The Night a Parish Said Goodbye

I expected tomorrow to be the great farewell.

The Archbishop will preside. An overwhelming number of Church dignitaries will attend. The church will be overflowing. It will be solemn, magnificent and entirely fitting for the man we are laying to rest.

Yet I have a feeling that the true farewell happened tonight.

This evening, our parish gathered to receive Father Alan’s body into the church. Every seat was taken, with many standing at the back. Parishioners, friends and family had gathered not because protocol demanded it, but because they had come to bid farewell to a priest and friend who had quietly touched their lives over the years.

Music has always been tightly woven into the life of our parish. Inspired by Father Alan’s love of music and brought to life through the extraordinary dedication of our choir director, music has become one of the defining elements of our community. For more than three decades, Father Alan and Mag have shaped the musical life of our parish—sometimes in perfect agreement, sometimes through spirited debate, but always with the same purpose: to serve the liturgy. Tonight, that shared vision gave voice to a farewell that words alone never could.

Many people started to gather over an hour prior to the beginning of Mass. the choir led a solemn moment of musical reflection waiting for the the procession to begin.

Once Father Alan’s coffin had arrived and had been lifted onto their shoulders outside the church, the bearers folded their hands quietly in prayer. They carried him from the churchyard, through the great doors, the entire length of the nave, and finally to the place prepared before the altar—negotiating every corner, every inch and every step, never once breaking formation. It was so perfectly choreographed that, for a moment, the mechanics disappeared and only the reverence remained. It was one of the most moving acts of respect I have ever witnessed.

It reminded me that a funeral is not simply about death. At its best, it is the final act of love performed by a community for one of its own.

Tomorrow, the Church will bid farewell to one of its priests.

Tonight, a parish said goodbye to its shepherd.

And somehow, I believe that is exactly what Father Alan would have wanted.