Catholic Funeral Mass planning

Memorial Services

Credit and many thanks to St. Mary's Catholic Church, Fort Walton Beach, Florida for developing an excellent guide to Catholic liturgy and allowing us to use their information as a base to develop our information page. We have made some adjustments based on preferences of our local parishes and have the "Through Death to Life" guide available at our funeral home for families planning Catholic funerals. In addition, all the local parishes provide support staff who contact families and assist with Mass planning.

The Funeral Liturgy

The funeral liturgy is a Catholic Mass, which includes the Communion Rite, with special prayers offered on behalf of the deceased, the family and the community. To follow is an outline which includes where hymns are usually included. Please note that in some parishes the family may opt for a Liturgy of the Word funeral service, which includes all the parts of the funeral Mass without the Communion Rite.

The following link to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops main page concerning bereavement and funerals from the Catholic perspective is an excellent resource:


Introductory Rites: Includes the Opening prayer; Blessing with Holy Water; Placing of the Pall when a casket is present; Entrance Hymn

The Liturgy of the Word: Includes the First Reading which may be selected and/or read by a family member or friend; Responsorial Psalm-usually sung; Second Reading which may be selected and/or read by a family member or friend; Gospel Reading which is usually selected by the priest; Homily by the priest or deacon; Prayers of the Faithful which may also be chosen and/or read by a family member or friend.

The following is s direct link to readings for the Funeral Liturgy: http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/bereavement-and-funerals/readings-for-the-funeral-liturgy.cfm

The Liturgy of the Eucharist: Includes the Offertory prayers and Offertory song; Optional Presentation of the Gifts by family members and/or friends; The Eucharistic Prayer; The Lord's Prayer and Sign of Peace; The Communion Hymn

Final Commendation and Farewell: Includes the Final Commendation; Song of Farewell which is often a standard selection already selected by the parish musicians; the Recessional Hymn

Music in Catholic Funerals

“Sacred music has an integral role in the funeral rites, since it can console and uplift mourners while, at the same time, uniting the assembly in faith and love. (OCF #30) Funeral music should express the Paschal Mystery and the Christian’s share in it. (OCF #30) Since music can evoke strong feelings, it should be chosen with care. It should console the participants and ‘help to create in them a spirit of hope in Christ’s victory over death and in the Christian’s share in that victory.’” (OCF #31) 
Sing to the Lord: Music in Divine Worship
In the reference notes, OCF refers to the Order of Christian Funerals – 1989

Selecting Music

In a general sense, music that is appropriate for a Catholic Mass is appropriate for a Funeral Liturgy. We have assembled a list of common songs used at Funeral Liturgies. We encourage families to select music from our hymnals, in order to facilitate the congregation’s ability to participate in the prayer (we currently use hymnals from two major Catholic publishers, GIA and OCP). If you have questions, please contact our Director of Music Ministry.

A minimum of four songs are needed in our local parishes: an Entrance Processional, a Communion Song, and a Recessional Song. Optionally, you can select an Offertory Song and a Song of Thanksgiving following Communion. If you pick out 3 or 4 songs, we can help arrange them appropriately within the liturgy. We encourage the responsorial psalm to be sung; some recommended psalms are included in the music list below.

Memorial Service vs. Funeral

The biggest difference of a traditional funeral and a memorial service is that the body is not present in a casket at a memorial service. However, an urn with the loved one’s ashes may be present at a memorial service. Both traditional funeral services and memorial services have structure, and both bring the community together in support and remembrance. However, a traditional funeral service is much more structured and formal. A traditional funeral service is often associated with religion so it is often led by a member of clergy, whereas a memorial service is led by a celebrant or master of ceremonies. Memorial services often allow for each guest to participate to some level, where guests of a traditional funeral are really just there to observe and reflect.

Memorial Service vs. 
Celebration of Life

A celebration of life is an event that truly celebrates the loved one’s passions, intellectual pursuits, personality, and personal accomplishments. A celebration of life can really have no structure at all and can be really anything you want.
 
A memorial service could be best described as a gentle mix of a traditional funeral and celebration of life. A memorial service has some structure, but it still allows you the flexibility to make the ceremony unique and personalized to fit the individual being honored. Also the mood generally lies somewhere in the middle of completely somber and celebratory.

The Funeral Liturgy

The funeral liturgy is a Catholic Mass, which includes the Communion Rite, with special prayers offered on behalf of the deceased, the family and the community. To follow is an outline which includes where hymns are usually included. Please note that in some parishes the family may opt for a Liturgy of the Word funeral service, which includes all the parts of the funeral Mass without the Communion Rite.

The following link to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops main page concerning bereavement and funerals from the Catholic perspective is an excellent resource:


Introductory Rites: Includes the Opening prayer; Blessing with Holy Water; Placing of the Pall when a casket is present; Entrance Hymn

The Liturgy of the Word: Includes the First Reading which may be selected and/or read by a family member or friend; Responsorial Psalm-usually sung; Second Reading which may be selected and/or read by a family member or friend; Gospel Reading which is usually selected by the priest; Homily by the priest or deacon; Prayers of the Faithful which may also be chosen and/or read by a family member or friend.

The following is s direct link to readings for the Funeral Liturgy: http://www.usccb.org/prayer-and-worship/bereavement-and-funerals/readings-for-the-funeral-liturgy.cfm

The Liturgy of the Eucharist: Includes the Offertory prayers and Offertory song; Optional Presentation of the Gifts by family members and/or friends; The Eucharistic Prayer; The Lord's Prayer and Sign of Peace; The Communion Hymn

Final Commendation and Farewell: Includes the Final Commendation; Song of Farewell which is often a standard selection already selected by the parish musicians; the Recessional Hymn