Pastor's View - Sunday, August 1, 2010 21:43 - 1 Comment

For All We Know Farewell / A Lo Mejor Adiós

For all we know
We may never meet again
Before you go
Make this moment sweet again

We won’t say goodbye
Until the last minute
I’ll hold out my hand
And my heart will be in it

For all we know
This may only be a dream
We come and we go
Like the ripples of a stream

So love me, love me tonight
tomorrow was made for some
tomorrow may never come
for all we know

Those words are from a Jazz song written in 1934 and sung and recorded by countless artists since. The song, for me reflects the sense of hope as people separate.

The words of this song that struck a few weeks ago as I heard it on the Marian McPartland NPR Piano Jazz program were: “We come and we go / Like the ripples of a stream.”

How many men have served as pastors here and have been called to animate this community? How many people have heard our voices and have been moved by the vision of the Gospel to move forward in the living of life? We are all in the same stream, on the same pilgrimage. We affect the lives of so many and then we move on and so does the stream.

I pray that my time here has had more a positive affect than a negative one. I thank you for your love and trust in choosing to walk with me and inviting me into your lives. Forgive me, and pray forgiveness for me for that by which I have offended you. Bless me and bless yourselves for that which gives us life.

Two departing words in English, “Farewell” and “So long” are apropos here.
–Farewell: Offers the one who is leaving a wish to live well as he/she goes. The response then is ‚Äúgood bye,‚Äù itself a contraction of God be with ye, expressing the wish that God continue to be the guide, shelter, sustainer and healer.
–So Long: Expresses longing and the call ‚Äúto long for a hoped return‚Äù as the heart recalls what has been held in common. So many things we have longed for together, as well as the many things that have been expressed in hope in the lives of our parishioners: longings of our hearts for peace, return, balance, reconciling with estranged loved ones‚Ķ.and so much more.

How many people, afraid of their tears at loss have I attempted to console with the words, “Your tears honor the one you mourn.” My moving to Minnesota is no different. My tears honor you. Those among you who cry for my departure honor me. We both, though, are called to challenge ourselves to know for what it is we mourn most, and dedicate ourselves to make that aspect of our life present and active. Each of us has the same call and commitment to grow the community of faith. My prayer for you is that what we have moved a little further along, will be the underpinnings for continued growth here at Ysleta.

“May the road rise up to meet you,
may the wind be ever at your back.
May the sun shine warm upon your face
and the rain fall softly on your fields.
And until we meet again,
May God hold you in the hollow of his hand.”

fr. Charles

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