31st Sunday in Ordinary Time

Dear Parishioners,

     Life and death are always on our mind, but perhaps never more than at this time of year.  Most people in our society consider reflecting on death as a morbid thing to do.  Think of the way we avoid saying someone died.  We say they have “passed on.”  We might say, “They are no longer with us.”  And then again, we might share that, “Someone expired.”  It sounds like they were a magazine subscription. 

     We couch how we want to describe funerals.  They must be “celebrations of life,” but seldom is the reason to be celebrated mentioned.  How often do we hear the Christian message of resurrection proclaimed at such celebrations? 

When did it become impolite to cry over the death of someone we love?  Tears shed at the time of death proclaim that we have lost someone we care deeply about.  Tears are a tangible sign of affection.  There seems to be a denial of the need to mourn.  People are quickly cremated, no services are held, no burial takes place, and all this is looked upon as virtuous.  Something has gone awry.

The Feast of All Saints and All Souls is a time to mourn the loss of our loved ones again. We remember that our relatives and friends live with God in heaven.  We have expressions of grieving.  We write names in our “Book of Remembrance.” We visit cemeteries to pray where our loved ones are buried.  Call me weird, but I find this consoling.  As a human being I need clear symbols as a focus for reflection. 

The instruction for Christian funerals states the following:

“The Church through its funeral rites commends the dead to God’s merciful love and pleads for the forgiveness of their sins.  At the funeral rites, especially at the Eucharistic sacrifice, the Christian community affirms and expresses the union of the Church on earth with Church in heaven in the one great communion of saints. Though separated from the living, the dead are still at one with the community of all believers on earth and benefit from their prayer and intercession.”

Let us treat the dead with dignity.  Maybe it will be a demonstration of true faith in a world that denies God in so many ways.

Blessings,

Fr. Mark

P.S. We are searching for new members for our Pastoral Council.  The council is an important consultative body in our community.  I rely on their hard work to promote the ministry at Sacred Heart. We have three long time members of the council whose term has expired.  I would like to thank Al Gorgal and Don Lewis for their service.  I also want to thank Larry Lorensen who recently joined the Communion of Saints.  We need to replace these members.  If you would like to serve, please call in your name or drop it in the collection.  If you want to nominate someone for the council, please write their name on a piece of paper, put it in an envelope and drop it in the collection.  I would like the Pastoral Council members to be called forth by the Holy Spirit through the voice of the Christian Community. Nominated parishioners will be contacted by present Parish Council members and advised on how they can apply for the council.