Editorial

Spiritual Life, Spring 2000 by O'Donnell, Edward

MY MOTHER CAME BY SHIP to the United States from Donegal, Ireland, when she was nineteen years old. She often related how she felt as she boarded the ship bound for America and then watched as the coastline of Ireland faded from her sight. Her emotions were deep, and her pain was filled with the realization that she might never see her mother again. She did return to Ireland, but it was after her mother had died. She never regretted her decision to leave, but she knew how much it had cost her.

All of us face-in what at times seems to be a never-ending processionconditions that demand of us separation from someone or something that we hold dear: children going off to school; change or loss of a job; moving to a new house or a new city; death or divorce. Sometimes we accept these separations gracefully. Other times, we suffer pain and become bitter. Parting can be a "sweet sorrow," but there is no guarantee that we won't feel the pain inherent in separation.

We would be remiss, however, if we stayed at the level of loss, bemoaning our state and wishing for a return to what was. We have all been told to "move on," to "leave these" feelings behind. Sometimes we are ready and sometimes we are not. Regardless of what stage of "letting go" we are at, we still need to find meaning in the separation that has taken place.

My mother could move through her pain with the dream of a new and better life in a new country. These dreams would give her strength for the lonely days ahead. Hope is what sustained her and what will sustain us in times of loss. In the midst of our emptiness, we can experience hope. We can come, through hope, to the awareness that everything and everyone is a gift, given to us for a few short moments of time; that we will lose all that we have, but only for a time; and that we will, one day, be reunited with all those whom we hold dear.

This is no false hope, no "opium for the masses," designed to make us tranquil in the midst of loss. No, this hope is based on our faith in Jesus and what he promises us: eternal union with him and with all in him. As Christians, we live with the hope that all separation will ultimately be replaced by union, that what was lost will be found again in Christ:

Do not let your hearts be troubled. Have faith in God and faith in me. In my Father's house there are many dwelling places;

otherwise, how could I have told you

that I was going to prepare a place for you? I am indeed going to prepare a place for you,

and then I shall come back to take you with me,

that where I am you also may be. (Jn 14:1-3)