256. It consoles us to know that those who die do not completely pass away, and faith assures us that the risen Lord will never abandon us. Thus we can "prevent death from poisoning life, from rendering vain love, from pushing us into the darkest chasm".283 The Bible tells us that God created us out of love and made us in such a way that our life does not end with death (cf. Wis 3:3-2). Saint Paul speaks to us of an encounter with Christ immediately after death: "My desire is to depart and be with Christ" (Phil 1:23). With Christ, after death, there awaits us "what God has prepared for those who love him" (1 Cor 2:9). The Preface of the Liturgy of the Dead puts it nicely: "Although the certainty of death saddens us, we are consoled by the promise of future mortality. For the life of those who believe in you, Lord, is not ended but changed". Indeed, "our loved ones are not lost in the shades of nothingness; hope assures us that they are in the good strong hands of God".284
283 Catechesis (17 June 2015): L'Osservatore Romano, 18 June 2015, p.8.
284 Ibid.
© LIBRERIA EDITRICE VATICANA.
