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Office Of Readings | Week 34, Friday, Ordinary Time | A Reading From The Sermon Of Saint Cyprian On Mortality | Let Us Put Aside The Fear Of Death And Meditate Upon Immortality
‘Let us put aside the fear of death and meditate upon immortality.’
Saint Cyprian writes in a time of crisis for the early Church—war, plague, persecution, and instability. Yet he refuses to interpret these pressures as cause for panic. Instead, he perceives in them a summons to remember who we truly are: pilgrims whose homeland is not this world but the kingdom of God. His words therefore have a bracing clarity. They strip away illusions and invite the believer into a deeper freedom—freedom from fear, from clinging, from divided loyalties.
- The coherence between our prayer and our life
Cyprian begins by confronting the inconsistency between praying ‘thy will be done’ and yet resisting God when He calls us home. The point is not morbid anticipation of death, but rather the integrity of discipleship. If we truly desire God’s kingdom, then we must desire whatever leads us into it. Fear of death reveals how tightly we still grasp the world. Cyprian urges a conversion of desire: to long for God more than we cling to passing things. - The Christian’s relationship to the world
Cyprian echoes Saint John’s First Letter in his distinction between ‘the world’ as God’s creation—which is good—and ‘the world’ as humanity organised in rebellion and self-love. To love that world is to be torn away from the Father. The warning is not an invitation to disdain creation or human society, but a call to vigilance. The Christian lives within the world yet belongs ultimately to Christ. Cyprian reminds us that our desires must be purified so that our affection is set on God, not swallowed up in the seductions of comfort, ambition, or the illusions of security. - The banishment of fear
Cyprian knows the natural fear of death; he is not naive. Yet he insists that for the Christian this fear is no longer decisive. Christ has gone ahead of us and transformed death from an end into a homecoming. To meditate on immortality is not to escape earthly duties but to place them within their true horizon. When the believer remembers that life is an exile and paradise is home, courage becomes possible. This courage does not come from Stoic resolve but from supernatural hope. - The communion of saints
A particularly tender passage imagines the saints and the departed watching for us, longing for our arrival, rejoicing at our perseverance. Cyprian’s vision is familial rather than abstract: a ‘great crowd of loved ones’, apostles, martyrs, the pure, the merciful—all welcoming the pilgrim into a homeland of peace where there is no more fear. This is Cyprian’s medicine for anxious hearts: not argument, but the warm, living memory of the Church triumphant. - Desire for Christ
The reading culminates in desire—longing for Christ, longing for the kingdom. Cyprian understands that the depth of our desire shapes our capacity to receive. He prays that Christ ‘see this resolve that springs from faith’, because the Lord gives more abundantly to those who long more ardently. Christian life, then, is not merely endurance but yearning: a stretching of the heart toward the One who loved us first.
In all this, Cyprian does not offer escapism, nor a dismissal of the griefs of this life. He offers instead a re-ordering of the heart. Fear of death dissolves not because death becomes pleasant, but because Christ becomes all in all. The world loses its power to terrify when our eyes are fixed on the Father’s house.
A Reading From The Sermon Of Saint Cyprian On Mortality | Let Us Put Aside The Fear Of Death And Meditate Upon Immortality
Our obligation is to do God’s will, and not our own. We must remember this if the prayer that our Lord commanded us to say daily is to have any meaning on our lips. How unreasonable it is to pray that God’s will be done, and then not promptly obey it when he calls us from this world! Instead we struggle and resist like self-willed slaves and are brought into the Lord’s presence with sorrow and lamentation, not freely consenting to our departure, but constrained by necessity. And yet we expect to be rewarded with heavenly honours by him to whom we come against our will! Why then do we pray for the kingdom of heaven to come if this earthly bondage pleases us? What is the point of praying so often for its early arrival if we would rather serve the devil here than reign with Christ?
The world hates Christians, so why give your love to it instead of following Christ, who loves you and has redeemed you? John is most urgent in his epistle when he tells us not to love the world by yielding to sensual desires. Never give your love to the world, he warns, or to anything in it. A man cannot love the Father and love the world at the same time. All that the world offers is the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes and earthly ambition. The world and its allurements will pass away, but the man who has done the will of God shall live for ever. Our part, my dear brothers, is to be single-minded, firm in faith, and steadfast in courage, ready for God’s will, whatever it may be. Banish the fear of death and think of the eternal life that follows it. That will show people that we really live our faith.
We ought never to forget, beloved, that we have renounced the world. We are living here now as aliens and only for a time. When the day of our homecoming puts an end to our exile, frees us from the bonds of the world, and restores us to paradise and to a kingdom, we should welcome it. What man, stationed in a foreign land, would not want to return to his own country as soon as possible? Well, we look upon paradise as our country, and a great crowd of our loved ones awaits us there, a countless throng of parents, brothers and children longs for us to join them. Assured though they are of their own salvation, they are still concerned about ours. What joy both for them and for us to see one another and embrace! O the delight of that heavenly kingdom where there is no fear of death! O the supreme and endless bliss of everlasting life!
There, is the glorious band of apostles, there the exultant assembly of prophets, there the innumerable host of martyrs, crowned for their glorious victory in combat and in death. There in triumph are the virgins who subdued their passions by the strength of continence. There the merciful are rewarded, those who fulfilled the demands of justice by providing for the poor. In obedience to the Lord’s command, they turned their earthly patrimony into heavenly treasure.
My dear brothers, let all our longing be to join them as soon as we may. May God see our desire, may Christ see this resolve that springs from faith, for he will give the rewards of his love more abundantly to those who have longed for him more fervently.
Christian Prayer With Jesus
O God,
source of life and giver of immortality,
teach us to long for your kingdom with pure and steadfast hearts.
Free us from the fear that clings to passing things,
and make us ready for your will in all things.
Strengthen our hope,
that we may remember our true homeland
and desire it above all earthly comforts.
Let the witness of the saints encourage us,
and may the love of Christ draw us onward
with holy courage and quiet joy.
Grant that, living as pilgrims in this world,
we may set our hearts on what endures for ever,
and so come, in your mercy,
to the company of the blessed
and the embrace of your eternal peace.
Through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Glossary Of Christian Terms
Will of God – God’s loving purpose for His creation and for each person; what God desires us to embrace and live.
Kingdom of Heaven / Kingdom of God – The reign of God over all things; already present in Christ but fulfilled fully only in eternity.
World (in the negative sense) – Not creation itself, but human society and desire when organised against God, dominated by pride, pleasure, and self-will.
Lust of the flesh / lust of the eyes / earthly ambition – Scriptural phrases describing forms of disordered desire: the pursuit of pleasure, the craving for possessions, and the hunger for glory or power.
Faith – Trust in God and adherence to His truth; the foundation of Christian life and the believer’s ‘root’ and ‘head’.
Exile – A spiritual image for earthly life, emphasising that our true homeland is with God in heaven.
Paradise – The state of perfect communion with God; the heavenly homeland restored by Christ.
Communion of Saints – The unity of the faithful on earth, the souls in purgatory, and the blessed in heaven, joined together in Christ.
Martyrs – Those who witnessed to Christ even unto death; signs of courage and fidelity.
Virgins – Those who consecrated their lives to God through continence and purity of heart.
The Merciful – Christians who lived charity concretely, especially by caring for the poor, turning earthly goods into heavenly treasure.
Padre Pio, also known as Saint Pio of Pietrelcina, was an Italian Capuchin friar who lived from 1887 to 1968. He is renowned for his piety, his stigmata, and his gift of healing, and has become a beloved figure in the Christian world. Born into a devout Catholic family in Pietrelcina, Italy, Padre Pio felt a calling to the priesthood from a young age. He entered the Capuchin order in 1903 and was ordained a priest in 1910. He spent much of his life as a humble friar, dedicated to prayer, the sacraments, and the service of others. Padre Pio’s most famous spiritual gift was the stigmata, the visible wounds of Christ that he bore on his hands, feet, and side. He experienced this phenomenon for over 50 years, from 1918 until his death in 1968. While some were skeptical of his wounds, many believed them to be a sign of his profound union with Christ and his participation in the suffering of the crucified Christ. In addition to his stigmata, Padre Pio was also known for his gift of healing. Many people came to him seeking physical, emotional, and spiritual healing, and he prayed over them, sometimes prescribing special devotions or treatments. While some were healed miraculously, others did not experience a physical cure, but nonetheless found comfort and peace through his intercession. Padre Pio’s life was marked by his devotion to God and his love for others. He spent long hours in prayer, often in the presence of the Blessed Sacrament, and had a deep appreciation for the power of the Eucharist. He also had a special love for the Virgin Mary, whom he called his ‘Heavenly Mother’, and encouraged others to pray the Rosary. Today, Padre Pio is venerated as a saint by the Catholic Church, and his influence has spread far beyond Italy. He is remembered for his holiness, his humility, and his profound union with Christ, as well as for his compassion and concern for the sick and suffering. Christians of all denominations continue to look to him as a model of faith and devotion to God. Prayer To Saint Padre Pio | A Prayer For Healing Saint Padre Pio is renowned for his gift of healing, which he used to help countless people throughout his life. He believed in the power of prayer and the importance of placing our trust in God, even in the face of illness and suffering. In James 5:16, we are reminded that ‘the prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective’. Padre Pio’s life was a testament to the truth of this verse, as he interceded for those who came to him seeking physical, emotional, and spiritual healing. One of the most striking examples of Padre Pio’s healing ministry was the case of Gemma Di Giorgi, a young girl who had been diagnosed with a life-threatening illness. Her parents brought her to Padre Pio, who prayed over her and blessed her with the sign of the cross. To the amazement of her doctors, Gemma’s condition began to improve, and she was eventually healed completely. In addition to physical healing, Padre Pio also believed in the importance of emotional and spiritual healing. He often spoke of the need for repentance and conversion, and encouraged his followers to turn to God with contrite hearts. In Luke 5:31-32, Jesus tells the Pharisees, ‘It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick. I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.’ Padre Pio understood that true healing involves not only the body, but also the soul. For those who are in need of healing, whether physical, emotional, or spiritual, Saint Padre Pio can serve as a powerful intercessor. He believed in the importance of prayer and the power of God’s grace to heal even the most difficult of cases. Through his intercession, we can ask God for the strength and courage to face our illnesses and our struggles, knowing that we are never alone and that God’s healing love is always with us. So let us pray: ‘Saint Padre Pio, you who had a deep faith in God and a profound love for your fellow human beings, we turn to you in our time of need. We ask for your intercession on behalf of all those who are sick and suffering, that they may be healed in body, mind, and spirit. We ask that you pray for us, that we may have the strength and courage to face our illnesses and our struggles with faith and hope, knowing that God is with us always. We trust in God’s love and mercy, and in the power of prayer to bring healing and wholeness to all who seek it. Saint Padre Pio, pray for us, and lead us to the healing grace of God. Amen.’ Prayer To Saint Padre Pio | A Prayer For Peace Saint Padre Pio was a man of peace, who lived his life in the service of God and his fellow human beings. He believed that peace was not merely the absence of conflict, but a state of inner harmony that could only be achieved through a deep and abiding relationship with God. In John 14:27, Jesus tells his disciples, ‘Peace I leave with you; my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your hearts be troubled and do not be afraid.’ Padre Pio understood the importance of this peace, and dedicated his life to helping others find it. One of the ways that Padre Pio fostered peace was through his ministry of reconciliation. He encouraged those who came to him to confess their sins and seek God’s forgiveness, knowing that this was the first step towards inner peace. In Matthew 5:9, Jesus says, ‘Blessed are the peacemakers, for they will be called children of God.’ Padre Pio believed that this was not just a call to be a mediator in conflicts between […]
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