HOMILY OF THE BURIAL MASS OF THE LATE MR. JOSEPH EKOW ORTSIN (Sept. 28, 1961 – Dec. 21, 2024)
AT ST. JOSEPH THE WORKER CATHOLIC CHURCH, COM. 8, TEMA, ON FRIDAY, 31ST JANUARY, 2025
By Most Rev. John Kobina Louis
READINGS: ROMANS 14:7-12 AND JOHN 11:21-27
INTRODUCTION
Beloved, on behalf of Bishop Anthony Narh Asare, Rev. Fr. Raphael Hessah, other priests, the religious and all mourners gathered here, I wish to express our sincere condolences to the children, mother and family of the late Mr. Joseph Ekow Ortsin.
Considering the life story of Mr. Ekow Ortsin in the light of the two Scriptural readings we heard, I wish to share with you the following three main lessons:
- Friends of Jesus
- Living in Bethany
- Jesus is the resurrection and life
- FRIENDS OF JESUS
“If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.” (Rom. 14:8). If that is the case, then, let us accept friendship with the Lord Jesus, who in this life is our Saviour and after death is our Judge.
In John 11 from which we took the gospel reading, we are told that Jesus loved Lazarus and He called him His friend (cf. John 11:11). Indeed, the sisters of Lazarus, Martha and Mary, were also friends of Jesus. Like Lazarus and his sisters, Ekow Ortsin was a friend of Jesus. His friendship with Jesus influenced his personal life, church life, family life, social life, career, etc.
Born into a Roman Catholic family, Ekow’s faith would be nurtured at church, at home by his parents, at the Agona Swedru Roman Catholic Model School where his father was the headmaster, and at the St. John’s Secondary School (Sekondi).
In his church life, he would express his friendship with Jesus by putting the two talents/expertise which distinguished him – music and teaching – at the service of the church’s mission.
In the first place, Ekow was the choirmaster and organist of the St. Joseph the Worker Church Choir for the ten years (1992-2002) I was in charge of this church. And he served with selfless dedication. He continued in the music ministry for the twenty years he stayed in the USA. In fact, over there, church music became his full-time occupation until the Lord called him to eternity last month.
Secondly, in the course of my tenure here, Ekow would employ his teaching skills to become one of the beloved Akan interpreters. Anytime, it was his turn to interpret the homily, those who understood Akan beamed with smiles even while he walked to the lectern.
Thirdly, about seven weeks before the demise of Ekow, I met him while I was visiting the USA. It was a joyful reunion after so many years. In our conversation on that day, I realized that Ekow’s friendship with Jesus had grown deeper despite his health problems.
Beloved, the life of Ekow should inspire us to become true friends of Jesus in our personal life, church life, family life, social life, professional life, etc.
- LIVING IN BETHANY
According to John 11, Lazarus and his sisters, the friends of Jesus, lived in the village of Bethany. The name “Bethany” has a couple of meanings. For this homily, however, I wish to focus on only one meaning of Bethany, namely, “a house of afflictions/sufferings”.
Lazarus and his sisters did not only live in a village whose name was associated with afflictions, they actually suffered. As we know, Lazarus was seriously ill and he eventually died. Then, his death brought grief to his sisters. Like Lazarus and his sisters, Ekow was a friend of Jesus who experienced sufferings. For instance, from 2021 he became seriously ill, and in the course of his medical treatments, he lost his dear wife, Monica, in 2022. A few months after his wife’s funeral, Ekow’s condition worsened; and he would undergo several treatments until his demise.
In the midst of so much suffering, Ekow never wavered in faith. Rather, his faith in Jesus, his divine Friend, grew stronger. Thus, he could say with St. Paul: “I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith” (2 Tim. 4:7).
Beloved, like Lazarus, his sisters and Ekow, though we are friends of Jesus, we may sometimes have our “Bethany experience”. That is, we may experience various kinds of sufferings including sickness, the loss of job, failure in exams or a venture, lack of marriage, childlessness in marriage, serious marital misunderstandings or quarrels, divorce, loss of dear ones, etc. Beloved, in all such Bethany moments, though the Lord may seem far away or unconcerned (cf. Jesus did not respond promptly to the news of the ailment of Lazarus), He would eventually turn our misfortunes into blessings, as He did for Lazarus and will do for Ekow in the glory of Heaven. Let us, therefore, be constant in patience, steadfast in faith and unwavering in hope during our “Bethany experience”.
- JESUS IS THE RESURRECTION AND LIFE
Jesus entered Bethany, the house of sufferings, when the pain in the village was at its peak, on account of the death and burial of Lazarus. However, within a few hours, Jesus would turn the situation entirely around. He brought joy to the people and glory to God by raising Lazarus to life. Let us consider this story further:
3.1 Lazarus had been buried for four days and so initially for Martha and Mary, Jesus had arrived late. They each said to Him: “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died” (John 11:21, 32). A further indication that for Martha, Jesus had arrived late could be seen from her response when He ordered that the stone at the entrance of the tomb be removed. She said: “Lord, already there is a stench because he has been dead for four days” (John 11:39).
However, for Jesus, nothing is too late. Thus, He said to Martha: “I am the resurrection and the life. Those who believe in me, even though they die will live” (John 11:25). By saying, “I am …” like His Father who said to Moses, “I am who I am”, Jesus alluded to His divinity. Furthermore, it meant that for Him, every time is in the present. That is, no time is past or late for Him, for He “is the same yesterday and today and forever” (Heb. 13:8). He then demonstrated that nothing is too late for Him, by raising Lazarus back to life. So, for Ekow and all of us who believe that Jesus is the resurrection and life, death is not a permanent “case closed” situation. Jesus is able to do something about our death. Though, He may not bring us back to this earthly life, He is able to resurrect us unto the everlasting happy life of heaven.
3.2 As Jesus asked the people to remove the stone at the entrance of the tomb (cf. John 11:39), so He is asking us to take away any stone we might have place on the death of Ekow. It could be a stone of despair, of lingering doubts, of fears or of our sins. By hope in the resurrection, let us remove the stone of despair; by faith in Jesus, let us remove the stone of doubts; with confidence in Him, let us remove the stone of fears; and by repentance, may the stone of our sins be removed.
3.3 To raise Lazarus up, Jesus cried out aloud: “Lazarus come out” (John 11:43). Fortunately, Lazarus was not the last person to benefit from a loud cry of Jesus. For on the cross of Calvary, Jesus made a loud cry that continues to benefit billions of people across all generations. He cried out: “Father, forgive them, because they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34). This cry of Jesus re-echoes in His Father’s ears anytime a friend of Jesus dies. And as the repentant thief was favoured, so anytime the Heavenly Father hears this cry for forgiveness, departed friends of Jesus are freed from their sins and beaconed to enter into Paradise. So, may the Father beckon Ekow into Paradise! Amen!
3.4 When Lazarus came out of the tomb, his hands and feet were bound with strips of burial-cloth and his face was covered. So, Jesus instructed the people: “Untie him and let him go” (John 11:44). I see these strips of cloth as representing the outstanding penance of a departed soul. Therefore, while God frees a departed soul from his/her sins, we can help to untie the strips of cloth by celebrating Holy Mass and praying for him/her. Hence, through Holy Masses and our prayers, may Ekow be fully untied to enter into Paradise! Amen!
CONCLUSION
Beloved, like Lazarus and his sisters, Ekow lived as a friend of Jesus and in Bethany, the house of afflictions. However, our brother Ekow trusted in Jesus as his resurrection and life. So, as God frees him from sin and beacons him to Paradise, let us remove the tomb-stone of despair, doubts, fears or sin, and untie him of his burial-cloths by our prayers and Holy Masses. Eventually, then, may Ekow receive “the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge” (2 Tim. 4:8) has prepared for him! Amen!
