When was the last time someone sang over you? Some of us have memories of a parent singing a lullaby over us, and the sweetness and comfort of falling asleep to a soothing voice. Some of us have memories of being serenaded by a sweetheart, and the thrill of being seen and deeply wanted.
You may or may not have received a love song or a lullaby, but there is one moment you can be sure that someone will sing over you: at your funeral.
I have played music for many funerals, and they are always touching. But there is one part of the funeral Mass that chokes me up every time: the In Paradisum. This music is sung while the casket or urn of the deceased is incensed. It is as if Mother Church blesses her sons and daughters with a final “lullaby”:
May the Angels lead you into paradise:
may the martyrs receive you at your coming,
and lead you into the holy city, Jerusalem.
May the choir of Angels receive you,
and with Lazarus, who once was poor,
may you have everlasting rest.
In the book of the prophet Zephaniah, the Lord promises to sing over his people:
The Lord, your God, is in your midst, a mighty savior,
Who will rejoice over you with gladness, and renew you in his love,
Who will sing joyfully because of you, as on festival days. (Zeph 3:17)
This love song has one condition: “a people humble and lowly” (Zeph 3:12). The main theme in the book of Zephaniah is the “day of the Lord,” in which the Lord brings both justice and purification, deep renewal that requires the destruction of all idols.
This “day of the Lord” comes to shake the people of Judah out of complacency and usher them into a new kind of existence: repentance. Zephaniah’s prophecy calls out the false peace of complacency, comparing it to wine that has sat still so long that all the sediment is resting on the bottom. The “day of the Lord” will shake up the people so that they can come to their senses. But it will be messy.
When God shakes you and me out of our complacency, it is not pretty. It is messy. We get so acclimated to our idols that God has to get our attention and “make a mess.” When He stirs things up, our prayer starts to sound a lot like this:
Wait, do you mean I can’t put my trust in my perfect performance at work?
Do you mean this resentment I have been holding on to is actually doing harm?
So, this friendship is a breeding ground for gossip?
“A people humble and lowly” is a people who can pray honestly. Do you remember who else was humble and lowly? Lazarus, the poor man in Luke’s Gospel. In contrast to the rich man in the parable, Lazarus is poor and forgotten. Yet this is the song the Church sings over us as we pass into eternal life: May the choir of Angels receive you, and with Lazarus, who once was poor, may you have everlasting rest.
When someone sings over you, it is a moment of profound vulnerability: you are receiving the love of someone who is “exposing” their life for you through song. Not everyone can sing you a love song, but your beloved can; not everyone can sing a lullaby over a child, but a mother or father can. The Church, our mother, ushers us into eternal life, in this utterly vulnerable moment where dust and ash await the resurrection. Poor. Lowly. Little. This is how we arrive at our funeral.
If we want the Lord to sing over us in love, there is just one condition: to be “a people humble and lowly.” If we embrace our poverty and littleness, our utter dependence on Him, we will be able to hear His love song. Because He is always singing His love over us — His song never changes or fades, but when we are holding onto idols, we are deaf. Anytime we place our trust in something or someone that is not Him, it is like we are putting in ear plugs. His song simply cannot reach us.
So today, let Him stir things up in you. Let repentance get messy. Because your heart will not come alive in love until you can hear Him singing over you.
Suggested Concrete Resolution:
- Listen to the In Paradisum and imagine the moment of your own funeral. How do you want to be found on that day? What will it be like to hear this sung over you?
- Next time you are preparing for the sacrament of confession, ask the Holy Spirit to show you where you are most lacking in peace. If you notice something specific, ask the Holy Spirit to take you deeper into your heart to the why: what is it you really need here, and how have you tried to fulfill those needs apart from Him. If you notice something you desire to repent of, ask for the grace to do so, and bring that to confession.
This month’s meditation is by Sr. Ruth Kuefler AVI.
