Funeral Homily

Gospel: John 11: 17-27
1. Contextual information about the community addressed:
Historical context: John’s Gospel was addressed to an Ephesian Gentile audience—modern day Turkey.
John 11:17-27 describes the meeting between Jesus, Mary and Martha after Lazarus has died. Jesus’ hour is prefigured in this text but the text should be considered in light of the whole, larger passage, which includes the miraculous resurrection of Lazarus (page 681).
2. Significant information:
Jesus knows of the death of Lazarus before Mary and Martha tell Him, indicating that he is Omniscient (page 687).
Martha indicates that she expected Jesus would have saved her brother but that now it is too late, even though she confesses her belief in a resurrection. This belief does not come across as holding much resignation to the will of God, however, for she is still upset that her brother is dead (page 688).
Jesus announces that He is the resurrection and the life—i.e., that no one lives but through Him (page 689).
Older Testament: Wisdom 3:1-6, 9
1. Contextual information about the community addressed (give page number/s):
Generally understood as written by King Solomon for other rulers, the Book of Wisdom contains a great deal of insight on every aspect of life but especially on living in righteousness (page 467).
2. Significant information:
Solomon explains the reward of the just, which is not shameful death, but rather union with God (page 469).
The just are proved like gold in a fire—they experience trial but their trust in the Lord is what sees them through (page 469).
Psalm: _Psalm 23_ Commentary
1. Contextual information about the community addressed
Psalm written by David acknowledging that the “Lord is my shepherd.” The audience is the Hebrew people of his kingdom. It is not just a psalm for funerals but also a psalm for living (page 767).
2. Significant information:
The Lord keeps people alive (page 767).
God is merciful and just (pages 767-8).
God sustains those who are faithful—this is the essence of the passage (page 768).
New Testament letter: _1 Corinthian 15: 51-57
1. Contextual information about the community addressed:
Written by St. Paul to the Corinthians, who were experiencing errors in teaching and St. Paul wrote to clarify the doctrine.
2. Significant information:
Death is the punishment for sin (page 989).
The law does not give life—only Christ has overcome death (page 989).
B
Written Outline of Preaching Preparation
1. Community being addressed (name, place, date):
Catholic Church parish in Cincinnati—adult members; liturgical season: Lent. Middle class parishioners who have assembled for a funeral. Funeral for the 16 year old son of a married father of 2 children (still teens); the father of the deceased was active in Knights of Columbus.
2. Lectionary: Sunday/Feastday/Other Liturgical Event: Funeral Homily ______
Cycle __ Lent, Year 2020, Language ___English_____
3. Lectionary/Scripture Readings, including Psalm:
Gospel: John 11: 17-27
Wisdom 3:1-6, 9
Psalm 23
1 Corinthian 15: 51-57
4. What is happening with this community (locally, nationally, or globally) that you want to address?
A teenage boy—sixteen years old—has died. His father is a member of the Knights of Columbus. The parish is sad—but beyond that there is a deadly virus causing fear globally and people are afraid.
5. Focus (your main point, unifying theme, gravitational point)
Death is not the end—it is the beginning. But it is the beginning of our entry into eternity and those who are faithful to God will spend that eternity with Him.
The unifying theme is that as Catholics we are all under the same law and all owe the same debt—but because we are members of the Mystical Body we can pray for one another, even for the dead, that they and we might see eternal paradise.
The gravitational point is that prayer is an effective form of intermediation.
6. Function (what you are inviting the community to be or do)
The purpose is to increase the faith of those in the community and to encourage them to pray for the dead.
7. Line of thought: briefly give in outline form how you might structure or develop your preaching text.
I. Introduction: John 11: 17-27: I am the resurrection and the life.
II. Wisdom 3:1-6, 9: the souls of the just are in the hand of God
III. Psalm 23: I will fear no evil, for you are with me.
IV. 1 Corinthian 15: 51-57: Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through Our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Gospel of John:
When Jesus arrived, he found that Lazarus had already been in the tomb for four days. Now Bethany was near Jerusalem, only about two miles away. And many of the Jews had come to Martha and Mary to comfort them about their brother. When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went to meet him; but Mary sat at home. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. [But] even now I know that whatever you ask of God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise.” Martha said to him, “I know he will rise, in the resurrection on the last day.” Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, even if he dies, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord. I have come to believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one who is coming into the world.”
Funeral Homily
“I am the resurrection and the life.” Those are words no parent or sibling ever wants to hear at an occasion like this because it means what people fear most—someone they have loved deeply has died. But what does Martha’s meeting with Our Lord following the death of Lazarus show to us? It shows that where Our Lord is, there is where life is. Then what is death? It is a death of the body—for I assure this boy’s soul yet lives, just as the soul of Lazarus lived on even after his body had died. Death is a separation of the body from the soul. It is nothing more nor less. It is not the end of anyone. It is but the beginning of eternity for everyone.
Let that sink in for a moment. We think of our births as the beginning of our lives. We think of our young adulthood as the beginning of our real life. We think of our old age as the beginning of the end. We are wrong in every way. We are but stewards of the life given us in this world. We are here for such a very short time—and then we must give an accounting of our time, for God will ask us how we spent it, how we used the life He gave us, whether we used it to do His will or to chase after a will that was not His own.
But every day of our lives in this world we will have to answer for. And it is that moment in the next world that we should spend every moment in this world preparing for. For this minutes and hours and days and weeks and months and years pass away like sand in an hour glass—and there is no slowing that passing nor delaying it. This is fleeting. All of it. There is nothing permanent about any part of it. Our home? It is not here.
Eternity with God—that is where real life is, where it begins, where it lasts. Real life has no end. That is why Our Lord tells us that He is the life. Because he is eternal. He is the source of all.
“The souls of the just are in the hand of God.” None of us know who the elect are. That is why we pray for the dead. We must not make the mistake of assuming that all the people we love go straight to Heaven. I imagine very few souls are of such a degree of sanctity that they are immediately welcomed by Our Lord into Paradise. The vast majority of those souls who do enter Paradise most likely spend a great deal of time in Purgatory. And some we love may never see Paradise. We do not know the state of anyone’s soul at the time of death. Those we do the Church declares them saints. But there is always evidence—signs of the miraculous—to confirm for us the truth, that the soul of the departed is in the hand of God. We must always strive to be just, to live in the state of grace—because we know not the hour when Our Lord will call us for our reckoning.
“I will fear no evil, for you are with me.” Do not fear: where sin abounded, God’s grace did more abound. We are not to spend our time in fear. Today, there is a virus ravaging the world. We are not to worry or dread or wonder that God allows this to happen. God has put a death sentence on every one of us—and only He knows the hour. He wants us to walk in faith, so that we can be assured that when our hour is up we will be with Him.
Therefore, let us give thanks: “Thanks be to God! He gives us the victory through Our Lord Jesus Christ.” God gave us the resurrection, He created us to be with Him, and He does not abandon—nor does His mother—so long as we pray to them both and ask for their assistance at the hour of our death. We know it is hard to lose someone we love—but think of how hard it will be for you if you lose your own soul. Think about this my dear friends. God does not damn anyone—but He allows us to damn ourselves. We decide where we want to spend our eternity. We chose. Every day of our lives. So let us pray for the living and for the dead. The soul of this boy lives on. It is our duty as Catholics to pray for his soul so that whatever pains he is suffering in Purgatory might be lessened and his reward brought all the sooner. We pray that he is with God. We pray to the saints that they might intercede for us on our behalf, and help us to be in union with God as well. That is our goal: in this life, it is to be united with one another in Christ in the next world. Amen.