by Cardinal Vincent Nichols
The Funeral Mass for our late Archbishop, Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O’Connor, was an unforgettable experience. Mine was a privileged role and its impact on me will stay with me forever.
In particular, I shall never forget the moment when, just before Holy Communion, I proclaimed those wonderful words: ‘Blessed are those called to the Supper of the Lamb!’
Suddenly it was all very clear. This is the promise that was being fulfilled. Yes, Cardinal Cormac was there! We were praying that without any unnecessary delay he would be part of that heavenly banquet! As Bishop Mark O’Toole said in his lovely homily in the Parish Church in Chiswick, the Cardinal would be prompting his guardian angel to ensure that his time in purgatory would be over as quickly as possible!
He was a person who did not like wasting time. He wanted to get on with things. New ideas came to him readily and he was always ready to pursue them, if he saw them to be for the good of the Church. And if there was time for relaxation, then he liked nothing better to be surrounded by friends and fill the time with laughter and chat.
He lived life to the full. May he now enjoy the very fullness of life itself: the glorious Supper of the Lamb, the fullness of the presence of God, for which he was created!
