Any baptized Catholic can be buried from the Church: those who have been most faithful in the practice and those who have been less faithful or separated from the Church, through illness, distance or special circumstances.

Non-Catholic members of a parishioner’s family may be buried from the Church unless it was contrary to their wishes and will during their life.

Catechumens who are in the process of becoming Catholic may also be buried from the Church.

Non-baptized children are honored with Christian burial if the parents intended for the child to be baptized but the child died prior to baptism.

Parents who have suffered a miscarriage may also have the Funeral Mass offered for their children. Please visit the Archdiocese’s Holy Innocents Ministry for special care and assistance.

Yes. There are prayers included in the Order of Christian Funerals (OCF) for this circumstance.

Yes. Absence from their parish due to such circumstances does not separate them from the community of the Church and a Funeral Liturgy.

The Sacrament of the Anointing of the Sick provides grace and healing for those who are ill and/or near death. After death, when healing can no longer take place, the Church offers other prayers in place of an anointing.

If a person dies unexpectedly at home, the local public safety department must be called first. If a person is under hospice care, the hospice nurse should be called first, and they will then help you with the subsequent procedures.

Funeral directors specialize in serving the needs of families at the time of death and will also assist in the notification of the pertinent people or agencies.

The local parish may be called directly by the family or the funeral director. After the parish is notified and has confirmed the day and time of the funeral, the family will most likely be invited to meet with a priest regarding the deceased and begin to plan the funeral rites. It also gives the parish the opportunity to offer their sympathy through their bereavement ministry.

The Order of Christian Funerals (OCF) consists of a number of rituals, divided into three key times of prayer for families:

The Vigil for the Deceased is the official prayer of the Church offered in anticipation of the Funeral Mass. The Vigil (also referred to as the Wake Service) offers comfort and consolation for the grieving as the Church prays for the repose of the deceased. Taking the form of a Liturgy of the Word, the Vigil consists of a scripture reading, a brief homily (or a reflection if led by a lay minister), intercessions and prayers. Its focus is on the Word of God as the family experiences death and their subsequent grief. Music may also be a part of this prayer, which can be led by various parish bereavement ministers besides the priest or deacon. The Vigil is also an appropriate place for family and friends to offer their own words or stories (eulogy). Additional non-biblical readings or poems may be included in addition to the readings from scripture. Favorite non-liturgical music may also be played. The Rosary may also be prayed by the family at any time during the visitation hours.

The center of the Order of Christian Funerals is the Funeral Liturgy. “At the funeral liturgy the community gathers with the family and friends of the deceased to give praise and thanks to God for Christ’s victory over sin and death, to commend the deceased to God’s tender mercy and compassion, and to seek strength in the proclamation of the paschal mystery.” (OCF 129) The clear focus in the funeral liturgy is not to keep alive the memory of the deceased but rather God’s abiding presence and the wonders of his grace in the saving death and resurrection of Jesus, in which we participate through our baptism and lives of discipleship. Perhaps more than any other rite, this liturgy distinguishes our Roman Catholic tradition from other common funeral practices.

The Funeral Liturgy can take two forms.

The first form of the funeral liturgy is the Funeral Mass. It begins recalling our baptism, when we first shared Christ’s victory over sin and death, as the casket is blessed with holy water and clothed with a white garment (the pall) and then placed by the Easter Candle near the altar. As we celebrate the Word of God as at every Mass, the homily follows. The homily “should dwell on God’s compassionate love and on the paschal mystery of the Lord, as proclaimed in the Scripture readings. The homilist should also help the members of the assembly to understand that the mystery of God’s love and the mystery of Jesus’ victorious death and resurrection were present in the life and death of the deceased” and in our present lives as well. (OCF 27) Hence the homily is never to be a eulogy. Mass continues in the usual way until after Communion, when the prayers of Final Commendation and Farewell concludes the Mass, followed by the procession to the place of burial.

The second form of the funeral liturgy is the Funeral Liturgy outside Mass and is celebrated when a priest is not available, when a Funeral Mass is prohibited on certain days or when it is judged it might be a more appropriate celebration due to various reasons. This ritual follows the same format of the Funeral Mass with the exception of the Eucharistic Prayer and reception of Holy Communion. It may be celebrated in a parish church, a funeral home, or another chapel.

The Rite of Committal brings to conclusion the funeral rites at the grave, tomb or crematorium. These brief prayers may be led by a priest, deacon or a lay minister or by a member of the family.

The Church still recommends, and prefers, the pious custom of burying the bodies of the Faithful, out of respect for the body that has given evidence of God’s spirit enlivening our souls which are destined to be raised on the great Day of Resurrection. Nonetheless, the Church allows cremation as long as it is not an intentional denial of Jesus’ teaching regarding the Resurrection of the body.

Please Note: Because the body is sacred, even in death, the cremated remains should receive a reverent burial or final interment. Ashes should not be scattered on the ground or in the water. Likewise, it is not appropriate for our loved one’s remains to be kept in a closet or on a mantle at home. The grieving process is helped greatly when we commit our loved ones remains to a final resting place awaiting the Resurrection of the dead.

The Order of Christian Funerals is arranged such that cremation of the deceased takes place after the Funeral Liturgy and not before it. However, when this is not possible, the cremated remains are permitted to be present for the Funeral Liturgy, either the Mass or outside of Mass.

There are at least fifty-five various readings of Scriptures that the Church has specifically chosen for funerals. You can download them from the parish website, or receive them when you meet in your parish church to plan the funeral rites. Non-Scripture readings are not permitted.

Ordinarily, the readings at Mass are proclaimed by Catholics. In certain situations, when circumstances require, a baptized Christian from another church may also assist in this role. All readers must be well prepared for the proclamation and believe in what they are proclaiming, engaging the gathered assembly through their proclamation.

Our Music Director has prepared a helpful guide to selecting appropriate sacred music for a Funeral Mass. Please download the Planning Sheet here.

“Music is integral to the Funeral rites. It allows the community to express convictions and feelings that word alone may fail to convey. It has the power to console and uplift the mourners and to strengthen the unity of the assembly in faith and love. The texts of the songs chosen for a particular celebration should express the paschal mystery of the Lord’s suffering, death, and triumph over death and should be related to the readings from Scripture.” (OCF 30)

Popular non-liturgical songs may not be used in the Funeral Liturgy.

A eulogy is not allowed during the Funeral Mass. Family or friends may be invited to share such a testimony at the Vigil, Wake Service, or at the memorial luncheon or reception that often follows the funeral.

Deacons, religious, and lay ministers are also permitted to preside at the Vigil (Scripture) service and the cemetery Rite of Committal. These are not services that are restricted to a priest. Many parishes have lay bereavement ministers assigned to these significant rites of the Christian funeral.

The cremated remains must always be treated with respect, the same respect we attribute to the body. After the funeral, they are to be interred or entombed, preferably in a Catholic cemetery, mausoleum or columbarium. The Rite of Committal should accompany this action. They should never be separated or scattered or disposed in any way other than a dignified interment or entombment.

Individuals are certainly encouraged to plan their funeral, just as they make arrangements for a will, and for the financial means to pay for their funeral. This relieves some pressure from the family during the emotional grieving process immediately after death. It also clarifies for the remaining family members or representative your wishes, e.g., the Funeral Mass, place of burial, music, readings, pall bearers, etc. Once these specifics for the funeral liturgy are known, the family then is left with arranging for the day of the funeral with the local parish church, funeral home and cemetery.

A Funeral Mass has the body of the deceased or the cremated remains of the deceased present and has all the special prayers attributed to that Mass. When the body or the cremated remains are not present, it is called a Memorial Mass.

Funeral Masses are not allowed in funeral homes. The Funeral Liturgy outside of Mass, as provided in the Order of Christian Funerals, is allowed in the funeral home.

The parish, funeral home, and cemetery will work with the family to accommodate, as best as they can, the choice of a particular day and time for the Funeral Mass. However, the funeral home schedule, restrictions at a cemetery, or previously scheduled funerals at the parish, may all require the family to be flexible in their planning. Thank you for your understanding.

A Funeral Mass can be celebrated any day except on Holy Days of Obligation, Holy Thursday, Good Friday, Holy Saturday, Easter and the Sundays of the Advent, Lent and Easter seasons. On these prohibited days, the funeral liturgy outside of Mass, without the distribution of Communion, is permitted followed by the Rite of Committal. In this circumstance, a Memorial Mass for the deceased may be celebrated later at the convenience of the family and local parish.

Families are usually asked to cover the cost of the stipends paid to the musician, cantor, etc. Additionally, the family is encouraged to make a donation to the parish, if possible, considering the parish resources that are used for the staff, building, etc. Please consult the Parish Office or funeral home for specific fees.

Please note: Financial difficulties or struggles are never an obstacle to celebrating a funeral for your loved one. The parish is ready to offer assistance whenever needed. Please speak with the Parish Office about your needs.

“At the death of a Christian, whose life of faith was begun in the waters of baptism and strengthened at the eucharistic table, the Church intercedes on behalf of the deceased because of its confident belief that death is not the end nor does it break the bonds forged in life.” (OCF 4)

The dead need our prayers as we pray for God’s mercy and petition his forgiveness for all of their sins. In addition, our prayers for the dead remind us that we are not separated from them as it strengthens our communion with all the saints. Such prayer is also beneficial to us as we prepare for our own passing from this life to the next. We pray for the dead not only in our own personal prayers but also through Mass offerings. There we join in the celebration of Christ’s death and resurrection and our desire and hope to share his victory with all those who have died in the same faith of Jesus Christ.

The Church has the annual celebration of All Souls Day every Nov. 2 to commemorate all the faithful departed. The parish also offers a special Mass around this day to especially remember those buried from the parish during the past year. Masses for the deceased on the anniversary of their death, their birthday or other days are another way to offer our prayers for the dead.