Ruth
Cheney Wyman, RIP
August
9, 1925 - June 22, 2025
A
Celebration of Life
Bigelow
Chapel, Mt. Auburn Cemetery, October 24, 2025
The
Rev. Nancy E. Gossling
You may or may not know that Ruth is the name of one
of the books in the Bible, specifically found in the Old Testament, and
otherwise known as the Hebrew scriptures. Unlike your Ruth’s long history of
life, 99 years young, the Ruth in the Bible is a short story. So, knowing that
Ruth Cheney Wyman loved both history and telling stories, here are two stories
for you this morning: a synopsis of the Biblical Ruth and the salvation story
of Jesus, the Christ.
First
of all, Biblical Ruth was a widow and her story is considered “one of the most
beautiful pieces of literature in the Bible. In contrast to most other Biblical
narratives, the concern of the author seems to be with a private family rather
than national or international affairs. The plot revolves around family
relationships and the role each member plays in filling the needs of the other
members and hence the family as a whole. In particular Biblical Ruth has been
interpreted as deriving from the word meaning ‘Friend or Companion.’” (Harper Collins Study Bible, p408)
Because of today’s celebration of her life, I
can thank Ruth Cheney Wyman not only for encouraging me to open my Bible but
also to find one of the books in my library by Joan Chittister entitled “The
Gift of Years, Growing Older Gracefully.” I also began reading an old magazine
from seminary entitled “The Test of Time: The Art of Aging.” Now before you
begin to count the gray hairs on my head or the wrinkles on my face, I hasten
to inform you that this kind of art and graceful growing older is intended for all
ages. Aging is a neverending lifelong process!
At
each age and stage of our lives we can grow. And like any good gardener will
tell you (and that’s not me) this graceful growth involves many important
things. To name a few, there is the need for good soil, sun and water,
occasional pruning, and protection from any kind of destruction. For the
plants, flowers, and trees not only to survive but also to flourish we need to
be intentional in our care. And as we move through this life, much like the
seasons of New England, we are invited to shed some things and take on others.
We have choices about how we live: physically, mentally, emotionally, and
spiritually.
As it is written in the book of
Ecclesiastes, another book in the Old Testament, there is a time for everything
under the sun. “A time to weep, and a time to laugh. A time to love and a time
to hate. A time for war and a time for peace. A time to be born and a time to
die.” Similarly, the famous monk named St. Francis of Assisi, known for his
love of creation, offered a riff on this scripture passage in a prayer
attributed to him. He claims that it is not only time to practice these virtues
but also to be instruments of these values as well.
His prayer invites us to grow
gracefully no matter our age. “Where there is hatred, let us sow love; where
there is injury, pardon; where there is discord, union; where there is doubt,
faith; where there is despair, hope; and where there is sadness, joy.” A
celebration of life should always include joy! And so we remember Ruth Cheney
Wyman joyfully today!
Today’s prelude music entitled
“Ode to Joy” has become a “timeless symbol of human unity, freedom, and hope.
This poem celebrates universal brotherhood, human solidarity, and the joy
inherent in life and nature.” (Wikipedia)
Unlike the word ‘happy’, joy
reflects a deeper emotion. And what is success in life? Ralph Waldo Emerson
claimed that it is to live a life filled with joy, love, and positive impact on
others. This kind of living was part of Ruthie’s legacy.
According to rabbinic tradition,
the main theme of the Biblical book of Ruth is chesed which is the Hebrew word for loyalty or faithfulness arising
from commitment. Commitment means that we will make choices about how we
express our loyalty and our faithfulness to God and to others. Ruth was a
person of commitment and good choices.
Now as Christians, we believe that
Jesus incarnated, that is to say, became human, to reveal the love of God, the chesed of God for us. Jesus made a
commitment to remain faithful and loyal to God despite the betrayals and
violence he endured. And it was his gift of 33 years that has withstood the
test of time. We are inheritors of his sacrificial love for us and the legacy of
his faithfulness to God.
The grace of God means that we
receive the unmerited and undeserved love of God unconditionally. And Jesus
revealed to us the Way of Love in divine and human form, and the grace of God
in all its fullness. He showed us that our salvation story begins with the
creation of life and continues through pain and suffering even through death.
His story becomes our story of God’s neverending and eternal love for all
people, all creation, and all creatures great and small. This salvation story
offers us both joy and hope.
We have choices as to how we live
the one, beautiful and precious life that has been given to us. As St. Francis
once prayed, ‘Grant that we may not seek to be consoled as to console; to be
understood as to understand; to be loved as to love. For it is in giving that
we receive; it is in pardoning that we are pardoned; and it is in dying that we
are born to eternal life.’
Growing
Old Gracefully is the Gift of Years that is ours to receive no matter our age.
It is a Test of Time that involves the Art of Aging. And Ruth Cheney Wyman has
given us those legacies as we celebrate her life today. True to her form, my
thoughts are with her this hour; and I hope that she is listening! Amen.
Readings:
“To the Consolations of Philosophy” W.S.Merwin
Anne Elizabeth Wyman
(granddaughter)
“What is Success?” Ralph Waldo Emerson
Marlowe May Coleman
(great granddaughter)
Recollections:
Robert Brooke Coleman (grandson)
Janet Wyman Coleman (daughter)
Hymns
and Music: Flutist Tim Macri
Ode to Joy
J.S. Bach from ‘Largo’
J.S. Bach from Partita #3 BWV
1006
Morning Has Broken
Simple Gifts
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