Hope That Does Not Disappoint
Deacon Angelo Volpi’s homily
Funeral Mass for Lawrence "Larry" Francis Wilhelm.
Wisdom 3:1-6, 9; Psalm 27:1, 4, 7and 8b and 9a, 13-14; Romans 5:5-11; John 6:37-40
February 5, 2026. Sacred Heart Catholic Church, Wichita Falls Texas
Introduction
Good morning everyone.
Thank you for being here today, in the company of friends and family as we pray for Larry and give thanks to God for his life.
For those that might not know me, I am Larry’s son in law, married to his youngest daughter Lorel and I am humbled and honored to serve at his funeral mass.
There are many ways to remember a loved one that passed. One way we want to remember Larry is how his life pointed us to Jesus. How his life has been a beacon of Faith, Hope and Love. How he has helped us to be more faithful, more loving and more hopeful.
Larry did not live as someone who thought this world was all there is. His life was guided by a faith in our Lord that he and his beloved wife Lucille tried to live out daily and allow to permeate every aspect of their life. If you are here today you probably have been touched by this spirit.
I met Larry for the first time in 1994. One day while Lorel and I were dating I was invited to join a family dinner. In that setting I remember I was asked to say grace before the meal - that was the first time I thanked God for a meal. Though I was raised Catholic, faith was not yet deeply alive in my life at that time.
Larry and Lucille helped me to see another way to live—one rooted more deeply in gratitude, trust and and love. With time they helped me to see and believe in Jesus our Saviour more deeply.
God
Today’s gospel from John chapter 6 reminds of the importance of seeing and believing in Jesus. God became man in Jesus so that we might become like God and live in God’s presence for eternity.
What does seeing Jesus mean? Seeing Jesus means finding an attraction to Jesus in his miraculous healings, in his moral teachings.
Believing in Jesus is much more than that;
it is believing that Jesus was fully God and came in the flesh to live among us to save us from sin and death by his resurrection, showing us that death does not have the final word.
It is believing that Jesus, ascending to the Father in his body, opened the door of heaven and created a space for us in eternal life.
Larry’s life was one of seeing and believing. He strived to Love God and Love his neighbors - pointing us to something beyond himself.
The line in the responsorial psalm “The Lord is my light and my salvation” reflects Larry’s faith. He might have not understood all the theological implications but that didn't stop him from believing it. He attended mass regularly, participated in weekly adoration hours as long as he could, was part of a weekly prayer group, and prayed the rosary daily. And he loved to ask me questions about the gospel passages. He was very visual and worked with his hands all his life - he loved to hear details of scripture passages woven in with historical details - that made those gospel passages more real for him.
Larry knew that a deeper participation in the sacraments, a deeper understanding of scriptures and a deeper prayer life were essential to a fruitful life on earth and salvation.
The second reading from Saint Paul’s letter to the Romans talks about the Hope that does not disappoint. Larry had a profound sense of hope, the little hope in daily activities and the big Hope for eternal life.
Whether it was finding a smaller home after Lucille passed away or getting a new car - he didn't go through a lot of analysis. He would say “it will work out!”
He also had the grace of the big Hope - the passing of his beloved wife Lucille, of his son Alan and the other storms of life - didn’t move him into despair. Deep inside he knew that God would take care of him and his family.
He reminded me of the saying of the mystic Julien of Norwich: “All shall be well, and all shall be well, and all manner of things shall be well."
The scriptures today remind us of Love. Not the love as a feeling, but the love of self-sacrifice, as a gift to others and to God.
In the letter to the Romans we hear from St Paul how Christ sacrificed his life for us while we were still sinners.
Larry loved his family, friends and his church community. He quietly worked with Lucille to arrange family celebrations - making sure that no one was left out.
Larry cherished his wife Lucille and often chose the way she preferred to do things, rather than choosing the way he would have preferred.
With Deacon Bill he served the community by bringing communion to the homebound. When it was too hard for him to walk, he would be the driver and let deacon Bill bring communion in people's homes and facilities while he would wait in the car. This was a Sunday morning routine that was untouchable. And it always included a stop at Mc Donalds
for a senior coffee!
Larry’s life manifested how the Spirit of God was at work in him in the many ways he loved God, his wife, his family and his neighbors, not because he was without weakness, but because he allowed God’s grace to work through him despite his limitations. It is through God’s deepening his life in Larry that he was able to live a life that went beyond this world.
I know that he helped me be more faithful, more loving and more hopeful in my own life. Larry helped me see and believe more deeply.
And for that I am forever thankful.
Us
We come into this world with body and soul. Then when we pass our soul separates from the body and continues to live forever. Larry’s soul remains in the community of believers and will benefit from our prayers and intercessions.
We mourn Larry but we are comforted that his spirit is with us, alive and present in our lives, and one day we will be with Larry again for eternity.
Jesus will not lose anyone who sees and believes in Him.
For those who are able to see the Son and believe in Him like Larry, we trust that they will be raised on the last day.
