Loretta Christiansen funeral
12/10/05
Sympathy to Loretta’s family and friends…
We gather today to mourn our loss, to remember and Loretta’s life and to celebrate our belief that for people of faith death does not mark the end of life, but rather the beginning of new and eternal life with our loving God.
Loretta will be missed by her family and friends. Bernie, your life will certainly be different without your frequent visits to see her. She will be missed by all who knew and loved her.
Loretta was a woman of strong will. She knew her mind and she did not bow easily to authority. An example would be a time when she went to seek advice from an old Bosch priest about a disagreement she was having with Forrest. The old priest told her that she should obey her husband because after all he was the head of household. Loretta’s reaction to that was to simply say, “that’s the last time I will ask him for advice. He doesn’t know what he is talking about.”
Loretta was a woman of strong will and she knew her mind. There were times in her life, however, that she had a hard time getting her strong mind to understand the tragedies that she experienced. And isn’t that they way it is with us all. Frequently the death of a loved one can be a time when we face the heavy duty questions about suffering and the meaning of life and the meaning of death. How do we make sense of it all anyway?
How do we find hope during the really difficult times in our lives?
These are heavy-duty questions. Things like finding hope and meaning in suffering is a mystery that humanity has struggled with from the beginning of time. I don't pretend to have the answer, but I do believe our scriptures today give us hope.
We are reminded that the meaning of life and death and suffering only make sense because there is resurrection and none of it makes any sense without faith God and faith in Jesus. In an appearance to his followers after his death Jesus responds to their concern about his death by saying, "do not let your hearts be troubled. You have faith in God; have faith also in me."
Faith is the key word here. Faith has been given to us in our baptism. It is in living out our faith that we have a relationship with Jesus and his father. Faith may not allow us to understand why there is so much suffering in our world. God does not promise us lives without suffering, but God does promise that when our hearts are troubled, if we look with eyes of faith, we can find hope because we will see the risen Jesus walking with us showing the way. During her time her at the Summit Loretta certainly experienced her share of difficulties. But I think she saw Jesus in the comfort she received from Sr. Rachel, Sr. Fran, and the Villa staff. She saw Jesus in the community who gathered with her to celebrate Eucharist in this chapel. I think she saw Jesus in the family and friends who came to visit and support her. She especially saw Jesus in her sister Bernie who visited so frequently and listened so well.
As we mourn our loss today, may we find hope in our faith in Jesus. It is our faith in Jesus that helps us to understand the words of St. Paul when he says:
For I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor present things, nor future things, nor powers,
nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Yes, we gather today to mourn our loss and to remember and Loretta’s life. Mostly, however, we gather to celebrate our belief that for people of faith death does not mark the end of life, but rather the beginning of new and eternal life with our loving God because nothing, not even death can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.