Death surrounds me

This weekend my college roommate's dad, Phillip Patane, died after a long illness. At nearly 90 years old, he lived a very full life, filled with joy and laughter. His large italian family will miss him much as he was certainly the strong patriarch of his clan. I will miss him and pray to him often. (Henceforth, he is known as St. Phillip of Brooklyn).

Also over the weekend, Sr. Rose Thering died, who Renee LaReau profiled on BustedHalo some time ago, whose doctoral research was in part, responsible for the issuing of the Vatican II document Nostra Aetate ("Our Time"). She is a hero to many of us who long for more ecumenical and interfaith dialogue.

Lastly, Fr. Bob Moran, CSP a wonderful Paulist died about two weeks or so ago and I haven't had the chance to blog about him much. Bob was a character! I'll best remember him for the line he quipped in the early days of the construction of our website. Our web design consultants were encouraging us to call our website "90 degree turn" (www.90degreeturn.com).

When we pursued why they were even thinking of calling the site that they came up with the following scenario:

"Well, when you're at a crossroads and are trying to make a decison, you don't want to make a 180 degree turn because you'd be going backwards. You really want to make a slight turn to the left or to the right--about 90 degrees."

So I'm thinking that they're crazy....

They continue: "But if you go 90 degrees upwards... now you're going in the direction that God wants you to go."

The good Fr. Bob Moran, God rest him, remarked:

"Do they really think God's up there? The Russian Cosmonauts proved that theory wrong long ago!"

I continue to giggle everytime I tell the story.

The three all had a great ferocity for their God. That fire needs not be estinguished with their deaths. Rather, their lives will continue to emblaze our own as we remember the great love they had for their family and friends, their church, their God.

Eternal rest grant unto them O'Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May their souls and all the souls of the faithful departed through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.