Radiant with joy

Here is the text of the homily I shared with those who came to celebrate the life of our dear sister in faith, and to pray her home.

Funeral homily for Julia Lahaie

The Book of Wisdom speaks the words that each of us has been repeating in the depths of our hearts for the past few days: This virtuous woman has died before her time (cf Wis 4:7).  Those of us who have had the great fortune of knowing Julia have encountered a woman who was always full of life, always willing to embrace an adventure.  This was a woman who never turned down a challenge, who took on every challenge and faced it head on … and she always found a way to come out smiling.

There is a part of us that is aching because a woman with so many gifts has left us way too soon.  Julia had a wisdom that was far beyond her years.  Her curiosity led her to embark into unknown places and to always seek further understanding, but she also had great wisdom.  Whether we were co-workers, colleagues, acquaintances or friends, anyone who encountered her knows how conscientious she was, how dedicated she was to making sure that she did every job to the best of her ability, but there was more to Julia than that.

She never knew how long she would have to live on this earth – none of us knows the answer to that question – but she knew that she needed to take advantage of every opportunity she was given in order to love those who were dear to her: her husband, her children, her grandchildren, and she knew that she could do this because every day of her life, God was present, guiding her, gifting her in many unexpected but wonderful ways.

How many times over the past few days I have heard people speak about Julia.  Each of us who is here today could recount the stories of our encounters with her, the many ways in which her life was intertwined with ours: some for very short periods of time and others in much more intricate ways.  Whether we realize it or not, the life and death of each of us has its influence on others (Rom 14:7), and this is one of those precious moments when we think of the ways in which Julia’s life has had an influence on our lives.  Perhaps we are already aware of such influences, or maybe it will be many days from now when we find ourselves recalling a word of wisdom that she once shared with us or remembering her thoughtfulness.  Whenever and where-ever you find yourself thinking about her, stop for just a moment and say a little prayer.  Thank God for having shared the gift of this wonderful woman with you.

Dearest friends, we have gathered here today to thank our God for all that we have known and loved about Julia, but we are also here to celebrate the fulfillment of a promise that was made to her many years ago – on the day of her baptism.   On that day, God made her a promise that she would inherit eternal life.  God has made that promise to each one of us.  Every day of our lives, God is present to us, guiding us, walking with us, meeting us in the moments of our joys and our sorrows.  When he encountered the woman of Nain, he stopped and spoke with her.  He comforted her and he helped her to believe that she would overcome her sadness, that she could be joyful again.

Jesus is here among us today.  He is standing beside us, speaking with us right now.  As he comforted that woman, he is comforting us as well.  We cannot see him with our earthly eyes, but we know that he is present.  We cannot witness the encounter that Julia is having with him, but we believe that he is taking her by the hand and saying to her: Young woman, I tell you, get up! (cf Lk 7:14).  We entrust her eternal soul into the loving embrace of our heavenly Father, and we ask her today to pray for us, that as we continue our journey through life, she may now watch over us, pray for us and guide our steps … and we look forward to the day when we will see her again: her face radiant with joy.