Danny Tucker Funeral

January 28, 2000

Sympathy to all Danny’s family and friends who are gathered here today –

The gospel we just heard was the one that was read at Mass last Sunday. It is the story of Jesus calling his first disciples. On Tuesday evening I was with a group of people and we spent about a half-hour reflecting on that Gospel. There was a song that we listened to as a part of our reflection. The refrain to that song is:

Come and see, come and see the good things that God has promised to give you. Come and see, come and see how blest are the children of God.

Those words say to me that when we accept Jesus’ call to follow him, God promises us good things. When we accept Jesus call to follow him, we are blessed as children of God. I sat there listening to that song, feeling very sad. I thought about how Danny Tucker accepted Jesus’ call to follow – to come and see, and I thought about how aware Danny was of all the good things and blessings that God showered on him in his short life. Danny was blessed with a passion to live life fully and he did try to live life to the fullest. Whether it was driving his racecar or riding his Harley when he was younger, he drove with passion and gusto. He farmed for many years with that same kind of passion. Danny was blessed with a church community at St. Mary’s that he loved passionately and served tirelessly. As we can see today Danny was blessed with many friends and loving family members. And we know there was nothing he wouldn’t do for us when we were in need. Danny was blessed with children and a wife who loved him very much. He was passionate about his love for Ryan and Samantha and Arlene. He tried to live his life with you to the fullest by spending time with you at Trinity Point camping. He was totally dedicated to being involved in school and extra circular activities with you. And I can tell you from first hand experience, Arlene, Samantha and Ryan he loved to talk about how special each of you are to him.

Yes, Jesus called Danny in his baptism to “Come and See” and Danny responded by living his life to the fullest. Now Jesus invites Danny to “Come and See” life everlasting in perfect union with our loving God.

But you know, as our reflection on this gospel continued last Tuesday evening, I became aware of the refrain to that song again. Come and see, come and see the good things that God has promised to give you.

I was beginning to take some consolation in my reflection when I began to feel at little angry. I started thinking about how I would miss Danny. I started thinking about Arlene and Samantha and Ryan and Jim and Rhonda and Leo and all of us who loved him. I found myself saying to God, “We are followers of your son. We have accepted his invitation to Come and see. So where, God, in our sadness, suffering, pain and confusion are the good things you promised to us? All this stuff was whirling around in my head when I suddenly became aware of a verse in this song that goes like this:

Come and see, come and see how blest are the children of God.

For God is near to the broken hearted, God will save those whose spirit is crushed.

It suddenly became clear to me that God is near to us when we are broken hearted. God does reach out to us when our spirit is crushed. When we accept Jesus invitation to follow him, God promises to be with us always, in good times and in bad. I have seen God reach out in so many ways this week. And I have seen God reaching out because so many gathered her today have responded to Jesus’ call to show our love and support for one another. Many of us from Danny’s church community at in Euclid are disappointed because we were unable to celebrate Danny’s funeral at St. Mary’s. Our church is just too small. We have reached out, however, by providing and serving the lunch that we will share after the funeral today. People from St. Mary’s, Trinity Lutheran and the Cathedral have reached out by providing the readers, music ministers, altar servers, communion ministers, ushers for this funeral Mass and the wake last night. Ryan’s hockey team reached out by coming to his home this week to show their concern and support for him. Arlene has told me how she and Ryan and Samantha have been overwhelmed with the support they have received from all the family and friends who have reached out to them. Every one of us who came to this funeral today, everyone at the wake last night, every who stopped or called or wrote a note or brought food to Danny’s loved ones have reached out. I’ll bet that each one of us could tell about how God has touched our broken hearts this week because someone took the time reach out to us in our suffering.

We are reminded today that God promises to be near when we our hearts are broken. My prayer is that we will always say yes when Jesus calls us to reach out and remind each other just how close our loving God really is.

Some one asked me recently what I thought happened to us when we die. Can a person who has died still see us? Our faith tells us, and I believe with all my heart that Danny isn’t dead. Our scriptures tell us that he has been invited to a new and fuller life where he will be in perfect union with our loving God. And we also believe that even though Danny is no longer physically with us, if we continue to follow Jesus our loving relationship with Danny does not end, nor does Danny’s loving relationship with us end. For now that relationship is nurtured by our memories and in the depths of our heart and soul. But as followers of Jesus we believe that one day we to will see God face to face and be united again with all our loved ones. I hope we can find some consolation that Danny has been invited to come and see God face to face in all God’s glory. I also hope we can find some consolation in the love we have for Danny and one another until the day when we, too, are invited to see God face to face and be united with Danny for all eternity.

So this is the bottom line: In the gospel story today Jesus called his first disciples. Jesus calls us today as well. And I am certain that right now he is calling us to reach out in love and compassion to another, because that is precisely how God fulfills his promise to reach out to us when our hearts are broken. Jesus will continue call us to reach out to one another as we continue to grieve this tremendous loss in our lives. May our response to that call be an immediate yes.

Come and see, come and see the good things that God has promised to give you. Come and see, come and see how blest are the children of God.

For God is near to the broken hearted, God will save those whose spirit is crushed.

Danny has St. Peter cornered telling him about family – if we believe God blesses us here then we have to believe Paul that we will be blessed w/ eternal life. I said before, Arlene, Samantha and Ryan that I can tell you from first hand experience that Danny loves to talk about how special each of you are to him. In fact can picture Danny cornering Jesus and Mary and few of the saints telling them how special his family is.

I still feel very sad because I have lost a friend, but I guess I have been able to let go of a little of my anger because I do believe that God did keep his promise bless his son Danny with many good things during his time with us. And I also take a great deal of

A reading from the Holy Gospel According to Mark

After John had been arrested, Jesus came to Galilee proclaiming the gospel of God:

"This is the time of fulfillment. The kingdom of God is at hand. Repent, and believe in the gospel."

As he passed by the Sea of Galilee, he saw Simon and his brother Andrew casting their nets into the sea; they were fishermen.

Jesus said to them, "Come after me, and I will make you fishers of men."

Then they abandoned their nets and followed him.

He walked along a little farther and saw James, the son of Zebedee, and his brother John. They too were in a boat mending their nets.

Then he called them. So they left their father Zebedee in the boat along with the hired men and followed him.

The Gospel of the Lord

A reading from the first letter of St. Paul to the Romans

Or are you unaware that we who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?

We were indeed buried with him through baptism into death, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live in newness of life.

If, then, we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with him.

We know that Christ, raised from the dead, dies no more; death no longer has power over him.

The Word of the Lord

Meditation = where are the good things, blessing for Danny now – that went away pretty quick because Dan did respond to call to follow Jesus – passionately, fully like he did everything – lived life to fullest, racing, Harley, Arlene, Samantha, Ryan, family & friends not afraid to give a hug when it was needed, to his church cmty and because of D&R in Romans. But where are the good things and blessings for Arlene, Samantha, Ryan, and for all of us who are Danny’s family and friends.

And then I heard the verse that says:

Come and see, come and see the good things that God has promised to give you. Come and see, come and see how blest are the children of God.

For God is near to the broken hearted, God will save those whose spirit is crushed.

Our response is two fold – do we reach and do we accept? Do we not reach out because we don’t know what to say. Do we not accept because… why? Importance of family friends, cmty in mutual and loving relationships.

When I am talking about Danny’s involvement with church I need to get something in there about how difficult the decision was to have the funeral at Cathedral because Danny was so committed to his St. Mary’s parish family.