Homily - Friday 2015/07/10

Homily  - Friday 2015/07/10

Funeral Mass - Generoso Ritua (My Father-in-law) Unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies

Gospel Reading:

The Holy Gospel according to John

Philip went and told Andrew; then Andrew and Philip went and told Jesus. Jesus answered them, “The hour has come for the Son of Man to be glorified. Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit. Whoever loves his life* loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will preserve it for eternal life. Whoever serves me must follow me, and where I am, there also will my servant be. The Father will honor whoever serves me. 

            When Rowena and I were at home discussing the readings for today’s Mass, she chose this one about the grain of wheat dying… and to be quite honest, I didn’t really get it at first... if the wheat dies, then that’s the end right? But if we look closer at how a seed works, how a grain of wheat, an acorn, or even a mustard seed works, we see… how they reach maturity, they fall from the tree or bush, once in this stage, once they have gone from green and vibrant, to dead and dormant they can stay dormant for long periods of time, and then when conditions are right they come back to life. Once it has fallen to the ground, and the soil has enough moisture, and spring has come and the sun has warmed it sufficiently, it will begin to sprout into a whole new plant, again fully alive, vibrant … green with life.

            While I am sure it is never easy for the seed to die, to depart from the stalk or branches that held it up for so long, and for it to become reliant on the will of the sun for its warmth and the clouds for the rain, it is a necessity for the existence of the plant, since the change of seasons is unstoppable.

            “Amen, amen, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls to the ground and dies, it remains just a grain of wheat; but if it dies, it produces much fruit.”

            In our lives too, we have likely transitioned, where we have died of self, emptied ourselves, to refill ourselves anew in a new role. It may be a natural progression, like how we were a child in the womb to be born into our new role as an infant. We transitioned from toddler to student, child to adult. Perhaps even single to married or couple to family.

            Maybe you have even died to an old self and rose again in a new life by choice, just as in baptism, or some other moment of conversion where you have died of old bad habits, and rose again living a virtuous life.

            In Gene’s life, he has had to die to self and rise again anew multiple times, as he transitioned from his home in the Philippines into the navy, as he went from a single man to his married life, with his wife Nati, and then into the role of Father after having Becky, Randy, and Rowena. And he transitioned again to Grandfather with the birth of his first Grandson Grady, and once the grandsons were perfected with the fourth, Aaron, Gene was gifted with three granddaughters and he later became a great grandfather seven times over, and with the addition of Wilma to our family he gained two more grandchildren. Each role Gene did quietly, without great fan-fare, living out that role humbly, and well, retiring from the military as a chief, retiring from the post office quietly without even a retirement party. He was a man of few words, choosing instead to live an example rather than talk about it. In the twenty-five years of knowing him, I have heard no one speak ill of him, or him speak ill of another. Since his passing on Father’s day, I have come to realize how much of a positive role model Gene has been to me and many others.

Today as we celebrate the funeral Mass for Gene, who once again has died, to rise to new life. He has gone again quietly, after living his last roles as husband, father, father-in-law, grandfather, and G-G-pa, being a favorite brother-in-law to a family with only one sister, and a friend and role model to many. Following this Mass we will lay Gene to rest in the ground where we as Christians will hold on to the hope that a new life awaits, where once again he will enjoy vibrant life anew. It is in the hope of eternal rest in heaven that we can find peace that this is not the end, but a new beginning.