I am sorry that I have not been posting anything lately, but we suffered a loss in our family last week. My father, William (Bill) Jones, passed away on Tuesday, April 5th. He was 85 years old. A child of the Depression era; he entered the Navy right out of high school and served during the final years of WWII, in the Pacific. He served on the hospital ship, USS Benevolence, as an x-ray technician. While he may not have been in combat, he witnessed the costs of combat, as he cared for the wounded from those final, bloody, Pacific campaigns. He graduated from Boston College after the war. He worked at General Electric. He married my mother, Margaret, and with her, raised six children; three boys, three girls (they believed in equality). He was a very loving father. A convert to Catholicism while he was a teenager, he would teach religious education in our home parish for 30 years. He sang in the parish choir, was a senior altar server, and a regular lector at Sunday Mass. He was a Vatican II man, welcomed the reforms that came out of it. He always wished that the Church would push the envelope a little farther. His and my mother's example of living the faith were definitely an influence on me and my faith life. He died at home, after a long battle with cancer, with my mother and siblings with him. I think I am still processing the loss, because right now, despite all that is happening in the Church and the world at large, nothing is stirring these fingers to begin typing. Hopefully, this block will lift, and there will be more frequent posts. But for now, I ask your prayers for my father's soul, and for my family. Thank you.
Showing posts with label cancer. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cancer. Show all posts
Monday, April 18, 2011
A Loss In The Family
I am sorry that I have not been posting anything lately, but we suffered a loss in our family last week. My father, William (Bill) Jones, passed away on Tuesday, April 5th. He was 85 years old. A child of the Depression era; he entered the Navy right out of high school and served during the final years of WWII, in the Pacific. He served on the hospital ship, USS Benevolence, as an x-ray technician. While he may not have been in combat, he witnessed the costs of combat, as he cared for the wounded from those final, bloody, Pacific campaigns. He graduated from Boston College after the war. He worked at General Electric. He married my mother, Margaret, and with her, raised six children; three boys, three girls (they believed in equality). He was a very loving father. A convert to Catholicism while he was a teenager, he would teach religious education in our home parish for 30 years. He sang in the parish choir, was a senior altar server, and a regular lector at Sunday Mass. He was a Vatican II man, welcomed the reforms that came out of it. He always wished that the Church would push the envelope a little farther. His and my mother's example of living the faith were definitely an influence on me and my faith life. He died at home, after a long battle with cancer, with my mother and siblings with him. I think I am still processing the loss, because right now, despite all that is happening in the Church and the world at large, nothing is stirring these fingers to begin typing. Hopefully, this block will lift, and there will be more frequent posts. But for now, I ask your prayers for my father's soul, and for my family. Thank you.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
"How Long Must I Carry Sorrow In My Soul?"
Psalm 13
How long, LORD? Will you utterly forget me? How long will you hide your face from me?
How long must I carry sorrow in my soul, grief in my heart day after day? How long will my enemy triumph over me?
Look upon me, answer me, LORD, my God! Give light to my eyes lest I sleep in death,
Lest my enemy say, "I have prevailed," lest my foes rejoice at my downfall.
I trust in your faithfulness. Grant my heart joy in your help, That I may sing of the LORD, "How good our God has been to me!"
It has been said that the Psalms express all the emotions one can experience in his or her relationship with God. Two members of my family have experienced serious illness recently; they are battling cancer. One is recovering from treatment, the other is just beginning hers. To witness their suffering, I am both railing against God, while at the same time begging for His assistance. One moment I am in awe of His power and love; and then I am in despair about His seeming powerlessness. In the end, we need to trust in His faithfulness; and sometimes cry out “I do believe, help my unbelief!” (Mark 9: 24)
How long, LORD? Will you utterly forget me? How long will you hide your face from me?
How long must I carry sorrow in my soul, grief in my heart day after day? How long will my enemy triumph over me?
Look upon me, answer me, LORD, my God! Give light to my eyes lest I sleep in death,
Lest my enemy say, "I have prevailed," lest my foes rejoice at my downfall.
I trust in your faithfulness. Grant my heart joy in your help, That I may sing of the LORD, "How good our God has been to me!"
It has been said that the Psalms express all the emotions one can experience in his or her relationship with God. Two members of my family have experienced serious illness recently; they are battling cancer. One is recovering from treatment, the other is just beginning hers. To witness their suffering, I am both railing against God, while at the same time begging for His assistance. One moment I am in awe of His power and love; and then I am in despair about His seeming powerlessness. In the end, we need to trust in His faithfulness; and sometimes cry out “I do believe, help my unbelief!” (Mark 9: 24)
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