BERNIE

GOSPEL

A Reading from the Gospel of Luke  10: 25-28

On one occasion a lawyer came forward to put this test question to Jesus: “Master, what must I do to inherit eternal life?”  Jesus said, “What is written in the Law? What is your reading of it?  He replied, “Love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, with all your strength, and with all your mind; and your neighbor as yourself.’  “That is right” said Jesus; “Do that and you will live.”

INTRODUCTION

The title of my homily is, “Bernie!”

As Sandra Morgan was fond of saying, “Bernie?   Bernie is Bernie.”

And she’d sometimes add, “And that says everything.”

And it was a compliment  - as well as a description - of who this man was.

Bernie.

If you knew him, you get that. If you didn’t know him, sorry for your loss.

And as I thought about Bernie - as I was putting together some thoughts for today,  it hit me - that it’s my loss that I only knew the St. Mary’s aspect of Bernie.  There’s the St. Martin’s, the soccer, the Post Office, his connection with you his family, kids, grandkids, friends, other parishes like Bowie, his New York Life, College, and a lot of other lives he had.

At times, in his story telling you could hear references to all these other worlds and lives of Bernie.

Bernie….

He knew my brother - who also worked in the Post Office in Washington, D.C.

I did Betty’s funeral  - so I met some of you back then. Hi!

I also connected with some of  his New York - as well as his Brooklyn Dodgers - references - and I met you Teresa a bunch of times.

But my main connection with Bernie is here at St. Mary’s and Annapolis.

And by St. Mary’s I mean this church building and all the stuff here.

There is also St. John Neumann’s church building - and all the stuff out there.

So St. Mary’s parish wants to thank Bernie’s family - for the gift he was to so many of us in so many ways.

I picked the gospel that I read today - and I only read the first part of it - because Bernie got it. The meaning of life is to love our God with our whole heart, soul, strength and mind - and to love our neighbor as we love ourselves. Bernie didn’t need to hear second part of that gospel passage. It’s the Parable of the Good Samaritan that followed. The lawyer needed to hear that parable. Bernie didn’t.

Bernie loved God and loved us as he loved himself - but like most of us - we’re not that demonstrative about the loving ourselves part.

Bernie got Martin Luther’s comment, “God does not need your good works, but your neighbor does.”

And his neighbors in so many places got his love - in very practical ways - down through the years.

Bernie knew that was the “Stairway to Heaven” as the Led Zeppelin song put it.

He knew people’s birthdays and he tried to arrange at least coffee together at Nordstrom’s, Ah Coffee when it was open, and a half dozen other places so as to celebrate a person’s life.

He’d take the train to New York, then the subway, then a bus, all the way out to Brentwood New York to thank and to connect with some old nun he had in school 100 years ago.

He kept in contact with 1000 people - probably a lot more.

He knew the secret of life was not stuff - but people.

Like Jesus - who loved to eat with people - Bernie liked to be with people at lunch or breakfast with folks  - and that was a way to love and celebrate others.  It wasn’t the food; it was the friends.

He loved bringing Jesus - the Bread of Life - to people who couldn’t get out of their homes - so as to get to church. Thank you Eucharistic ministers.

He was blessed with the gift of faith - and was thankful for God in his life - often leading us in prayer at St. John Neumann our other church - as well as here - at St. Mary’s. You could always call on Bernie.

Bernie was a neat guy - but not that neat. You’d get invited into his dark bluemobile and he’d have to move his stuff -  the stuff that was on the floor in the front or in the other front seat of his car and move it to the back - smooth and fast. No problem.

“No problem!” That was one of Bernie’s regular comments.

Along with, “I have a question.”

Or, “I was thinking about something you said.”

Or, “What about Evelyn?”

Bernie had his mannerisms, like looking over the top of his glasses as a way of making a comment when someone else made an over the top  comment.

At least once in every time we ate together -  Bernie would fish a picture or a piece of paper out of his pocket and look at it twice - once with his glasses on and once with his glasses off - then refer to it.

Come to think about it - Bernie’s glasses were part of Bernie’s shtick - the Yiddish expression for someone’s signature behavior. You’d see his face…. Glasses on, glasses off, glasses held in hands as he’d put something he was trying to read up close - then using his glasses as a magnifying glass. Bernie’s glasses, Bernie’s eyes, Bernie’s fading hair. Bernie would be a cartoonist’s dream.

Bernie - renaissance man - if renaissance man means interested  in many pursuits and many interests - and has lots of knowledge -  but not a renaissance man if it means a $500 dollar suit - or the overuse of one’s jacket side pockets. Renaissance men don’t use those side pockets on their shiny suits.  Bernie’s were like saddle bags. Bernie had lots of stuff in those side jacket pockets. So Bernie wasn’t a suit. Yet his regular uniform was a suit jacket  and tie. 

And that shirt had its ball point pens etc. Thank God for shirts with pockets.

Who had to clean out his closets? That would be autobiography.

Bernie made it to 80. That’s a lot of autobiography.

Bernie wasn’t sick forever. He didn’t die with his boots on - but came close. That weird sounding cancer got him pretty quickly. Multiple Myeloma - and Bernie would know how to spell it. It got him.

Bummer…. Bummer because Bernie had a lot more steps in him - a lot more cell phone calls to make. And his cell phone mannerisms were Bernie: glasses on - glasses off - cell phone numbers up close - and then closer.

Bernie got sick. He wasn’t the best visit in the hospital. It was tough for him.

Thank God - in the long run - that sickness wasn’t’ that long.

Bet bummer for Bernie. Bummer for us.

Back track a bit. Our lives define us - praise and thank God - not our endings.

So lucky for us, lucky for Bernie, he had a good full life.

It took Bernie a bit of time to accept he was dying - but it wasn’t a forever dying - especially compared to his long, long life. It would only be a few back pages of his biography and autobiography.

In a way we’re here to say “goodbye” to Bernie - but as Chrystal Gale - whom he liked - put it, “It’s like We Never Said ‘Goodbye’.” 

Bernie’s presence is with us - lingering in the back benches of this church - as well as up here in front - giving out communion. He loved saying,

“Jim! Body of Christ.” 

“Mary Joan! Body of Christ.”

“Harold! Body of Christ.”

“Helen! Body of Christ.”

 “Mitzi! Body of Christ.”  

“Governor! Body of Christ,

“Bill Body of Christ.”

“Chris! Body of Christ.”

And we would say back to Bernie, “Amen”

Bernie, thank you for teaching us that we are all part of this wonderful Body of Christ. Amen.