Young Jew as Christ, Rembrandt
Readings (New American Bible: Philippines, USA)
Readings (Jerusalem Bible: Australia, England & Wales, Ireland, New Zealand, Pakistan, Scotland, South Africa)
Gospel Mark 13:33-37 (English Standard Version Anglicised: India).
Jesus said to his disciples:
“Be on guard, keep awake. For you do not know when
the time will come. It is
like a man going on a journey, when he leaves home and puts his
servants in charge, each with his work, and commands the
doorkeeper to stay awake. Therefore
stay awake—for you do not know when the master of the house will come, in
the evening, or at midnight, or when the cock crows, or in
the morning— lest he come suddenly
and find you asleep. And what I say to you I
say to all: Stay awake.”
Liam Whelan (1 April 1935 - 5 February 1958)
If this is the end, then I'm ready for it.
These were the last words of Liam Whelan who died in a plane crash at Munich Airport on 6 February 1958 along with other members of the Manchester United football (soccer) team as they were returning from a match in Belgrade. About ten years ago I learned from a friend named Brendan whom I have known for more than 60 years that, when they were both aged 14 or so, Liam rescued him when he got into difficulties in a swimming pool in their area. And about four years ago I discovered that another friend, who was a classmate of for five years in secondary school and for two years in the seminary, also named Liam, that this talented young footballer had been a neighbour of his and that even when he had achieved fame as a professional footballer he would still play knockabout football on the street with the local boys whenever he would come home.
The average age of Manchester United's players at the time of the accident was only 22. These young men were earning only £15-per-week, about 25 percent more than a tradesman. Unlike tradesmen, their careers lasted only a few years and could be cut short by injuries. (The current top earners on Manchester United's team earn around £18,000.000 per year (roughly in the $20,000,000 or €20,000,000 range). Endorsements could bring in a little more income for a few talented players whose career would end for most at 35, if not earlier.
There was snow on the ground at Munich Airport and the plane made three attempts to take off. Harry Gregg, the goalkeeper for Manchester United and who also played in that position for Northern Ireland's international team, was sitting near Liam Whelan. He survived uninjured and helped save a number of people from death. He has often told the story of Liam Whelan's last words: If this is the end, then I'm ready for it.
Clearly young Liam had his life focused on what was most important. He was ready to meet death. I have often spoken about him at Mass and in giving retreats.
Those who knew him describe Liam Whelan as 'a devout Catholic’. I know that he sent his mother some money for her to go to Lourdes. 11 February 1958 was the centennial of the first apparition of our Blessed Mother to St Bernadette. Mrs Whelan, a widow since 1943 when Liam was 8, used the money instead towards a beautiful statue of Our Lady of Lourdes over the grave of her son. I pass it each time I visit my parents’ grave.
Liam Whelan's grave (right)
I vividly remember the dark, late afternoon I heard about the crash from a street-singer whom I knew by sight and who was running around agitatedly telling people of the crash. I didn't know whether to believe him or not but the news on the radio confirmed that it really had happened. It was the first time in my life to experience what has been called a 'public-private moment', a public happening, usually a tragedy, that becomes a very personal one for those who learn of it, one that is seared in the memory and often in the heart.
Liam Whelan grew up in the next parish to my own and I remember going to Christ the King Church the evening his remains were brought there. I was outside the church with countless others. An article by John Scally in the February 2008 issue of The Word, the magazine of the Divine Word Missionaries in Ireland that is no longer published, described what many experienced: Their funerals were like no other. Most funerals are a burial of someone or something already gone. These young deaths pointed in exactly the opposite direction and were therefore the more poignant. Normally we bury the past but in burying Liam Whelan and his colleagues, in some deep and gnawing way we buried the future.
I still feel some pain at the deaths of Liam Whelan and his colleagues nearly 66 years after they died but the story of Liam's preparedness for his sudden death is one that continues to inspire me.
Liam's last words, If this is the end, then I'm ready for it, are a perfect response to today's gospel. Jesus is not trying to frighten us but he is telling us starkly to be prepared always for the moment of our death, to do everything with that in mind. Advent is a time when we prepare not only to celebrate the birth of Jesus at Christmas, but to become much more aware of his daily coming into our lives, and to prepare, as individuals and as a Christian community to welcome him when he returns at the end of time in a way that we won't be ashamed.
What would we say if he asked in the Philippines, where I spent most of my life, for example, Have children who have been abused had their court cases finished quickly? I have heard that young Maria, who has gone to the court five or six times for a hearing, something that is quite upsetting for her, has been told on each occasion that the defence lawyer isn't yet ready.
What would we say if Jesus said, I have been told that many forests have been cut down for profit and that this has resulted in many deaths in Leyte, for example, in 1991 and 2003. Is this true?
Tropical Storm Thelma (Uring)
More than 5,000 died in a flash flood in Ormoc City, Leyte, on 5 November 1991. Deforestation was blamed as a primary cause of the devastation.
The gospel this Sunday is, literally, a 'wake up call'. Be on guard, keep awake . . . Therefore stay awake . . . And what I say to you I say to all: Stay awake.
May the response of Liam Whelan, a young professional footballer who took these words to heart, inspire us and give us a desire to be always prepared to meet the Lord, in this life and in the next: If this is the end, then I'm ready for it.
Setting by Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
Sung by The Sixteen - Harry Christophers
Antiphona ad introitum Entrance Antiphon Cf Ps 24 [25]:1-3
Ad te levavi animam meam, Deus meus,
To you, I lift up my soul, O my God.
in te confido, non erubescam.
In you, I have trusted, let me not be put to shame.
Neque irrideant me inimici mei,
Nor let my enemies exult over me;
etenim universi qui te exspectant non confundentur.
and let none who hope in you be put to shame.
Traditional Latin Mass
First Sunday of Advent
The Complete Mass in Latin and English is here. (Adjust the date at the top of that page to 12-03-2023 if necessary).
Epistle: Romans 13:11-14. Gospel: Luke 21:25-33.
Nocturnal SeastormClaude-Joseph Vernet [Web Gallery of Art]
And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and upon the earth distress of nations in perplexity at the roaring of the sea and the waves, men fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world; for the powers of the heavens will be shaken (Luke 21:25-26; Gospel).
3 comments:
Dearest Father Seán,
Impressive story about Liam Whelan's final words!
Yes, I'm ready too but not in a hurry...
Hugs,
Mariette
After almost 66 years I still feel a sadness when I think of the deaths of those young men, particularly that of Liam. At the same time I feel uplifted in my faith by his faith. May he and all who died with him rest in peace.
AMEN!
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