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Little did I think, just over a week ago, that I should now be standing here, before this congregation in the church of Kilmore Erris, to say a few words beside the coffin of our dear sister Julia. Julia and I go back a long way, back to second decade of the last century, back to a world totally different from the world we all now live in today, and my very first memory of Julia is of her teaching me my Catechism, as we minded cows, out in the fields, back in the village of Drum. Yes, I still know the answers I learned at her knee on that beautiful evening so long ago. Who made the world? God made the World. ……………..Who is God?
And so it went. Julia was a great sister to have,and a great friend too, and apart from an odd squabble as children, always caused by me, a cross word never passed between us.
I went off to train for the priesthood as a young gasur of fourteen, and so was lost to the family from then on, a family I missed terribly during my years away at College.
In the Forties, Julia married Jim Handley of Binghamstown, and from then on, Julia became absorbed in the busy routine of her home and of Binghamstown Post Office. She raised a very fine family, and hard work was no stranger to her. But during all that time, Julia remained a welcoming sister whenever I called in on her. During her many years in Binghamstown, many of you good people got to know her also, and I feel sure that you found her to be a great person, a true Erriswoman, and a comitted Christian.
But the Lord has seen fit to call his servant Julia home, and so her tears have now been wiped away, her pain and suffering ended, She has passed across to the that other world, where she will meet up with all those friends who have gone before us on the way of truth, and from now on she is with the Lord.
Julia was a Christian woman, and for a Christian, death is not the end, it is rather a birth into a new, better, and eternal life. It is true that we are sad today, as we miss a dear sister and friend, but on the other hand, we rejoice that Julia, as St. Paul puts it, has fought the good fight, has finished the course, and has kept the faith.
Let us go forth from this holy place then, with raised heads and with a lighter step, as we thank the Lord for having given us the gift of Julia. For now, we have surely gained an advocate on the other side.another soul to plead our case with the Lord. Ta, mar adearfa, cara sa chuirt againn feasta. So, may her soul and the souls of all the departed…….rest in peace…..amen.
Gaeilge 
English