A SERVICE OF DEATH AND RESURRECTION for Calvin Hamilton

GATHERING

Dying, Christ destroyed our death. Rising, Christ restored our life. Christ will come again in glory. As in baptism Calvin put on Christ,  so in Christ may Calvin be clothed with glory. Here and now, dear friends, we are God’s children. What we shall be has not yet been revealed;  but we know that when he appears, we shall be like him,  for we shall see him as he is. Those who have this hope purify themselves  as Christ is pure.

THE WORD OF GRACE

Jesus said, I am the resurrection and I am life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, yet shall they live,  and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore,  and I hold the keys of hell and death. Because I live, you shall live also.

GREETING

Friends, we have gathered here to praise God  and to witness to our faith as we celebrate the life of Calvin. We come together in grief, acknowledging our human loss. May God grant us grace, that in pain we may find comfort,  in sorrow hope, in death resurrection.

THE MARINES’ HYMN

In honor of Calvin’s service as a United States Marine, let us listen to “The Marines’ Hymn.”

PRAYER *

Let us pray.

O God, who gave us birth, you are ever more ready to hear  than we are to pray. You know our needs before we ask,  and our ignorance in asking. Give to us now your grace,  that as we shrink before the mystery of death,  we may see the light of eternity. Speak to us once more  your solemn message of life and of death. Help us to live as those who are prepared to die. And when our days here are accomplished,  enable us to die as those who go forth to live,  so that living or dying, our life may be in you,  and that nothing in life or in death will be able to separate us  from your great love in Christ Jesus our Lord. Amen.

PROCLAMATION AND RESPONSE

OLD TESTAMENT LESSON

Selections from Isaiah 40

Comfort, O comfort my people, says your God. Speak tenderly to Jerusalem, and cry to her  that she has served her term, that her penalty is paid, that she has received from the Lord’s hand double for all her sins. A voice cries out: “In the wilderness prepare the way of the Lord,  make straight in the desert a highway for our God. Every valley shall be lifted up,  and every mountain and hill be made low; the uneven ground shall become level, and the rough places a plain. Then the glory of the Lord shall be revealed,  and all the people shall see it together,  for the mouth of the Lord has spoken.”

A voice says, “Cry out!”  And I said, “What shall I cry?” All people are grass, their constancy is like the flower of the field. The grass withers, the flower fades,  when the breath of the Lord blows upon it; surely the people are grass. The grass withers, the flower fades;  but the word of our God will stand forever.

Have you not known? Have you not heard? The Lord is an everlasting God, the Creator of the ends of the earth. He doesnot faint or grow weary; his understanding is unsearchable. He gives power to the faint and strengthens the powerless. Even youths will faint and be weary, and the young will fall exhausted;

but those who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength;  they shall mount up with wings like eagles;  they shall run and not be weary;  they shall walk and not faint.

(Taken from Isaiah 40:1–8, 28–31)

NEW TESTAMENT LESSON

Revelation 21:1–7

Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth;  for the first heaven and the first earth had passed away,  and the sea was no more. And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem,  coming down out of heaven from God,  prepared as a bride adorned for her husband. And I heard a loud voice from the throne saying,  “See, the home of God is among mortals.  He will dwell with them as their God;  they will be his peoples, and God himself will be with them;  he will wipe away every tear from their eyes.  Death will be no more;  mourning and crying and pain will be no more,  for the first things have passed away.”

And the one who was seated on the throne said,  “See, I am making all things new.”

Also he said, “Write this, for these words are trustworthy and true.”

Then he said to me,  “It is done! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning and the end.  To the thirsty I will give water  as a gift from the spring of the water of life.  Those who conquer will inherit these things,  and I will be their God and they will be my children.”

“WELCOME TO MY WORLD”

“Welcome to My World” was Calvin and Ivy’s wedding song. Let us listen as we remember the love and life they shared.

GOSPEL LESSON

Selections from John 11

Now a certain man was ill, Lazarus of Bethany, the village of Mary and her sister Martha. Mary was the one who anointed the Lord with perfume and wiped his feet with her hair; her brother Lazarus was ill. So the sisters sent a message to Jesus, “Lord, he whom you love is ill.” But when Jesus heard it, he said, “This illness does not lead to death; rather, it is for God’s glory, so that the Son of God may be glorified through it.”

When Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went and met him, while Mary stayed at home. Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. But even now I know that God will give you whatever you ask of him.”

Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.”

Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection on the last day.”

Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die. Do you believe this?”

She said to him, “Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, the one coming into the world.”

When Mary came where Jesus was and saw him, she knelt at his feet and said to him, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died.”

When Jesus saw her weeping and the Jews who came with her also weeping, he was greatly disturbed in spirit and deeply moved. He said, “Where have you laid him?”

They said to him, “Lord, come and see.”

Jesus began to weep.

Then Jesus, again greatly disturbed, came to the tomb. It was a cave, and a stone was lying against it. Jesus said, “Take away the stone.”

Martha, the sister of the dead man, said to him, “Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead four days.”

Jesus said to her, “Did I not tell you that if you believed you would see the glory of God?”

So they took away the stone. And Jesus looked upward and said, “Father, I thank you for having heard me. I knew that you always hear me, but I have said this for the sake of the crowd standing here, so that they may believe that you sent me.”

When he had said this, he cried with a loud voice, “Lazarus, come out!”

The dead man came out, his hands and feet bound with strips of cloth and his face wrapped in a cloth.

Jesus said to them, “Unbind him, and let him go.”

SERMON

What a powerful message we receive from this Gospel reading in John.

Did you catch what it said there two-thirds of the way through the reading?

It said that when Jesus saw Mary weeping and saw the other people wailing with her, a deep anger welled up within him, and he was deeply troubled.

Jesus wasn’t angry at Martha or Mary for questioning him.

He wasn’t angry at the people there for crying and wailing.

After all, it says that Jesus himself was weeping.

The anger that welled up in Jesus came from his own grief.

He had lost a dear friend—someone whom he loved as a brother or a cousin, someone close to him.

He was witnessing the pain it was causing Lazarus’ sisters, Martha and Mary, whom he also loved.

He was witnessing the pain it was causing Lazarus’ family and friends.

And, again, he was experiencing the pain that it was causing him.

AND HE GOT ANGRY.

Anger is a part of the grieving process.

It’s natural for us to go through these different stages of grief:

To be in denial of the death of a loved one.

To get angry that they died:

Angry with the person.

Angry with others.

Angry with God.

To find ourselves bargaining with God to have things return to the way they were.

To find ourselves utterly and totally depressed.

And, hopefully, eventually to get to a place of acceptance and peace.

Jesus was angry, and he began to weep.

His friend’s death was sudden and unexpected.

It wasn’t a part of Jesus’ plan.

Rather, Lazarus suddenly fell ill and, as a result, died.

Yes, Jesus knew that Lazarus would live again, but that still didn’t erase the feeling of finality that we all experience in death.

What a powerful message for us today because, though we wish we weren’t,

We find ourselves in a similar situation to the one Jesus was in.

Someone dear to you, someone you loved and knew intimately,

Someone who loved you back and who supported you and filled your souls with joy,

Someone in whom you were invested and who was invested in you,

Has passed on from this life.

And here we are,

Grieving the loss of Calvin.

Grieving what once was:

Kinship, friendship, loving relationship.

Here we are, grieving what once was but is seemingly no longer.

Sadly, I never got to know Calvin, though I understand that he:

Was born right here in Masonville and raised in Masonville and Rancocas Woods.

Came from a family who were members of Masonville Church.

Graduated from Lenape Regional High School.

Went on to serve our country as a United States Marine during the Vietnam War.

Calvin completed two tours, conducting reconnaissance missions.

He earned the rank of Sergeant before being honorably discharged.

Following his time in the Marines, Calvin worked for his brother-in-law, doing government construction work with Fab Construction and Contracting.

Most recently, he worked as a maintenance technician for Perdue AgriBusiness.

He had been employed there since 2012.

You, on the other hand, did know him.

And you no doubt touched his life.

One thing I am sure of is that Calvin loved his family, and he loved his friends.

And he didn’t just love his friends and family; he was very much loved by them, too.

As you all can attest, Calvin was a caring and compassionate man.

He knew what it meant to love and sacrifice for his family.

Calvin was very family-oriented and loved spending time with his children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

Family was at the heart of his life.

And that love extended to animals as well.

I can also tell that he loved life!

Calvin enjoyed fishing and crabbing.

He loved going to the shore.

And he was a lifelong Philadelphia sports fan.

And Calvin knew that the lines of family were not merely defined by one’s bloodline.

That much I could gather from his obituary.

Alongside his beloved wife, Ivy, Calvin’s family included:

His children, Stacy Carroll, Jennifer Laird, and Christopher and Heather Mancuso.

His seventeen grandchildren and six great-grandchildren.

His brother, Scott Hamilton.

And his stepsiblings, Christine and Gil Lattiere and Steve and Carolyn Tokarski.

It is amazing what an obituary can tell of a person and the love they have for their family and their community.

In short, as much as you loved sharing in his life,

Calvin loved sharing in your lives as well.

He loved life, and no doubt he was ready to experience more of it.

I can only imagine he had more life he had hoped to live, and yet his life came to an all-too-early end.

So many hopes and expectations—gone.

Yes, friends, we are grieving the loss of Calvin today.

So, acknowledging our grief, what a powerful message for us today,

Because we believe in a God who is not only with us in our grief,

But we believe in a God who has experienced grief.

A God who knew the pain of losing a father.

Who knew the pain of losing his best friend.

Who knew the pain of living life in the day-to-day struggle of coping with loss and despair.

Who knew the pain of losing his own life,

And the grief that one goes through in their own journey toward death.

Understand this: when I say that God is with you all in this time of grief, I’m not blowing smoke.

For our God IS WITH US and, more importantly,

Our God knows what grief is all about:

What it means to be in denial.

To be angry.

To bargain with God in the darkness of the garden.

And to be depressed and in despair.

What’s more, our Lord knows how to lead us to a place of acceptance:

To a place of JOY.

And to a place of the PEACE that passes all understanding.

What is important to remember is that, while we can no longer see Calvin face-to-face, while we can no longer share in conversation with him,

All that he meant to us,

The legacy of love he built up in his life and shared with you,

Can be lived into and embraced.

The best way to honor the people we love is by showing the love we had for them to each other and to others.

That our love for those we no longer see grows to include those around us and those beyond our reach.

Humanly speaking, our legacy of love is always complicated.

None of us is perfect.

But it is LOVE nonetheless and, if we open ourselves up to Christ, we will be perfected in LOVE.

My friends, Jesus Christ did not come to establish a new religion, but to establish God’s Kingdom—and to establish LOVE as the law.

If we build our lives around LOVE, and if we live our lives in LOVE,

We will honor those who came before us and inspire all who follow us.

We will truly find ourselves at peace and filled with purpose.

Let us honor Calvin in such a way.

And to do so TRULY honors God, for God is LOVE.

Let us honor Calvin, live each moment in LOVE, and look forward with HOPE and JOY.

For I, like the author of the Book of Revelation, firmly believe that:

God is making all things new.

God will one day wipe the tears from our eyes.

One day there will be no more death or sorrow or crying or pain.

One day we will be in the fullness of God’s presence with the ones we love.

We will see each other and God face-to-face.

And we will all know that we are God’s children,

LOVED, embraced, and included in God’s Kingdom. Amen.

REMEMBERING CALVIN

We now come to a time of remembering Calvin and sharing some of the stories that made his life uniquely his.

I would first like to invite members of Calvin’s family who have prepared to share their memories of him.

After the family has had an opportunity to speak,

friends will also be invited to share.

Following the family’s remembrances,

we ask that each person keep their remarks brief so that everyone who wishes to share may have an opportunity.

You may come forward—or, if you prefer, simply stand where you are—

and share a memory of Calvin.

COMMENDATION

PRAYERS *

God of us all, your love never ends. When all else fails, you still are God. We pray to you for one another in our need,  and for all, anywhere, who mourn with us this day. To those who doubt, give light;  to those who are weak, strength;  to all who have sinned, mercy;  to all who sorrow, your peace. Keep true in us  the love with which we hold one another. In all our ways we trust you. And to you,  with your Church on earth and in heaven,  we offer honor and glory, now and forever. Amen.

O God, all that you have given us is yours. As first you gave Calvin to us,  now we give Calvin back to you.

Here the pastor, with others, standing near the coffin or urn, may lay hands on it, continuing:

Receive Calvin into the arms of your mercy. Raise Calvin up with all your people. Receive us also, and raise us into a new life. Help us so to love and serve you in this world  that we may enter into your joy in the world to come. Amen.

Into your hands, O merciful Savior,  we commend your servant Calvin. Acknowledge, we humbly beseech you,  a sheep of your own fold,  a lamb of your own flock,  a sinner of your own redeeming.

PRAYER OF THANKSGIVING *

God of love, we thank you  for all with which you have blessed us  even to this day: for the gift of joy in days of health and strength  and for the gifts of your abiding presence and promise  in days of pain and grief. We praise you for home and friends,  and for our baptism and place in your Church  with all who have faithfully lived and died. Above all else we thank you for Jesus,  who knew our griefs,  who died our death and rose for our sake,  and who lives and prays for us. And as he taught us, so now we pray.

THE LORD’S PRAYER *

Our Father, who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done on earth, as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, forever. Amen.

CLOSING HYMN

As we listen to “Amazing Grace,” you are welcome to sing along if you wish.

DISMISSAL WITH BLESSING *

The peace of God which passes all understanding  keep your hearts and minds in the knowledge and love of God,  and of his Son Jesus Christ our Lord. And the blessing of God Almighty,  the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,  be among you and remain with you always. Amen.