In a
theological context, the
grace which a
sinner receives at the
moment of their
death. It is bestowed upon them by whatever
higher power you perfer, an
angel,
Jesus, maybe
God himself. This kind of
grace, however, doesn't
beeline you straight to
Paradise. If you listen to
Dante, you'll probably end up in
Purgatory where you have to climb a very large
hill in order to be
cleansed of your
sins before you are
ready for the
kingdom of heaven.
But
rejoice not, last minute shoppers! This isn't a
free ride final hour if-I'm-wrong-I'll-repent-on-my-deathbed ticket into the afterlife. You have to
earn your grace through spontaneous
conversion or profound
belief in God at the last moment of your
life. This theme was stated rather well by the recent movie
Way of the Gun, which I paraphrase:
"What if, in those last moments of your life, you found God. What would you say in your defense?"
Well, if you have enough
final conviction, then you don't need a
defense, just some good
walking boots for the
ascent up that
hill.