Colors for Funerals: Your Preference

  • Thread starter Thread starter ben_dy
  • Start date Start date
Status
Not open for further replies.
B

ben_dy

Guest
A group of us are now in the process (with (name removed by moderator)ut from all concerned) of purchasing sets of new vestments, etc., for our new parish Church (which - if I am still around - is scheduled to open in July: take a left out of my subdivision and it’s less than 1/4 mile on the left!).

We all have our opinions on which colors are the most frequently requested for funerals, requim Mass, etc. Without giving away the current concesus - and our pastor’s preferences - I ask here (although I’m certain it has been asked previously and if someone can direct me to that thread I would be most grateful)…

What color do you prefer for funeral or requim Mass? (No need to keep in mind other accessories or even the families choice - I’m simply looking for consensus of opinion!)
 
I can’t remember the last time I saw anything other than white vestments at a funeral. I can’t remember if our parish has different ones for funerals than those used for major feasts. I seem to recall the the color is actually more of an ivory or cream color than a WHITE white.

I can’t think of any other colors that wouldn’t be part of a standard set of vestments anyways.
 
My first thought was funeral=black, right? Then I wondered why those three colors were presented. White would seem to imply celebration. Which is, afterall, what we do when a person dies and can be in a far better place. But why violet? So I looked up vestement standards and found white is definitely the most common (if a google search counts). And then I saw this:
GIRM 346. As to the color of sacred vestments, the traditional usage is to be retained: namely,
a. White is used in the Offices and Masses during the Easter and Christmas seasons; also on celebrations of the Lord other than of his Passion, of the Blessed Virgin Mary, of the Holy Angels, and of Saints who were not Martyrs; on the Solemnities of All Saints (November 1) and of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist (June 24); and on the Feasts of Saint John the Evangelist (December 27), of the Chair of Saint Peter (February 22), and of the Conversion of Saint Paul (January 25).
b. Red is used on Palm Sunday of the Lord’s Passion and on Good Friday, on Pentecost Sunday, on celebrations of the Lord’s Passion, on the feasts of the Apostles and Evangelists, and on celebrations of Martyr Saints.
c. Green is used in the Offices and Masses of Ordinary Time.
**d. Violet or purple is used in Advent and of Lent. It may also be worn in Offices and Masses for the Dead (cf. below).
e. Besides violet, white or black vestments may be worn at funeral services and at other Offices and Masses for the Dead in the Dioceses of the United States of America.
**f. Rose may be used, where it is the practice, on Gaudete Sunday (Third Sunday of Advent) and on Laetare Sunday (Fourth Sunday of Lent).
g. On more solemn days, sacred vestments may be used that are festive, that is, more precious, even if not of the color of the day.
h. Gold or silver colored vestments may be worn on more solemn occasions in the dioceses of the United States of America.
Click to expand...
So it appears that violet is the norm, and the US allows any of the three. Personally, after reflecting on all this, I would probably ask for white vestements with a violet stole if available. Ultimately, however, I would go with the priest’s request. They are what he has to wear and are his clothes. He is the one with the responsibility on his shoulders and the flock to tend. If the three are allowed, what does it matter which one?

No matter which color is chosen, oh please do get intricate and beautiful ones!
 
It is good to have all three, because circumstances of death are so varied.

For your normal passing, which is an older person who has lived a long life and whose passing was expected, white may be most appropriate.

Black is particularly appropriate for the death of a pope or prelate (although for John Paul the Great they used red…which confused me…he was not martyred and, to my knowledge, it was not a Mass for the Holy Spirit) and for sudden deaths where the morning is quite intense and the priest and Church can join in the sadness of immediate loss. It is also appropriate for All Souls Day.

Violet, which you will need to have anyway, because of Lent and Advent, is a color of penance, and I have never understood it’s use in Requiem Masses, unless the deceased was particularly a bad person!

Just my two cents…

Adam
 
I’d prefer purple as I associate that color with blessed events.
 
I prefer white. Since all Masses have as their central theme the death and resurrection of Jesus I want to focus on the hope and promise of the resurrection. Mourning is not the theme of the funeral Mass!

Deacon Ed
 
If it was a Requiem for an aborted baby (yes, they do take place) I think RED would be most appropriate as I view such infants as martyrs.
 
hilde the dog:
I’d prefer purple as I associate that color with blessed events.
Click to expand...
Huh?

Just after Katrina hit the Gulf coast, our visiting priest said a Mass for the Dead and got all kinds of filthy looks from the liturgy police. He said that violet is the “default” color for these Masses but that people have commandeered white as if to say everybody who dies is already in heaven. This young priest felt that a lot of the dead would probably spend a fair amount of time in Purgatory, hence the penitential violet.

I believe a funeral Mass (which is these days seems always to be the Mass of the Resurrection) is different from a Mass for the Dead but I need coaching from somebody who knows. I’m too lazy and too busy to look it up.
 
Deacon Ed:
I prefer white. Since all Masses have as their central theme the death and resurrection of Jesus I want to focus on the hope and promise of the resurrection. Mourning is not the theme of the funeral Mass!

Deacon Ed
Click to expand...
Of course, your reasoning here is impeccable. So is your theology.

But somehow, pastorally, neglect of due mourning leaves something to be desired. After all, when Lazarus died, “Jesus wept.”
 
Deacon Ed:
I prefer white. Since all Masses have as their central theme the death and resurrection of Jesus I want to focus on the hope and promise of the resurrection. Mourning is not the theme of the funeral Mass!

Deacon Ed
Click to expand...
Mourning is an essential component of any funeral Mass.
 
mercygate

I believe I had a brain fart or am prematurely developing the big A. Yes, my logic was bent on the blessed event part, I meant I view the funeral and most likely prugatory as preparartion for greater event. Such as in Lent and Advent we prepare ourselves for Easter and Christmas. Besides I like purple.
 
40.png
Chalice:
Mourning is an essential component of any funeral Mass.
Click to expand...
Actually, it’s not. Nowhere in the liturgy is there any place for mourning. According to Church teaching, that is the purpose of the Vigil or Wake Service, and the graveside. The funeral Mass is to give hope to those who attend: hope in the resurrection.

Certainly mourning is a component of all funeral rites, but it is not an “essential component” of any of them. In the ritual book on funerals the Church calls for mouring during the time from the death of the individual to the funeral Rites, but the Rites themselves are not for mouring.

Thus when I preach at a Vigil Service or at a Funeral I speak of the hope of the resurrection. At baptism we are configured to the death and resurrection of Jesus (or, at least, so sayeth St. Paul in his letter to the Romans). That hope is what allows our mouring to have a Christian character.

Deacon Ed
 
I want black for my Requiem Mass(in the Tridentine Rite, of course!).
 
Mercygate thanks for the mercy. You know purple always seemed royal (Its the color of Hilde’s collar) so when reading the thread I forgot the penetential part of purple then again I will probably need that …hmmmm
 
Black is particularly appropriate for the death of a pope or prelate (although for John Paul the Great they used red…which confused me…he was not martyred and, to my knowledge, it was not a Mass for the Holy Spirit) and for sudden deaths where the morning is quite intense and the priest and Church can join in the sadness of immediate loss. It is also appropriate for All Souls Day.

I believe that red is the traditional colour for the body of a dead Pope to be vested in.

I believe that red has something to do with the fact that the Pope has to be willing to shed his blood, if necessary, for the Faith. It may also have something to do with the fact that a Bishop(which a Pope is) is a successor to the Apostles, many of whom(if not all) were martyred.
 
40.png
GoLatin:
I want black for my Requiem Mass(in the Tridentine Rite, of course!).
Click to expand...
There is no Tridentine RITE. I understand what you mean, but I want to clarify for any others who are reading that your terminology is a matter of desire and emotion, not actuality. Of course, it has no bearing on your desires for black vestments at your Requiem Mass. 🙂
40.png
GoLatin:
Black is particularly appropriate for the death of a pope or prelate (although for John Paul the Great they used red…which confused me…he was not martyred and, to my knowledge, it was not a Mass for the Holy Spirit) and for sudden deaths where the morning is quite intense and the priest and Church can join in the sadness of immediate loss. It is also appropriate for All Souls Day.

I believe that red is the traditional colour for the body of a dead Pope to be vested in.

I believe that red has something to do with the fact that the Pope has to be willing to shed his blood, if necessary, for the Faith. It may also have something to do with the fact that a Bishop(which a Pope is) is a successor to the Apostles, many of whom(if not all) were martyred.
Click to expand...
Wikipedia says this:
Wiki:
Pope John Paul II’s body was clothed in the familiar white soutanne, over which was placed a plain white alb. A stole, the symbol of ordained ministry, was placed around his neck. Over the inner vestments, Pope John Paul II was clothed in a red chasuble. An ancient Byzantine custom, red is the old colour of mourning for Popes. Around his collar, the pallium of white lamb’s wool was draped. A white zucchetto and a white bishop’s mitre adorned Pope John Paul II’s head. In his arm rested Paul VI’s famous pastoral cross-staff, used by popes in place of the crosier . His hands clasped a rosary.
At first, he lay in state in his favorite pair of Polish-made brown leather shoes, an American size ten and a half, which he wore on his travels throughout the world. Later, following the example of his immediate predecessors, these were changed to plain red leather papal shoes.
Click to expand...
I wonder now if it makes a difference which service is being celebrated which colors should be worn. Also, I had the thought that (like someone else already pointed out) the priest should have violet vestments already, as well as white, because he needs them at other times throughout the year. So if you are purchasing another, I would think black is the only one left he won’t have. Then he’ll have all three to choose from depending on the circumstances and the family.
 
Deacon Ed:
Actually, it’s not. Nowhere in the liturgy is there any place for mourning. According to Church teaching, that is the purpose of the Vigil or Wake Service, and the graveside. The funeral Mass is to give hope to those who attend: hope in the resurrection.

Certainly mourning is a component of all funeral rites, but it is not an “essential component” of any of them. In the ritual book on funerals the Church calls for mouring during the time from the death of the individual to the funeral Rites, but the Rites themselves are not for mouring.

Thus when I preach at a Vigil Service or at a Funeral I speak of the hope of the resurrection. At baptism we are configured to the death and resurrection of Jesus (or, at least, so sayeth St. Paul in his letter to the Romans). That hope is what allows our mouring to have a Christian character.

Deacon Ed
Click to expand...
I’m sorry, but you’re wrong.

A funeral Mass is both for the person who has passed into Eternal Life (with God we all pray) and for those left here on Earth.

Why you might not find the term “essential mourning” in the sacramentary, a funeral Mass would be downright deficient if mourning was not touched upon during the intercessions and the homily.
 
For real, I’m not that much into planning. I don’t care if the Priest wears shorts and sandals, I’ll be dead chillin’ with St. Peter.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top