I find great peace in our readings today; I find them rather appropriate for the day. Today is a day that my family will mourn the loss of a great man, a man who was devoted to his family. A man we will all miss in our daily lives. A man I will pray for daily not only for the repose of his soul but for his intercession for his family and friends he has left behind. Before I say anymore, take a look at our daily readings that by “chance” happen to fall on this solemn day.
Reading 1
Rejoice, O young man, while you are young
and let your heart be glad in the days of your youth.
Follow the ways of your heart,
the vision of your eyes;
Yet understand that as regards all this
God will bring you to judgment.
Ward off grief from your heart
and put away trouble from your presence,
though the dawn of youth is fleeting.
Remember your Creator in the days of your youth,
before the evil days come
And the years approach of which you will say,
I have no pleasure in them;
Before the sun is darkened,
and the light, and the moon, and the stars,
while the clouds return after the rain;
When the guardians of the house tremble,
and the strong men are bent,
And the grinders are idle because they are few,
and they who look through the windows grow blind;
When the doors to the street are shut,
and the sound of the mill is low;
When one waits for the chirp of a bird,
but all the daughters of song are suppressed;
And one fears heights,
and perils in the street;
When the almond tree blooms,
and the locust grows sluggish
and the caper berry is without effect,
Because man goes to his lasting home,
and mourners go about the streets;
Before the silver cord is snapped
and the golden bowl is broken,
And the pitcher is shattered at the spring,
and the broken pulley falls into the well,
And the dust returns to the earth as it once was,
and the life breath returns to God who gave it.
Vanity of vanities, says Qoheleth,
all things are vanity!
Responsorial Psalm
PS 90:3-4, 5-6, 12-13, 14 AND 17
R. (1) In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
You turn man back to dust,
saying, “Return, O children of men.”
For a thousand years in your sight
are as yesterday, now that it is past,
or as a watch of the night.
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
You make an end of them in their sleep;
the next morning they are like the changing grass,
Which at dawn springs up anew,
but by evening wilts and fades.
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
Teach us to number our days aright,
that we may gain wisdom of heart.
Return, O LORD! How long?
Have pity on your servants!
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
Fill us at daybreak with your kindness,
that we may shout for joy and gladness all our days.
And may the gracious care of the LORD our God be ours;
prosper the work of our hands for us!
Prosper the work of our hands!
R. In every age, O Lord, you have been our refuge.
Alleluia
2 TIMOTHY 1:10R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Our Savior Christ Jesus destroyed death
and brought life to light through the Gospel.
R. Alleluia, alleluia.
Gospel
While they were all amazed at his every deed,
Jesus said to his disciples,
“Pay attention to what I am telling you.
The Son of Man is to be handed over to men.”
But they did not understand this saying;
its meaning was hidden from them
so that they should not understand it,
and they were afraid to ask him about this saying.
The man we mourn today is the Father-in-Law of my son Jerome. We will mourn the loss of David Starzyk. David was very blessed in his life and knew this and was thankful to God for all that he had. He loved his wife Sally and his three daughters Nicole, Megan and Natalie. Sarah and I came to know David through his daughter Megan – the wife of our son Jerome. It is hard for me to go into too much detail about the life of David because I only knew him through Jerome and Megan. But what I do know is that David was a family man and had a deep love for them and a deep love for God as I previously mentioned. It is easy for me to judge the character of David because I do know his daughter.
Growing up we always chided our kids to be good people because their attitude towards life; their attitude towards fellow man; their attitude towards God doesn’t reflect on them but reflects back on their parents. Believing the truth in that statement, I know how a good a man David was from the reflection of his beautiful daughter Megan. Megan is kind, patient, loving, devoted, fiery, faithful. Megan is a devoted mother, wife, daughter, friend. She didn’t get those traits on her own but she learned them through her parents. She learned them through David and Sally. So the love I have for Megan because of the good she does for my son is the same love I have for David and his wife Sally because it was through their love and commitment to their family and their faith that my son was blessed. It is through Megan that I’m able to see the good man that David was. It is through Megan that I’m able to see the reflection of God in David’s life. It is for Megan (and for Sally, Nicole and Natalie) that I will thank God for bringing David Starzyk into our lives; it is for that reason that I will pray for David everyday. Rest in peace David Starzyk – you were truly a man of God, a man of prayer, a man devoted to his family.
Everything you need to know about David is captured in this picture.
Do something great for our Lord today – rejoice in His name; know that the Lords ways are not our ways, the Lords thought are not our thoughts and that the Lord gives and the Lord takes away – BLESSED BE THE LORD. As I begin to write these final “sayings” that I try to fashion my life around, know that David Starzyk lived these to their true meaning.
God’s will, not mine, be done.
Be not afraid; just have faith.
Jesus, I trust in You.
He must increase; I must decrease.
Lord, if You wish, You can make me clean.
But you man of God chose righteousness, devotion, faith, love, patience and gentleness. Compete well for the faith.
Eternal God, in Whom mercy is endless and the treasury of compassion – inexhaustible look kindly upon us and increase Your mercy in us so that in difficult moments we may not despair nor become despondent but with great confidence submit ourselves to Your holy will, which is Love and Mercy itself.
May David’s soul – and the souls of all the just – through the mercy of God rest in peace.
St. Mary Magdalen Men of God 
Thank you, Jerry, for honoring our hero. You captured Dave perfectly. He put God first and he loved his family with all his heart. We were so blessed.
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