The Funeral Rites of the Catholic Church, part 4 (the reception at the church)

At some point in the three-part funeral liturgy, the body is received at the church. This usually happens at the start of the Funeral Mass, but it will occur at the start of the Vigil if the Vigil is being held at the church.
       The reception of the body is rich with baptismal symbolism. Recall that, at the beginning of our life in the Church, we are baptized. At our baptism, we are called by name, washed with holy water, clothed in a white garment, and given a candle that was lit off the Easter Candle. Symbolically, we believe that baptism is our joining with Christ in his death and resurrection. 
       So this is how it plays out at the other end of life:

• The presider greets the body (and mourners) at the door of the church (presumably near the baptismal font)
• The presider takes water from the baptismal font, sprinkles it on the coffin, and says, "In the waters of baptism, [name] died with Christ and rose with him to new life. May s/he now share with him eternal glory."
• A white cloth called the pall is placed over the coffin. 
• The body is processed into the church while everyone sings, and is placed near the place where the lit Easter Candle stands.

Thus, we enter the church for the last time, in a manner reminiscent of the way we entered for the first time.

The Funeral Rites of the Catholic Church, part 3 (the Vigil for the Deceased)

Prior to the implementation of the current Order of Christian Funerals, it was very common for a gathered group of people to pray a rosary in the presence of the deceased on the night before the Funeral Mass. The concept of keeping vigil with the deceased was established, but the prayer took the form of a pious practice (albeit a good one) instead of the form of a liturgy. This was changed with the current rites.

       The purpose of the Vigil is distinctly about the life of the deceased. It's about the past, with a bit of a foretaste of the Funeral Mass with its expression of hope for the future. 

       The Vigil has the following parts:

INTRODUCTORY RITES

   Greeting

   Opening Song

   Invitation to Prayer & Opening Prayer

LITURGY OF THE WORD

  First Reading

  Responsorial Psalm

  Gospel

  Homily

PRAYER OF INTERCESSION

  Litany

  Lord's Prayer

  Concluding Prayer

(OPTIONAL: REMEMBRANCE OF THE DECEASED)

CONCLUDING RITE

  Blessing

  (Optional: song; silent prayer)

A couple of notes about this:

1. The instructions in the ritual book states, "Music is integral to any vigil... [W]ell-chosen music can touch the mourners and others present at levels of human need that words alone often fail to reach. Such music can enliven the faith of the community gathered to support the family and to affirm hope in the resurrection." Well said.
2. Note that there is no dismissal at the end of the Vigil. As mentioned in a previous post, the entire funeral liturgy, like the Triduum liturgy, is a single liturgy in three movements. There will be no dismissal until the very end, after the body is committed.
3. Note that the structure of the Vigil is essentially a Liturgy of the Word, just like we would do at Mass. With its form of prayer, song, and scripture, this makes it far more accessible to non-Catholic Christians than a rosary or other popular Catholic piety. 
4. Most importantly, note that this is the most appropriate place in the three-movement funeral liturgy to have people speak about the deceased and his or her life. This entire Vigil is all about that. So, even though the Remembrance of the Deceased is optional in the rite, it is important that the stories be told at this time. Just as it is important to read the scriptures as the story of our common Christian life, it is likewise important to tell the story of this particular Christian life.

The presider for the Vigil may be a member of the clergy (deacon, priest, or bishop) or a lay person. If a lay person presides, a few parts will be handled differently. A lay presider should be trained in the rite and have permission to preach (permission is handled differently from diocese to diocese). 

       The Vigil may take place in the home of the deceased, in a funeral home, in a chapel of rest, or even in the church. If it is celebrated in church, the Vigil begins with the reception of the body at the door of the church (sprinkling with holy water, placing of the pall, and procession to the place of vigil). More about the reception in a future post.

       The Vigil may take place any time after death until some time before the scheduled start of the Funeral Mass. In scheduling the Vigil and the Mass, there should be ample time between the end of the Vigil and the beginning of the Mass so that the Liturgy of the Word will not seem repetitious.

The Funeral Rites of the Catholic Church, part 2 (cremation)

Over my decade or so of pastoral ministry, I have found that there is nothing more misunderstood than the Catholic Church's teaching on cremation. While it is true that the Church did not approve of cremation for a long time, since the fall of 1997, this is no longer the case. Cremation is now recognized as a legitimate way of preparing a body for its Final Committal. But notice two things about that statement:

1. It's only for the Committal that the body should be cremated. The Church still prefers that the body be present for the Vigil and funeral Mass. We prefer that cremation take place after the funeral Mass so that the body that participated in the Eucharist be present one last time for a Eucharist for her/his soul. Fortunately, the funeral industry has responded by allowing the rental of caskets for the Vigil and Mass, allowing it to be returned when the body is cremated.
2. The remains must still be committed! Placing the remains on the mantle or in a bookcase is not considered proper, just as storing a body of a deceased loved one in your freezer is not considered proper. The Church teaches that the remains of the dead must be reverently and respectfully committed to a proper burial place. This can be in the ground, in a columbarium, or entombed at sea. The important parts of this teaching are that the remains are (a) kept together (no scattering!) and (b) committed in a place that is set aside for that purpose.

As a pastoral matter, however, the Church recognizes that cremation after the funeral Mass is not always possible either due to time required to gather the family or the time required to perform the cremation. Therefore, although there is a clear preference for the body to be present for the funeral Mass, there is an option in the Order of Christian Funerals for the funeral Mass to take place with the cremated remains present. Special procedures and prayers are used in this case.

The Funeral Rites of the Catholic Church, part 1 (introduction & overview)

Introduction

Sen. Ted Kennedy's Funeral Mass was recently televised, and it calls to mind some important points about perhaps our most public rites, the Catholic funeral. The Catholic funeral differs in many distinct ways from the way secular society memorializes someone who has died. In many ways, it is countercultural, just like all of our sacraments. It calls us to imagine something that is beyond our imagining (life after death), and it recognizes our vulnerability, and indeed celebrates it. What better time to "get" the meaning of our belief in the Resurrection than to fully celebrate the Catholic funeral of a loved one!

       Like all of our rites, however, how well they convey the mystery is dependent upon how well and how completely they are done. Over the course of the next few posts, I will offer a description of various parts of the Catholic funeral rites, in the hopes that Catholics will be motivated to sit down with their pastor and develop a plan for their own funeral that is faithful to the Church's liturgy.

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Overview

 

The funeral rites of the Catholic Church are contained in the Order of Christians Funerals, which dates back to 1985. There are three movements in a Catholic funeral:

1. The Vigil — a service of scriptures, prayers, and personal reflections in the presence of the body or remains of the deceases, intended to occur the night before the Funeral Mass.
2. The Funeral Mass — a solemn Mass in the presence of the body or remains.
3. The Committal — final prayers held when the body or remains are placed in their final resting place.

Note that this parallels how we celebrate Christ's death and resurrection in three movements each year at the end of Holy Week. This is not a coincidence — we believe that, like Christ, we will die and all rise again. 
       Also note that the body or cremated remains are required for all of these rites. Without a body or remains, we may celebrate a Memorial Mass for the Dead and this may be rather beautiful, but it will lack the full sacramental power of the three-part funeral.

The Arrangement of the Sunday Readings

"Christ's word gathers the people of God as one 
and increases and sustains them. This applies above all 
to the Liturgy of the Word in the celebration of the Mass."

- from the Introduction to the Lectionary

Prior to Vatican II, the two readings that were heard on Sundays followed an annual cycle. As part of the renewal of the liturgy, the Council decided that "The treasures of the Bible are to be opened up more lavishly, so that richer fare may be provided for the faithful at the table of God's word." Thus, we went to three readings at each Sunday liturgy, and a three-year rotation of readings. During "Year A," we hear predominantly from the Gospel of Matthew; during "Year B," we hear predominantly from Mark; and during "Year C," we hear predominantly Luke. The Gospel of John is largely used during the festive seasons (Advent, Christmas, Lent, and Easter), plus several Sundays during August in Year B (because Mark's gospel is relatively short). Note that we are currently in Year B, which is why we heard a lot of John's Gospel in recent weeks.
        Perhaps the more interesting part is how the First and Second Readings and Responsorial Psalm are chosen. During Ordinary Time (which is over half of the liturgical year), the First Reading has been chosen to correspond to the Gospel passage. Thus, to get an insight into the significance of the Gospel on any Ordinary Sunday, read it together with the First Reading.
        The Responsorial Psalm is intended to foster meditation on the Word of God and is chosen as a response to the First Reading. Since the First Reading is harmonized with the Gospel, the Responsorial Psalm is thus also related to the Gospel in some way.
        The Second Reading during Ordinary Sundays is a series of sequential readings from the letters of Paul and James and the letter to the Hebrews.
        During the festive seasons, all of the readings are selected so that they bring out the particular character of the season. 

       For further information, go to http://catholic-resources.org/Lectionary/.

The Eucharistic Prayer — What is it that we are praying for?

The Eucharistic Prayer is that long prayer that the priest says after the bread, wine, and gifts for the Church and poor are brought to the altar. For many, this prayer is so familiar that we may have lost track of what it is that we are praying for. Here is a brief review of the main parts of the Eucharistic Prayer: 

• Preface — after an opening dialog between priest and assembly (“The Lord be with you...”), the prayer praises God and offers the Church’s thanks for God’s saving work. 
• Holy, Holy, Holy — after the Preface we sing a biblical song* about the holiness of God.
• Naming the works of God — the priest continues singing God's praises in the first part of the Eucharistic Prayer.
  
• Epiclesis over bread and wine — an epiclesis is an invocation of the Holy Spirit to come upon someone or something. There is an epiclesis in every Sacrament. In the Eucharist, it happens twice. The first one comes at this point, before the consecration. The priest calls on the Holy Spirit to come upon the bread and wine so that they become Christ’s Body and Blood.  
• Consecration — next, the priest recites the account of the Last Supper. The technical term for this part of the prayer is "the Institution Narrative" because it retells the biblical narrative of Christ instituting the Eucharist.
• Memorial Acclamation — after consecrating the bread and wine, the priest invites us to proclaim the central mystery of our faith, which is how the death and resurrection of Jesus has provided for our salvation.
  
• Anamnesis — after the Memorial Acclamation, the priest recalls the mystery of Christ’s passion, saving death, resurrection, and ascension. The name of this part of the prayer may seem odd, but if you think of the word amnesia meaning the loss of memory, then its opposite would be anamnesia, meaning to retain memory.
• Offertory — then, the memorial sacrifice of Jesus’ Body and Blood is offered to the Father. That's right: technically speaking, the offertory comes after the Consecration! We recognize the great gift of Christ's Body and Blood and we offer it back to the Father because there can be no greater gift that we can give to the One who made us and holds our lives in loving hands.
• Epiclesis over the assembly — the priest’s second invocation of the Holy Spirit is upon the assembly, so that we may be united in faith and love and be the one Body of Christ at work in the world. 
• Intercessions — toward the end of the prayer, we offer prayers for the whole Church of God, living and dead, and ask that we be united with them in one communion of love, service, and praise.
• Doxology — the celebrant then sings a song of glory and praise to God ("Through him, with him, in him…"). Again, the name for this may seem odd, but ask any Protestant and they can tell you what a doxology is! Literally, the word means "words of worship."
  
• Great Amen — the prayer concludes with a hearty “Amen” sung by everyone in the assembly as we make the prayers of the priest our own by this acclamation of faith.

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*A significant portion of the Eucharistic Prayer — as well as most of the prayers of the Mass — are based on biblical texts. For an annotated version of the Order of Mass, download http://www.usccb.org/romanmissal/WhiteBookAnnotated.pdf.

Singing the Mass, part 3 — Communion Procession

One of the more awkward times to be singing at Mass is in the Communion Procession. One can open the book and begin singing, but when it comes time to join the procession in the aisle, one has to generally put the book away — and (usually) stop singing — because we need both hands to receive the Body and Blood of Christ. Ceasing to sing would not seem desirable, however. As we noted in previous posts, by singing we are raising our voices in communion, and that would be an important thing to do as we are processing to receive Holy Communion!
       The answer to that dilemma is relatively easy, but one that the average person in the pews can't do much about. The answer is to use Communion Songs that have an easy-to-sing and easy-to-learn refrain. After hearing the refrain couple times, the assembly can continue singing the refrains, while a cantor or the choir can interject the verses. Music from the Taizé community — such as the song "Eat this Bread" — is good in this regard. Another possibility is for each parish to have a limited repertoire of Communion Songs, so that most parishioners can (over time) learn to sing them from memory.

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*In fact, that is exactly what the Roman Missal has in mind by designating a simple "Communion Antiphon" for Sundays and the major feasts.