In Memoriam -- Jean Long

My mother-in-law, Jean Long, was received into the Church Triumphant on July 4, 2008. As Pastor Tom Zucconi said at her committal, our loss is her gain. My family has been moved by the outpouring of sympathy and support we have recevied from our Christian family.

The Service of Committal includes a prayer that I am finding to be increasingly beautiful. Here it is:

Almighty God, by the death of your Son Jesus Christ You destroyed death, by his rest in the tomb You sanctified the graves of Your saints, and by his bodily resurrection You brought life and immortality to light so that all who die in Him abide in peace and hope. Receive our thanks for the victory over death and the grave that He won for us. Keep us in everlasting communion with all who wait for Him on earth and with all in heaven who are with Him, for He is the resurrection and the life, even Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.