With a voice of singing

Catherine Goertz Funeral - October 25, 2013

The Rev. Kenneth R. Elkin

There is an anthem that every church musician will come across, one of the standards in the repertoire: With a voice of singing, by Martin Shaw.

That is what first came to my mind when I began to think about Catherine.

The text of the anthem is this:

With a voice of singing,

declare ye this and let it be heard, Alleluia.

Utter it even unto the ends of the earth; The Lord has delivered his people. Alleluia.

O be joyful in God, all ye lands,

Oh sing praises to the honor of his name;

            make his praise to be glorious.

Of course the text is not a new invention; it is echoing scripture.

And it parallels the mood and intent of the passage from Revelation we heard a moment ago, the song of the heavenly host around the throne of God.

All those who have died in the faith, together with the angels and heavenly beings are engaged in their first and proper job, the praise of God.

We get distracted so much of the time worrying about ourselves.

Our mundane problems seem so large to us that they may take all our time and smother our voices.

We need this reminder from Revelation about the nature of our job in the fullness of time, which we are to start to practice now in joyful preparation.

With a voice of singing, and music of every kind, declare what God has done, is doing, and will yet accomplish.

Catherine had stacks of printed music, so much that Gary despairs of what to do with it all.

They are the blueprints of a joyful life, and for that we give thanks to God.

When we receive the gift of Holy Baptism, we are thereby numbered with that multitude at the throne of God, even though we may have many things to do and many years to live before we arrive there.

We're already a part of the throng; we're already telling the story and singing the song, the story of God's love for us in Christ Jesus and what we are able to do in the meantime.

Catherine shared in that in being a Sunday School teacher and a Worship & Music committee member, among many other things at St. Mark's.

It was the center of life and activity for many years for her and others.

Thanks be to God that it was so!

I don't think that I ever had a short conversation with Catherine.

They would always meander through so many topics, each one suggesting the next one.

She wanted always to be in conversation.

And that happens to make a wonderful theological point as well.

It is a prime way for us to think of the nature of God, as the conversation of the Father with the Son in the Spirit.

Creation is by Word: “And God said...and it was so...and it was good.” [Genesis 1]

And this Word involves us: “The Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have beheld his glory.”[John 1]

We say that Holy Baptism makes us a part of the Body of Christ, and if that is so, it also means that God is inviting us into the divine conversation.

Jesus wants to talk not only with the Father, but also with us.

The Spirit wants to breathe true life into  our conversations not only with Jesus, but also with each other,

so that they are not meaningless chatter, but are windows to life which is shared in the name of Jesus.

Catherine didn't express that theological analysis, but she was living out its point, and that is the important thing.

We're surely going to miss the things that made Catherine a special person to us.

She was well aware of how precarious her health situation was and that death could come most any time.

But my last visit with her at Hillside was not a time of anxiety or anger.

Rather, it was a joyful time as she demonstrated the features of her room and how she was going to manage things in these surroundings, and the staff with whom she had dealt, and the people with whom she had conversed, and...

She was not dying as some do; she was living confidently in the promise of Jesus all the way through.

What a wonderful example for us!

She has nothing more to get out of life, and only things to give.

Many objects have been given new homes.

Her piano will be inspiring a new generation, I hope, as my granddaughter begins piano lessons.

Catherine told me the story of where the she got the piano, and how much she enjoyed it.

Catherine raised family and those gifts of love continue as well.

How shall we honor the memory of Catherine?

The best way will be to take all of these things which she passes to us, the objects, the attitudes, the love, and especially the story of Jesus,

and to use them well and share them widely,

knowing that with the voice of Christ's promises, with a voice of joy and celebration, with a voice of singing, Catherine is joining with the host of heaven in the song that is to be ours as well.

Thanks be to God for the person, the life, and the song.  Amen.