Ars Moriendi | Lessons from the Art of Dying
In 2023, I sat by a friend’s hospital bed, holding her hand as she lay unresponsive. Our parish priest, Fr. Johnson, arrived to anoint her and perform the final rites. As I watched him pray in persona Christi, guiding her through her last breaths, her hand went from warm to ice-cold. I learned a lot from watching Fr. Johnson that day.
A year later, I faced a similar challenge when another friend was diagnosed with a terminal illness. As I was discerning becoming a deacon, I was in the middle of my studies. People thought religious studies included mental health work, but that’s not necessarily the case. My certification in apologetics gave me the ability to defend the faith and know precisely where to find answers to questions on the Christian faith. My studies taught me to defend the faith, not to counsel through the dying process or help a dying person prepare spiritually for eternal life. What topics are appropriate to talk about? What’s a proverbial third rail and a non-starter? I’d comforted friends through spiritual challenges, but supporting someone facing death required a different approach—one I wasn’t sure how to navigate. I didn’t know where to go for answers to these questions, so I went to my default place of prayer.
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Memento Mori
The always reliable Holy Spirit came through again, reminding me of a conversation with my friend Chuck during the pandemic. He once recommended a book, Ars Moriendi, Latin for The Art of Dying. Chuck warned me that the devil fights hardest for your soul in your final hour, and this book has the defenses needed to fight in those last hours. Intrigued, I ordered the book, only to receive a 15-page pamphlet, 11 pages at the core, half of which were pictures. This medieval wisdom was designed to help the dying man resist temptation and cling to faith.”
Pause and consider this: a guide on facing death, born during the Black Death in the Middle Ages, when survival was 40% at best, distilled into 11 pages. Yet those pages changed everything. The Ars Moriendi, sometimes called Artis Bene Moriendi, gave Christians deliberate preparation for a good death and offered hope of salvation. Ars Moriendi’s six pillars, especially the second on the final temptations and the appropriate response to them, gave me the tools to support my friend through his final months. It transformed my perspective on what it means to die well. I believe every household should have this resource, so I’m writing a six-part blog series unpacking each pillar, with free PDFs to guide you and your loved ones toward a peaceful, happy death
What Can We Learn about Death from a Medieval Monk?
The Ars Moriendi, crafted around 1415 during the Council of Constance, offers a timeless guide to facing mortality with faith. In a world of religious turmoil, its six pillars—accepting death, resisting temptation, self-examination, prayer, communal support, and sacramental preparation—provided laypeople with tools to achieve a “good death.” This post introduces these pillars, rooted in their 15th-century context, and invites you to reflect on how they can bring peace amidst suffering.
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A Church Seeking Unity
The Western Schism ripped through Europe in the early 15th century, dividing Christendom between rival popes. The Council of Constance (1414-1418) sought to reestablish unity, and the Ars Moriendi developed from this volatile period. This instruction, most likely written by Dominican or Franciscan monks, was intended for regular people—merchants, farmers, and nobles—who were afraid of dying without proper spiritual preparation.
Unlike lengthy theological literature, it conveyed its message through simple language and vibrant woodcuts of angels and demons. Translated into vernacular languages such as German and French, it spread through block books. Artists such as Master E.S. and even later Hieronymus Bosch drew on these themes, while scholars like Fritz Saxl studied their cultural influence.
The Ars Moriendi literature frequently drew on various theological and philosophical traditions, incorporating elements of Stoicism adapted to a Christian context.
The Ars Moriendi served a profound purpose: to achieve a good death by connecting the soul with God’s grace for judgment. In an era when religious ambiguity generated dread, it provided an organized approach to facing mortality.
Looking back at the text and holding my friend’s hand as Fr. Johnson prayed reminded me of this medieval wisdom—guidance that transformed fear into faith. The book addressed the pain of doubt, remorse, and dread, bringing hope to those navigating life’s closing moments, just as I tried to do for my friends.
The Six Pillars: A Way to Have a Good Death
There were six parts to the Ars Moriendi, each one a pillar that helped the dying and their loved ones. These pillars, based on Christian theology, were useful because they gave those who weren’t trained as priests the strength to face death’s problems. We will look at each one in the context of the 15th century below, thinking about how it helped people who were in pain and eased their suffering.
1. Commendation of Death
The first pillar urged acceptance of death as God’s will. In a world where schisms cast doubt on salvation, the Ars Moriendi presented death as a release from earthly pain, drawing on Job’s endurance or Christ’s Passion. It encouraged trust in God’s plan, much like I learned from watching Fr. Johnson guide my friend. This pillar eased the fear of mortality, framing suffering as a step toward heaven and a gateway to eternal life with Jesus Christ.
2. Temptations of the Dying
Five temptations—lack of faith, despair, impatience, vainglory, and avarice—threatened the soul, revealing how earthly pride could become the greatest evil at the moment of death. The text offered virtues like faith and hope to counter them, a lesson that transformed how I supported my terminally ill friend (see post, “The Temptations of the Dying: Medieval Wisdom from Ars Moriendi”). Chuck’s warning about the devil’s final battle came alive in these pages, giving me tools to help my friend face his fears.
3. Questions for the Dying
Seven questions, asked by family or friends, assessed spiritual readiness, prompting repentance and faith. When priests were absent, these questions empowered laypeople to assist in salvation through prayer and even confession (see post, “Questions to Prepare the Soul: A Medieval Guide from Ars Moriendi”). For me, unsure how to counsel through death, these questions offered a framework to guide my friend toward peace.
4. Prayers and Devotions
Prayers, psalms, and invocations comforted the dying, focusing their soul on God’s mercy. These rituals, recited by attendants, mirrored Fr. Johnson’s prayers at my friend’s bedside (see our post, “Prayers to Comfort the Soul: A Medieval Practice from Ars Moriendi”). They eased the pain of fear, creating a sacred space that reminded the dying person of a guardian angel and loved ones at their side.
5. Instructions for Attendants
This pillar guided family and friends to support the dying with prayers and encouragement, a role I took on with my terminally ill friend (see our post, “Guiding the Dying: Instructions for Attendants in Ars Moriendi”). It turned caregiving into a sacred act, alleviating suffering for all involved.
6. The Final Moments
The final pillar envisioned a peaceful deathbed with sacraments and prayers, ensuring a good death (see our post, “The Final Moments: Ars Moriendi’s Vision of a Good Death”). It offered hope, much like the peace I witnessed as my friend’s hand grew cold under Fr. Johnson’s guidance.
Historical Significance
The Ars Moriendi’s blockbooks made it accessible, spreading from monasteries to villages. Woodcuts of angels defending souls against demons captivated readers, making spiritual guidance visual and tangible. They eased the pain of fear, creating a sacred space, reminding the dying person that a guardian angel and loved ones were at their side.
The text also influenced medieval culture, from the danse macabre, which showed death’s universality, to later works like Jeremy Taylor’s Holy Dying. By empowering laypeople, it addressed the suffering of fear and doubt, offering a path to resilience.
For me, the Ars Moriendi’s 11 pages became a lifeline, showing how to guide souls through suffering’s final test.
The Art of Dying
The Ars Moriendi’s six pillars transformed death into an act of faith, offering resilience amid suffering. Its lessons, born in the late Middle Ages, guided me through my friends’ final moments, showing what it means to die well, even as everything returns to dust. Its lessons, born in a time of death and global crisis, guided me through my friends’ final moments, showing what it means to die well. In this series, I will share how it helped our conversations and guided the direction towards a happy death. I believe every household should have this resource, so explore the six-part series, from “The Temptations of the Dying” to “The Final Moments,” with free PDFs to guide you toward a peaceful, happy death.
How might these medieval lessons shape our view of mortality and suffering?
