Eva's Funeral Homily

Friends, you have come together because you knew and loved Eva Mae as an Aunt, Cousin or Friend.

It is good that you have come together. Because you need each other in empathy and consolation.Here we will face Eva's death, celebrate her life, and show our love and support for one another in this time of grief.

Today, you her family and friends, will gather good memories, as you have been doing over these past few days, you will tell and retell the foundational stories of her life. For Eva's life has no doubt touched every one of you..

But we have also come together believing that all human life is valuable. Because a human life is sacred in its being born, in its living, and also in its dying.

We come, believing that Eva's life has been translated from this temporary mortal existence to a more glorious and eternal one, of which we get only but a glimpse.Her life was lived in its uniqueness with us but now she has passed into a Heavenly Communion.

Although Eva no longer shares her physical existence with us, the gifts and graces which she offered are never lost to us, for they are forever residing in our hearts and lives and will travel into the future with us.

Our lives are forever changed for having known her.

Prayer/Silent ReflectionLet us pray:Compassionate and loving God, renew our inner strength, heal our grief stricken hearts and minds, lift us up to find new meaning in all of lifes circumstances. Embrace us in our uncertainties and lift our hope. In the name of Christ we ask. Amen.

Good Morning, my name is Father Ernest Ross of the Johannine Catholic Church, and I'd like to welcome you to this Service of Thanksgiving and Committal for Eva Mae Archambeault. On behalf of her family I thank you for attending and sharing in this important and solemn occasion with them.

Following this service you are invited to join the family at:

__________________________________ for conversation and refreshments.Readings/Poems

Sleep on, beloved, sleep, and take thy rest;

Lay down thy head upon the Saviors breast;

We loved thee well, but Jesus loves thee best

Good night! Good night! Good night!

Calm is thy slumber as an infants sleep;

But thou shall wake no more to toil and weep;

Thine is a perfect rest, secure and deep


Until the shadows from this earth are cast,

Until He gathers in His sheaves at last;

Until the twilight gloom be over past


Until the Easter glory lights the skies,

Until the dead in Jesus shall arise,

And He shall come, but not in lowly guise


Until, made beautiful by love divine,

Thou, in the likeness of thy Lord shall shine,

And He shall bring that golden crown of thine


Only Good night, beloved not farewell!

A little while, and all His saints shall dwell

In hallowed unison indivisible


Until we meet again before His throne,

Clothed in the spotless robe He gives His own,

Until we know even as we are known

Good night! Good night! Good night!Reflection

We are gathered here this morning by Eva's death. Most of the time we can accept death as an abstract principle, part of the biological chain of generation begetting generation.

But when death comes to a beloved family member, our grief is personal, sharp, and painful.

So we mourn. For we have suffered loss.

Yet death always brings us face to face with life. Indeed, each of us lives between two eternities.

Each birth causes us to wonder where the spark of life comes from. Every death makes us wonder what part of that life survives.

What we have done, and who we have been, remains part of the wider universe long after we are gone.

None of us knows the whole truth about what lies beyond death.

As Christians we believe that as we journey between life and death, we are safe in the hands of an infinitely gracious God, and we believe that every human life, with a mind to think and a heart to love, is an expression of the Spirit of God.

Tribute

Let us affirm and celebrate the life of Eva Mae Archambeault.

(Read Donna's Eulogy here.)A Personal MomentWe are glad Eva lived.

We are glad we knew her fellowship.

We cherish the memory of her words, her deeds and her character.

Thanks be to God, the Source and Ground of Life, for all the gifts we have received in Eva. Amen.The FarewellAs we come to the moment of farewell, part of our grief may be regretfor things done or left undone... words said, or never said... moments that never happened.

This is the time to lay aside all those regrets and honor the spirit of Eva Mae herself, who would never want them carried into our future.

To love someone is to risk the pain of parting with them. Not to love is never to have lived. The grief that we now experience is the honoring and reality of our love.

We hold in our thoughts and hearts those most touched by Eva Mae's death: Promising that we shall walk quietly beside you in love and prayer, seeking to uphold you through the depths of your loss as well as encouraging you, as she would have, to continue living.Go to prayer book.

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Eva's Funeral Homily