George Maestas Funeral Homily

On this day we gather to mourn the loss of a beloved friend and family member. We come here to pray for the repose of the soul of George Maestas through this funeral liturgy. We pray for all his family gathered here especially for his wife Betty, Eddie his brother, and his children Paul, Becky, and James that they might find comfort from the sorrow that is currently being felt within their lives, and we pray for all gathered here that we may be renewed in our commitment to Jesus Christ in light of the reality of death that lies in wait for each of us. During his journey of faith George was strengthened through his love of the Church and its Sacraments. This could be seen through his relationship and example that he showed to his family and to all those who had the opportunity to encounter him. As a proud member of the Knights of Columbus he was devoted to making the pillars of the order manifest to this community and to the world. The pillars of charity, unity, fraternity, and patriotism could be observed within his actions.

For those who had the opportunity to know George we know that he suffered greatly. His suffering did not come and end with a blink of an eye, but it continued to endure for many years. He spent many days inside of the hospital and had the reality of his own death upon his mind each day. Due to this he trusted inside of his faith all the more. From baptism George entered into the life of the Church and went forth into the world attempting to live a life worthy of this calling. He desired to be nourished each day by the Holy Eucharist. He trusted in the healing power of the Anointing of the Sick and the graces that it bestowed upon his soul as he prepared for death and the hope of his Heavenly reward. He also trusted in his vocation in life which was that of marriage. He allowed each of these Sacraments to connect him to God and to give preparedness to his soul as he prepared himself for his death that would come at an unknown hour that seemed to forever draw closer.

For each of us here we also know they we are vulnerable to death. There is no escaping its grasp, but through the faith that we share we are given hope from the darkest of hours. We are able to glance upon the cross and see Christ crucified and realize that on the third day Christ rose again in fulfillment of the Scriptures and then Ascended into Heaven to dwell with His Father for all ages. As we glance upon the reality of the unknown hour of death may we allow ourselves to do everything that is possible to prepare for this moment. May we not allow ourselves to continue to feel content with going through lives motions without preparing our lives for the one thing that we are entitled to. In our Gospel we encounter ten virgins who were awaiting the arrival of the bridegroom, but half came unprepared and thus missed the very thing that they had hoped for. We cannot allow ourselves to continue to walk along acting as if nothing out of the ordinary will happen to us. George was an example of this reality for each of us.

We must be like the five virgins who came prepared to meet the bridegroom. These virgins did everything in their power to prepare themselves for his arrival. Taking after the trust that George placed within Sacraments of the Church we should do the same. Confession is present within the life of the Church to cleanse the soul of all sin. When we know that the possibility of death could be right around the corner we can place out trust in Christ through the Anointing of the Sick. The Holy Eucharist is present to bring nourishment to our souls and to strengthen us as we prepare for life and its many challenges. No matter what our status in life is we must trust now in Christ and the healing that He brings into our lives. We must trust in the cross and the hope of the Resurrection of the Body that will take place. If we can trust inside of this reality we will be able to find comfort within our lives as we face death. We will realize in this light that hope does exist for all of us to be prepared for this unknown hour.

The Lord is our Shepherd and on this day we draw close to him. All of our wants and needs we place inside of His healing hands. We commend George to this place to receive the mercy of God as we continue to pray for his soul. All of us here who mourn the loss of a beloved family member and friend come to Christ the Shepherd to receive healing in this time of loss. To Christ our Shepherd we look as we prepare ourselves to meet Him one day in the life that will come.