Rosary Service

[mtnutt]

I am wondering what the purpose of the Rosary Service conducted before a funeral is?

I have only been to one once, when my wife’s grandmother died, and I was not Catholic at the time. I had no idea what was going on and just tried to follow along as well as I could.

I am now a Catholic and understand praying the Rosary as a normal part of my prayer life, but I still wonder about the specific Rosary before a funeral.

What is the purpose? Do we still meditate on the mysteries? Should we all meditate on the same one or our personal choice?

I appreciate any insight which can be provided on this, I am asking because we are sort of preparing for my wife’s grandfather eventual passing. He is nearly 100 years old and his heart is only functioning at about 20%, so we expect he won’t be with us much longer (although it has been about 3 months since he went on hospice, which normally means imminent passing). I want to make sure that when I attend his Rosary, I am mentally prepared for the intent.

Thanks.

 

[RyanML]

I am wondering what the purpose of the Rosary Service conducted before a funeral is?

I have only been to one once, when my wife’s grandmother died, and I was not Catholic at the time. I had no idea what was going on and just tried to follow along as well as I could.

I am now a Catholic and understand praying the Rosary as a normal part of my prayer life, but I still wonder about the specific Rosary before a funeral.

What is the purpose? Do we still meditate on the mysteries? Should we all meditate on the same one or our personal choice?

I appreciate any insight which can be provided on this, I am asking because we are sort of preparing for my wife’s grandfather eventual passing. He is nearly 100 years old and his heart is only functioning at about 20%, so we expect he won’t be with us much longer (although it has been about 3 months since he went on hospice, which normally means imminent passing). I want to make sure that when I attend his Rosary, I am mentally prepared for the intent.

Thanks.

The Rosary Service is to pray for the repose of the soul of the departed. You would pray, meditating on the mysteries as usual.

 

[Joannm]

The Rosary Service is to pray for the repose of the soul of the departed. You would pray, meditating on the mysteries as usual.

In our diocese it is not common anymore except among some ethnic groups, to pray the rosary at the wake. The is a rite for praying at the vigil of the deceased which is used at all wakes here.

 

[mtnutt]

Thanks for the replies.

I am sure that we will have a Rosary when he does finally pass.

I now feel that I understand what will be going on, thanks.

 

[puzzleannie]

the wake service is a specific service in the ritual book, with liturgy of the word, prayers etc. The rosary is in addition to the wake, usually at some time during the hours set for visitation at the funeral parlor or at home. Since the rosary is the traditional prayer recited buy Catholics when they gather and includes specific prayers for the dead and dying, it is quite appropriate. Customs surrounding funerals have as much to do with ethnicity as with official rites of the Church. for instance here the novenas, 9 days of meeting in the home for rosary after the funeral, with a Mass on the last day, is the custom. also when the rosary is prayed at the funeral home in Spanish it is followed by the Marian Litany, with special invocations for the deceased. In English, it is just the rosary (usually with songs between decades). that is just local custom. Formal wake services are still rare here, but common in our former northern diocese.

depending on the family’s preference, we can meditate on the sorrowful mysteries, the mysteries of the day, or the glorious mysteries, centered on the resurrection, are most appropriate.

 

[mtnutt]

Thanks puzzleannie for the detailed response.

Just FYI, my wife’s grandfather lives in San Antonio, which is where the funeral will be. He is Mexican-American, and has always been strong in his faith, as are his children. As I recall from his wife’s funeral, some of the events were in Spanish.

 

[puzzleannie]

I can recite the OF and HM in Spanish, but I always keep a rosary flyer in Spanish in my purse just for funerals so I can keep up. It is one the nuns printed for me from what they use when they lead the rosary. Beginning and end, and invocations between decades, are a bit different. probably similar to what you will find in SA

 

[Corki]

In our diocese it is not common anymore except among some ethnic groups, to pray the rosary at the wake. The is a rite for praying at the vigil of the deceased which is used at all wakes here.

We are seeing more and more of the vigil service the night before the funeral Mass as well. But every vigil I have attended has included the Rosary. It’s just that it is in the Church rather than the funeral parlor.

 

[peary]

I am wondering what the purpose of the Rosary Service conducted before a funeral is?

I have only been to one once, when my wife’s grandmother died, and I was not Catholic at the time. I had no idea what was going on and just tried to follow along as well as I could.

I am now a Catholic and understand praying the Rosary as a normal part of my prayer life, but I still wonder about the specific Rosary before a funeral.

What is the purpose? Do we still meditate on the mysteries? Should we all meditate on the same one or our personal choice?

I appreciate any insight which can be provided on this, I am asking because we are sort of preparing for my wife’s grandfather eventual passing. He is nearly 100 years old and his heart is only functioning at about 20%, so we expect he won’t be with us much longer (although it has been about 3 months since he went on hospice, which normally means imminent passing). I want to make sure that when I attend his Rosary, I am mentally prepared for the intent.

Thanks.

In many traditional ethnic traditions, the Rosary is recited prior to the ending of the wake. It is to implore the Blessed Mother to take the soul to heaven, and to ask her to pray for the faithful’s perseverence here on earth. For the most part, however, priests usually perform a special set of prayers with the faithful at the wake. Recitation of the Rosary is optional.

 

[Corki]

In many traditional ethnic traditions, the Rosary is recited prior to the ending of the wake. It is to implore the Blessed Mother to take the soul to heaven, and to ask her to pray for the faithful’s perseverence here on earth. For the most part, however, priests usually perform a special set of prayers with the faithful at the wake. Recitation of the Rosary is optional.

I am very surprized at this. I have been to many wakes in several states, none of which would have been considered “ethnic”. The only ones without a rosary at either the wake or the vigil have been the Protestant ones.

In fact, my brother was severely teased when he came to the wake of one relative of ours without a rosary. Duh…

 

[puzzleannie]

we buried a long time parishioner a couple of years ago, in fact her family helped found the parish, and gathered 3 nights running for the rosary, too many people for one service. Her husband, a Baptist, died a few months later, and demanded of his children that they “make sure those Catholics say a rosary for me” which we did, packed the Church, too big a crowd for the funeral home.

 

[peary]

I am very surprized at this. I have been to many wakes in several states, none of which would have been considered “ethnic”. The only ones without a rosary at either the wake or the vigil have been the Protestant ones.

In fact, my brother was severely teased when he came to the wake of one relative of ours without a rosary. Duh…

**Besides New York City, Chicago is probably the most ethnically diverse city in the country. The ethnic tradition of reciting the Rosary at a wake is something very common among the Polish, Italian, and Irish. But I have been to many wakes and funeral vigils of Catholics where the Rosary wasn’t recited. Instead, a special Church-sanctioned service is given. **

 

[benedictgal]

When my paternal grandmother died, I was disappointed because her parish in Austin didn’t send a priest or a deacon for the Vigil. I wound up having to lead the Rosary. Of course, the whole set up was very strange. My PV drove up from Laredo to celebrate the funeral Mass earlier that day, the vigil was in the evening and the burial was the next day at Fort Sam Houston. In other words, we had to adjust ourselves to whatever time Fort Sam Houston had assigned.

My grandmother was deeply devoted to the Rosary, so, it wasn’t that hard to do. I did bring my order of funerals with me, which had a segment on the Rosary. Interestingly enough, although my grandmother was born in Mexico and had moved to Chicago as a teenager, she was predominantly an English speaker (whose Spanish was obviously flawless).

Now, down here in Laredo, the Rosary is the default prayer during the wake. Although, my PV has combined both the Rosary and the Vigil of the Deceased. In fact, one of the funeral homes (co-owned by a deacon) now has Vigil of the Deceased noted for the wake.

It is interesting to note that both the Catholic Daughters of America, the Knights of Columbus and the Cursillistas will have a separate Rosary at the funeral home for their deceased members. This usually happens about an hour before the scheduled wake is to begin.