Subveníte, Sancti Dei, occúrrite, Ángeli Dómini, suscipiéntes ánimam eius, offeréntes eam in conspéctu Altíssimi.
Suscípiat te Christus, qui vocávit te, et in sinum Abrahæ Ángeli dedúcant te.
Réquiem ætérnam dona ei, Dómine, et lux perpétua lúceat ei.
Come to his aid, O Saints of God; hasten to meet him, O Angels of the Lord, receiving his soul, and presenting it in the sight of the Most High.
May Christ receive thee, who hath called thee, and may the Angels lead thee into Abraham’s bosom.
Eternal rest give unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.
When a Christian lies dying, the Church does not leave the soul to face death alone. She gathers at the bedside and prays the Commendatio Animae — the "commendation of the departing soul" — entrusting the dying person into the hands of God and summoning the whole company of heaven to come and escort the soul home. It is among the most tender of all her rites, part of the care of the dying that also includes Confession, the Anointing of the Sick, and Holy Viaticum, the "food for the journey."
At its heart is the ancient antiphon Subvenite: "Come to his aid, O Saints of God; hasten to meet him, O Angels of the Lord, receiving his soul, and presenting it in the sight of the Most High." It is a startling image — angels and saints hurrying to meet the soul at the instant it leaves the body, to carry it, like the poor man Lazarus, "into Abraham’s bosom" (Luke 16:22). The dying Christian is not alone, but surrounded, seen, and welcomed.
Throughout the rite the Church puts short, powerful words on the lips of the dying and those who watch with them: "Into thy hands, O Lord, I commend my spirit" (Luke 23:46), the very words of Christ on the Cross, and the aspiration "Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, I give you my heart and my soul." A crucifix is placed in the hands and a blessed candle lit, that the soul may pass from this world gazing on its Redeemer and surrounded by prayer.
Come to his aid, O Saints of God; hasten to meet him, O Angels of the Lord, receiving his soul, and presenting it in the sight of the Most High.
May Christ receive thee, who hath called thee, and may the Angels lead thee into Abraham’s bosom.
Eternal rest give unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.
Subveníte, Sancti Dei, occúrrite, Ángeli Dómini, suscipiéntes ánimam eius, offeréntes eam in conspéctu Altíssimi.
Suscípiat te Christus, qui vocávit te, et in sinum Abrahæ Ángeli dedúcant te.
Réquiem ætérnam dona ei, Dómine, et lux perpétua lúceat ei.
Come to his aid, O Saints of God; hasten to meet him, O Angels of the Lord, receiving his soul, and presenting it in the sight of the Most High.
May Christ receive thee, who hath called thee, and may the Angels lead thee into Abraham’s bosom.
Eternal rest give unto him, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon him.