St. Thomas’ Episcopal Church, Owings Mills MD
May 11, 2014
The Funeral of James Hauff
Ecclesiastes 3:1-8
Psalm 23
John 14:1-6a
Our Time and God’s Time
On behalf of all of us here at St. Thomas’, I want to begin by offering my condolences to Manigeh and to all of you, Jim’s family and friends.
Please know that we are always here for you, ready to offer any support that we can.
I also want to say that it is a privilege to be here today and to offer a few words.
I didn’t know Jim, but I feel like I’ve gotten to know him, thanks to conversations with Manigeh and with Barb.
And to be frank, hearing about this remarkably kind and talented man has made me feel, well, shortchanged.
I wish that we had had the opportunity – had the time – to meet and get to know each other.
So, this morning, I’d like to talk a little bit about time.
The first passage of scripture that we heard this morning, from the Book of Ecclesiastes, is all about time, right?
“A time to be born, and a time to die.”
“A time to weep and a time to laugh.”
“A time to mourn, and a time to dance.”
The author of Ecclesiastes is trying to make two points.
One is that God determines time and timing.
But the other is that we have some say in time and timing, too.
We don’t have any control over when we are born but we do have plenty of opportunities to shape how we use the time we’ve been given.
So, perhaps, God chose the time for Jim and Manigeh to meet at CareFirst, way back in 1985.
But it was up to Jim and Manigeh on how to use this opportunity.
One day in the copy room (I love this story!) it was up to Jim to work up the courage to ask Manigeh out on a date and it was up to Manigeh to decide on her response, to take a chance, or not.
“A time to love.”
“A time to embrace.”
Or not.
Everything I’ve learned about Jim tells me that he was someone who placed a great value on time – punctuality, yes, but more than that, using time wisely.
I’m sure the ticking threat of disease focused his attention, driving him to make the most of his time.
And that’s exactly what he did, right?
Building a beautiful life with Manigeh, relishing as much art as he could, and, of course, giving himself so generously to so many good works, including his many hours of volunteering here at St. Thomas’.
Jim knew that time is not a renewable resource, so he used his time as wisely as he could, carefully and selflessly.
The kind of time I’ve been talking about is called Chronos - chronological time, the one thing after another kind of time that shapes our calendars and much of our lives.
But there is another kind of time called Kairos – that’s God’s time – it’s the kind of time in which past, present, and future lose their distinction.
We get little tastes of Kairos every now and then.
Maybe it’s when we ponder a beautiful painting or listen to gorgeous music.
Maybe it’s when we gaze into the eyes of the one we love or feel the warmth of an embrace.
Maybe it’s in those moments when it feels like Jim is right here, right there, in the corner of our eye, just beyond our vision.
We ‘re experiencing Kairos right now, here in this holy place, mysteriously united with all those who have gone before, whose feet have worn down the threshold you crossed when you entered this room, united with those who have bathed these old walls with prayers.
And somehow, here, we are united even with those who are yet to come.
For now, we just get little tastes of Kairos, of God’s time.
But our brother Jim has stepped into God’s time, forever.
We’ll get there, too, someday.
But for now, may we follow Jim’s example and use our time wisely, here and now, offering love and service.
Amen.
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