FUNERAL Mass for July 26, 2010: Lifting the Veil of Ego Self-Image

Funeral Mass for Rodgers Brooks
Shrine of the Sacred Heart Church
July 26, 2010

Lifting the Veil of Ego Self-Image
By (Rev. Msgr.) Nicholas P. Amato


CONDOLENCES

To his wife Ruth, who is unable to be with us,
To his five treasures: Marygill, Rebecca, Lucy, Sutton, and Fran,
And their husbands Lewis, Bob, Andre, Peter and Andy,
To his 11 beloved grandchildren,
And to his brother, Harvey.

We gather this morning to offer you our condolences over the death of your dad and brother and to stand by you in solidarity over your loss. What an extraordinary man he was. It is such an honor for me to return here to the Shrine of the Sacred Heart and celebrate his Funeral Mass with you.

It’s no secret that Rodgers led a full, active and successful life of 89 years; 64 of them he was married to his dear wife and best friend, Ruth.

Thinking about it over the weekend had me realize that the secret of Rodgers’ success had to do with a different vision of how he saw himself, and how that vision was played out in relationships.


WHO WE ARE NOT

In the first reading, the prophet Isaiah describes a high mountain where God will one day gather all his people. We are assured that it will be a time of feasting not fasting, a time of smiles, not tears, a time of enlightenment not darkness.

Isaiah says, “On this mountain God will destroy the veil that veils all peoples and the web that is woven over all nations.”

The Prophet seems to imply that we can’t see God or this mountain paradise clearly because of this veil that covers us.

I would like to suggest that the veil is the ego self-image most of us have of ourselves, a self-image that places me in the center of the universe and everyone else on the periphery. Such a perspective can only lead to our demise.

You will recall that in the gospel the question those excluded from heaven ask Jesus is, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and not feed you, in prison and not visit you, sick and not tend you, etc.?”

Lifting the veil, then, has to do with seeing ourselves in a different way and this is where Rodgers’ life is such a gift to us.

My identity – who I am – is fundamentally a son or daughter of God. In short, I am not just like the God who created me; I am one with the God who created me. I am his presence here, as are you.

That self-identity of “being-in-God” that Rodgers had came from his strong faith and it was lived out in his family and the community-at-large.


THE POWER TO LIFE THE VEIL: A STRONG FAITH

It takes faith to go from my “ego self-image” to know that who I am is in God. Rodgers had that faith. It was nurtured by weekly Mass attendance, which he continued even during his six years at Mercy Ridge.

He was a member of the First Friday Club at Loyola College.

His dad and mom were good models for giving to Catholic causes and great supporters of the Archdiocese.

The way he saw himself created the relationships with family, community and the world. It made him a lover of people. He was as Sutton says,“the eternal optimist who smiled all the time and lifted people spirits.”

You can be that way when you are not the center of the universe … and God is.


RODGERS' IDENTITY AND THE FAMILY

Rodgers loved his family more than anything. The girls unanimously award him, “Best father ever.” That’s quite a title.

He was a very athletic masculine individual though surrounded by five daughters. His interest in them was intense from the color of their nail polish to the dishes he enjoyed cooking for them.
True, he always wanted a son, but he went a bit far when he cut the girls’ hair and made them all look like little boys. Ruth put a quick end to his hair cuttery days!

And how the women of the house loved him. The girls would literally fight over who was to get him his glass of ice water.

As his siblings died, Rodgers would take his nieces and nephews and just put his loving arms around them. He knew well how to meet the emotional needs of children in their times of great loss.

He was a firm yet gentle disciplinarian. The girls learned that quickly and did what they were told.

In all, it was a happy wonderful childhood and Rodgers for a dad was a great way to grow up.


RODGERS' IDENTITY AND THE COMMUNITY

Rodgers was a shrewd dealmaker. He did well in the family insurance business of Tongue Brooks and Company where he worked hard with his brothers.

And how he saw himself also got him involved in the community. He served on many boards and was a great supporter of the Vincent de Paul Society and their charitable works to those in need.

Yes, he was a “Good neighbor Sam” in the fullest sense of the phrase.

Perhaps that could best been seen in his being a Jack-of-all-trades. He was able to mix well with the most sophisticated of the cocktail circuit, yet climb in under the sink of a humble dwelling to fix a faucet.

You need a job done; you call Sam or I should say Rodgers.


CONCLUSION

Our ego self-image is truly a veil. Isaiah noted that it covers all peoples and all nations.

On the occasion of Rodgers’ passing, Marygill’s husband Peter remarked, “Every act and scene of this wonderful life was led with class and dignity. In this modern world of ‘me first’ greed and weak principles, Rodgers was a rarity, yet a reminder to all of us of what that virtue really entails.”

It is who Rodgers saw himself to be and his “identity in God” that made it possible for him to be God to family and community and for that he now enjoys the fullness of life.