Prayer for a Happy Death: Catholic Prayers and St. Joseph

For Catholics, a “happy death” means dying in the grace of God, at peace with him and with others, ideally strengthened by the sacraments, and ready to meet the Lord. The Church has always taught the faithful to pray for this grace: every Hail Mary ends with “now and at the hour of our death.” Below are traditional prayers for a happy death from the Raccolta, the prayer to St. Joseph, patron of a happy death, and practical ways to prepare for a holy death at any age.

Prayer for a happy death (Leo XIII)

Pope Leo XIII attached an indulgence to this prayer in 1902. It offers our own last breath to Jesus in union with his death on the Cross:

Jesus, while adoring thy last breath, I pray Thee to receive mine. In the uncertainty whether I shall have the command of my senses, when I shall depart out of this world, I offer Thee from this moment my agony and all the pains of my passing away. Thou art my Father and my Saviour, and I give back my soul into thy hands. I desire that my last moment may be united to the moment of thy death, and that the last beat of my heart may be an act of pure love of Thee. Amen.

Jesus, Mary and Joseph: the ejaculations for a happy death

These three short prayers from the Raccolta are among the best-loved Catholic aspirations. Many people pray them every night before sleep:

Jesus, Mary, Joseph, I give you my heart and my soul.
Jesus, Mary, Joseph, assist me in my last agony.
Jesus, Mary, Joseph, may I breathe forth my soul in peace with you.

Prayer to St. Joseph for a happy death

St. Joseph is the patron of a happy death because, according to tradition, he died in the arms of Jesus and Mary. This prayer is from Cardinal Moran’s Catholic Prayer Book (1883):

O glorious St. Joseph, spouse of the immaculate Virgin, obtain for me a pure, humble, and charitable mind, and perfect resignation to the Divine will. Be my guide, father, and model through life, that I may merit to die as thou didst, in the arms of Jesus and Mary. Amen.

See also the prayer to St. Joseph and the novena to St. Joseph.

Three offerings to obtain a good death

This devotion to the Holy Trinity, indulgenced by Pope Leo XII in 1823, offers the merits of Christ’s Passion, death and Incarnation in thanksgiving and asks for the grace of a good death:

We offer to the Most Holy Trinity the merits of Jesus Christ, in thanksgiving for the Most Precious Blood which He shed in the garden for us; and through those merits we beseech his Divine Majesty for pardon of our sins. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be.

We offer to the Most Holy Trinity the merits of Jesus Christ, in thanksgiving for his most precious death endured on the Cross for us; and through those merits we beseech his Divine Majesty for the remission of the pains due to our sins. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be.

We offer to the Most Holy Trinity the merits of Jesus Christ, in thanksgiving for his unspeakable charity, in descending from heaven to earth to take human flesh, and to suffer and die for us upon the Cross; and by those merits we beseech his Divine Majesty to bring our souls to the glory of heaven after our death. Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory be.

A daily prayer for a holy death

Written for this page:

Lord Jesus, I do not know the day or the hour when you will call me.
Keep me always ready, living in your grace.
When my time comes, give me true sorrow for my sins, the comfort of the sacraments,
the presence of those I love, and a heart at peace.
Into your hands I commend my spirit. Jesus, Mary and Joseph, be with me then. Amen.

For someone who is dying now, see prayers for the dying and last rites.

How to prepare for a happy death

The saints did not leave a good death to chance. They prepared for it every day:

Live in God’s grace. Go to confession regularly; a holy death is the fruit of a holy life. See how to go to confession.
Ask for the sacraments in time. When you or a loved one is seriously ill, call a priest for the Anointing of the Sick, confession and Viaticum, the last Communion. Do not wait until the final hours.
Pray every day for the grace of final perseverance, for example with the ejaculations above or the Hail Mary.
Make the First Fridays. Among the promises of the Sacred Heart to St. Margaret Mary is the grace of final repentance for those who receive Communion on nine consecutive First Fridays. See First Friday devotion.
Wear the Brown Scapular as a sign of consecration to Mary. See Our Lady of Mount Carmel.
Put your affairs in order: forgive, ask forgiveness, make a will and an advance directive in line with Catholic teaching, and tell your family your wishes for a Catholic funeral. See Catholic funeral prayers.
Remember death without fear. The old practice of memento mori, thinking each day about one’s death, is meant not to frighten but to help us live well.

Patron saints of a happy death

St. Joseph, who died in the arms of Jesus and Mary.
St. Benedict, who according to St. Gregory the Great died standing in the oratory, supported by his monks, after receiving Communion. See the St. Benedict prayer.
St. Barbara, invoked against sudden death without the sacraments. See the St. Barbara prayer.
Our Lady, whom we ask in every Hail Mary to pray for us “at the hour of our death.”

Frequently asked questions

What is a happy death in the Catholic faith?

Dying in the state of grace, at peace with God, having received if possible the sacraments of confession, Anointing of the Sick and Viaticum. It is “happy” because it leads to eternal life, not because it is free of suffering.

Who is the patron saint of a happy death?

St. Joseph, because tradition holds that he died with Jesus and Mary at his side.

Can I pray for a happy death for someone else?

Yes. Praying for the dying, especially for those who will die today, is a traditional work of mercy. Many Catholics pray daily for “all who will die today.”

More prayers

Texts and sources

The Raccolta (English edition, 1910), no. 137, Prayer for a Happy Death (Leo XIII, 1902); no. 427, Ejaculations for a Happy Death; no. 6, Three Offerings of Thanksgiving to obtain a Good Death (Leo XII, 1823; Pius IX, 1876), public domain (archive.org).
P. F. Moran, The Catholic Prayer Book and Manual of Meditations (1883), Devotions to St. Joseph, public domain (Wikisource).