I do a regular Sunday morning post—THOUGHTS AND PRAYERS FROM DEAN JEANNE— for a wonderful Facebook group of which I am a member. I wanted to also post it here today for those of you who subscribe to my blog. I won’t post this on the general Facebook site but I wanted to share with you.
Perhaps some of you watched the burial service for Prince Philip on Saturday morning. I watched it on BBC and was quite moved by how little the commentators interrupted and how respectful they were of both the service and the family.
As an Episcopal priest I thought the liturgy and the music were lovely. One line in the liturgy’s commendation really stood out to me:
Go forth upon thy journey…
We do not use this phrase in the Burial Liturgy in our Book of Common Prayer here in the United States. I regret this, because, to me, it speaks so perfectly to the truth that death is not the end, just another part of the journey. The Dean of Windsor was not addressing God when he spoke those words; he was addressing Philip directly:
Go forth upon thy journey…
Death for many of us has been all too close this past year because of the pandemic and also because life—and death—go on no matter what. In the past few weeks our son and his wife lost a dear friend, a young mother of three boys, very unexpectedly. Last night Tom and I got word that a friend of ours, a gifted sculptor, beloved husband, father, and friend, died in the hospital though it was not totally unexpected. Expected or not, death is painful and we are wounded. Even behind the masks, just looking into the eyes of Prince Philips’s family, you could see that grief touches everyone regardless of your status or lack of it. The words and music of a burial service are offered to give comfort to those who are still living. I learned that Philip designed and specified every aspect of his burial service; I think this is something we should all consider doing. I am not sure there is a better gift we can give our families. It is very difficult to plan the details of a burial service when our hearts are in pieces.
At my mother’s graveside service many years ago, my nephew Patrick read this passage from one of his favorite of all books, Lord of the Rings:
End? No the journey doesn’t end here. Death is just another path, one that we all must take. The grey rain curtain of this world rolls back and all turns to silver glass. And then you see it—white shores, and beyond, a far green country under a swift sunrise.
Whatever you believe or don’t believe, I think the words of the Dean of Windsor are of comfort and encouragement to all of us:
Go forth upon thy journey…
Thank you for keeping this blog.
I love the passage from “Lord of the Rings”. Also “Go forth upon thy journey” is very appropriate.