A gift to be shared

Here is the text of the reflection I prepared for the celebration of the Mass of Resurrection for this wonderful lady who lived her faith joyfully and shared it willingly with all those who came in contact with her.

Funeral homily for Rose Ann Heffernan

Each of the significant moments in our lives makes an impression on us.  We may not immediately notice the words that will stay with us, the gestures that we will remember or even the people who surround us at such moments, but at some point in the future, when our minds catch up with our hearts, we may very well catch ourselves repeating words or phrases that we have often heard others speak, or reacting to certain situations in a manner reminiscent of someone else who has left a mark on our soul.

Today, this community of faith has gathered in this place to pray our sister Rose into her eternal home.  We have come here because in some small or significant way, her life has had an influence on ours (cf Rom 14:7).  Her words, her actions and the conviction of her faith were constant reminders to those who she encountered that this was indeed a woman of deep faith, a woman who trusted implicitly that our God loves each and every one of us even more than we could ever ask or imagine.  

As we entrust her soul into the loving embrace of our God, we hear once again the words that Jesus himself spoke to his disciples in order to prepare them for the moment when he would no longer be with them: 

Do not let your hearts be troubled; trust in God and trust in me (Jn 14:1).  

Rose had heard these words read aloud on many occasions, and she herself would repeat them many times throughout her life: trust in God and trust in me.  Together with her beloved Bert, she taught her children Catherine and Matt the value of such trust.  She taught not only through her words but most importantly through her example.  In time, you and your children have been the benefactors of the combined faith experience of this wonderful woman and her siblings and their extended families as well.  Throughout their lives, filled with moments of joy and celebration as well as trials and questions, each of them has been a model of the trust of which Jesus speaks.

You know the way to the place where I am going (Jn 14:4).  

Only a faithful disciple of Jesus could understand that these words of his referred to his return to the Father’s house, to a place where there would be room enough for all his disciples to one day live in harmony and peace with him, to a place where we will all one day know the fullness of life when we see him face to face.

The faithful disciples of Jesus understand that we already know the way to the place where he leads us, for Jesus is the way, the truth and the life (cf Jn 14:6) which is promised to all of us.  We believe that Jesus came from the Father.  This is the reason why we gather around the crib to remember and to celebrate the infinitely tender love of our God who confided his son into the loving arms of a young virgin from Nazareth, and into the capable arms of an honest carpenter who wanted nothing more than to care for his family. The tender love of our God was a constant companion, accompanying Jesus at every step of his earthly journey, and it is the same for us who share in this tender love throughout our own journey through life, until the day when we will all see him face to face.

It is the tender love of our God that gathers us here today.  It is the tender love of our God that now welcomes Rose home to the place where she will know the fullness of joy in his presence.  It is the tender love of our God that assures us that we can all hope in him for salvation … even as we exult and rejoice that he has saved us (Is 25:9).