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valient_Lucy
Guest
Thanks a ton!
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Mom_of_5
Guest
Is it possible that the woman did not know why they did not have funerals in their church so just made something up? Maybe she felt the need to have an answer, right or wrong.
Many people are getting away from elaborate funerals because of the cost. Also, funeral services in a large church sometimes feel “cold” when only a few people attend. When my father died, his funeral was huge. Friends and relatives came from all over the U.S., not even standing room…folks were standing outside on Dec. 9th.
My mothers funeral was at the funeral home. No Mass, but the priest did give a homily and communion. That was in 1986. I felt that it was all too protestant for a woman who was Catholic all her life and raised her family Catholic. My sisters decided on this service because the church was huge and the funeral home was right next to the cemetary making it more convenient for everyone.I may be wrong, but I think they were “saving money” when there was no need to tighten the purse strings.
Many are choosing cremation, no body, just the urn and no service at all. Tradition seems to be going away and all are doing their own thing. Anyone remember when the body was taken to the house for the wake until the funeral ?? I am glad that is no longer the norm. We had more pictures of grandpa dead than alive!
We have our funerals planned. Funeral Mass, without casket. (A photo with a bouquet of flowers) Then to cemetary, bless the casket, grave and whatever the priest and family have in mind. Reason for no casket in the church is really the cost of transporting the casket. It was a lot of money that we felt could better be spent elsewhere. We planned and paid for our funerals so that no one could make silly decisions on our “behalf”.
Love and peace,
Mom of 5
Many people are getting away from elaborate funerals because of the cost. Also, funeral services in a large church sometimes feel “cold” when only a few people attend. When my father died, his funeral was huge. Friends and relatives came from all over the U.S., not even standing room…folks were standing outside on Dec. 9th.
My mothers funeral was at the funeral home. No Mass, but the priest did give a homily and communion. That was in 1986. I felt that it was all too protestant for a woman who was Catholic all her life and raised her family Catholic. My sisters decided on this service because the church was huge and the funeral home was right next to the cemetary making it more convenient for everyone.I may be wrong, but I think they were “saving money” when there was no need to tighten the purse strings.
Many are choosing cremation, no body, just the urn and no service at all. Tradition seems to be going away and all are doing their own thing. Anyone remember when the body was taken to the house for the wake until the funeral ?? I am glad that is no longer the norm. We had more pictures of grandpa dead than alive!
We have our funerals planned. Funeral Mass, without casket. (A photo with a bouquet of flowers) Then to cemetary, bless the casket, grave and whatever the priest and family have in mind. Reason for no casket in the church is really the cost of transporting the casket. It was a lot of money that we felt could better be spent elsewhere. We planned and paid for our funerals so that no one could make silly decisions on our “behalf”.
Love and peace,
Mom of 5
M
Mystic_Warrior
Guest
I’ve never been to a funeral held in a church and I’ve been protestant all my life. I’ve seen many marriages, no funerals. Where I grew up, everyone had their loved ones at the funeral home where a minister would come and perform the ceremony. This was in the South and it never occurred to me to have them in a church.
MW
MW
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valient_Lucy
Guest
Yeah. I didn’t really realize that fully until I went to my Lutheran grandmother’s funeral, and the minister talked at the grave about how we were waiting for the resurrection of the body, and how God had not only created and redeemed her soul, but her body as well.
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Apryl
Guest
If this is in reply to the Original Post (OP), then the answer is not likely… This woman VOLUNTEERED this information. This was not in response to a question.
We were discussing where each of us went to church (I was trying to avoid any political discussion, and in this situation, religion is actually a safer topic). One lady said the name of her church, and this speaker said that one of the other woman’s member’s had been buried from her church. ‘You know, we only have our funerals at the old church, since we moved to a new one. We don’t have funerals in our church, no-sah’
This was where this whole thing is coming from. I would like to know if any one else knows of any other churches (Protestant, I’m sure) that are not having funerals in their churches, and what is the reasoning for this.
Side note: did you know that the Church teaches us that in the case of cremation, the urn should be buried? I didn’t know that until this year.
I just learned that my family does this. I think it’s … umm… ‘not appealing’. I don’t get why people take pictures, multiple pictures, of someone in a box.
This sounds very nice. Hmm… I may just do it this way. It’s a good thing to make the plans in advance, because when a loved one dies, it’s very stressful for the survivors. To take this challenge off of their shoulders, I think, is very generous and considerate.
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Rocky
Guest
I think in order for the Mass to be a “funeral Mass” there has to be a body present. Otherwise it is a “memorial Mass.” Even if the cremated remains are brought to the church before burial, it is a memorial Mass and not a funeral Mass.
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a_cermak
Guest
The empty shell bit is right out of a Star Trek The Next Generation episode. It was the attitude of Klingons toward dead warriors. I wonder if the person who made the statement is a Trek fan.
In my tradition, the body is an empty shell. It has run its race and its time for rest has come. The funeral is for the survivors’ benefits. It is a time to remember the deceased and to pledge that our own lives should be as well lived as them (and if they weren’t well lived everyone conveniently gets a bout of amnesia about the details.)
In my tradition, the body is an empty shell. It has run its race and its time for rest has come. The funeral is for the survivors’ benefits. It is a time to remember the deceased and to pledge that our own lives should be as well lived as them (and if they weren’t well lived everyone conveniently gets a bout of amnesia about the details.)
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Mom_of_5
Guest
According to our priest, the same liturgy with our “plan” as with the casket holding our body, I guess that makes it a “funeral Mass”. Certainly those attending will consider it a “funeral Mass”. I believe it is a “memorial Mass” if cremation has taken place. My body will be at the gravesite waiting for burial.
Mom of 5
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allhers
Guest
Without looking it up, I believe that Catholic Church teaching is that the body ought to be brought to the funeral Mass before creamation.
I know nothing about any funerals but Catholic ones, I have never been to one for anyone that wasn’t Catholic and they were all from the Church. The priest always accompanied us to the cemetary after the Mass also.
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Mom_of_5
Guest
I just looked this up…the church prefers the body brought to the church for funeral Mass before cremation, however, in 3/21/997, the Vatican granted permission for the cremated remains to be brought to the church for the funeral Mass. The ashes are to be buried, not scattered. The litury is the “funeral Mass”.
Peace,
Mom of 5
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peary
Guest
It is my understanding that cremated remains are not allowed to be present at a Funeral Mass. The rules seem to indicate that a cremation can take place AFTER a Mass of Christian Burial where the body is present. I don’t think cremated remains are even allowed to be present, although I read that the bishops are working on some sort of ‘memorial’ service. However, the Church allows cremation to take place just the same, but under the rubrics described above.
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ClaireS
Guest
Why should protestants want funerals in church? Most believe that the person’s soul is either with God or in hell. It’s over. Why do Catholics have funerals in church? We PRAY FOR THE DEAD!! Thank God! We can still help them out. At mass we are still united with them through the communion of saints. And at some funerals, like maybe JPII, we pray for their intercession as well. It’s not over yet, they’ve just moved to a better parish, and we throw them a great good-bye party.
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valient_Lucy
Guest
It’s always dangerous when people start taking Christian theology from Star Trek. Next thing you know, love your enemies will become “revenge is a dish best served cold.”
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Mom_of_5
Guest
Go to www.icctampa.org/funeralrites.htm. Funeral /cremation is explained nicely at that web site. Rules have changed.
Peace,
Mom of 5
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THutch04
Guest
Wow, I’ve NEVER heard of this in any church! I know that around here a lot of funerals are held in funeral homes, but as far as I know that’s the family choosing to hold it in a funeral home as opposed to a church, and not a church actually refusing. When my non-Catholic grandfather died back in October, the funeral was held in a church.
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allhers
Guest
But that article also says this:
On March 21, 1997, this changed. The Vatican granted permission for the cremated remains of a body to be brought into church for the liturgical rites of burial. It is still, however, the Church’s preference to have the full compliment of funeral rites take place with the body present and then have cremation afterwards.
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Apryl
Guest
Why, Thank you!
You bring up an EXCELLENT point, and yes, this does help to make the comment/actions this woman spoke of make sense
Yeah… why do they even have funerals?
(Oh, yeah: their the same people that claim the Bible is the direction for everything, yet, there are so many things in the Bible (New Testament) that they don’t follow, because they just don’t want to)
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Steadfast
Guest
Because we believe in the resurrection of the dead.Why, Thank you!
You bring up an EXCELLENT point, and yes, this does help to make the comment/actions this woman spoke of make sense
Yeah… why do they even have funerals?
(Oh, yeah: their the same people that claim the Bible is the direction for everything, yet, there are so many things in the Bible (New Testament) that they don’t follow, because they just don’t want to)
We believe that the body is good because it was created by God and that one day He will raise it up, therefore we solemnly and publicly lay it to rest in this sure and confident hope.
It is wrong to think that Protestants believe the body means nothing.
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ClaireS
Guest
What you point out is absolutely true. Sorry, I was shortsighted and somewhat offensive there. In addition, the funeral is to celebrate and thank God for the life of the deceased and to comfort the bereaved, another logical reason for Christians to have the funeral in church.
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war_eagle
Guest
Never heard of such a thing.I was talking to a woman yesterday that said her pastor doesn’t allow them to have funerals in the church any more. They use the ‘old’ church and then have the meal afterwards (repass) in a social hall or a banquet hall.
She went on to say that there were many other pastors (Protestant) that did the same. There is one fairly popular one in the area for whom she claims that he has never had a funeral in his church.
The reasoning is that ‘you ain’t supposed to have funerals in the sanctuary’, and her justification is Luke 20 where it says that Jesus is the God of the living, and not the dead.
I pointed out that according to John 3:16, that he who believes is not dead. So, her comments made no sense to me.
“We just got that from the Catholics, but now that we know better, we should do better. We never should have had the funerals in the sanctuary”
She was not one that was very capable of articulating the point, and I was curious if others had heard the same.
I think that the direction to bury our dead (either implicit or explicit) tells us to bury our deceased. The ‘deceased’ are not dead as we believe (or at least hope and pray) that they believed in Christ, and have done what they need to do in order to have life everlasting. We are directed to bury our dead. The funerals are not for the deceased, but the families and loved ones they have left behind.
I couldn’t imagine not having funerals in the church because of something like this.
Does any one else know of this practice, and the reasoning behind it?
I know that in one of my old churches, we had an “old church”, which dates back to the early part of the 20th century and was just gorgeous and then, we had the “new church”, which was also very nice, but was newer and, while very pretty, didn’t really have the character of the old sanctuary.
Many of the older people in the church (and there were many), asked to have their funerals in the old sanctuary because they had so many great memories.
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