Theresa Marino 12/29/23
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You are going to die. Not the most traditional of mantras for this cheerful time of year. We may be more at ease saying things like “Treat yourself, it’s the holidays!” or “May your days be merry and bright!” But when we speak of making a new year count, there is nothing that motivates like calling to mind the 100% mortality rate of human beings. Despite how fragile we know life to be in principle, we all tend to act day to day like we’ll have endless chances to forgive, to get in shape, to travel, to work less, to smile more, to get right with God. This New Year’s resolution didn’t stick? Well, there is always next year!
According to the records of Database Earth and the PRB (Population Reference Bureau), there was no next year for 2,912,402 Americans who made New Year’s resolutions last January 1st, 2023. An estimated 10-15% of those deaths were sudden or unexpected. Transportation accidents, falls, fires, drownings, heart attacks, blood clots and unexpected late-stage medical diagnosis are among the most common sudden death incidences. We all know a colleague, a cousin, a friend or an acquaintance who has received this type of news in the last calendar year which has rocked their world. We have all heard the tragic stories of suicides and overdoses in our neighborhoods, churches and school communities. We’ve all sung along to the country songs which remind us that the best way to live is to “live like you were dying” (Tim McGraw). Death instantly puts our priorities in perfect perspective. We know this, and yet when it happens around us, we are never quite prepared. Would you be surprised if this New Year was your last?
As Catholics, we shouldn’t be. In the Mass readings leading up to the season of Advent, we hear the Lord remind us again and again to “watch,” “stay awake” and “be ready” because death will come like a thief in the night. When we pray the Hail Mary, we invoke the intercession of Our Lady “now and at the hour of our death.” From ancient times, all the greatest saints made some daily spiritual practice of calling to mind the possibility of their own death. In Latin, this is called Memento Mori and it means; remember your death. This reminder made them more alive, not less.
It is a good thing Christmas comes just before New Years! Jesus is born into the darkest of places precisely that he may shine light into them. He is born into the most dire of circumstances precisely so that he might encourage us that there is no depth we cannot conquer with his help. What if our most important resolution this year was to live in a deeper relationship with God?
Let January 1st, 2024 be the day you take your first step in that direction. Let every day after be another step towards that ultimate goal of a “happy death.” Doing so will allow us to live our best and happiest life. That is, after all, why God came to live among us…to show us how to live life to the full.
Theresa Marino is a New York native who has served the Catholic Church throughout her twenties in various ministry capacities. Currently a middle school Religion Teacher, she has also worked in high school campus ministry, music ministry, mission work and parish settings.
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