GOD DOES NOT HAND OUT MEDALS

 

 

We are right in the midst of the Olympics in Paris. Enjoy every one of the sporting events and all the efforts that the athletes are putting forward in their competitions. This is a moment of international cooperation. May it also be a stimulus for all countries and peoples to work together for the betterment of humanity.

 

It is wonderful from a human point of view to watch the wining athletes step up on the podium to receive their medals. We rejoice in their success.

 

As I was watching the medal ceremony it struck me, ‘But God never hands out medals. There are no winners and losers in the Kingdom of God.” Handing out a first, second and a third is certainly not the way that God does things.

 

We must remind every human being that God does not do things the way that we humans do. What we think is important, such a wealth, power and dominance over others, may be contrary to values that God lives and works by. God always does things God’s way.

 

First of all, is the creation of human beings.  Each human being is made in the image of God. Each human being has incredible value because they have been made int eh likeness of their  Creator. No human being is of lesser value because of their color, the ethnic origin, their age or their sexuality. Every human being has a right to be here on this earth. Every human being has a right to a fair share of the goods of the earth to enable them to survive and thrive.

 

There are no medals (i.e., honors) that some humans are more important than others. Human societies have all kinds of way to structure people; these structures make some people more worthy than others. 

 

This is not of God. There are no medals being given out to recognize that some people are  more value than others. We all are loved , cherished and created in the image of God. We all bear a likeness to the divine life of our Creator. 

 

We humans do not live like this on this earth. We practice the violence of war, destroying the lives of young soldiers, smashing the livelihood of their parents and grand-parents and even being so evil as the lacing the farm lands with land mines that can destroy life and limb long after the  war is over. 

 

The goods of the earth do not belong to the mighty and the dominate ones. The goods of the earth (i.e,. the grains to feed us and the minerals that we use to manufacture tools, etc) are for the benefit of  all. The fruits of the earth are given for the good of all human beings; not only to the powerful and well organized.

 

God is so challenging! Religion is to lead us into the love and compassion of God for all human beings and for every part of creation. There is no medal podium in God’s frame of reference. God is the great God who loves and cares for each and every one, and who seeks what is good for each and every individual life.

 

Today, there are no medals!

REUNITING WITH OUR CREATOR GOD

God is Trinity. In the mystery of the one God are the three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.

 

We never grasp the mystery of the Trinity in its completeness. God is always more. This is why we makes strong efforts to teach everyone: whatever you say about God always limps. Always say: This is the best I can do today. Tomorrow I might be able to explain the mystery of God better, but this is the best I can do.

 

We never can grasp the fullness of the mystery of God. We can only live into the mystery. This is why your aged great-grandmother could barely explain what God is like but she sure lived into the life and the mystery of God. This woman who was barely articulate about God loved God with her whole heart and soul. She did not explain the mystery; she just lived into it!

 

The first part of the Godhead is the Creator, the Maker. In biblical terms we call the first person, the Father. This is the source of all that is: from the entire cosmos to the simplest particle of each atom. The first person of the Trinity is equally important to the second person, the Son. 

 

Now, in the way Christianity has actually practiced its faith, all our attention has been given to the Son, the incarnate (i.e. body) Word of God. The Holy Spirit receives attention also, but not as much as the second person of the Godhead.

 

Now, we must help our fellow believers broaden their prayer-life by learning to pray in and with the creator God. Everything that exists comes from the hand of our Creator. Not only did the Creator begin the cosmos (i.e., the Big Bang) but creation is still happening right now. The universe is expanding and developing. Stars are being born; other stars are dying. We are living in a universe that is living in and through creation. 

 

Make time for prayer with your Creator God. During this wonderful July month, place yourself on your lawn chair. Look at each leaf, bring your eyes to stroke the green grass and feel the breeze move through the leaves and touch your cheeks. Be in touch with the great love that our Creator God has for every single leaf, every robin bobbing around for worms and every flower blooming at this very moment. 

 

If you are out at your cabin or camping and it is very dark, look up at the skies and count all the wonderful stars. You are standing and breathing in this beautiful, expanding universe. The Creator God knows and loves your existence. Our Creator knows everyone of the stars in the cosmos. God blesses with love every part of creation.

 

Now, from time to time this summer, make your prayer just sharing the goodness of creation. Sit outside and enjoy every growing leaf. You do not have to have any words; just the enjoyment, the gratitude for what God has made.

 

Maek your prayer of enjoyment and appreciation the moment you pray the first part of our creed: God is the maker of heave and earth. We rejoice and are glad. 

 

 

GRIEVING; PART 3 ; THE CATHOLIC FUNERAL

 

I want you to examine the Catholic funeral. What does the ritual actually entail?

 

Catholics are very pastoral (adjusting to the needs of the people right in front of them) in the way they do funerals. Now, there are several very devout Catholics who are so narrow that they cannot live outside the full Catholic ritual. They view a funeral in the funeral home as questionable for the born Catholic. 

 

But our Catholic practice reaches people where they are at and on terms they can grasp.  There was a funeral a couple of years ago (forty people present at the funeral home) where the only people that could respond to the prayers were a United Church couple who were friends of the grieving father. Hardly anyone made the sign of the cross. We could not have long Catholic prayers but carried the people along to understand the prayers and ritual (the sprinkling) as best they could.

 

A funeral of hymns, the Scripture readings, a homily and prayers is a very Catholic funeral. 

 

We are now receiving requests for a ‘grave side service.’ This is simple. It usually does not take too long. The uptick of these requests, often, though not always, is the family does not feel comfortable (or capable) of a traditional funeral in a church building. As simple as this service is, it can be very comforting and serve as a final send-off: a little bit of prayer over the departed on terms the people can handle. 

 

But the full Catholic funeral recognizes the importance of the human body. When there is full burial, we cover the coffin with a big white pall. This has baptismal meaning. A second meaning to the funeral pall is that all persons are equal before God. 

 

We bring the body into the church proper and have the proclamation of the Word of God. The homily is meant to deepen the people’s share in the promise of the resurrection of Jesus Christ. The hymns express our deep sense that God is working among us and triumphs over death. 

 

The prayers serve to pray for the deceased and all family and friends present. The focus is not only on the departed but brings the concerns of all the living to the Lord.

 

Then we enter into the Eucharistic prayer where we come to share in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Our sharing in holy communion is our commitment to share in the great self-giving of Christ for humanity.

 

The final prayers over the body and the sprinkling with holy water indicates that as a baptized person you are meant for eternal  life. Then we will take the body to the cemetery for burial. We return to the earth form which we came.

 

There is provision to have funerals for people from another Christiaan community and funerals for people of no faith identity. The pastoral practice is very broad and generous.

 

When people understand what all these Scripture readings, the prayers, the holy water means, they are strengthened. This is not some religious words we run through; it is the living encounter with our God.

 

Be aware of the variety and the pastoral tools that are available to born Catholics who have almost no acquaintance with the practice of the faith and what is available for very active and devout Catholic.

 

 

GRIEVING; PART 2; THE FUNERAL

 

All religious communities ( Christian and other religions) have worked out the rituals of death quite well. Now, the religious rituals speak the meaning, purpose and destination of death. 

 

Here is where the ritual is so powerful. You may not know the meaning of the prayers, readings or songs, but if you do the ritual correctly it will carry you through this dark event. The rituals have power to carry us along;  even if we do not actually plug into their meaning. Think of the rituals of dying as a river: it flows at its own speed and carries many things along with its daily flow.

 

The funeral is never a one-hour event in a church or the funeral home. The funeral embraces all the people who have come to support your family, the stories they tell, the food and coffee they share together. It is in the memories shared and treasured. All the telephone calls from people you worked with years ago are part of the funeral. The funeral is a three to five day event. 

 

Always think of the funeral time as: it is the time to place the departed where they need to be and to move the living to where they need to go.

 

You must embrace the pain and the loss. Feel the anger, the frustration and the incompleteness with the death of your loved one. The purpose of the funeral time is always for the living. We embrace the pain, share the tears and then we must move back into life. Now, it is time to go home and feed your kids!

 

There are many people who leave clear instructions: no funeral! We say from long experience (generations of experience): Don’t ever do that! You handcuff your family from entering the space to grieve, to share and support one another. The funeral time is always for the living! We the living need the space to grieve.

 

If your father leaves instruction that there is to be no funeral, politely say, “We will respect his command.” But he did not say that we cannot have a barbeque in his memory. He did not say that we could not get together over the barbeque and remember him and share our appreciation for his life. A barbeque may not be a formal funeral, but it is a healthy time for grieving and sharing his memory. 

 

There are many different ways we can mark the passing of our loved ones, but it is always the need we the living have to ritualize and make real this passing. Many persons of this generation have had very little experience with the rituals of dying but we know that the rituals are powerful and can carry the people who have so little meaning in death through this very painful time. 

TEACHING PEOPLE HOW TO GRIEVE

We lose touch with the wisdom of our ancestors. They learnt much about living and coping with the ups and downs of life. We need to reclaim their wisdom learnt  through the rough and tumble of life.  This article explores “what did Grandma know that we do not know about dying and grief?”

 

In the life of every person, we gain by the new births of people we love, and we lose by the people who die. The longer you live, the more loved ones you will lose. 

 

Our ancestors (who learnt what to do by living through death) knew that you can never grieve alone. When the loved one dies we all lose;  we all had a relationship with her/him. We all suffer the loss (each in a different degree). 

 

Experience teaches us that if you do not grieve at the proper time, you will grieve somewhere along the line. No one can just deny that the death (the ending) did not happen.  Death means that everything has changed. 

 

People will often say, “I don’t know what to say.” 

 

Say nothing. Be the silent support that listens with your heart. May your hug be communication that you care and will be with you in your suffering, confusion and your loss. I will stand with you in this meaningless moments of all of this tragedy. I will embrace your emptiness, your anger, your confusion and your resentment that life is not fair.

 

Too many do not know what to do. If they had been born two generations ago they would have had memory of their own parents dealing with the loss of loved ones. 

 

We need each other to help us embrace the pain and the loss. You need your friend to listen to you as you describe how you are cleaning out the drawers of your twenty-one year old son who died of an overdose. You need the patience of siblings who listen to you go through the old photos and the stories of your past holidays. 

 

You need to prepare some of the deceased favourite foods and tell stories how much your eighty-seven year old grandmother loved making donuts for the grandchildren. 

 

One of the unfortunate things that happens because we are so scattered throughout this country is that the siblings will rush in, spend two days with the funeral activities and then get on the plane and fly back to their home. Did they actually hear the pain and suffering of their sister and brother? Have they had time to shed tears together? 

 

Families that are relatively healthy are surprised at the amount of laugher they share when they tell stories of their departed father. Most often, they will speak of his adventures and his quirks. There is much laughter because there was much living!

 

Before we move on into the more formal part of grieving, we need to help today’s generation put in the time and the energy into grieving. And we must teach them that grieving the loss of a loved one, takes time; maybe a long time.