Church Teaching on Funerals

All the sacraments, and principally those of Christian initiation, have as their goal the last Passover of the child of God which, through death, leads him into the life of the Kingdom.

The Christian meaning of death is revealed in the light of the Paschal Mystery of the death and Resurrection of Christ in whom resides our only hope. The Christian who dies in Christ Jesus is "away from the body and at home with the Lord."

The Church who, as Mother, has borne the Christian sacramentally in her bosom during his earthly pilgrimage, accompanies him at his journey's end, in order to surrender him "into the Father's hands."

The Christian funeral confers on the deceased neither a sacrament nor a sacramental, since he has "passed" beyond the sacramental economy. It is nonetheless a liturgical celebration of the Church.

The different funeral rites express the Paschal character of Christian death and are in keeping with the situations and traditions of each region, even as to the color of the liturgical vestments worn.

The homily in particular must avoid the literary genre of funeral eulogy and illuminate the mystery of Christian death in the light of the risen Christ.

If the Eucharist is celebrated, the heart of the Paschal Mystery is set forth: the sacrifice of Christ on the cross is made present, the Church offers to the Father in the Holy Spirit the gift of the Son, and prays that the departed may be purified and gathered into the Kingdom.

A farewell to the deceased is his final "commendation to God" by the Church. It is "the last farewell by which the Christian community greets one of its members before his body is brought to its tomb."

Deceased members of the Christian faithful must be given ecclesiastical funerals according to the norm of law.

Ecclesiastical funerals provide spiritual support for the deceased, honor their body, and bring the solace of hope to the living.

The Church earnestly recommends that the pious custom of burying the bodies of the deceased be observed; nevertheless, the Church does not prohibit cremation unless it was chosen for reasons contrary to Christian doctrine.

The funeral of any member of the faithful must generally be celebrated in his or her own parish church.

No favoritism toward persons is to be shown in funerals, and the poor are not to be deprived of fitting funerals.

As regards funeral rites, catechumens are to be considered members of the Christian faithful.

The local ordinary can permit children whom the parents intended to baptize but who died before baptism to be given ecclesiastical funerals.

Unless they gave some signs of repentance before death, the following must be deprived of ecclesiastical funerals: 1) notorious apostates, heretics, and schismatics; 2) those who chose the cremation of their bodies for reasons contrary to Christian faith; 3) other manifest sinners who cannot be granted ecclesiastical funerals without public scandal of the faithful.

If any doubt occurs, the local ordinary is to be consulted, and his judgment is to be followed.

The Church through its funeral rites commends the dead to God's merciful love and pleads for the forgiveness of their sins. At the funeral rites, especially at the celebration of the Eucharistic sacrifice, the Christian community affirms and expresses the union of the Church on earth with the Church in heaven.

The funeral rites should express clearly the Paschal character of Christian death. The funeral rites are celebrations of the Paschal Mystery of Christ.

Music is integral to the funeral rites. It allows the community to express convictions and feelings that words 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.

Since music can evoke strong feelings, the music for the celebration of the funeral rites should be chosen with great care. The music at funerals should support, console, and uplift the participants and should help to create in them a spirit of hope in Christ's victory over death and in the Christian's share in that victory.