| Liturgical Resources for Funerals |
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This page offers a selection of scritpure readings and prayers for the occasion of a funeral. If you have been just recently bereaved we offer you our sympathy. When a funeral Mass takes place on Sunday the readings of the day take priority but on weekdays you may choose readings from the Old and New Testament. Your priest will help you in the selection of the readings. The Liturgy of the Word
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Readings from the Old Testament You may wish to choose any one of the seven readings from the Old Testament. 1. A Reading from the Book of Ecclesiasticus Let us praise the illustrious, our ancestors in their successive generations. Here is a list of the generous whose good works have not been forgotten. In their descendents there remains a rich inheritance born of them. Their descendents stand by their covenants and thanks to them, so do their children's children. Their offspring will last forever, their glory will not fade. Their bodies have been buried in peace, and their names live on for all generations. The peoples will proclaim their wisdom, the assembly will celebrate their praise. The word of the Lord.
2. A Reading from the Book of Wisdom The virtuous person, though he die before his time, will find rest. Length of days is not what makes age honourable, nor number of years the measure of life; understanding, this is man's grey hairs, untarnished life, this is ripe old age. He has sought to please God, so God has loved him; as he was living among sinners, he has been taken up. He has been carried off so that evil may not wrap his understanding or treachery seduce his soul; Coming to perfection in so short a while, he achieved long life; his soul being pleasing to the Lord, he has taken him quickly from the wickedness around him. Yet people look on, uncomprehending; it does not enter their heads that grace and mercy await the chosen of the Lord, and protection, his holy ones. The word of the Lord.
3. A Reading from the Prophet Isaiah: Do not be afraid, for I have redeemed you; I have called you by your name, you are mine. Should you pass through the sea, I will be with you; Or through the rivers, they will not swallow you up. Should you walk through fire, you will not be scorched and the flames will not burn you. For I am Yahweh, your God, the Holy One of Israel, your Saviour. The Word of the Lord.
4. A Reading from the Prophet Isaiah On this mountain, the Lord of hosts will prepare for all peoples a banquet of rich food. On this mountain he will remove the mourning veil covering all peoples, and the shroud enwrapping all nations, he will destroy death forever. The Lord will wipe away the tears from every cheek; he will take away his people's shame everywhere on earth, for the Lord has said so. That day, it will be said: See, this is our God in whom we hoped for salvation; the Lord is the one in whom we hoped. We exult and we rejoice that he has saved us. The word of the Lord.
5. A reading from the Book of Lamentations My soul is shut out from peace; I have forgotten happiness. And now I say, my strength is gone, that hope which came from the Lord.' Brooding on my anguish and affliction is gall and wormwood. My spirit ponders it continually and sinks within me. This is what I shall tell my heart, and so recover hope: The favours of the Lord are not all past, His kindness is not all exhausted; every morning they are renewed; great is his faithfulness. ‘My portion is the Lord' says my soul ‘and so I will hope in him.' The Lord is good to those who trust him, to the soul that searches for him. It is good to wait in silence for the Lord to save. The Word of the Lord.
6. A reading from the book of Ecclesiastes: For everything there is a season, and a time for every matter under heaven. A time to be born, and a time to die; A time to plant, and a time to root up what is planted; A time to break down and a time to build up; A time to weep and a time to laugh; A time to mourn and a time to dance; A time to embrace and a time to refrain from embracing; A time to seek, and a time to lose; A time to keep and a time to discard; A time to tear, and a time to sew; A time to keep silence, and a time to speak; God has made everything suitable for its time. The word of the Lord.
7. A reading from the Prophet Daniel, I Daniel, was doing penance when I received this message from the Lord: ‘There is going to be a time of great distress, unparalleled since the nations came into existence. When that time comes, your own people will be spared, all those whose names are found written in the Book. Of those who lie sleeping in the dust of the earth many will awake, some to everlasting life. The learned will shine as brightly as the vault of Heaven, and those who have instructed many in virtue, as bright as stars for all eternity.' The Word of the Lord.
Readings from the New Testament You may wish to choose any one of the ten readings from the New Testament A Reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans You have been taught that when we were baptised in Christ Jesus we were baptised in his death. In other words, when we were baptised we went into the tomb with him and joined him in death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead by the Father's glory, we too might live a new life. If in union with Christ we have imitated his death, we shall also imitate him in his resurrection. But we believe that having died with Christ we shall return to life with him: Christ, as we know, having been raised from the dead will never die again. Death has no more power over him any more. When he died, he died, once for all, to sin, so his life now is life with God; and in that way, you too must consider yourselves to be dead to sin but alive for God in Christ Jesus. The Word of the Lord.
A Reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans The life and death of each of us has its influence on others; if we live, we live for the Lord; and if we die, we die for the Lord, so that alive or dead we belong to the Lord. This explains why Christ both died and came to life, it was that he might be both Lord of the dead and the living. We shall all have to stand before the judgement seat of God; as scripture says; By my life - it is the Lord who speaks - every knee shall bend before me, and every tongue shall praise God. It is God, therefore, that each of us must give an account of himself. The Word of the Lord.
A Reading from the Letter of St. Paul to the Romans Nothing can come between us and the love of Christ, even if we are troubled or worried, or being persecuted, or lacking food and clothes, or being threatened or even attacked. These are the trials through which we triumph, by the power of him who loved us. For I am certain of this: neither death nor life, no angel, no prince, nothing that exists, nothing still to come, not any power, or height or depth, nor any created thing, can ever come between us and the love of God made visible in Christ Jesus our Lord. The word of the Lord.
A Reading from the Second Letter of St. Paul to the Corinthians For we know that when the tent we live in on earth is folded up, there is a house built for us, an everlasting home not made by human hands, in the heavens. We are always full of confidence, then, when we remember that to live in the body means to be exiled from the Lord, going as we do by faith and not by sight, - we are full of confidence, I say, and actually want to be exiled from the body and make our home with the Lord. Whether we are living in the body or exiled from it, we are intent on pleasing him. For all the truth about us will be brought out in the law court of Christ, and each of us will get what we deserve for the things we did in the body, good and bad. The Word of the Lord.
A reading from the letter of St. Paul to the Philippians I believe nothing can happen that will outweigh the supreme advantage of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. All I want is to know is Christ and the power of his Resurrection and to share his sufferings by reproducing the pattern of his death. That is the way I can hope to take my place in the resurrection of the dead. Not that I have become perfect yet: I have not yet won, but I am still running, trying to capture the prize for which Christ Jesus captured me. I can assure you, I am far from thinking I have already won. All I can say is that I forget the past and I strain ahead for what is to come; I am racing for the finish, for the prize to which God calls us upwards to receive in Christ Jesus. The word of the Lord.
A reading from the first letter of St. Paul to the Thessalonians We want you to be quite certain about those who have died, to make sure that you do not grieve about them, like other people who have no hope. We believe that Jesus died and rose again, and that it will be the same for those who have died in Jesus: God will bring them with him. At the trumpet of God, the voice of the archangel will call out the command and the Lord himself will come down from Heaven; those who have died in Christ will be the first to rise, and then those of us who are still alive will be taken up into the clouds, together with them, to meet the Lord in the air. So we shall stay with the Lord for ever. With such thoughts as these we will comfort one another. The Word of the Lord.
A Reading from the letter of St. John God's love for us was revealed when God sent into the world his only Son so that we could have life through him; this is the love I mean: not our love for God but God's loves for us when he sent his Son to be the sacrifice that takes our sins away. My dear people, since God has loved us so much, we too should love one another. The Word of the Lord.
A Reading from the first letter of St. Peter Blessed be the God the father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy has given us a new birth by raising up Jesus Christ from the dead, so that we have a sure hope and the promise of an inheritance that can never be spoilt and never fade away, because it is being kept for you in the heavens. Through your faith, God's power will guard you until the salvation which has been prepared for you has been revealed at the end of time. This is a cause of great joy for you, even though you may for a short time have to bear being plagued by all sorts of trials; so that, when Jesus Christ is revealed, your faith will have been tested and proved like gold - only it is more precious than gold, which is corruptible even though it bears testing by fire - and then you will have praise and glory and honour. You did not see him, yet you love him; and still without seeing him, you are already filled with a joy so glorious that it cannot be described, because you believe; and you are sure of the end to which your faith looks forward, that is, the salvation of your souls. The Word of the Lord.
A Reading from the first letter of St. John Think of the love that the Father has lavished on us, by letting us be called God's children; and that is what we are. Because the world refused to acknowledge him, therefore it does not acknowledge us. My dear people, we are already the children of God but what we are to be in the future has not yet been revealed; All we know is, that when it is revealed, we shall be like him because we shall see him as he really is. The Word of the Lord.
Prayers of Intercession You may like to choose 5 or 6 prayers from the list below. The priest begins with an introduction to the prayers and the reader(s) read(s) the chosen prayers. The priest then concludes the prayers with a closing prayer.
Celebrant: We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so it will be for those who died believing in him. God will bring them with him. With confidence, then, we offer our prayers.
General Intentions: (Choose one) 1. For Christians all over the world that the event of Christ's Resurrection may touch them and all of us here in a real and graced way. Lord, hear us.
2. Let us pray for (N) our Holy Father and all those who proclaim the consolation of Christ's death and resurrection to families and communities in sorrow. Increase their faith and make them bearers of lasting and meaningful hope. Lord, hear us.
3. For the Church: that we may grow in our faith in Jesus' power over death. Lord, hear us.
4. For all our political and civil leaders: that they may be faithful to their promises and commitments. Lord, hear us.
For the Sick: 5. We pray for those in advanced years; that they, like N, may accept long life with grace and courage, and that society may grant to the elderly a special place and reverence. Lord, hear us.
6. We pray for those who bear the anxious and uncertain burden of serious illness, and for those who share their suffering, for carers at home and in hospital; that all may know the gentle and caring touch of Christ. Lord, hear us.
7. We pray for the sick - especially the burden of serious illness, and for those who share their sufferings, caring for the sick at home and in hospital; that all may know the strength of Christ's presence with him in their time of need. Lord, hear us.
8. We pray for those who have life threatening cancer; that medical research will find ways to combat the disease and its unwelcome effects on families. Lord, hear us.
9. Let us pray in thanksgiving for those who tended to N in his/her illness; (Doctors, nurses, medical staff, carers, home help personnel); that they were there for N. Lord, hear us.
10. Let us pray for all those who minister to the dying might; that they may care with gentle hearts and hands. Lord, hear us.
For the mourners: (Choose one) 11. Let us pray for all who mourn our sister/our brother N's death. Comfort them in sorrow. Fill the emptiness in their hearts with the presence of your love. Lord, hear us.
12. We pray for all who mourn N; that they may be assured of Christ's closeness to them in their sorrow and find strength and comfort through their faith in the eternal life granted to us in Jesus Christ. Lord, hear us.
13. Let us pray for those who cannot be here today, especially Ns. We present to the Lord their grieving, their loss, their mourning and their desire to be here. Lord, hear us.
For our own needs: 14. Let us in silence make our own personal prayers and petitions (pause for 30 seconds) Lord, hear us.
15. That the emptiness of our lives may gradually be filled with the love we know from others, from Christ, we pray. Lord, hear us.
For the one who has died: 16. As we reflect on the contribution of N to his/her family, friends and the wider community let us remember him/her with affection, may we seek strive for perfection. Lord, hear us.
17. We pray for N who leaves us in death, that God the Father will lead N safely home and share with him/her the joys of the Kingdom - light, happiness and peace. Lord, hear us.
18. As we remember N, a good and generous person created in the image and likeness of God, may we always know and recognise and find God in every human being we meet along the way. Lord, hear us.
19. Let us pray in thanksgiving for the life of N, for all the love s/he gave and for all the many good ways through which s/he touched the lives of others. May N be found worthy of the gift of eternal life. Lord, hear us.
For all the dead 20. We pray for N and for all the deceased, those we have loved and cherished and others with no one to remember them. Let us also pray his/her
May God welcome them into the radiant light of his presence. Lord, hear us.
Celebrant: Father, we thank you for your love and support. Receive your servant N with love and kindness; strengthen us in faith and hope through Christ our Lord. Amen. |
