Sermon at the Burial Office
The Rev. Dr. Philip Wainwright
March 26, 1945 – July 8, 2026
Heinz Memorial Chapel, University of Pittsburgh
July 19, 2026
I was greatly honored to be asked to preach at the service for my long-time friend and colleague Philip Wainwright. Unfortunately, weather-related flight delays and cancellations (on two different carriers!) on Saturday the 18th of July made it impossible for me to get to Pittsburgh in time. The Rev. Canon James Shoucair, who was the Officiant, graciously agreed to read my sermon to the congregation.
+
Pray with me:
O Lord God, who hast left unto us thy holy word to be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our steps: Give unto us thy Holy Spirit, that out of that word we may learn what is thy righteous will, and frame our lives in all holy obedience to the same, to thy honor and glory and the increase of our faith, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
I thought that prayer might be a good way to begin this afternoon. With Phil in mind.
It was composed by Edward Dering, one of the great Church of England Puritan clergy of the Elizabethan era. Which recalls the historical setting that was the focus of Philip’s doctoral studies at the University of Kent. And it also draws us pretty directly into the living faith that he shared with us with great clarity over many years: thy holy word -- to be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our steps . . . .
As a pastor, a teacher, a preacher, a scholar and writer, a leader, a mentor—and indeed
as a husband, father, grandfather, a brother, a colleague and friend.
A great theme, in Phil’s public life and in his private life was simply: the Word of the Lord.
I think of Charles Wesley’s great hymn, O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing My Great Redeemer’s Praise--
He speaks, and, listening to His voice, New life the dead receive,
The mournful, broken hearts rejoice, The humble poor believe.
Phil and I talked several times in the last few months about this service and my sermon, and it was of greatest importance to him that today not be simply to be a time of remembrance—though of course
we remember him, we celebrate his life, we grieve in his death.
But he wanted this time to be I guess you’d say-- an opportunity for us all with open ears and open hearts through all the service, the prayers and readings and hymns, as well as the sermon,
to hear the Voice of our Great Redeemer, to attend to his Word.
Which was in so many ways the focus of Phil’s life and ministry.
Again: “ He speaks, and listening to His voice, New life the dead receive,
The mournful, broken hearts rejoice, The humble poor believe.”
Certainly to pray for that today.
Thekla, this has been such a long, difficult, challenging journey, this last year-and-a-half.
This road that you and Philip have walked together. And as you wrote finally the other day: heartbreak. Heartbreak. Such a loss. A sudden sense of emptiness. We all feel that, each of us in our own way.
But in it, we also turn to you with love and care and prayers.
You-- and the children and the grandchildren, and Phil’s sisters.
A bright light, a strong, faithful, gifted, tender, passionate and compassionate man.
Wit and wisdom—and such incredible good humor. Humble and modest, yet with a distinctive sense of style.
Always that hat—and certainly with the right car! A brilliant and joyful smile. Wonderful laughter. Full of life.
We can’t even begin to capture it. He delighted always in your marriage, delighted in your family.
Such a beautiful thing right before his surgery last year when so many of you were able to get together
to celebrate his 80th birthday. He delighted in his friendships, delighted in the work God called him to do.
And he delighted most of all in the knowledge and love of our Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ.
That’s what got him through what he needed to get through in this life.
And with all of that, for us to know with assurance that now he is—he is safely home.
And here on this side of the narrow stream, we shed our tears, we love, we pray.
And we know Phil would remind us always to listen to God’s voice.
First Corinthians 15:
50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God,
nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep,
but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.
For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable,
and we shall be changed.
Romans 8:
37 . . . in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
John 5:
25 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life.
He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
John 14:
2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself;
that where I am, there ye may be also.
Phil said more than once when he was asked about his churchmanship, simply, “I am a Bible man.” He wrote an article a few years ago about all the sometimes complicated and even contradictory ways those of us who call ourselves Evangelicals have tried to define the term “evangelical.”
He said:
“It seems to me that the one thing common to every definition is a higher view of Scripture
than is held by other Christian traditions, and I would use that as the single defining characteristic,
since all the others flow from it (or ought to), and the only differences between Evangelicals
arise from a different understanding of what Scripture actually teaches.
So [he concludes] I would define Evangelicalism as the belief that for Christians the Bible is
[and this he shouts in all-capital-letters!]
THE FINAL AUTHORITY FOR ALL MATTERS OF
CHRISTIAN FAITH, CHRISTIAN LIFE AND CHRISTIAN WORSHIP. "
The 19th century Church of England Bishop J.C. Ryle put it this way,
"by reading that Book we may learn what to believe, what to be, and what to do;
how to live with comfort, and how to die in peace."
What Scripture has to say may be foolishness, even unintelligible, to Natural Man. Even a cause of scandal and dismay. But when ears and minds and hearts have been filled and prepared and opened by the Holy Spirit,
it is the one true voice that we have been waiting all our lives to hear.
In the spring of 2010 Phil shared on his blog the news of the death of a friend and colleague,
Mark Ashton, one of the leaders of the evangelical movement in the Church of England.
Rector of the Church of St. Andrew the Great in Cambridge.
Shortly before his death after his own long battle with cancer Mark wrote a really beautiful book
called “On My Way to Heaven.” And Phil highlighted this quotation from that book.
Mark wrote as he saw his own death approaching:
“The Bible speaks to me with ever greater authority and relevance. Each day as I open it, God speaks
straight into my heart by his Word. And it tells me of what lies beyond this life. I can see the end of life.
It looms over the horizon, and I am encouraged to think it will not now be long before I am there.”
Phil preached his way carefully through Psalm 139 one Sunday morning at St. Andrew’s a few years ago,
during the time in his so-called retirement when he served as our still very active associate minister.
And I was delighted to see that we would have that psalm in our service today.
I believe he said it was his favorite psalm—at least one that he turned to again and again with great meaning and appreciation. I remember especially his focus on those first words:
O Lord, you have searched me and known me.
This affirmation and confidence and security.
We turn to Scripture to hear God’s voice, to know him. But the great mystery of grace is that what we learn is that he already knows us. While we were still dead in our sin, Christ died for us. While we were still in our mother’s womb, and even before that--he knew us and loved us completely, perfectly. And saved us for himself.
I thought to end with a good word from Phil for us. With all of his poetic and musical creativity. And I confess I had this temptation. Remembering that Pub Night variety show fundraiser at St. Andrew’s some years back when Phil took center stage with apologies to Gilbert and Sullivan in the Pirates of Penzance,
with recorded musical accompaniment, to sing not “I am the very model of a modern major general,”
but “I am the very model of the proper Evangelical.”
Fun to remember the twinkle in his eye as he sang that. Really he brought the house down.
Highlight of the evening. But another time for that. Maybe at the reception.
(See below)
Instead, Phil was a musician, and he wrote several hymns. Sometimes metrical paraphrases of psalms.
Sometimes his own composition. The one I’m sharing here he intended to be sung with the tune Camberwell—which wasn’t familiar to me, but apparently popular in England. A bright marching tune. (In fact when I did a YouTube search the first recording that came up was of a Salvation Army band!) Lots of energy. Four stanzas.
He called it “Sing if you’re on the Lord’s side.”
It begins with this great affirmation:
We are on the Lord’s side, servants of the King,
No more hesitation, all to Him we bring;
Jesus Christ our Saviour has us in His care,
In His perfect Kingdom risen life we’ll share.
Then the second stanza:
Eagerly obeying, proud to bear His name,
Time is past for sorrow, ended is our shame;
Jesus our redeemer makes our spirits bright,
Leads us out of darkness into glorious light.
And then his spirit of what we might call true Phil Wainwright evangelical evangelism,
the third stanza has a robust outward-looking vision:
Children of one Father, by one Spirit led,
No more fear or doubting, all is done and said.
Jesus our Messiah sends us now to go
into all creation, His great love to show.
And finally, with a crescendo, our joyful hope.
Philip Wainwright--husband, father, grandfather, brother, scholar, teacher, leader, friend,
minister of the Gospel-- a sinner made new through the cross, alive in Christ.
I would let him have the last word.
So, our worship ended, service we begin,
To our duty going, confident in Him:
Jesus is God with us, first and last is He,
And we will be with Him for eternity.
+
I am the Very Model of a Proper Evangelical
Philip Wainwright
(Sung to I am the Very Model of a Modern Major General, from Gilbert and Sullivan, The Pirates of Penzance.)
I am the very model of a proper Evangelical,
In doctrine I assure you I am absolutely biblical:
I’m justified by faith and not my own achievement practical,
For to the teaching of the Lord that’s clearly quite inimical.
The Bible is the word of God and nothing humanistical,
It’s understood with common sense, and not with meanings mystical.
About imputed righteousness I’m teeming with a lot of views--
In none of which the Nine and Thirty Articles will be abused.
I utterly repudiate succession apostolical
As mediæval myth that’s evidently unhistorical.
In short in matters doctrinal, discipline and worshipful,
I am the very model of a proper Evangelical.
A bishop’s just a presbyter with more responsibility,
(Though understanding this seems quite beyond their capability)
For presbyters and laymen share in government quite equally,
I’ll even give the Queen a share and not react horrifically.
Now ‘Father’ is a title I find frankly insupportable
But call me Mister Wainwright and you’ll find me quite approachable.
Girdles, albs and lavabos are imports unendurable--
And please don’t even mention that demonic thing, a thurible!
Expository preaching is my way of being pastoral,
And once I’m in the pulpit I become (let’s face it) masterful.
In short in matters worshipful, discipline and doctrinal,
I am the perfect picture of a proper Evangelical.
I never wear that popish rag the high church call a chasuble,
A surplice and a scarf is all the cloth of which I’m capable.
I sing the hymns of Wesley and the psalms in settings metrical,
But never lift my hands aloft because it isn’t biblical.
The Greeks can call it ‘eucharist’, in English it’s Communion,
And Morning Prayer can edify as much, in my opin-i-on.
When these ideas alone are my evangelistic strategy--
You’ll say there is no purer evangelic genealogy!
The rubrics of the Prayer Book are acceptable criteria,
While charismatic outbursts are but self-induced hysteria.
In short in matters worshipful, discipline and doctrinal,
I am the very model of a proper Evangelical.
+++++
A number of older recorded sermons may be found on the "Sermon Archive"
and "2019 Retirement Sermons" pages of this website.
The Rev. Dr. Philip Wainwright
March 26, 1945 – July 8, 2026
Heinz Memorial Chapel, University of Pittsburgh
July 19, 2026
I was greatly honored to be asked to preach at the service for my long-time friend and colleague Philip Wainwright. Unfortunately, weather-related flight delays and cancellations (on two different carriers!) on Saturday the 18th of July made it impossible for me to get to Pittsburgh in time. The Rev. Canon James Shoucair, who was the Officiant, graciously agreed to read my sermon to the congregation.
+
Pray with me:
O Lord God, who hast left unto us thy holy word to be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our steps: Give unto us thy Holy Spirit, that out of that word we may learn what is thy righteous will, and frame our lives in all holy obedience to the same, to thy honor and glory and the increase of our faith, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
I thought that prayer might be a good way to begin this afternoon. With Phil in mind.
It was composed by Edward Dering, one of the great Church of England Puritan clergy of the Elizabethan era. Which recalls the historical setting that was the focus of Philip’s doctoral studies at the University of Kent. And it also draws us pretty directly into the living faith that he shared with us with great clarity over many years: thy holy word -- to be a lamp unto our feet and a light unto our steps . . . .
As a pastor, a teacher, a preacher, a scholar and writer, a leader, a mentor—and indeed
as a husband, father, grandfather, a brother, a colleague and friend.
A great theme, in Phil’s public life and in his private life was simply: the Word of the Lord.
I think of Charles Wesley’s great hymn, O For a Thousand Tongues to Sing My Great Redeemer’s Praise--
He speaks, and, listening to His voice, New life the dead receive,
The mournful, broken hearts rejoice, The humble poor believe.
Phil and I talked several times in the last few months about this service and my sermon, and it was of greatest importance to him that today not be simply to be a time of remembrance—though of course
we remember him, we celebrate his life, we grieve in his death.
But he wanted this time to be I guess you’d say-- an opportunity for us all with open ears and open hearts through all the service, the prayers and readings and hymns, as well as the sermon,
to hear the Voice of our Great Redeemer, to attend to his Word.
Which was in so many ways the focus of Phil’s life and ministry.
Again: “ He speaks, and listening to His voice, New life the dead receive,
The mournful, broken hearts rejoice, The humble poor believe.”
Certainly to pray for that today.
Thekla, this has been such a long, difficult, challenging journey, this last year-and-a-half.
This road that you and Philip have walked together. And as you wrote finally the other day: heartbreak. Heartbreak. Such a loss. A sudden sense of emptiness. We all feel that, each of us in our own way.
But in it, we also turn to you with love and care and prayers.
You-- and the children and the grandchildren, and Phil’s sisters.
A bright light, a strong, faithful, gifted, tender, passionate and compassionate man.
Wit and wisdom—and such incredible good humor. Humble and modest, yet with a distinctive sense of style.
Always that hat—and certainly with the right car! A brilliant and joyful smile. Wonderful laughter. Full of life.
We can’t even begin to capture it. He delighted always in your marriage, delighted in your family.
Such a beautiful thing right before his surgery last year when so many of you were able to get together
to celebrate his 80th birthday. He delighted in his friendships, delighted in the work God called him to do.
And he delighted most of all in the knowledge and love of our Savior, our Lord Jesus Christ.
That’s what got him through what he needed to get through in this life.
And with all of that, for us to know with assurance that now he is—he is safely home.
And here on this side of the narrow stream, we shed our tears, we love, we pray.
And we know Phil would remind us always to listen to God’s voice.
First Corinthians 15:
50 I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God,
nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. 51 Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep,
but we shall all be changed, 52 in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.
For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable,
and we shall be changed.
Romans 8:
37 . . . in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
John 5:
25 Truly, truly, I say to you, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life.
He does not come into judgment, but has passed from death to life.
John 14:
2 In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you.
3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and receive you unto myself;
that where I am, there ye may be also.
Phil said more than once when he was asked about his churchmanship, simply, “I am a Bible man.” He wrote an article a few years ago about all the sometimes complicated and even contradictory ways those of us who call ourselves Evangelicals have tried to define the term “evangelical.”
He said:
“It seems to me that the one thing common to every definition is a higher view of Scripture
than is held by other Christian traditions, and I would use that as the single defining characteristic,
since all the others flow from it (or ought to), and the only differences between Evangelicals
arise from a different understanding of what Scripture actually teaches.
So [he concludes] I would define Evangelicalism as the belief that for Christians the Bible is
[and this he shouts in all-capital-letters!]
THE FINAL AUTHORITY FOR ALL MATTERS OF
CHRISTIAN FAITH, CHRISTIAN LIFE AND CHRISTIAN WORSHIP. "
The 19th century Church of England Bishop J.C. Ryle put it this way,
"by reading that Book we may learn what to believe, what to be, and what to do;
how to live with comfort, and how to die in peace."
What Scripture has to say may be foolishness, even unintelligible, to Natural Man. Even a cause of scandal and dismay. But when ears and minds and hearts have been filled and prepared and opened by the Holy Spirit,
it is the one true voice that we have been waiting all our lives to hear.
In the spring of 2010 Phil shared on his blog the news of the death of a friend and colleague,
Mark Ashton, one of the leaders of the evangelical movement in the Church of England.
Rector of the Church of St. Andrew the Great in Cambridge.
Shortly before his death after his own long battle with cancer Mark wrote a really beautiful book
called “On My Way to Heaven.” And Phil highlighted this quotation from that book.
Mark wrote as he saw his own death approaching:
“The Bible speaks to me with ever greater authority and relevance. Each day as I open it, God speaks
straight into my heart by his Word. And it tells me of what lies beyond this life. I can see the end of life.
It looms over the horizon, and I am encouraged to think it will not now be long before I am there.”
Phil preached his way carefully through Psalm 139 one Sunday morning at St. Andrew’s a few years ago,
during the time in his so-called retirement when he served as our still very active associate minister.
And I was delighted to see that we would have that psalm in our service today.
I believe he said it was his favorite psalm—at least one that he turned to again and again with great meaning and appreciation. I remember especially his focus on those first words:
O Lord, you have searched me and known me.
This affirmation and confidence and security.
We turn to Scripture to hear God’s voice, to know him. But the great mystery of grace is that what we learn is that he already knows us. While we were still dead in our sin, Christ died for us. While we were still in our mother’s womb, and even before that--he knew us and loved us completely, perfectly. And saved us for himself.
I thought to end with a good word from Phil for us. With all of his poetic and musical creativity. And I confess I had this temptation. Remembering that Pub Night variety show fundraiser at St. Andrew’s some years back when Phil took center stage with apologies to Gilbert and Sullivan in the Pirates of Penzance,
with recorded musical accompaniment, to sing not “I am the very model of a modern major general,”
but “I am the very model of the proper Evangelical.”
Fun to remember the twinkle in his eye as he sang that. Really he brought the house down.
Highlight of the evening. But another time for that. Maybe at the reception.
(See below)
Instead, Phil was a musician, and he wrote several hymns. Sometimes metrical paraphrases of psalms.
Sometimes his own composition. The one I’m sharing here he intended to be sung with the tune Camberwell—which wasn’t familiar to me, but apparently popular in England. A bright marching tune. (In fact when I did a YouTube search the first recording that came up was of a Salvation Army band!) Lots of energy. Four stanzas.
He called it “Sing if you’re on the Lord’s side.”
It begins with this great affirmation:
We are on the Lord’s side, servants of the King,
No more hesitation, all to Him we bring;
Jesus Christ our Saviour has us in His care,
In His perfect Kingdom risen life we’ll share.
Then the second stanza:
Eagerly obeying, proud to bear His name,
Time is past for sorrow, ended is our shame;
Jesus our redeemer makes our spirits bright,
Leads us out of darkness into glorious light.
And then his spirit of what we might call true Phil Wainwright evangelical evangelism,
the third stanza has a robust outward-looking vision:
Children of one Father, by one Spirit led,
No more fear or doubting, all is done and said.
Jesus our Messiah sends us now to go
into all creation, His great love to show.
And finally, with a crescendo, our joyful hope.
Philip Wainwright--husband, father, grandfather, brother, scholar, teacher, leader, friend,
minister of the Gospel-- a sinner made new through the cross, alive in Christ.
I would let him have the last word.
So, our worship ended, service we begin,
To our duty going, confident in Him:
Jesus is God with us, first and last is He,
And we will be with Him for eternity.
+
I am the Very Model of a Proper Evangelical
Philip Wainwright
(Sung to I am the Very Model of a Modern Major General, from Gilbert and Sullivan, The Pirates of Penzance.)
I am the very model of a proper Evangelical,
In doctrine I assure you I am absolutely biblical:
I’m justified by faith and not my own achievement practical,
For to the teaching of the Lord that’s clearly quite inimical.
The Bible is the word of God and nothing humanistical,
It’s understood with common sense, and not with meanings mystical.
About imputed righteousness I’m teeming with a lot of views--
In none of which the Nine and Thirty Articles will be abused.
I utterly repudiate succession apostolical
As mediæval myth that’s evidently unhistorical.
In short in matters doctrinal, discipline and worshipful,
I am the very model of a proper Evangelical.
A bishop’s just a presbyter with more responsibility,
(Though understanding this seems quite beyond their capability)
For presbyters and laymen share in government quite equally,
I’ll even give the Queen a share and not react horrifically.
Now ‘Father’ is a title I find frankly insupportable
But call me Mister Wainwright and you’ll find me quite approachable.
Girdles, albs and lavabos are imports unendurable--
And please don’t even mention that demonic thing, a thurible!
Expository preaching is my way of being pastoral,
And once I’m in the pulpit I become (let’s face it) masterful.
In short in matters worshipful, discipline and doctrinal,
I am the perfect picture of a proper Evangelical.
I never wear that popish rag the high church call a chasuble,
A surplice and a scarf is all the cloth of which I’m capable.
I sing the hymns of Wesley and the psalms in settings metrical,
But never lift my hands aloft because it isn’t biblical.
The Greeks can call it ‘eucharist’, in English it’s Communion,
And Morning Prayer can edify as much, in my opin-i-on.
When these ideas alone are my evangelistic strategy--
You’ll say there is no purer evangelic genealogy!
The rubrics of the Prayer Book are acceptable criteria,
While charismatic outbursts are but self-induced hysteria.
In short in matters worshipful, discipline and doctrinal,
I am the very model of a proper Evangelical.
+++++
A number of older recorded sermons may be found on the "Sermon Archive"
and "2019 Retirement Sermons" pages of this website.