A new home in heaven

Here is the text of the homily I prepared for the funeral of one of the cherished and beloved residents of Temagami.  Having devoted her life to the parish in that community, and to the service of others who shared her journey of faith, she now enters into the house of the Father who has finally called her Home.

Funeral homily for Irene McCart

Irene’s family: her sons and daughters, her grandchildren, her sisters and their families have come here this morning to pray along with other members of Irene’s parish family and with friends who she and you have known all (or almost all) your lives.

Irene wasn’t born in Temagami (that honour belongs to the town of Callander), but she has lived here for so long that it might feel as though she was, or at the very least that she has become a part of the fabric of this community.  She was a relatively young child when John and Bertha brought her and the rest of her siblings to the shores of this lake.  Here, Irene lived for the better part of almost eight decades (after all, she was 13 when they arrived), here she loved and was loved in return, here she laughed and found much happiness and here she lamented as she – and we – have experienced so many changes to the landscape of this place over such a short period of time.

The mere size of the gathering that has come to this church today, and the great number of others who have expressed their condolences to Irene’s family since the news began to spread last Sunday of her return to the Father’s house, is a testament to the number of people who crossed paths with her and the number of lives that were influenced by her.  Many of us might indeed have felt that a part of us died with her.  In the words of the Book of Lamentations, from which we have read this morning, we may have had moments during this past week when we felt as though our soul is shut out from peace, as though we have forgotten what it is like to be happy, as though all our strength is gone (cf Lam 3:17).   These are natural human emotions and feelings, but to remain in such despair is worthless, gall and wormwood says the author of Lamentations (Lam 3:19).

We have come here today to pray for this lady who in her turn has prayed so fervently for all of us, to celebrate the life that she has lived, to give thanks to God for the love, the joy and the happiness that we have known as we have shared the journey of faith with her.

Irene worked for many years at Bell Canada in North Bay and subsequently with her husband Gord at the Shell station here in Temagami (I was told that even though it’s now a Petro Canada station, it will always be known by some as the Shell).  She also worked for a time with Scotia Bank, and was even coerced at one point into further training, the reward for which was that she was named the manager of the local branch.  These positions all required her to be a woman of some substance, and she was more than capable of living up to them, yet despite the fact that she could at times be a force to be reckoned with, when she entered the doors of this church, she always knew that she was a child of God.

Her Catholic faith was at the heart of Irene’s life.  She was devoted to the life of this community.  Because of her devotion, she was once granted the Diocesan Award of Merit.  A few months ago, while visiting here, Bishop Plouffe sang her praises, but she herself never sought such recognition.  Instead, she was content to spend time within these walls, at times accompanied by crowds of friends and relatives, and at other times all by herself in the company of Jesus who lives here in the tabernacle.  She spent countless hours both in communal and in silent prayer; no doubt her prayers were offered for each one of the members of her family, for friends with whom she had had the pleasure of spending so many happy hours and for those who were experiencing challenges and struggles. 

On many occasions, she heard the words of Jesus, spoken in the gospel passage that we have read today: Come to me, all you who labour and are over-burdened, and I will give you rest … I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls (Mt 11:28-29).  These words are also spoken to us today: to those of us who find ourselves tired out by the efforts of daily life, wearied by the emotional strain of these past days, over-burdened by all the demands that are placed upon us either by others or by ourselves.  Jesus invites us all to come to him, to rest in him, to discover the joy of knowing him, of knowing his heart, of trusting in him who is always gentle with us and ready to provide us with the rest that our souls so dearly seek.  It’s up to each one of us to accept his invitation, but if we do, he is always faithful to his word.

God’s faithfulness is everlasting.  Irene knew this.  Those of us who have experienced it, know it.  This is the reason why we gather here this morning, to pray for her as her earthly journey has now ended and as she crosses to threshold into our heavenly homeland.  Indeed, the favours of the Lord are not all past, his kindnesses are not all exhausted (Lam 3:22).  The Lord is good to those who trust him (Lam 3:25) and so we can be sure that he is there at the door of heaven to meet Irene.

In case we should ever doubt this to be true, we need only look to the words that Saint Paul addressed to the believers in Corinth.  We know that he who raised the Lord Jesus to life will raise us with Jesus in our turn (2 Cor 4:14).  Irene heard these very words repeated countless times.  She no doubt repeated them in her heart, questioned them, and eventually came to believe them.  This is why there was never any weakening in her resolve.  Even though her body was growing weaker, her mind remained sharp as though her inner soul was being renewed day by day (2 Cor 4:16).

Every person we meet, every life with which we interact provides us with an opportunity to learn, to become stronger.  Irene’s legacy, her gift to all of us is proof through her own life of the things that should always be important to us: work hard, never compromise on things that are important to you, always find time for friends and never skip dessert.  Because she held these truths so dear, she always knew that the troubles of this world train us for the carrying of the weight of eternal glory (2 Cor 4:17).  What’s really important is that we should always have our eyes fixed on things that are eternal (cf 2 Cor 4:18).

Today, we will bury the moral remains of our beloved sister in faith, but we rejoice with her too on this day, for now she has entered a house built by God, … an everlasting home not made by human hands, a home in the heavens (2 Cor 5:1).

May she rest in peace.