Parish of Kilcullen
Celebrating a Catholic Funeral
The Ministry of Consolation and Comfort
When Christians die, the Church intercedes on their behalf, confident that ‘life is changed, but not ended’. The Church also ministers to the sorrowing and consoles them in the Funeral Rites with the comforting Word of God and the Sacrament of the Eucharist. During the Funeral Rites, the Church on earth unites with the Church in Heaven to offer worship, praise and thanksgiving to God for the gift of a life which has now been returned to God, the author of life. The Ceremonies also bring hope and consolation to the living.
Funeral Ministry Team
This weekend we are introducing our Funeral Ministry Team to the Parish. This will take place formally at the 11.00 Mass. The Funeral Ministry Team will fulfil one dimension of the Ministry of Consolation in the Parish.
The role of the Funeral Ministry Team will be to assist the priest and to support the family of the deceased, rather like the way the Baptism Team assists at Baptism and supports the family. They will also pray for the deceased and the bereaved family. They will take care to exercise their ministry of consolation and comfort in a sensitive and reverent way, always keeping in mind the life of the deceased and the circumstances of death, in so far as they are known.
The reason for introducing Funeral Ministry at this time is because Parish life is now different:
• By virtue of Baptism we are all called and gifted for the many and varied ministries necessary to build up the Body of Christ which is the Church in this Parish.
• We are preparing the way for a day which is quickly approaching when a priest will no longer be available for all aspects of Funerals.
We hope to roll out this new ministry gradually in the Parish and across the Cluster of our Three Parishes. We will begin with small steps and will remain open to changing what we do as we discover a better approach.

So, from now on, the following will apply in the Parish:
Where possible, a member of the Funeral Team will accompany the priest to the Home of the Deceased, or to the funeral home, and will assist the family in preparing for the funeral. This will involve helping the family choose readings, compose prayers and choose music. Gradually the Funeral Team will share in leading the prayers at home or at the funeral home.
At the Reception of the Body at the Church, the Funeral Team will stand at the door of the church holding candles to greet the arrival of the funeral. The coffin is sprinkled with Holy Water, as a remembrance that in the waters of Baptism Christians receive the pledge of eternal life. After the sprinkling the Funeral Team will cover the coffin with the white Funeral Pall, to recall that on the day of their Baptism a Christian is wrapped in a white robe as a child of God. If the coffin is carried to the altar, the Pall will not be placed over the coffin until then.
The Funeral Team will process with the priest in front of the coffin. The coffin is placed before the Paschal Candle, symbolising Christ’s undying presence and his victory over death by his resurrection. The Funeral Team may place Christian symbols on the coffin, such as the Crucifix, the Book of the Gospels, a rosary beads or prayer book belonging to the deceased. These symbols are clear signs of the dignity of the baptised Christian. The Funeral Team will wait and accompany the family out as they leave the church.
If the family wish to carry with them a photograph or other emblems, which reflect the deceased’s interests or personality, these will be placed on a table near the coffin at the Reception or at the beginning of the Funeral Mass. These are not placed on the coffin and are not included in the Procession with the Bread and Wine. Non-liturgical music should not normally be used during a Funeral Mass.
At the Funeral Mass the Funeral Team will be present to assist and support the family and to help them with readings, prayers and whatever else is needed. Very often a family can be so grief stricken that they do not know what to do and a supporting presence can make all the difference. Pressure will not be put on anyone to read, particularly if they are not regular readers at Mass.
The Rite of Committal at the graveside is another stage in the funeral where the Funeral Team will assist.
Obviously it will take time for this new ministry to settle in and to find its place in the life of the Parish. The Funeral Ministry Team is another significant step as we build the Parish of the future. It has been said that the Funeral Ministry Team may well be the most important mission team in the Church.
Fr Michael Murphy 28/29 March 2009