Homily for funeral of Tom Roeser, Chicago radio host and columnist
Saturday, June 4, 2011
Fr. Peter Armenio
(Tom Roeser was a well-respected pro-life and conservative political spokesperson, and a Catholic, in the Chicago area who died recently.)
Homily Summary: This is a bittersweet occasion of grace. We feel sorrow. Jesus wept for Lazarus. But death is a gateway to a greater life. In the Latin chants today we hear the word fear, which is a gift of the Holy Spirit. Tom had fear, not of Jesus as judge. This fear has nothing to do with being afraid of God. It’s an attitude that speaks of prayer, of a life of service to others.
Some time ago, Tom asked Fr. Peter to do his funeral. Death brings us to a halting stop. We must live according to our mission statement, so to speak. Fr. Peter met Tom at a pro-life event in the Chicago area twenty years ago. He said that he wanted to spend the rest of his life pushing the cause of life. Tom used his position as a radio talk show host, a journalist, as one involved in politics, as a platform to push for the right to life. Continue Reading…
I’m amazed at how Fr. Peter Armenio is full of energy at 7:30 at night, moving about in the pulpit like a boxer in a ring. One night recently he gave an evening of reflection to men on how, in the New Evangelization, society has to be Christianized. “The hope and burden of the Church is on the shoulders of the laity,” said Fr. Armenio, who is the head of Opus Dei in the Midwest.
