daily death which does not completely remove man hence nor detain him too long? And what else is death but a very long and very deep sleep, from which God arouses man?
-- St.Augustine

"What, I pray you, is dying? Just what is it to put off a garment? For the body is about the soul as a garment; and after laying this aside for a short time by means of death, we shall resume it again with more splendor."
-- St. John Chrysostom

"The best way to prepare for death is to spend every day of life as though it were the last. Think of the end of worldly honor, wealth and pleasure and ask yourself: And then? And then?
-- St. Philip Neri

The Lord speaks about death

 "Do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death? We were buried, therefore, with him by baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we, too, might walk in newness of life" (Rom 6:3-4).

 "If we have been united with him in a death like his, we shall certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his" (Rom 6:5).

 "The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom should I fear? ... The Lord is the stronghold of my life. ... Your presence, O Lord, I seek. ... Wait for the Lord with courage; be stouthearted, and wait for the Lord" (Ps 27:1, 8, 14).

Since therefore the children share in flesh and blood, he himself likewise partook of the same nature, that through death he might destroy him who has the power of death, that is, the devil, and deliver all those who through fear of death were subject to lifelong bondage" (Heb 2:14-15).

Regis Flaherty is the author of "Last Things First: A Comprehensive Answer to the Only Question That Really Matters: What Comes After Death?" (OSV, $13.95).