Our Dead

GA 261 — 29 March 1923, Stuttgart

Eulogy at the Cremation of Elisabeth Maier

Dear Mourners!

Now that the solemn priestly ceremony for our dear 'friend Elisabeth Maier has been performed here, I would like to say a few words on behalf of the spiritual community to which the dearly departed belonged from the bottom of her heart, the dear, good soul.

Elisabeth Maier sought this spiritual community from the depths of her soul because she had an intimate affinity to spiritual being and spiritual work through her entire being, because she knew with human clarity, through the best forces that lived in her soul, how life in the spirit must always triumph over death in the material. Her soul sought the company of human souls united with her in this sacred conviction, united so completely that nothing could sever the bond that bound them together. They therefore also know that death is only a transition from one life to another. But that is why, beloved mourners, the pain and sorrow that such souls feel at the coffins of those who leave them remains in its full magnitude. The pain and sorrow are transfigured, but they are not diminished.

Therefore, in this moment of sorrow and grief, I may turn especially to the beloved mother of the dear ones who have passed away from us, to assure her that there is in the souls that were connected with the dear Elisabeth Maier, the deepest, most sincere and honest sorrow for those who can understand the feeling of life that can comprehend such pain and that expresses itself in the realization that one must say: You gave life to a dear being as a mother, and you had to watch her earthly life disappear earlier than you were able to lift yourself up into the spiritual realm.

And it is out of this deep shared pain that I turn to all the other brothers and sisters, to all the other relatives and to the wider community of sorrow and mourning that is united here. All of you, dear mourners, may in this case truly regard pain as the basis for beautiful, good, sacred feelings and thoughts that may and can accompany the soul now rising up. And on the basis of this genuine pain, but transfigured by our conviction, we may speak the words that are to be a vow to remain in further loyal connection with the soul departing from the earth.

Souls that were intimately connected here on earth with that which flows as spiritual life and spiritual uplift through the spiritual conviction in which Elisabeth Maier lived, of such souls it may be said that they already stepped into life, destined to seek the spirit again here on earth, from which they had descended from the spirit-filled breath of existence in the pre-earthly life, from the community in the spirit, the divine spirit that lives and weaves through the world. Such souls bear the spirit-sign here on earth. And such a soul was Elisabeth Maier. One could truly say of her: she was born of the spirit that was seized in God. And the power of this spirit led her to that spiritual knowledge and spiritual conviction that shone before her like an ideal that carried her like a strong soul. That, in particular, was something, my dear mourners, dear funeral party, that one could experience with our dear Elisabeth Maier, and what, in this hour, with a painful heart, but also, I would like to say, with great supplication, can be expressed here, justifying the dear soul. The spiritual ideal that Elisabeth Maier had set for herself from the depths of her soul was a lofty ideal. It was an ideal that required strong forces. In her always weak body, these forces called for spiritual strength. For a long time, these soulful eyes have looked out of the frail body, gazing so longingly towards her lofty ideal. That was the deeper soul basis of this physical suffering from which our Elisabeth Maier had been suffering for a long time. Her courage to face life wanted to falter, her will to live wanted to falter because she felt weak in the face of the greatness of her ideal. And human words were not strong enough to give her the courage to face life, to give her the strength to live that she needed. And so she died, in a sense also against her soul, against life in the eternal realms of existence, to which she now ascends from this earth. Precisely from the strength with which we were often met here, something like a lack of hope in life, will come to her that strong soul power that will now lead her on in the spirit. For in the last analysis, what sapped her vitality was rooted in her soul strength. She wanted to combine in the great ideal of the spiritual community, of which she was a member with such heartfelt devotion, everything that her soul could muster in the way of strength.

Because the strongest life forces for the soul come from this spiritual community, we stand, allowing this feeling to arise very gently and intimately in our soul, at the disappearing soul that is rising up, the soul of Elisabeth Maier.

We know, dear mourners, dear funeral guests, that through this strong power she has found communion with the one who descended from spiritual heights in intimate communion of spirit with humanity in order to unite with human destiny, who is the conqueror of death, who is the founder of eternal life in all people. We know, dear mourners, dear funeral guests, that she has found the Christ who guides the human souls that seek him through the portal of death, and we know that such souls, which look up to this spirit with such intimacy, find the spirit that reigns through all spaces and times. We know that the spirit of Elisabeth Maier, who is now fading from our lives, will find this spirit.

We will no longer see with her eyes. But we will want to unite our thoughts with her soul, our feelings with the feelings of her soul, our best human existence with her soul existence, and so we can assure those who are the next to grieve, her mother, siblings, other relatives and her spiritual kin, that all thoughts that rush up to the spiritual being Elisabeth Maier will unite with her soul in the future. All those who were intimately connected with her spirit within the spiritual community sought by Elisabeth Maier.

Just as those who were dear to her will find this precious soul up in the spiritual heights, so they will always find the thoughts of those to whom she was, to their sorrow, snatched from the earth all too soon. They will find her in the spiritual heights. And so today, with our soul ascending, we send up the thoughts that most intimately and warmly connected us with dear Elisabeth Maier. We send them up through the same paths that you take, spiritual paths, so that they will always find you. From the words of today's vow, we want to draw the strength that our thoughts connected with you will always seek you, so that you will find the community forever through all worlds in which human souls live through all transformations of existence in world distances and through all time spaces. This we want to vow to you today with your dear ones and those close to you for all time.