1 At Home before the Funeral

1 At Home before the Funeral

NOTE

This service may be adapted for use

on hearing the news of a death
on the day of the funeral by those not able to be present
as part of the Minister’s visit to the family before the funeral.

The Preparation

In this moment of sorrow the Lord is in our midst
and consoles us with his word;
Blessed are the sorrowful; they shall be comforted.

Praised be God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
the Father of mercies, and the God of all consolation!
He comforts us in all our afflictions
and thus enables us to comfort those who grieve
with the same consolation we have received from him.

We shall not all die
But we shall be changed.

The trumpet shall sound and the dead will rise immortal
And we shall be changed.

The perishable must be clothed with the imperishable
and the mortal must be clothed with immortality.

We shall not all die
But we shall be changed.

An appropriate hymn may be sung such as the "Dies Irae’, or the "Kontakion" or "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom".
The Word Of God
These or other appropriate readings may be used

(Text of 1 Thess.4J3-15; Psalm 121; John J1.2]-24)
The Prayers
Memories of the departed may be shared ending with the following prayer

O God, who brought us to birth, and in whose arms we die, in our grief and shock, contain and comfort us; embrace us with your love, give us hope in our contusion, and grace to let go into new life; through Jesus Christ. Amen.

Other prayers may follow

Lord, we come into your presence to remember N, and to seek your comfort, for we know that nothing can separate us from your love and that you support us in our sorrow. We are sure that the souls of the righteous are with you and that nothing can harm them. Although they have died they are in peace. Give us your strength to rejoice that you have taken N to be with yourself where he/she shall no more be in need. May we find life and peace and perfect joy in your presence with him. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Holy Lord, almighty and eternal God, hear our prayers for your servant N., whom you have summoned out of this world. Forgive his/her sins and failings and grant him/her a place of refreshment, light, and peace. Let him/her pass unharmed through the dates of death to dwell with the blessed in light, as you promised to Abraham and his children for ever. Accept N into your safe-keeping and on the great day of judgement raise him/her up with all the saints to inherit your eternal kingdom. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

God of all consolation, m your unending love and mercy you turn the darkness of death into the dawn of new life. Your Son, by dying for us, conquered death and by rising again, restored to us eternal life: may we then go forward eagerly to meet our Redeemer and, after our life on earth, be reunited with all our brothers and sisters in that place where every tear is wiped away and all things are made new; through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.

Where this service is being used on the day of the funeral by those not able to be present, this prayer or one from the Funeral Service may be used

Into your hands, O Lord, we humbly entrust our brother/sister N In this life you embraced him/her with your tender love; deliver him/her now from every evil and bid him/her enter eternal rest.

The old order has passed away: welcome him/her then into paradise, here there will be no sorrow, no weeping nor pain, but the fullness of peace and joy with your Son and the Holy Spirit for ever and ever. Amen.

The Blessing

And now to him who is able to keep us from falling, and lift us from the dark valley of despair to the bright mountain of hope, from the midnight of desperation to the daybreak of joy; to him be power and authority, for ever and ever. Amen.

2 On the Morning of the Funeral

The Lord’s true love is surely not spent, nor has his compassion failed; they are new every morning, so great is his constancy. The Lord, I say, is all that I have; therefore I will wait for him patiently. The Lord is good to those who look for him,
to all who seek him; it is good to wait in patience and sigh for deliverance by the Lord For the Lord will not cast off his servants for ever. He may punish cruelly, yet he will have compassion in the fullness of his love; he does not willingly afflict or punish any mortal man.

Lamentations 3.22-26,31-33 NEB

3 At Church before the Funeral

NOTES

Receiving the coffin
The coffin may be received into the church on the evening before the funeral.

Sprinkling
The coffin may be sprinkled with water on entry. This may be accompanied by the words on p O or be done in silence. The use of water celebrates the relationship between the baptism and the death and resurrection of Christ. The water used may appropriately be water from the font. Sprinkling is inappropriate where the deceased was un-baptized.

Pall
A pall may be placed over the coffin by family, friends or the minister. This may be accompanied by the words on p O or be done in silence. The second text is suitable only if the pall is a white pall linking the pall with the white robe of baptism.

Bible, Cross & Other Symbols
With the minister’s permission, suitable symbols of the life and faith of the departed person may be placed near the coffin. A bible or cross may be placed on the coffin. With the minister’s agreement words may be said as symbols are placed.

Candle
A candle may stand beside the coffin. It is appropriate that this is the paschal candle, which may also be carried in front of the coffin when it is brought into the church.

Sentences
Sentences of scripture may be used at the entry, or at other suitable points.

Receiving the coffin at church
The minister meets the coffin at the door of the church and says

We receive the body of our brother/sister N with confidence in God, the giver of lite, who raised the Lord Jesus from the dead.

The coffin may be sprinkled with water, and these words may be used

With this water we call to mind N’s baptism. As Christ went through the deep waters of death for us, so may he bring N and all the redeemed to the fullness of the resurrection life.

or Grant, Lord, that we who are baptized into the death
of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ
may continually put to death our evil desires
and be buried with him;
that through the grave and gate of death
we may pass to our joyful resurrection;
through his merits, who died and was buried and rose again for us, your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

These or other suitable sentences of scripture may be used
The minister may add Alleluia! to any of these sentences

‘I am the resurrection and the life,’ says the Lord. ‘Those who believe in me, even though they die, yet shall they live, and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.’
John 11.25,26

I am persuaded that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, 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.
Romans 8.38,39

We believe that Jesus died and rose again; and so it will be for those who died as Christians; God will bring them to life with Jesus. Thus we shall always be with the Lord. Comfort one another with these words. 1 Thess 414,17,18

We brought nothing into this world, and we can take nothing out. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. I Tim 67; Job 1.21

When the coffin has come to its place, the minister prays in these or other suitable words.

God our Father, by raising Christ your Son you destroyed the power of death and opened for us the way to eternal life.

As we remember before you our brother/sister N, we ask your help for all who shall gather in his/her memory. Grant us the assurance of your presence and grace, by the Spirit you have given us, through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

A pall may be placed over the coffin, and these words may be said

The Lord will swallow up that veil that shrouds all the peoples, the pall thrown over all the nations; he will swallow up death for ever.

or We are already God’s children, but what we shall be has not yet been revealed. Yet we know that when Christ appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.

A bible may be placed on the coffin, and these words may be said
In life N was nourished by the word of God. May Christ greet us, with N, saying: Come, blessed of my Father!

A cross may be placed on the coffin, and these words may be said
Lord Jesus Christ, you bore our sins on the cross. May this cross be a sign to us of your love for N, and the forgiveness of his/her sins.

Other suitable symbols of the lift and faith of the departed person may be placed on or near the coffin, with the minister’s permission. Silence may be kept.
The Word of God and The Prayers

Heavenly Father,
you have not made us for darkness and death, but for life with you for ever. Without you we have nothing to hope for; with you we have nothing to fear. Speak to us now your words of eternal life. Lift us from anxiety and guilt to the light and peace of your presence, and set the glory of your love before us;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

John 14.1-6 or other appropriate readings may be read with Psalms and prayers and silence.

Almighty God, you love everything you have made and judge us with infinite mercy and justice. We rejoice in your promises of pardon, joy and peace to all those who love you. In your mercy turn the darkness of death into the dawn of new life, and the sorrow of parting into the joy of heaven; through our Saviour Jesus Christ who died, who rose again, and lives for evermore. Amen.

The Ending
The minister prays one or more of these prayers, and the service may end with a time of silence. As they leave, the mourners may come near and touch the coffin, or gather round and pray

N has fallen asleep in the peace of Christ. As we leave his/her body here, we entrust him/her, with faith and hope in everlasting life, to the love and mercy of our Father and surround him/her with our love and prayer. [In baptism, he/she was made by adoption a child of God. At the Eucharist he/she was sustained and fed. God now welcomes him/her to his table in heaven to share in eternal life with all the saints.]

God of all consolation, whose Son Jesus Christ was moved to tears at the grave of Lazarus his friend: look with compassion on us your children in our loss; strengthen in us the gift of faith, and give to our troubled hearts the light of hope. We pray in the name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

The Lord God Almighty is our Father:
he loves us and tenderly cares for us.
The Lord Jesus Christ is our Saviour:
he has redeemed us and will defend us to the end.
The Lord, the Holy Spirit is among us:
he will lead us in God’s holy way.
To God Almighty, Father, Son, and Holy Spirit,
be praise and glory today and forever. Amen.