I shall look on God

Here is the text of the homily I prepared for the funeral liturgy we celebrated earlier today in memory of a woman of deep faith who started her life in Yugoslavia but came to this land in search of a better life.  Finally she has found life in all its fullness.

Funeral homily for Anna Borecki

The gospel passage we have just heard gives us a glimpse into a moment in the journey of a woman who lived in the Jewish town of Nain.  At this point in her life, there is great suffering and grief.  Her only son has died and his body is being carried out of the town for burial (Lk 7:12).  We are also told that this woman is a widow, a fact that makes it painfully clear that from this day onward, this woman will have to beg for her living since according to the customs of the land, all sources of support and protection she had previously known were lost.

Today, we have come to this church to remember and to pray for our sister Anna, a woman who also knew her fair share of doubts and trials.  While still a young woman, she and her family fled their homeland because of the perils of a dictatorship that made it almost impossible for them to remain in the neighbourhood that she knew so well, or with the people she called her friends.  As they set out on the road that took them away from all that was familiar, Anna and her family were certainly mindful of all the history they were leaving behind, not unlike the widow in the gospel who was probably reflecting on all the hopes and dreams that had been dashed by tragic events.

In the midst of her musings, the widow and her friends met Jesus.  I can imagine that meeting: Jesus looked into her eyes and saw the worry that was in her heart.  He felt sorry for her, and told her: Do not cry (Lk 7:13).  Like the woman of Nain, we too are on a journey.  Our journey spans a lifetime and is filled with a variety of experiences.  If Anna had not had to flee her homeland, perhaps we would never have had the pleasure of meeting her, but thankfully she and Karol eventually found their way to Temagami, and here they lived for the rest of their lives.  In this place, they shared their joys and struggles with all those who were part of the journey.

Among the most precious gifts that Anna brought with her from her homeland was the gift of her faith (and the wonderful food too, especially her cookies).  Having travelled so many miles, it was this parish community that helped her to get settled, and eventually, as she and Karol made friends and raised a family of their own, it was here that they felt most at home.  The truth of the matter is that we are all on a journey, a pilgrimage that ultimately will lead us home, but our homeland is in heaven (Phil 3:20); any address we have here on earth is only a temporary one.

From the day of our baptism onward, we are assured a place in this heavenly homeland, and when our time of waiting here on earth is complete, Jesus, our brother in faith will come from heaven to save us (cf Phil 3:20).  While we await his coming, he gives us the gift of others, friends who share the journey with us, who pray with and for us, who help us to celebrate the moments of joy that life brings, and who are there for us when the road ahead seems uncertain.

Today, we give thanks to God for the gift He has shared with us who have had the privilege to count Anna as one of our friends, as our mother, as our oma, as our companion on the journey.  The legacy of faith that she leaves us is a precious treasure, for she has demonstrated for all of us the strength that we can draw from the certainty of our faith.  When the struggles of life might make it seem that we too are headed toward an uncertain future, let us never forget the words that have been inscribed in our hearts since the day of our baptism: I know that my redeemer lives (Job 19:25) and even if everything else I see and touch is taken away from me, he will always be close to me.

May God grant to Anna, who has now been awakened to the fullness of life in heaven, the great pleasure of his presence, and may she who now looks on God (Job 19:27) for all eternity, look upon us from our heavenly homeland to guide us and to protect us until the day when we will see her again.