3^rd Sunday of Easter, Mass at Hawkhead Cemetery, Paisley

1. We gather once again this year at this place where are interred the mortal remains of your loved ones and friends, the faithful departed, who have left this world in hope of eternal life and of the resurrection of the dead. In these circumstances, let me offer a word of condolence and sympathy to those of you who are bereaved by your loss, especially if that loss has been recent, and to all of you who remember your dearly departed family and friends with love and affectionate longing.

2. For all of us, the witness of Peter the Apostle should gladden our heart. “God raised this man Jesus to life, and all of us are witnesses to that.” The resurrection of Jesus is the source of our hope in eternal life, the source of our hope for our loved ones who are buried here and for the faithful departed who have preceded us.

3. Even if we eventually accept the death of our loved ones, and we must, our natural inclination is not to surrender them into the abyss of nothingness, as if they are no more, but to remember them and continue to love them, as if to hold them in life. The mystery of the resurrection tells us that our instincts are not in vain, and that in fact what the Lord has in store for those who believe in him, is not just survival after death, but is something even more glorious than we dare to hope for, and that is the life of the resurrection.

4. When the risen Jesus met the disciples on the road to Emmaus, he opened their hearts to the meaning of the Scriptures. At the end of the day, he shared a meal with them and they recognised him at the breaking of bread. The “breaking of bread” is one of the terms used by the early Church to talk of the Eucharist, the Mass. Through the Mass, through the Eucharist, Jesus accompanies us through our lives and opens to us the mysteries of God’s loving purpose for us, even in sad events like the death of people we love. That is why the Church has always put such importance on our participation at Mass. And that is why we offer this Mass today for those who are buried in this cemetery and for all the faithful departed. As we carry out this sacred action, we know that the risen Lord is in our midst and we recognise him at the breaking of bread.

6^th April 2008