Letter from the Rector ....Fr Alan Sutherland
Dear Friends,
There is an old saying that there are only two certainties of life: taxes and death. Tomorrow is April 15th, and we all know that is the deadline for filing our returns to the IRS. It is a date that has been constant for many years and is a fixed date on our calendar. Yet our death does not have a fixed date. None of us are guaranteed a tomorrow, and none of us have a date that is given to us when we will pass through the door that leads us from this life into eternal life. All of us are guaranteed this entrance by the resurrection of Christ and none of us have anything to fear. Yet death is not just about the one who dies, it is also about those who are left.
Life is one of constant adjustment without our loved one. At the time of death it is the hundreds of decisions that need to be made. After that it is the vacuum that is left, the space of emptiness, the unfulfilled hopes and dreams, the new routines as life is learned to be lived without the one you love.
We can do nothing for our loved ones when we die. But there is much we can do that will help them before we die. We can make a will, have sufficient life insurance, and make prearrangements with a funeral home and the church.
When a loved one dies there are numerous decisions that have to be made. Many of these are not necessary if we take the time to prepare, and knowing that our loved ones will not have to make those decisions in a deep time of grief, knowing that they will be secure after we die, and knowing that they know we have taken care of them offers a great sense of security both for us and those we love. None of us is immortal in this life. That happens after our death. But we can make our death a little easier for those we love if we have taken the time to prepare.
With all my love and prayers
your friend,
Fr. Alan
