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A faithful public servant

Funeral, Sacrament-based, Holy Day, Holiday, Special Occasion - Sample homilies to be adapted for your use

Funeral: Death of a public servant Readings: Psalm 23:1-6 Before we came into this world we were unborn babies. In going from this world into another we are still unborn babies. Babies not yet born, still tucked under their mother’s heart, might say to themselves, “This is a wonderful place. I’m secure.” And then someone might say to them, “But you’re not going to stay here. You have to move on. You’re going to die out of this place. You’re going into another world.” Those babies would look upon the process of birth as if it were death, because it would be the end of the pleasant state they were in. And they would protest, “I don’t want to die. I want to stay.” What to us is birth, to them is death, and they resist it. But the day comes when they do die to that life and are born into our world. They are cradled in loving arms. A kind face looks down at them. Everybody that comes near loves them. Then they begin to grow, and they find life good. Oh, they have some struggles and hardships, but they love God and people love them. And they love this world with its seasons, its beauty, its human companionship. Finally, they grow old and are told, “You have to die.” They protest, “I don’t want to die. I love this world. I love the faces of my wife and children. I don’t want to die.” But they do die to this world and are born into the next. Now can you believe that suddenly they will be born into a place of gloom and terror, or will be left in a state of nothingness? That is preposterous! They will awaken to find loving faces to greet them, loving hands to touch them. Sweeter music will sound in their ears. All tears will be wiped from their eyes, and they will say, “Why was I so afraid of this thing called death, when, as I now know, it is life?” You can think of death as a dark valley—or you can think of it as a bridge stretching between two marvelous worlds, a bridge which all our departed loved ones have crossed and which we too will cross one day to be reunited with them. You can think of death as a dark valley—or you can think of it as a bridge stretching between two marvelous worlds, a bridge which all our departed loved ones have crossed and which we too will cross one day to be reunited with them." The psalmist beautifully captures the Lord as our shepherd in the face of death. Moreover, the psalm provides confidant assurance that we are to live in hope of being with the Lord in the kingdom of peace and everlasting fellowship. Psalm 23 begins with a declaration of unbounded trust in the Lord who is our shepherd. Please note there is no promise we shall be free from doubts and fears surrounding the sting of death. Indeed the psalm says we must walk through this dark valley. Even so, to the psalmist the awesome fear of eternal loss is not present. The psalm proclaims total trust that the Lord will deliver his people to safety. Confidence in the Lord as shepherd who leads his flock into green pastures influences our daily living. Because we do not live in fear of total nothingness, we live in hope, destined for life beyond this earthly life. The Good Shepherd shows us that the way to eternal life is to go through the valley. And the way through the valley is the way of the cross. Jesus shows us that the sting of death is not final. Jesus shows us that because of his death our death is transformed into new life. In our present celebration of the life and death of a public servant, the important question to be considered is, “In what manner did this person serve the public good?” Immediately the answer affirms the blessed reality that they always put their public service ahead of self-service. Not: “What best serves my career, but what best serves the people who have placed their trust in me?” This model statement of purpose for all public servants is in perfect harmony with Jesus’ own statement of purpose, “I have come not to be served but to serve.” In imitation of Christ, the person whose life and death we now celebrate was a caring, compassionate, sympathetic, empathetic, enthusiastic lover of the people they were called upon to serve. And they demonstrated this attitude again and again by supporting the causes they perceived to be in the best interest of the people. Clearly, in dealing with public matters that required decision-making on their part, their Christian conscience prevailed. In our celebration of the life and death of a good and decent person, we cannot help but realize how fittingly the words of the Apostle Paul reflect the goodness and decency of our departed brother/sister: “And now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; and the greatest of these is love” (1 Corinthians 13:13). In their final moments we can be sure that they heard the divine message we all hope to hear in our final moments: “Come, you that are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world” (Matthew 25:34). So says the Lord Jesus to his faithful public servant.

Authors James F. Colaianni Sr.

funeral Death of a public servant Psalm 23:1-6

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A public vocation

Funeral, Sacrament-based, Holy Day, Holiday, Special Occasion - Sample homilies to be adapted for your use

Funeral: Death of a public servant AS WE GATHER to celebrate the life of [name of the deceased], let us take a few moments to look at the vocation of a “public servant,” because [name of the deceased] was certainly that—a public servant. For while we are all called by virtue of our Baptism to serve our fellow humans, some of us do it more “publicly” than others. And certainly [name of the deceased] was one of those. [Name some of the ways the person served publicly.] In the Gospel of Matthew (25:31-46), Jesus is direct and unambiguous about how we are to be judged. It was surprising to most at the time (and still surprising to many if not most people today) that Jesus’ standard for our final judgment is not how well we followed the rules (important as that may be) but rather what we did—especially for those less fortunate than we are. Here is how Jesus set up the final judgment in the parable: “The king will place the sheep on his right and the goats on his left. Then the king will say to those on his right, 'Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’” And why are they “blessed by Jesus’ Father”? Really quite simple: They did what we are all called to do—they fed the hungry, gave drink to the thirsty, welcomed the stranger, clothed the naked, cared for the sick, and visited people who were incarcerated. Most of us, however, do that only or mostly in our private lives—with our family and friends and neighbors, with those who are part of our church or our group, maybe with people we work with. Sometimes we might even give some money to a cause that helps people we don’t even know. But we properly do that privately, quietly, sometimes even anonymously. And that is enough to get us into heaven if we do. Jesus promised it would. But public servants can't and don't do it privately, quietly, anonymously. By definition! That’s why they are called public servants. But public servants can't and don't do it privately, quietly, anonymously. By definition! That’s why they are called public servants. It’s a tough vocation, being a public servant. It’s difficult for some very real reasons that most of us don’t have to contend with in our own work or lives. Consider: What public servants do is subject to constant scrutiny. In many ways, their lives are an open book because—you know—they are doing their jobs in public! And that scrutiny has only grown because of social media and cable TV. What public servants have to do is often controversial, maybe more now than it has ever been, at least in our lifetimes. Public servants have to care for everyone in their jurisdiction, not just the people they know or even just the people they like. They sometimes have political rivals or even enemies. They sometimes make mistakes, like all the rest of us do, except theirs are made—you know—in public! Public servants don’t get to treat everyone the same, because some people have more needs than others: Some are more hungry, some more thirsty, some are immigrants—even undocumented—some don’t have anything to wear or a place to live or are sick or in trouble with the law. The public servant must be the servant of the public—which means everyone, not just some of us. And public servants aren’t using their own resources to help others, they are using public resources, so they have to be even more careful that they are using them wisely. So here today, we celebrate one of our wonderful public servants, [name of deceased], who did what all of us have to do in our private life ... but also chose and was chosen to do it in their public life as well. “Then the king will say to them, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father. Inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.’” Amen.

Authors Gregory F. Augustine Pierce

funeral Death of a public servant

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Take Five for Faith Daily

Sunday
April 06

FIFTH SUNDAY OF LENT

We feel your pain

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow once observed: “If we could read the secret history of our enemies, we should find in each man’s life sorrow and suffering enough to disarm all hostility.” While we cannot always know or understand the circumstances of our enemies’ lives, we are nevertheless called to forgive them, as Jesus forgave the woman caught in adultery—and every other sinner he encountered. To know the secret lives of others is really God’s purview. Yet, because God forgives everyone (ourselves included!), who are we to hold a grudge?

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