Catholic Funeral
Encyclopedia
A Roman Catholic funeral is a funeral
rite
in use in the Latin rite of the Catholic Church. Within the Church, they may be referred to as ecclesiastical funerals. In Catholic funerals, the Church seeks to provide spiritual support for the deceased and honor their bodies, as well as to provide a measure of hope for the family and friends of the deceased.
Practice in the Eastern Catholic Churches is basically similar but takes account of different traditions and follows different liturgical norms.
s are to be considered as Catholics as regards funerals, and the local ordinary
may permit unbaptized children whose parents intended to have them baptized to be given a Catholic funeral. The local ordinary may also, in certain circumstances, permit a baptized person who was not a Catholic to be given a Catholic funeral.
On the other hand, Catholic burial rites are to be refused to the following, unless they gave some sign of repentance before death:
Other rules of canon law concern the church in which the funeral rites are to be celebrated, the funeral dues
that are payable to a priest for conducting the funeral and the cemetery in which they are to be buried.
The ordinary forms of the Roman Rite
in use before the Second Vatican Council
are now extraordinary forms. That of 1962 is explicitly authorized for continued use, under certain conditions, by the motu proprio
Summorum Pontificum
. Funerals are one of the occasions on which this document states: "For faithful and priests who request it, the pastor should also allow celebrations in this extraordinary form for special circumstances.
.
A funeral Mass is a form of Requiem Mass, so called because of the first word of what in earlier forms of the Roman Rite was the only Introit
(entrance antiphon) allowed: Réquiem ætérnam dona eis, Dómine; et lux perpétua lúceat eis. (Eternal rest give to them, O Lord; and let perpetual light shine upon them). This is still the first entrance antiphon given in the Roman Missal
as revised in 1970, which provides alternative formulas also.
The bier holding the body is positioned centrally close to the sanctuary of the church. A deceased lay person's feet are towards the altar
, but a priest's are away from the altar, positions reminiscent of their relative positions when alive and celebrating Mass.
A funeral Mass concludes with the rite of commendation of the dead person, in which the coffin containing the body is sprinkled with holy water and incense
d. In earlier forms of the Roman Rite this is called the absolution at the bier (absolutio ad feretrum).
In earlier forms of the Roman Rite, a Requiem Mass differs in several ways from the usual Mass in that form. Some parts that were of relatively recent origin, including some that have been excluded in the 1970 revision, are omitted. Examples are the psalm Iudica at the start of Mass, the prayer said by the priest before reading the Gospel (or the blessing of the deacon, if a deacon reads it), and the first of the two prayers of the priest for himself before receiving Communion. Other omissions include the use of incense
at the Introit and the Gospel, the kiss of peace, lit candles held by acolytes when a deacon chants the Gospel, and blessings. Black is the obligatory liturgical colour
of the vestment
s in the earlier forms, while the later form allows a choice between black and violet, and in some countries, such as England and Wales, white. The sequence
Dies Iræ
, recited or sung between the Tract
and the Gospel, is an obligatory part of the Requiem Mass in the earlier forms. As its opening words, Dies irae (Day of wrath), indicate, this poetic composition speaks of the Day of Judgment in fearsome terms; it then appeals to Jesus for mercy.
The various Catholic religious observances surrounding mortal remains can be divided into three stages.
The first stage involves the parish priest and other clergy going to the house of the deceased. One cleric carries the cross and another carries a vessel of holy water
. Before the coffin is removed from the house it is sprinkled with the holy water. The priest, with his assistants, says the psalm De profundis
with the antiphon Si iniquitates. Then the procession sets out for the church. The cross-bearer goes first, followed by members of the clergy carrying lighted candles. The priest walks immediately before the coffin, and the friends of the deceased and others walk behind it.
As they leave the house, the priest intones the antiphon Exsultabunt Domino, and then the psalm Miserere
is recited or chanted in alternate verses by the cantors and clergy. On reaching the church the antiphon Exsultabunt is repeated. As the body is placed "in the middle of the church," the responsorial Subvenite is recited.
Historical precedence provides that if the corpse is a layman, the feet are to be turned towards the altar. If the corpse is a priest, then the position is reversed, the head being towards the altar. The earliest reference to this is in Johann Burchard's "Diary". Burchard was the master of ceremonies to Pope Innocent VIII
and Pope Alexander VI
.
A rule also exists that both before the altar and in the grave, the feet of all Christians should be pointed to the East. This custom is alluded to by Bishop Hildebert
at the beginning of the twelfth century, and its symbolism is discussed by Guillaume Durand
. "A man ought so to be buried", he says, "that while his head lies to the West his feet are turned to the East…" The idea seems to be that the bishop (or priest) in death should occupy the same position in the church as during life, facing his people who he taught and blessed in Christ's name.
The second stage is a cycle of prayer
s, the funeral Mass, and absolution
. Candles are lit around the coffin, and they are allowed to burn throughout this stage.
by Michael Joncas
is loosely based on Psalm 91. Often performed before or after funeral masses, this song conveys the idea of people being raised up to heaven. This song was performed at many funerals after September 11.
. Throughout the prayers, certain omissions are made. For example, each psalm ends with Requiem aeternam
instead of the Gloria Patri
During the Mass it is customary to distribute candles to the congregation. These are to be lit during the Gospel, during the latter part of the Holy Sacrifice from the Elevation to the Communion, and during the absolution which follows the Mass. As already remarked the association of lights with Christian funerals is very ancient, and liturgists here recognize a symbolical reference to baptism whereby Christians are made the children of Light, as well as a concrete reminder of the oft repeated prayer et lux perpetua luceat eis.
In the ordinary form of the Roman Rite
(the Mass of Paul VI
) the priest wears purple or black vestment
s, and the coffin is covered by a white pall. There is a fashion among some of the more progressive clergy to wear white vestments, although there is no authority for this. In the Tridentine
form of the Roman Rite, the funeral Mass is a Requiem
. In a Requiem Mass the priest always wears black vestments, and the pall is black. There are also slightly different ceremonies of the Mass and slightly different texts. When the deceased is a baptised child under the age of seven the priest wears white vestments as a symbol of the innocence of the deceased and the attendant belief that the child will immediately be received into heaven without the need to endure purgatory.
, and replaced with the Commendation, when the Mass of Paul VI
was promulgated following the Second Vatican Council
. However, the absolution of the dead continues to remain part of the funeral service of the Tridentine Mass
.
The absolution of the dead is a series of prayers for pardon that are said over the body of a deceased Catholic following a Requiem Mass and before burial. The absolution of the dead does not forgive sins or confer the sacramental absolution
of the Sacrament of Penance. Rather, it is a series of prayers to God that the person's soul will not have to suffer the temporal punishment in purgatory
due for sins which were forgiven during the person's life.
During the absolution, the Libera me, Domine is sung while the priest incenses the coffin and sprinkles it with holy water
. The prayer for absolution is said by the priest, and then the In paradisum
is sung while the body is carried from the church.
After the absolution, the body is carried to the grave. The tomb or burial plot is then blessed, if it has not been blessed previously. A grave newly dug in an already consecrated cemetery is considered blessed, and requires no further consecration. However, a mausoleum
erected above ground or even a brick chamber beneath the surface is regarded as needing blessing when used for the first time. This blessing is short and consists only of a single prayer after which the body is again sprinkled with holy water and incensed. Apart from this, the service at the graveside is very brief.
The priest intones the antiphon "I am the Resurrection and the Life", after which the coffin is lowered into the grave and the Canticle Benedictus
is recited or sung. Then the antiphon is repeated again, the Lord's Prayer
is said silently, while the coffin is again sprinkled with holy water. Finally, after one or two brief responses, the following ancient prayer is said:
The final petition made by the priest is "May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace." At that point, the graveside ceremony and the burial is complete.
Funeral
A funeral is a ceremony for celebrating, sanctifying, or remembering the life of a person who has died. Funerary customs comprise the complex of beliefs and practices used by a culture to remember the dead, from interment itself, to various monuments, prayers, and rituals undertaken in their honor...
rite
Rite
A rite is an established, ceremonious, usually religious act. Rites in this sense fall into three major categories:* rites of passage, generally changing an individual's social status, such as marriage, baptism, or graduation....
in use in the Latin rite of the Catholic Church. Within the Church, they may be referred to as ecclesiastical funerals. In Catholic funerals, the Church seeks to provide spiritual support for the deceased and honor their bodies, as well as to provide a measure of hope for the family and friends of the deceased.
Practice in the Eastern Catholic Churches is basically similar but takes account of different traditions and follows different liturgical norms.
Canon law on Catholic funerals
In general, Roman Catholics are to be given a Catholic funeral on their death. CatechumenCatechumen
In ecclesiology, a catechumen , “‘down’” + ἠχή , “‘sound’”) is one receiving instruction from a catechist in the principles of the Christian religion with a view to baptism...
s are to be considered as Catholics as regards funerals, and the local ordinary
Ordinary
In those hierarchically organised churches of Western Christianity which have an ecclesiastical law system, an ordinary is an officer of the church who by reason of office has ordinary power to execute the church's laws...
may permit unbaptized children whose parents intended to have them baptized to be given a Catholic funeral. The local ordinary may also, in certain circumstances, permit a baptized person who was not a Catholic to be given a Catholic funeral.
On the other hand, Catholic burial rites are to be refused to the following, unless they gave some sign of repentance before death:
- Persons well known to be guilty of apostasyApostasyApostasy , 'a defection or revolt', from ἀπό, apo, 'away, apart', στάσις, stasis, 'stand, 'standing') is the formal disaffiliation from or abandonment or renunciation of a religion by a person. One who commits apostasy is known as an apostate. These terms have a pejorative implication in everyday...
, heresyHeresyHeresy is a controversial or novel change to a system of beliefs, especially a religion, that conflicts with established dogma. It is distinct from apostasy, which is the formal denunciation of one's religion, principles or cause, and blasphemy, which is irreverence toward religion...
or schismSchism (religion)A schism , from Greek σχίσμα, skhísma , is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization or movement religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a break of communion between two sections of Christianity that were previously a single body, or to a division within...
; - Those who asked to be cremated for anti-Christian motives;
- Manifest sinners, if the granting of Church funeral rites to them would cause scandal to Catholics.
Other rules of canon law concern the church in which the funeral rites are to be celebrated, the funeral dues
Funeral Dues
Funeral Dues are the payments that are due to a priest under canon law for celebrating a Roman Catholic funeral. There also used to be the right for a quarter of the funeral costs to accrue to the parish priest of the dead person if the person was buried away from the parish, which was known as...
that are payable to a priest for conducting the funeral and the cemetery in which they are to be buried.
The ordinary forms of the Roman Rite
Roman Rite
The Roman Rite is the liturgical rite used in the Diocese of Rome in the Catholic Church. It is by far the most widespread of the Latin liturgical rites used within the Western or Latin autonomous particular Church, the particular Church that itself is also called the Latin Rite, and that is one of...
in use before the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
are now extraordinary forms. That of 1962 is explicitly authorized for continued use, under certain conditions, by the motu proprio
Motu proprio
A motu proprio is a document issued by the Pope on his own initiative and personally signed by him....
Summorum Pontificum
Summorum Pontificum
Summorum Pontificum is an Apostolic Letter of Pope Benedict XVI, issued "motu proprio" . The document specified the rules, for the Latin Rite of the Catholic Church, for celebrating Mass according to the "Missal promulgated by John XXIII in 1962" , and for administering most of the sacraments in...
. Funerals are one of the occasions on which this document states: "For faithful and priests who request it, the pastor should also allow celebrations in this extraordinary form for special circumstances.
Liturgy
The following information concerns the Roman Rite, not other Latin liturgical ritesLatin liturgical rites
Latin liturgical rites used within that area of the Catholic Church where the Latin language once dominated were for many centuries no less numerous than the liturgical rites of the Eastern autonomous particular Churches. Their number is now much reduced...
.
A funeral Mass is a form of Requiem Mass, so called because of the first word of what in earlier forms of the Roman Rite was the only Introit
Introit
The Introit is part of the opening of the liturgical celebration of the Eucharist for many Christian denominations. In its most complete version, it consists of an antiphon, psalm verse and Gloria Patri that is spoken or sung at the beginning of the celebration...
(entrance antiphon) allowed: Réquiem ætérnam dona eis, Dómine; et lux perpétua lúceat eis. (Eternal rest give to them, O Lord; and let perpetual light shine upon them). This is still the first entrance antiphon given in the Roman Missal
Roman Missal
The Roman Missal is the liturgical book that contains the texts and rubrics for the celebration of the Mass in the Roman Rite of the Catholic Church.-Situation before the Council of Trent:...
as revised in 1970, which provides alternative formulas also.
The bier holding the body is positioned centrally close to the sanctuary of the church. A deceased lay person's feet are towards the altar
Altar
An altar is any structure upon which offerings such as sacrifices are made for religious purposes. Altars are usually found at shrines, and they can be located in temples, churches and other places of worship...
, but a priest's are away from the altar, positions reminiscent of their relative positions when alive and celebrating Mass.
A funeral Mass concludes with the rite of commendation of the dead person, in which the coffin containing the body is sprinkled with holy water and incense
Incense
Incense is composed of aromatic biotic materials, which release fragrant smoke when burned. The term "incense" refers to the substance itself, rather than to the odor that it produces. It is used in religious ceremonies, ritual purification, aromatherapy, meditation, for creating a mood, and for...
d. In earlier forms of the Roman Rite this is called the absolution at the bier (absolutio ad feretrum).
In earlier forms of the Roman Rite, a Requiem Mass differs in several ways from the usual Mass in that form. Some parts that were of relatively recent origin, including some that have been excluded in the 1970 revision, are omitted. Examples are the psalm Iudica at the start of Mass, the prayer said by the priest before reading the Gospel (or the blessing of the deacon, if a deacon reads it), and the first of the two prayers of the priest for himself before receiving Communion. Other omissions include the use of incense
Incense
Incense is composed of aromatic biotic materials, which release fragrant smoke when burned. The term "incense" refers to the substance itself, rather than to the odor that it produces. It is used in religious ceremonies, ritual purification, aromatherapy, meditation, for creating a mood, and for...
at the Introit and the Gospel, the kiss of peace, lit candles held by acolytes when a deacon chants the Gospel, and blessings. Black is the obligatory liturgical colour
Liturgical colours
Liturgical colours are those specific colours which are used for vestments and hangings within the context of Christian liturgy. The symbolism of violet, white, green, red, gold, black, rose, and other colours may serve to underline moods appropriate to a season of the liturgical year or may...
of the vestment
Vestment
Vestments are liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christian religion, especially among Latin Rite and other Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, and Lutherans...
s in the earlier forms, while the later form allows a choice between black and violet, and in some countries, such as England and Wales, white. The sequence
Sequence (poetry)
A sequence is a chant or hymn sung or recited during the liturgical celebration of the Eucharist for many Christian denominations, before the proclamation of the Gospel. By the time of the Council of Trent there were sequences for many feasts in the Church's year.The sequence has always been sung...
Dies Iræ
Dies Irae
Dies Irae is a thirteenth century Latin hymn thought to be written by Thomas of Celano . It is a medieval Latin poem characterized by its accentual stress and its rhymed lines. The metre is trochaic...
, recited or sung between the Tract
Tract
Tract may refer to:* Land lot, a section of land* Census tract, a geographic region defined for the purpose of taking a census* Tract , a short written work, usually of a political or religious nature...
and the Gospel, is an obligatory part of the Requiem Mass in the earlier forms. As its opening words, Dies irae (Day of wrath), indicate, this poetic composition speaks of the Day of Judgment in fearsome terms; it then appeals to Jesus for mercy.
The various Catholic religious observances surrounding mortal remains can be divided into three stages.
Conveyance of the body to the church
Holy water
Holy water is water that, in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Lutheranism, Oriental Orthodoxy, and some other churches, has been sanctified by a priest for the purpose of baptism, the blessing of persons, places, and objects; or as a means of repelling evil.The use for baptism and...
. Before the coffin is removed from the house it is sprinkled with the holy water. The priest, with his assistants, says the psalm De profundis
Psalm 130
Psalm 130 , traditionally De profundis from its Latin incipit, is one of the Penitential psalms.-Commentary:...
with the antiphon Si iniquitates. Then the procession sets out for the church. The cross-bearer goes first, followed by members of the clergy carrying lighted candles. The priest walks immediately before the coffin, and the friends of the deceased and others walk behind it.
Miserere
Miserere may refer to:* Psalm 51, and its musical settings:** Miserere ** Miserere ** Miserere * Miserere by Zucchero* Plaza Miserere, a plaza in Buenos Aires...
is recited or chanted in alternate verses by the cantors and clergy. On reaching the church the antiphon Exsultabunt is repeated. As the body is placed "in the middle of the church," the responsorial Subvenite is recited.
Historical precedence provides that if the corpse is a layman, the feet are to be turned towards the altar. If the corpse is a priest, then the position is reversed, the head being towards the altar. The earliest reference to this is in Johann Burchard's "Diary". Burchard was the master of ceremonies to Pope Innocent VIII
Pope Innocent VIII
Pope Innocent VIII , born Giovanni Battista Cybo , was Pope from 1484 until his death.-Early years:Giovanni Battista Cybo was born at Genoa of Greek extraction...
and Pope Alexander VI
Pope Alexander VI
Pope Alexander VI , born Roderic Llançol i Borja was Pope from 1492 until his death on 18 August 1503. He is one of the most controversial of the Renaissance popes, and his Italianized surname—Borgia—became a byword for the debased standards of the Papacy of that era, most notoriously the Banquet...
.
A rule also exists that both before the altar and in the grave, the feet of all Christians should be pointed to the East. This custom is alluded to by Bishop Hildebert
Hildebert
Hildebert of Lavardin was a French writer and ecclesiastic. His name is also spelled Hydalbert, Gildebert, or Aldebert.-Life:...
at the beginning of the twelfth century, and its symbolism is discussed by Guillaume Durand
Guillaume Durand
Guillaume Durand, or William Durand, , also known as Durandus, Duranti or Durantis, from the Italian form of Durandi filius, as he sometimes signed himself, was a French canonist and liturgical writer, and Bishop of Mende.-Life:He was born at Puimisson, near Béziers, of a noble family of Languedoc...
. "A man ought so to be buried", he says, "that while his head lies to the West his feet are turned to the East…" The idea seems to be that the bishop (or priest) in death should occupy the same position in the church as during life, facing his people who he taught and blessed in Christ's name.
Ceremony in the church
Prayer
Prayer is a form of religious practice that seeks to activate a volitional rapport to a deity through deliberate practice. Prayer may be either individual or communal and take place in public or in private. It may involve the use of words or song. When language is used, prayer may take the form of...
s, the funeral Mass, and absolution
Absolution
Absolution is a traditional theological term for the forgiveness experienced in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. This concept is found in the Roman Catholic Church, as well as the Eastern Orthodox churches, the Anglican churches, and most Lutheran churches....
. Candles are lit around the coffin, and they are allowed to burn throughout this stage.
Funeral Hymns
On Eagles' WingsOn Eagles' Wings
On Eagles' Wings is a devotional song composed by Michael Joncas, a minister, in 1979 after Vatican Council II, when the Catholic Church began using vernacular hymns at Mass. Its words are loosely based on Psalm 91 and Isaiah 40:31. The song was then published by North American Liturgy Resources...
by Michael Joncas
Michael Joncas
Jan Michael Joncas is a priest, liturgical theologian, and composer of contemporary Catholic music. Joncas's most popular song is "On Eagles' Wings." He received an MA in liturgy from the University of Notre Dame in 1978 and went on to study at the Pontifical Liturgical Institute in Rome. He was...
is loosely based on Psalm 91. Often performed before or after funeral masses, this song conveys the idea of people being raised up to heaven. This song was performed at many funerals after September 11.
Prayers
The prayers offered are the Office of the DeadOffice of the Dead
The Office of the Dead is a prayer cycle of the Liturgy of the Hours in the Roman Catholic Church, said for the repose of the soul of a decedent. It is the proper reading on All Souls' Day for all souls in Purgatory, and can be a votive office on other days when said for a particular decedent...
. Throughout the prayers, certain omissions are made. For example, each psalm ends with Requiem aeternam
Requiem
A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead or Mass of the dead , is a Mass celebrated for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, using a particular form of the Roman Missal...
instead of the Gloria Patri
Doxology
A doxology is a short hymn of praises to God in various Christian worship services, often added to the end of canticles, psalms, and hymns...
Mass for the Dead
As in the case of the Office, the Mass for the Dead (Missa de Requie) is chiefly distinguished from ordinary Masses by certain omissions. Some of these may be due to the fact that this Mass was formerly regarded as supplementary to the Mass of the day. In other cases it preserves the tradition of a more primitive age. The suppression of the Alleluia, Gloria in excelsis, and the Gloria Patri seems to point to a sense of the incongruity of joyful themes in the presence of God's searching and inscrutable judgments. In the early Christian ages, however, it would seem that the Alleluia, especially in the East, was regarded as especially appropriate to funerals.During the Mass it is customary to distribute candles to the congregation. These are to be lit during the Gospel, during the latter part of the Holy Sacrifice from the Elevation to the Communion, and during the absolution which follows the Mass. As already remarked the association of lights with Christian funerals is very ancient, and liturgists here recognize a symbolical reference to baptism whereby Christians are made the children of Light, as well as a concrete reminder of the oft repeated prayer et lux perpetua luceat eis.
In the ordinary form of the Roman Rite
Roman Rite
The Roman Rite is the liturgical rite used in the Diocese of Rome in the Catholic Church. It is by far the most widespread of the Latin liturgical rites used within the Western or Latin autonomous particular Church, the particular Church that itself is also called the Latin Rite, and that is one of...
(the Mass of Paul VI
Mass of Paul VI
The Mass of Pope Paul VI is the liturgy of the Catholic Mass of the Roman Rite promulgated by Paul VI in 1969, after the Second Vatican Council...
) the priest wears purple or black vestment
Vestment
Vestments are liturgical garments and articles associated primarily with the Christian religion, especially among Latin Rite and other Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Anglicans, and Lutherans...
s, and the coffin is covered by a white pall. There is a fashion among some of the more progressive clergy to wear white vestments, although there is no authority for this. In the Tridentine
Tridentine
The adjective Tridentine refers to any thing or person pertaining to the city of Trent, Italy .It is applied in particular to:*The Council of Trent, one of the ecumenical councils recognized by the Roman Catholic Church, held in that city in the 16th century, and to the teachings emphasized by it...
form of the Roman Rite, the funeral Mass is a Requiem
Requiem
A Requiem or Requiem Mass, also known as Mass for the dead or Mass of the dead , is a Mass celebrated for the repose of the soul or souls of one or more deceased persons, using a particular form of the Roman Missal...
. In a Requiem Mass the priest always wears black vestments, and the pall is black. There are also slightly different ceremonies of the Mass and slightly different texts. When the deceased is a baptised child under the age of seven the priest wears white vestments as a symbol of the innocence of the deceased and the attendant belief that the child will immediately be received into heaven without the need to endure purgatory.
Absolution
The absolution of the dead was removed from the ordinary form of the Roman RiteRoman Rite
The Roman Rite is the liturgical rite used in the Diocese of Rome in the Catholic Church. It is by far the most widespread of the Latin liturgical rites used within the Western or Latin autonomous particular Church, the particular Church that itself is also called the Latin Rite, and that is one of...
, and replaced with the Commendation, when the Mass of Paul VI
Mass of Paul VI
The Mass of Pope Paul VI is the liturgy of the Catholic Mass of the Roman Rite promulgated by Paul VI in 1969, after the Second Vatican Council...
was promulgated following the Second Vatican Council
Second Vatican Council
The Second Vatican Council addressed relations between the Roman Catholic Church and the modern world. It was the twenty-first Ecumenical Council of the Catholic Church and the second to be held at St. Peter's Basilica in the Vatican. It opened under Pope John XXIII on 11 October 1962 and closed...
. However, the absolution of the dead continues to remain part of the funeral service of the Tridentine Mass
Tridentine Mass
The Tridentine Mass is the form of the Roman Rite Mass contained in the typical editions of the Roman Missal that were published from 1570 to 1962. It was the most widely celebrated Mass liturgy in the world until the introduction of the Mass of Paul VI in December 1969...
.
The absolution of the dead is a series of prayers for pardon that are said over the body of a deceased Catholic following a Requiem Mass and before burial. The absolution of the dead does not forgive sins or confer the sacramental absolution
Absolution
Absolution is a traditional theological term for the forgiveness experienced in the Sacrament of Reconciliation. This concept is found in the Roman Catholic Church, as well as the Eastern Orthodox churches, the Anglican churches, and most Lutheran churches....
of the Sacrament of Penance. Rather, it is a series of prayers to God that the person's soul will not have to suffer the temporal punishment in purgatory
Purgatory
Purgatory is the condition or process of purification or temporary punishment in which, it is believed, the souls of those who die in a state of grace are made ready for Heaven...
due for sins which were forgiven during the person's life.
During the absolution, the Libera me, Domine is sung while the priest incenses the coffin and sprinkles it with holy water
Holy water
Holy water is water that, in Catholicism, Anglicanism, Eastern Orthodoxy, Lutheranism, Oriental Orthodoxy, and some other churches, has been sanctified by a priest for the purpose of baptism, the blessing of persons, places, and objects; or as a means of repelling evil.The use for baptism and...
. The prayer for absolution is said by the priest, and then the In paradisum
In paradisum
In paradisum is an antiphon from the traditional Latin liturgy of the Western Church Requiem Mass. It is sung by the choir as the body is being taken out of the church...
is sung while the body is carried from the church.
Ceremony by the graveside
Mausoleum
A mausoleum is an external free-standing building constructed as a monument enclosing the interment space or burial chamber of a deceased person or persons. A monument without the interment is a cenotaph. A mausoleum may be considered a type of tomb or the tomb may be considered to be within the...
erected above ground or even a brick chamber beneath the surface is regarded as needing blessing when used for the first time. This blessing is short and consists only of a single prayer after which the body is again sprinkled with holy water and incensed. Apart from this, the service at the graveside is very brief.
The priest intones the antiphon "I am the Resurrection and the Life", after which the coffin is lowered into the grave and the Canticle Benedictus
Benedictus (Song of Zechariah)
The Benedictus , given in Gospel of , is one of the three canticles in the opening chapters of this Gospel. The Benedictus was the song of thanksgiving uttered by Zechariah on the occasion of the birth of his son, John the Baptist.The whole canticle naturally falls into two parts...
is recited or sung. Then the antiphon is repeated again, the Lord's Prayer
Lord's Prayer
The Lord's Prayer is a central prayer in Christianity. In the New Testament of the Christian Bible, it appears in two forms: in the Gospel of Matthew as part of the discourse on ostentation in the Sermon on the Mount, and in the Gospel of Luke, which records Jesus being approached by "one of his...
is said silently, while the coffin is again sprinkled with holy water. Finally, after one or two brief responses, the following ancient prayer is said:
Grant this mercy, O Lord, we beseech Thee, to Thy servant departed, that he may not receive in punishment the requital of his deeds who in desire did keep Thy will, and as the true faith here united him to the company of the faithful, so may Thy mercy unite him above to the choirs of angels. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The final petition made by the priest is "May his soul and the souls of all the faithful departed through the mercy of God rest in peace." At that point, the graveside ceremony and the burial is complete.
See also
- Funeral sermon and prayerFuneral Sermon and PrayerThe Funeral Sermon and Prayer is the oldest known and surviving contiguous Hungarian text, written by one scribal hand in the Latin script and dating to 1192-1195...
- Month's MindMonth's MindA Month's Mind is a requiem mass celebrated about one month after a person's death, in memory of the deceased. In medieval and later England, it was a service and feast held one month after the death of anyone in his or her memory. Bede speaks of the day as commemorationis dies...
- Requiem Mass
- Viewing (funeral)
- Wake (ceremony)Wake (ceremony)A wake is a ceremony associated with death. Traditionally, a wake takes place in the house of the deceased, with the body present; however, modern wakes are often performed at a funeral home. In the United States and Canada it is synonymous with a viewing...