### ASSOCIATIONS AND CONFRATERNITIES OF THE DYING
The Church’s care for the dying is shown not only by the special prayers with which she accompanies the dying at the hour of death (v. SOUL, Recommendation of the), but also by the various associations and confraternities established to secure for them special blessings and graces.
The principal ones, in chronological order, are:
1. **The Congregation of the Good Death**, in honor of Jesus dying on the Cross and of Our Sorrowful Lady; more briefly, the Congregation of the Good Death, founded in the church of the Gesù in Rome by Fr. Vincenzo Carafa, 7th Superior General of the Society of Jesus, on 2 October 1648. Its purpose is to prepare the faithful who join it for a serene and holy death by frequent meditation on the agony of Jesus and by the practice of a Christian life. It was enriched with many indulgences by Alexander VII, Benedict XIII, Leo XII, and Leo XIII (cf. F. Beringer, *Les Indulgences*, II, 4th ed., Paris 1925, no. 262). Seat: Church of the Gesù, Rome.
2. **The Archconfraternity of Our Lady of the Sick**, founded by Abbé Salacroux in the church of St. Lawrence in Paris on 22 August 1847. Its purpose is to obtain, through prayer and good works, spiritual and corporal relief for the sick. It was enriched with precious indulgences by Pius IX (ibid., no. 256 b). Seat: Parish of St. Lawrence, Paris.
3. **The Archconfraternity of the Agonizing Heart of Jesus and the Compassionate Heart of Mary for the Salvation of the Dying**, founded in 1848 by Fr. Giovanni Lysonard, S.J., with the aim of honoring the sufferings of Jesus in His agony, especially in the Garden of Olives, and those of Mary during the Passion, in order to obtain, through these two mysterious agonies, the grace of a happy death for the approximately 140,000 dying persons scattered throughout the world each day. The archconfraternity is rich in indulgences and widespread (ibid., no. 228). Seat: Angers.
4. **The Archconfraternity of Our Lord, Health of the Sick, St. Joseph, and St. Camillus**, instituted by Fr. Ferdinando Vicari, a Camillian, in the church of St. Mary Magdalene in Rome in 1860. Its purpose is to obtain for the sick, and especially for the dying, the powerful patronage of the Blessed Virgin Mary, St. Joseph, and St. Camillus (ibid., no. 258).
5. **The Confraternity of the Passing of St. Joseph for the Comfort of the Dying**, established on 23 February 1913 by Pius X in the church erected by him near the Vatican, opposite the ancient Triumphal Gate, and dedicated to the saint. It has been enriched with many indulgences and spiritual privileges by the same Pius X and by Benedict XV (ibid., no. 268).
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AGOP, GIOVANNI HOLLOW. — An Armenian Catholic priest, born in Constantinople in the first half of the 17th century, distinguished as a grammarian and translator into Armenian of several Catholic ascetical works, and an apologist toward his dissident countrymen.
He is especially credited with the Armenian version of *L’Iniziazione di Cristo* (Rome 1674) and of Marco da Palermo’s *La Confessione e accusa secondo l’ordine dei 10 Comandamenti e dei 7 vizi capitali* (Constantinople 1701). *Lo specchio della verità* (Venice 1680), written in Armenian, aims to demonstrate that the Catholic Church is the only true Church. As an Armenian writer, A. is little esteemed by his countrymen because the purity of his language leaves much to be desired.