Part One:
THE FUNERAL SERVICES
- THE GATHERING
- The Collect
- READINGS AND SERMON
- PRAYERS
- COMMENDATION AND FAREWELL
- THE COMMITTAL
- THE DISMISSAL
A FUNERAL SERVICE WITHIN THE HOLY EUCHARIST
- Note
- THE GATHERING
- PRAYERS OF PENITENCE
- The Collect
- PROCLAMATION OF THE WORD
- THE INTERCESSION
- THE LITURGY OF THE SACRAMENT
- THE THANKSGIVING
- THE COMMUNION
- COMMENDATION AND FAREWELL
- THE COMMITTAL
- THE DISMISSAL
- Appendix
THE BURIAL OF CREMATED REMAINS
THE 1984 BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER - ORDER FOR THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD
- THE RECEPTION OF THE BODY INTO CHURCH
- READINGS AND PRAYERS FOR THE EVE OF BURIAL
- THE SERVICE IN CHURCH (If it be the Eucharist)
- THE SERVICE IN CHURCH (If the Eucharist is not celebrated)
- THE COMMENDATION, THE CONCLUSION and THE COMMITTAL
- THE ORDER FOR THE BURIAL OF A CHILD
- THE BURIAL OF ASHES AFTER CREMATION
- LESSONS
THE FUNERAL SERVICE
THE GATHERING
The coffin may be received by the minister.
One or more sentences of Scripture may be used:
‘I am the resurrection and the life’, says the Lord. ‘Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.’
I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. And so we will be with the Lord for ever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.
We brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is his faithfulness.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
While we are alive, we are living for the Lord, and when we die, we die for the Lord: and so, alive or dead, we belong to the Lord. It was for this purpose that Christ both died and came to life again: so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.
Set your troubled hearts at rest. Trust in God always; trust also in me. There are many dwelling places in my Father’s house; if it were not so I should have told you; for I am going to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I shall come again and take you to myself, so that where I am you may be also.
The minister says:
In the name of the Father, and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Grace and peace be with you
And keep you in the love of Christ.
(or in Eastertide):
Alleluia! Christ is risen.
He is risen indeed. Alleluia!
We have come together to commend our brother/sister N.
into the hands of Almighty God our heavenly Father. In the presence of death,
Christians have sure ground for hope and confidence, and even for joy,
because the Lord Jesus Christ,
who shared our human life and death, was raised again triumphant
and lives for evermore.
In him his people find eternal life, and, in this faith,
we put our whole trust
in his goodness and mercy.
or
We meet in the name of Jesus Christ,
who died and was raised to the glory of God the Father.
We have come here today
to remember before God our brother/sister N:
to give thanks for his/her life; to commend him/her to God
our merciful redeemer and judge;
to commit his/her body to be buried/cremated,
and to comfort one another in our grief.
or other similar words.
The minister may say one of these prayers:
God of all consolation,
your Son Jesus Christ was moved to tears
at the grave of Lazarus his friend.
Look with compassion on your children in their loss;
give to troubled hearts the light of hope
and strengthen in us the gift of faith,
in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
or
Almighty God,
you judge us with infinite mercy and justice
and love everything you have made.
In your mercy
help us to know that you turn the darkness of death
into the dawn of new life
and the sorrow of parting into the joy of heaven;
through our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
A hymn may be sung.
The Collect
The minister invites the people to pray, silence is kept and the minister says this or another suitable Collect:
Merciful Father,
hear our prayers and comfort us;
renew our trust in your Son,
whom you raised from the dead;
strengthen our faith
that all who have died in the love of Christ
will share in his resurrection,
who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen
READINGS AND SERMON
A reading from the Old or New Testament may be read.
This or another psalm or hymn is used:
The Lord is my shepherd:
therefore can I lack nothing.
He makes me lie down in green pastures:
and leads me beside still waters.
He shall refresh my soul:
and guide me in the paths of righteousness
for his name’s sake.
Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death,
I will fear no evil:
for you are with me;
your rod and your staff, they comfort me.
You spread a table before me
in the presence of those who trouble me:
you have anointed my head with oil
and my cup shall be full.
Surely goodness and loving mercy shall follow me
all the days of my life:
and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
A reading from the New Testament (which may be a Gospel reading) is used.
A sermon may be preached.
PRAYERS
The minister leads the prayers of the people.
The prayers usually follow this sequence:
- † Thanksgiving for the life of the departed
- † Prayer for those who mourn
- † (Prayers of Penitence)
- † Prayer for readiness to live in the light of eternity
This form may be used. If occasion demands, the responses may be omitted and the concluding prayer said by the minister alone.
God of mercy, Lord of life,
you have made us in your image
to reflect your truth and light;
we give you thanks for N.,
for the grace and mercy he/she received from you,
for all that was good in his/her life,
for the memories we treasure today.
(Especially we thank you ...)
Silence
(Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.)
We thank you for all who through your grace
have lived according to your will and are now at rest.
May their good example encourage and guide us all the days of our life.
Meet us in our sadness
and fill our hearts with praise and thanksgiving.
Silence
(Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.)
In your Son you promise eternal life to those who believe.
Bring N. and all who rest in Christ
into the fullness of your kingdom
where sins have been forgiven
and death is no more.
Silence
(Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.)
Your mighty power brings joy out of grief and life out of death.
Look in mercy on ([or] N. and) all who mourn.
Give them patient faith in times of darkness.
Strengthen them with the knowledge of your love.
Silence
(Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.)
You are tender towards your children and your mercy is over all your works.
Heal the memories of hurt and failure.
Give us the wisdom and grace to use aright
the time that is left to us here on earth,
to turn to Christ and follow in his steps
in the way that leads to everlasting life.
Silence
(Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.)
Then the Minister says:
God of mercy,
entrusting into your hands all that you have made
and rejoicing in our communion with all your faithful people, we make our prayers through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.
The Lord’s Prayer may be said.
As our Saviour taught us, we boldly pray:
Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
or
Let us pray with confidence to the Father:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name;
your kingdom come,
your will done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom,
the power and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.
A hymn may be sung.
COMMENDATION AND FAREWELL
The minister stands by the coffin and may invite others to gather around it.
The minister says:
Let us commend N. into the hands of God,
our maker and redeemer.
Silence is kept.
The minister uses one of the following prayers of entrusting and commending, or some other appropriate prayer:
God our creator and redeemer,
by your power Christ conquered death and entered into glory.
Confident of his victory and claiming his promises, we entrust N. to your mercy
in the name of Jesus our Lord,
who died and is alive
and reigns with you,
now and for ever. Amen.
or
Into your hands, O merciful Saviour;
We commend your servant N.
Acknowledge, we pray, a sheep of your own fold,
a lamb of your own flock,
a sinner of your own redeeming.
Enfold him/her in the arms of your mercy,
in the blessed rest of everlasting peace
and in the glorious company of the saints in light. Amen.
The officiant may add either of the following:
Give rest, O Christ, to your servant with the saints:
where pain and sorrow and grief are no more,
but life everlasting.
You alone are the immortal one,
the creator and maker of us all.
We are mortals:
from earth we were fashioned, to earth we shall return; for so you ordained when you made me, saying:
“dust you are, and unto dust you shall return”.
All we go down to the dust;
yet even over the grave we make our song:
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
or
N., go forth from this world:
in the love of God the Father who created you,
in the mercy of Jesus Christ who redeemed you,
in the power of the Holy Spirit who strengthens you.
May the angels lead you into paradise;
may the martyrs receive you at your arrival and lead you to the holy city Jerusalem.
May choirs of angels receive you and with Lazarus, once poor, may you have eternal rest. Amen.
If the Committal does not follow as part of the same service in the same place, some sections of the Dismissal may be used here.
THE COMMITTAL
Sentences of Scripture may be used.
The minister says:
The Lord is full of compassion and mercy,
slow to anger and of great goodness.
As a father is tender towards his children,
so is the Lord tender to those that fear him.
For he knows of what we are made;
he remembers that we are but dust.
Our days are like the grass;
we flourish like a flower of the field;
when the wind goes over it, it is gone
and its place will know it no more.
But the merciful goodness of the Lord endures
for ever and ever toward those that fear him
and his righteousness upon their children’s children.
or
We have but a short time to live.
Like a flower we blossom and then wither;
like a shadow we flee and never stay.
In the midst of life we are in death;
to whom can we turn for help,
but to you, Lord,
who are justly grieved by our sins?
Yet, Lord God most holy, Lord most mighty,
O holy and most merciful Saviour,
deliver us from the bitter pain of eternal death.
Lord, you know the secrets of our hearts;
hear our prayer, O God most mighty;
spare us, most worthy judge eternal;
at our last hour let us not fall from you,
O holy and merciful Saviour.
The minister uses one of the following forms of Committal.
- At the burial of a body:
In the faith of Christ and believing that N. is in the hands of God,
we commit his/her body to the ground:
earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust,
in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ,
who will transform our frail bodies
that they may be conformed to his glorious body,
who died, was buried, and rose again for us.
To him be glory for ever. Amen.
or
Grant, Lord, that we who are baptized into the death of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ may continually put to death our evil desires and be buried with him;
and that through the grave and gate of death we may pass to our joyful resurrection; through his merits, who died and was buried and rose again for us,
your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
or
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who by resting in the tomb
made holy the graves of all who believe in him,
and whose abiding presence strengthens the hope of resurrection in us,
whose mortal bodies are subject to decay;
may your servant N. rest here in peace until that hour when the voice of the Saviour calls him/her to resurrection and to life.
We ask this through your Son,
who was dead but was brought to life by your Spirit and reigns as Lord for ever and ever. Amen.
- In a crematorium, if the Committal is to take place then:
We have entrusted our brother/sister N. to God’s mercy.
In the faith of Christ and believing that N. is in the hands of God,
we commit his/her body to be cremated:
in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ,
who will transform our frail bodies that they may be conformed to his glorious body, who died, was buried, and rose again for us.
To him be glory for ever. Amen.
- In a crematorium, if the Committal is to follow at the Burial of the Ashes:
We have entrusted our brother/sister N. to God’s mercy.
In the faith of Christ and believing that N. is in the hands of God,
in preparation for burial, we give his/her body to be cremated.
We look for the fullness of the resurrection when Christ shall gather all his saints
to reign with him in glory for ever. Amen.
or
Almighty God,
from whose love in Christ Jesus neither death nor life can separate us,
and whose kindness embraces all your children in this world and the next:
draw N. to yourself that in our fellowship with you we may know ourselves to be united with him/her.
This we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
- At the burial of a body at sea:
In the faith of Christ and believing that N. is in the hands of God,
we commit his/her body to the deep: in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our frail bodies that they may be conformed to his glorious body, who died, was buried, and rose again for us.
To him be glory for ever. Amen
THE DISMISSAL
This may include:
- † The Lord’s Prayer (if not used earlier)
- † The Nunc Dimittis
- † One or more suitable prayers
- † An Ending
The Lord’s Prayer
Nunc Dimittis (The Song of Simeon):
Lord, now you have set your servant free
to go in peace as you have promised.
For these eyes of mine have seen your salvation
which you have prepared for all the world to see;
a light to reveal you to the nations
and to give glory to your people Israel.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever. Amen.
One or more of these prayers, or other suitable prayers, may be used:
Heavenly Father,
In your Son Jesus Christ
You have given us a true faith and a sure hope.
Strengthen this faith and hope in us all our days that we may live as those who believe in the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins
and the resurrection to eternal life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
God be in my head,
and in my understanding;
God be in my eyes,
and in my looking;
God be in my mouth,
and in my speaking;
God be in my heart,
and in my thinking;
God be at my end,
and at my departing. Amen.
Support us, O Lord,
all the day long of this troublous life,
until the shadows lengthen and the evening comes, the busy world is hushed, the fever of life is over and our work is done.
Then, Lord, in your mercy grant us a safe lodging,
a holy rest, and peace at the last;
through Christ our Lord. Amen.
One of these, or another suitable ending, may be used:
May God in his infinite love and mercy bring the whole Church,
living and departed in the Lord Jesus, to a joyful resurrection
and the fulfilment of his eternal kingdom. Amen
May God give you
his comfort and his peace, his light and his joy,
in this world and the next;
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always. Amen.
God will show us the path of life;
in his presence is the fullness of joy: and at his right hand
there is pleasure for evermore.
To him who is able to keep you from falling
and to present you before his glorious presence
without fault and with great joy –
to the only God our Saviour
be glory, majesty, power and authority,
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
before all ages,
now and for evermore. Amen.
Eternal rest grant unto him/her, O Lord,
And let perpetual light shine upon him/her.
May God’s help remain with us
and may our departed brothers and sisters in the Lord rest in peace,
And rise in glory. Amen.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
In the name of Christ. Amen.
A FUNERAL SERVICE WITHIN THE HOLY EUCHARIST
Note
As far as possible, the priest should be seen to preside over the whole of the Eucharist in order to emphasize the unity of the service. When circumstances require it, a deacon or reader may lead certain parts of the service for which they are duly authorised. In such circumstances, the rubric referring to the words or action of the priest may be read as referring to the deacon or reader, as appropriate.
THE GATHERING (within the Eucharist)
The coffin may be received by the priest.
One or more sentences of Scripture may be used:
‘I am the resurrection and the life’, says the Lord. ‘Those who believe in me, even though they die, will live, and everyone who lives and believes in me will never die.’
I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him. And so we will be with the Lord for ever. Therefore encourage each other with these words.
We brought nothing into the world, and we can take nothing out of it. The Lord gave and the Lord has taken away; may the name of the Lord be praised.
The steadfast love of the Lord never ceases, his mercies never come to an end; they are new every morning; great is his faithfulness.
Blessed are those who mourn, for they will be comforted.
God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.
While we are alive, we are living for the Lord, and when we die, we die for the Lord: and so, alive or dead, we belong to the Lord. It was for this purpose that Christ both died and came to life again: so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.
Set your troubled hearts at rest. Trust in God always; trust also in me. There are many dwelling places in my Father’s house; if it were not so I should have told you; for I am going to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I shall come again and take you to myself, so that where I am you may be also.
The priest says:
In the name of the Father,
and of the Son,
and of the Holy Spirit. Amen.
Grace and peace be with you
And keep you in the love of Christ.
(or in Eastertide):
Alleluia! Christ is risen.
He is risen indeed. Alleluia!
We have come together to commend our brother/sister N.
into the hands of Almighty God our heavenly Father.
In the presence of death,
Christians have sure ground for hope and confidence, and even for joy,
because the Lord Jesus Christ,
who shared our human life and death,
was raised again triumphant
and lives for evermore.
In him his people find eternal life, and, in this faith,
we put our whole trust
in his goodness and mercy.
or
We meet in the name of Jesus Christ,
who died and was raised to the glory of God the Father.
We have come here today
to remember before God our brother/sister N.:
to give thanks for his/her life;
to commend him/her to God
our merciful redeemer and judge;
to commit his/her body to be buried/cremated,
and to comfort one another in our grief.
or other similar words.
The priest may say one of these prayers:
God of all consolation,
your Son Jesus Christ was moved to tears
at the grave of Lazarus his friend.
Look with compassion on your children in their loss;
give to troubled hearts the light of hope
and strengthen in us the gift of faith,
in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
or
Almighty God,
you judge us with infinite mercy and justice and love everything you have made.
In your mercy help us to know that you turn the darkness of death into the dawn of new life,
and the sorrow of parting into the joy of heaven; through our Saviour, Jesus Christ. Amen.
A hymn may be sung.
PRAYERS OF PENITENCE (within the Eucharist)
The priest says these or similar words:
As children of a loving heavenly Father,
let us acknowledge our sin and ask for his forgiveness, for he is merciful and gentle.
One or more of the sentences of ‘Words of Assurance’ may be read either to introduce the silence before the confession or after the absolution.
Our Lord Jesus Christ said, Come to me, all whose work is hard, whose load is heavy; and I will give you rest.
God loved the world so much that he gave his only Son, that everyone who believes in him may not die but have eternal life.
This is a true saying, to be completely accepted and believed: Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners.
When anyone sins, we have an advocate to plead with the Father for us: Jesus Christ, the righteous one, by whom our sins are forgiven.
Silence may be kept.
These words may be used:
Lord Jesus, you raise the dead to life in the Spirit.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you bring pardon and peace to the sinner.
Christ, have mercy. Christ, have mercy.
Lord Jesus, you give light to those in darkness.
Lord, have mercy. Lord, have mercy.
or
Heavenly Father,
we have sinned in thought, word and deed,
and have failed to do what we ought to have done.
We are sorry and truly repent.
For the sake of your son Jesus Christ who died for us,
forgive us all that is past
and lead us in his way
to walk as children of light. Amen.
The priest then says:
Almighty God,
who forgives all who truly repent,
have mercy on you and set you free from sin,
strengthen you in goodness
and keep you in eternal life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Gloria in Excelsis
Glory to God in the highest,
and peace to his people on earth.
Lord God, heavenly King,
Almighty God and Father,
we worship you, we give you thanks,
we praise you for your glory.
Lord Jesus Christ, only Son of the Father,
Lord God, Lamb of God,
you take away the sin of the world:
have mercy on us;
you are seated at the right hand of the Father:
receive our prayer.
For you alone are the Holy One,
you alone are the Lord,
you alone are the Most High,
Jesus Christ, with the Holy Spirit,
in the glory of God the Father. Amen.
The Collect (within the Eucharist)
The priest invites the people to pray, silence is kept and the priest says this or another suitable Collect:
Merciful Father,
hear our prayers and comfort us;
renew our trust in your Son,
whom you raised from the dead;
strengthen our faith
that all who have died in the love of Christ will share in his resurrection;
who lives and reigns with you,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit,
one God, now and for ever. Amen.
PROCLAMATION OF THE WORD (within the Eucharist)
Either one or two readings from Scripture precede the Gospel reading.
At the end of each the reader may say:
Hear what the Spirit is saying to the church.
Thanks be to God.
or
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
The psalm or canticle follows the first reading; other hymns or songs may be used between the readings.
Gospel Reading:
An acclamation may herald the Gospel reading.
One of the following may be used:
Alleluia, Alleluia,
God so loved the world that he gave his only Son
that we might have everlasting life.
Alleluia.
or
Alleluia, Alleluia,
Blessed are those who die in the Lord.
Now they rest from their labours.
Alleluia.
(or, in Lent:)
Holy God,
holy and strong,
holy and immortal,
have mercy upon us.
When the Gospel is announced the reader says:
Listen to the Gospel of Christ according to Saint ...
Glory to you, O Lord.
After the Gospel the reader says:
This is the Gospel of the Lord.
Praise to you, O Christ.
THE INTERCESSION (within the Eucharist)
The minister leads the prayers of the people.
The prayers usually follow this sequence:
- † Thanksgiving for the life of the departed
- † Prayer for those who mourn
- † Prayer for readiness to live in the light of eternity
This form may be used.
If occasion demands, the responses may be omitted and the concluding prayer said by the priest alone.
God of mercy, Lord of life,
you have made us in your image
to reflect your truth and light; we give you thanks for N.,
for the grace and mercy he/she received from you,
for all that was good in his/her life,
for the memories we treasure today.
(Especially we thank you ...)
Silence
(Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.)
We thank you for all who through your grace
have lived according to your will and are now at rest.
May their good example encourage and guide us
all the days of our life.
Meet us in our sadness
and fill our hearts with praise and thanksgiving.
Silence
(Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.)
In your Son you promise eternal life to those who believe.
Bring N. and all who rest in Christ into the fullness of your kingdom where sins have been forgiven and death is no more.
Silence
(Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.)
Your mighty power brings joy out of grief and life out of death.
Look in mercy on ([or] N. and) all who mourn.
Give them patient faith in times of darkness.
Strengthen them with the knowledge of your love.
Silence
(Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.)
You are tender towards your children
and your mercy is over all your works.
Heal the memories of hurt and failure.
Give us the wisdom and grace to use aright
the time that is left to us here on earth,
to turn to Christ and follow in his steps
in the way that leads to everlasting life.
Silence
(Lord, in your mercy: hear our prayer.)
God of mercy, entrusting into your hands all that you have made and rejoicing in our communion with all your faithful people, we make our prayers through Jesus Christ our Saviour. Amen.
THE LITURGY OF THE SACRAMENT (within the Eucharist)
The Peace
A sentence of Scripture may be read:
Jesus says,
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
Do not let your hearts be troubled,
neither let them be afraid.
or
The risen Christ came and stood among his disciples and said, Peace be with you!
They were overjoyed on seeing the Lord.
The peace of the Lord be with you always.
And also with you.
A sign of peace may be exchanged.
THE THANKSGIVING (within the Eucharist)
The priest takes the bread and the cup. Either the priest may say:
We celebrate together the gifts and grace of God.
We take this bread,
we take this wine
to follow Christ’s example
and obey his command.
or the priest may praise God for his gifts in these words:
Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation.
Through your goodness we have this bread to offer,
which earth has given and human hands have made.
It will become for us the bread of life.
Blessed be God for ever.
Blessed are you, Lord, God of all creation.
Through your goodness we have this wine to offer,
fruit of the vine and work of human hands.
It will become our spiritual drink.
Blessed be God for ever.
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
or
The Lord is here.
His Spirit is with us.
Lift up your hearts.
We lift them to the Lord.
Let us give thanks to the Lord our God.
It is right to give our thanks and praise.
It is indeed right, it is our duty and our joy
at all times and in all places
to give you thanks, holy Father,
all-powerful and everliving God,
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
Who rose victorious from the dead and comforts us
with the blessed hope of everlasting life.
For your faithful people, Lord, life is changed but not taken away
and, when this mortal body is laid aside in death, an everlasting dwelling place is made ready for us in heaven with you.
And so with the hosts of angels and all the company of heaven
we proclaim the glory of your name
and join in their unending hymn of praise:
Holy, holy, holy Lord,
God of power and might,
Heaven and earth are full of your glory.
Hosanna in the highest.
Blessed is he who comes in the name of the Lord.
Hosanna in the highest.
All praise and thanks to you, true and living God,
Creator of all things, Giver of life.
You formed us in your image;
but we have marred that image
and fall short of your glory.
We give you thanks
that you sent your Son to share our life;
you gave him up to death that the world might be saved,
and you raised him from the dead
that we might live in him and he in us.
Sanctify with your Spirit this bread and wine,
your gifts to us,
that they may be for us
the body and blood of our Saviour Jesus Christ.
On the night he was betrayed, he took bread,
and when he had given thanks
he broke it and gave it to his disciples, saying,
Take, eat; this is my body which is given for you;
do this in remembrance of me.
In the same way after supper he took the cup,
and when he had given thanks
he gave it to them, saying,
Drink from this, all of you,
for this is my blood of the new covenant
which is shed for you and for many
for the forgiveness of sins:
do this as often as you drink it
in remembrance of me.
[Let us proclaim the mystery of faith:]
Christ has died,
Christ is risen.
Christ will come in glory.
As he has commanded us, Father,
we remember Jesus Christ, your Son.
Proclaiming his victorious death,
rejoicing in his resurrection
and waiting for him to come in glory
we bring to you this bread, this cup.
Accept our sacrifice of thanks and praise.
Restore and revive your people,
renew us and all for whom we pray with your grace and heavenly blessing,
and at the last receive us with all your saints into that unending joy promised by your Son,
Jesus Christ our Lord.
Through him, with him, in him,
in the unity of the Holy Spirit
all honour and glory are yours,
almighty Father,
for ever and ever. Amen.
Silence
The Lord’s Prayer may be said.
As our Saviour taught us, we boldly pray:
Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
or
Let us pray with confidence to the Father:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name;
your kingdom come,
your will done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those
who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom, the power
and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.
THE COMMUNION (within the Eucharist)
The priest breaks the bread.
We break this bread to share in the body of Christ.
Though we are many, we are one body
for we all share in one bread.
or
Every time we eat this bread and drink of this cup
we proclaim the Lord’s death until he comes.
This anthem may be used here or during the communion.
Jesus, Lamb of God:
have mercy on us.
Jesus, bearer of our sins:
have mercy on us.
Jesus, redeemer of the world:
give us your peace.
or
Lamb of God,
you take away the sins of the world:
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God,
you take away the sins of the world:
have mercy on us.
Lamb of God,
you take away the sins of the world:
grant us peace.
One of the following invitations is used:
God’s holy gifts for God’s holy people.
Jesus Christ is holy,
Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
or
Jesus is the Lamb of God
who takes away the sins of the world.
Happy are those who are called to his supper.
Lord, I am not worthy to receive you,
but only say the word and I shall be healed.
or
Come, let us receive the body and blood of our Lord Jesus Christ, given for us, and feed on him in our hearts by faith with thanksgiving.
(or in Eastertide):
Alleluia. Christ our passover is sacrificed for us.
Therefore let us keep the feast. Alleluia.
The priest and people receive the communion.
The sacrament is administered with these words:
The body of Christ keep you in eternal life. Amen.
or The body of Christ, the bread of life. Amen.
or The body of Christ. Amen.
The blood of Christ keep you in eternal life. Amen.
or The blood of Christ, the true vine. Amen.
or The blood of Christ. Amen.
Non-communicants may be given a blessing.
A form for additional consecration is provided in the appendix
After the communion, an appropriate sentence of Scripture from the Proclamation of the Word may be read.
Silence is kept.
A hymn may be sung.
Any consecrated bread and wine which is not to be reserved for purposes of communion is consumed.
After the communion the priest continues:
Give thanks to the Lord for he is gracious;
His love is everlasting.
A post-communion prayer and or one of the following prayers may be used:
God of truth,
we have seen with our eyes
and touched with our hands the bread of life.
Strengthen our faith
that we may grow in love for you
and for each other,
through Jesus Christ, our risen Lord. Amen.
or
Heavenly Father,
In your Son Jesus Christ
you have given us a true faith and a sure hope.
Strengthen this faith and hope in us all our days,
that we may live as those who believe in
the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins
and the resurrection to eternal life.
through Jesus Christ, our Lord. Amen.
COMMENDATION AND FAREWELL (within the Eucharist)
The priest stands by the coffin and may invite others to gather around it.
The priest says:
Let us commend N. into the hands of God,
our maker and redeemer.
Silence is kept.
The priest uses one of the following prayers of entrusting and commending, or some other appropriate prayer:
God our creator and redeemer,
by your power Christ conquered death and entered into glory.
Confident of his victory and claiming his promises,
we entrust N. to your mercy
in the name of Jesus our Lord,
who died and is alive
and reigns with you,
now and for ever. Amen.
or
Into your hands, O merciful Saviour;
We commend your servant N.
Acknowledge, we pray, a sheep of your own fold,
a lamb of your own flock,
a sinner of your own redeeming.
Enfold him/her in the arms of your mercy,
in the blessed rest of everlasting peace
and in the glorious company of the saints in light. Amen.
The priest may add either of the following:
Give rest, O Christ, to your servant with the saints:
where pain and sorrow and grief are no more, but life everlasting.
You alone are the immortal one,
the creator and maker of us all.
We are mortals:
from earth we were fashioned, to earth we shall return;
for so you ordained when you made me, saying:
“dust you are, and unto dust you shall return”.
All we go down to the dust;
yet even over the grave we make our song:
Alleluia, Alleluia, Alleluia.
or
N., go forth from this world:
in the love of God the Father who created you,
in the mercy of Jesus Christ who redeemed you,
in the power of the Holy Spirit who strengthens you.
May the angels lead you into paradise;
may the martyrs receive you at your arrival
and lead you to the holy city Jerusalem.
May choirs of angels receive you and with Lazarus, once poor, may you have eternal rest. Amen.
If the Committal does not follow as part of the same service in the same place, some sections of the Dismissal may be used here.
THE COMMITTAL (within the Eucharist)
Sentences of Scripture may be used.
The priest says:
The Lord is full of compassion and mercy,
slow to anger and of great goodness.
As a father is tender towards his children,
so is the Lord tender to those that fear him.
For he knows of what we are made;
he remembers that we are but dust.
Our days are like the grass;
we flourish like a flower of the field;
when the wind goes over it, it is gone and its place will know it no more.
But the merciful goodness of the Lord endures for ever and ever toward those that fear him and his righteousness upon their children’s children.
or
We have but a short time to live.
Like a flower we blossom and then wither;
like a shadow we flee and never stay.
In the midst of life we are in death;
to whom can we turn for help,
but to you, Lord,
who are justly grieved by our sins?
Yet, Lord God most holy, Lord most mighty,
O holy and most merciful Saviour,
deliver us from the bitter pain of eternal death.
Lord, you know the secrets of our hearts;
hear our prayer, O God most mighty;
spare us, most worthy judge eternal;
at our last hour let us not fall from you,
O holy and merciful Saviour.
The priest uses one of the following forms of Committal.
- At the burial of a body:
In the faith of Christ and believing that N. is in the hands of God,
we commit his/her body to the ground:
earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust,
in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ,
who will transform our frail bodies
that they may be conformed to his glorious body,
who died, was buried, and rose again for us.
To him be glory for ever. Amen.
or
Grant, Lord, that we who are baptized into the death of your Son our Saviour Jesus Christ
may continually put to death our evil desires and be buried with him;
and that through the grave and gate of death we may pass to our joyful resurrection; through his merits, who died and was buried and rose again for us,
your Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
or
God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who by resting in the tomb
made holy the graves of all who believe in him,
and whose abiding presence
strengthens the hope of resurrection in us,
whose mortal bodies are subject to decay;
may your servant N. rest here in peace
until that hour when the voice of the Saviour calls him/her to resurrection and to life.
We ask this through your Son,
who was dead but was brought to life by your Spirit
and reigns as Lord for ever and ever. Amen.
- In a crematorium, if the Committal is to take place then:
We have entrusted our brother/sister N. to God’s mercy.
In the faith of Christ and believing that N. is in the hands of God,
we commit his/her body to be cremated:
in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ,
who will transform our frail bodies
that they may be conformed to his glorious body, who died, was buried, and rose again for us.
To him be glory for ever. Amen.
- In a crematorium, if the Committal is to follow at the Burial of the Ashes:
We have entrusted our brother/sister N. to God’s mercy.
In the faith of Christ and believing that N. is in the hands of God,
in preparation for burial, we give his/her body to be cremated.
We look for the fullness of the resurrection when Christ shall gather all his saints
to reign with him in glory for ever. Amen.
or
Almighty God,
from whose love in Christ Jesus neither death nor life can separate us,
and whose kindness embraces all your children in this world and the next:
draw N. to yourself
that in our fellowship with you
we may know ourselves to be united with him/her.
This we ask through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
- At the burial of a body at sea:
In the faith of Christ and believing that N. is in the hands of God,
we commit his/her body to the deep:
in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ,
who will transform our frail bodies
that they may be conformed to his glorious body, who died, was buried, and rose again for us.
To him be glory for ever. Amen.
THE DISMISSAL (within the Eucharist)
This may include:
- † The Nunc Dimittis
- † One or more suitable prayers
- † An Ending
The Nunc Dimittis (The Song of Simeon):
Lord, now you have set your servant free to go in peace as you have promised.
For these eyes of mine have seen your salvation which you have prepared for all the world to see;
a light to reveal you to the nations
and to give glory to your people Israel.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit;
as it was in the beginning, is now, and shall be for ever. Amen.
One or more of these prayers, or other suitable prayers, may be used:
Heavenly Father,
In your Son Jesus Christ
You have given us a true faith and a sure hope.
Strengthen this faith and hope in us all our days that we may live as those who believe in the communion of saints,
the forgiveness of sins
and the resurrection to eternal life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
God be in my head,
and in my understanding;
God be in my eyes,
and in my looking;
God be in my mouth,
and in my speaking;
God be in my heart,
and in my thinking;
God be at my end,
and at my departing. Amen.
Support us, O Lord,
all the day long of this troublous life,
until the shadows lengthen and the evening comes, the busy world is hushed,
the fever of life is over and our work is done.
Then, Lord, in your mercy grant us a safe lodging, a holy rest, and peace at the last;
through Christ our Lord. Amen.
One of these, or another suitable ending, may be used:
May God in his infinite love and mercy
bring the whole Church,
living and departed in the Lord Jesus,
to a joyful resurrection
and the fulfilment of his eternal kingdom. Amen.
May God give you
his comfort and his peace,
his light and his joy,
in this world and the next;
and the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always. Amen.
God will show us the path of life;
in his presence is the fullness of joy:
and at his right hand
there is pleasure for evermore.
To him who is able to keep you from falling
and to present you before his glorious presence
without fault and with great joy -
to the only God our Saviour
be glory, majesty,
power and authority,
through Jesus Christ our Lord,
before all ages, now and for evermore. Amen.
Eternal rest grant unto him/her, O Lord,
And let perpetual light shine upon him/her.
May God’s help remain with us
and may our departed brothers and sisters
in the Lord rest in peace,
And rise in glory. Amen.
The Lord be with you.
And also with you.
This or another suitable blessing is used:
God the Father,
by whose love Christ was raised from the dead,
open to you who believe the gates of everlasting life. Amen.
God the Son,
who in bursting from the grave has won a glorious victory,
give you joy as you share the Easter faith. Amen.
God the Holy Spirit,
whom the risen Lord breathed into his disciples,
empower you and fill you with Christ’s peace. Amen.
And the blessing of God almighty,
the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit,
be among you and remain with you always. Amen.
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
In the name of Christ. Amen.
(or in Eastertide):
Go in peace to love and serve the Lord.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
In the name of Christ.
Alleluia! Alleluia!
Appendix (within the Eucharist)
THE LITURGY OF THE SACRAMENT
The Peace
A sentence of Scripture may be read:
Christ is our peace. He has reconciled us to God in one body on the cross. We meet in his name and share his peace.
We are the body of Christ. In the one Spirit we were all baptized into one body. Let us pursue all that makes for peace and strengthens our common life.
Christ, the Prince of peace, breaks down the walls that divide us. God has called us to live in peace.
God has reconciled us to himself through Christ and given us the ministry of reconciliation.
Jesus said, This is my commandment: love one another as I have loved you.
We have crossed over from death to life; this we know, because we love our brothers and sisters. Anyone who does not love remains in the realm of death.
Love in all sincerity. Never pay back evil for evil. If possible, so far as it lies with you, live at peace with all.
To bind everything together and complete the whole there must be love. Let Christ’s peace guide us in our decisions, the peace to which we were called as members of a single body.
Jesus said, Peace I bequeath to you; my own peace I give you; a peace the world cannot give, this is my gift to you.
Blessed are those who make peace; they shall be called God’s children.
God will speak peace to his people, to those who turn to him in their hearts.
Advent
In the tender compassion of our God the dawn from heaven will break upon us, to shine on those who live in darkness, under the shadow of death, and to guide our feet into the way of peace.
May the God of peace make you completely holy, ready for the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Nativity and Epiphany
Glory to God in the highest heaven, and on earth peace to all in whom he delights.
Our Saviour Christ is the Prince of peace; of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end.
Lent
Now that we have been justifi ed through faith, we are at peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Passiontide
Once we were far away from God, but now in union with Christ Jesus we have been brought near through the shedding of his blood.
Easter and Ascension
Jesus says, Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you. If you love me, rejoice because I am going to the Father.
Pentecost
The mind of the sinful nature is death. The mind controlled by the Spirit is life and peace.
The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. If we live by the Spirit let us also walk by the Spirit.
Kingdom
The kingdom of God is righteousness, peace and joy in the Holy Spirit.
Saints
We are all citizens with the saints and belong to the family of God, through Jesus Christ our Lord who came and preached peace to those who were far away and to those who were near.
Baptism
Let the peace of Christ rule in our hearts; to this peace we are called as members of one body. God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit he has given us.
Thanksgiving
Peace is the seed-bed of righteousness, and peacemakers will reap its harvest.
Mission
The risen Christ said, Peace be with you! As the Father sent me, so I send you. Then he breathed on them saying, Receive the Holy Spirit!
Unity
Be eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace.
FORM FOR ADDITIONAL CONSECRATION
Holy Father, hear the prayer and thanksgiving which we offer through Jesus Christ our Lord,
who took bread (and) the cup and said:
This is my body (and this is my) blood.
We also take this bread (and) wine
and pray that by your Word and Spirit it may be for us
the sacrament of the body (and) blood of Christ. Amen.
THE BURIAL OF CREMATED REMAINS
THE BLESSING OF A GRAVE (The Burial of Cremated Remains)
Note
If the service begins in church or chapel, it may be appropriate to invite the mourners to the place of burial at the end of the readings, and to use the psalms at the place of burial.
THE BLESSING OF A GRAVE
If the place of burial is not consecrated ground, the following blessing of a grave is used:
O God,
whose Son Jesus Christ was laid in a tomb:
bless, we pray, this grave
as the place where the body of N. your servant may rest in peace,
through your Son, who is the resurrection and the life;
who died and is alive and reigns with you
now and for ever. Amen.
PREPARATION
Appropriate sentences of Scripture may be used.
The minister greets the people in these or other suitable words:
Grace and peace be with you
And keep you in the love of Christ.
Though we are dust and ashes,
God has prepared for those who love him
a heavenly dwelling place.
At his/her funeral we commended N. into the hands of almighty God.
As we entrust the remains of N. to the earth, we entrust ourselves and all who love God to his loving care.
READINGS (The Burial of Cremated Remains)
One or more readings follows.
The psalms may be used at the place of burial.
I know that my Redeemer lives,
and that at the last he will stand upon the earth;
and after my skin has been thus destroyed,
yet in my body I will see God.
Yes, I will see him for myself
with my own eyes - I, and not another.
The Lord himself is my portion and my cup:
in your hands alone is my fortune.
My share has fallen in a fair land:
indeed, I have a goodly heritage.
I will bless the Lord who has given me counsel:
and in the night watches he instructs my heart.
I have set the Lord always before me:
he is at my right hand, I shall not fall.
Wherefore my heart is glad and my spirit rejoices:
my flesh also shall rest secure.
For you will not abandon my soul to Death:
nor suffer your faithful one to see the Pit.
You will show me the path of life,
in your presence is the fullness of joy:
and in your right hand are pleasures for evermore.
O Lord, you have searched me out and known me:
you know my sitting down and my rising up;
you discern my thoughts from afar.
You mark out my journeys and my resting place:
and are acquainted with all my ways.
For there is not a word on my tongue:
but you, O Lord, know it altogether.
You encompass me behind and before:
and lay your hand upon me.
Such knowledge is too wonderful for me:
so high that I cannot attain it.
Where can I go then from your spirit?:
Or where can I flee from your presence?
If I climb up to heaven, you are there:
if I make the grave my bed, you are there also.
If I take the wings of the morning:
and dwell in the uttermost parts of the sea,
Even there your hand shall lead me:
your right hand hold me fast.
If I say, ‘Surely the darkness will cover me:
and the light around me turn to night’,
Even darkness is no darkness with you;
the night is as clear as the day:
darkness and light to you are both a like.
For you yourself created my inmost parts:
you knit me together in my mother’s womb.
I thank you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made:
marvellous are your works, my soul knows well.
Someone may ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body will they come?”
How foolish! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. When you sow, you do not plant the body that will be, but just a seed, perhaps of wheat or of something else. But God gives it a body as he has determined, and to each kind of seed he gives its own body.
So will it be with the resurrection of the dead. The body that is sown is perishable, it is raised imperishable; it is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body.
After these things, Joseph of Arimathea, who was a disciple of Jesus, though a secret one because of his fear of the Jews, asked Pilate to let him take away the body of Jesus. Pilate gave him permission; so he came and removed his body. Nicodemus, who had at first come to Jesus by night, also came, bringing a mixture of myrrh and aloes, weighing about a hundred pounds. They took the body of Jesus and wrapped it with the spices in linen cloths, according to the burial custom of the Jews.
Now there was a garden in the place where he was crucified, and in the garden there was a new tomb in which no one had ever been laid. And so, because it was the Jewish day of Preparation, and the tomb was nearby, they laid Jesus there.
I saw no temple in the city, for its temple is the Lord God the Almighty and the Lamb. And the city has no need of sun or moon to shine on it, for the glory of God is its light, and its lamp is the Lamb. The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their glory into it. Its gates will never be shut by day - and there will be no night there. People will bring into it the glory and the honour of the nations.
Then the angel showed me the river of the water of life, bright as crystal, flowing from the throne of God and of the Lamb through the middle of the street of the city. On either side of the river is the tree of life with its twelve kinds of fruit, producing its fruit each month; and the leaves of the tree are for the healing of the nations. Nothing accursed will be found there any more. The throne of God and of the Lamb will be in it, and his servants will worship him; they will see his face, and his name will be on their foreheads. And there will be no more night; they need no light of lamp or sun, for the Lord God will be their light, and they will reign for ever and ever.
THE COMMITTAL (The Burial of Cremated Remains)
Sentences of Scripture may be used.
The minister says:
We have entrusted our brother/sister N. to God’s mercy.
In the faith of Christ and believing that N. is in the hands of God,
we commit his/her mortal remains to the ground: earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust: in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our frail bodies that they may be conformed to his glorious body, who died, was buried, and rose again for us.
To him be glory for ever. Amen.
or
Faithful God,
Lord of all creation,
you desire that nothing redeemed by your Son will ever be lost, and that the just will be raised up on the last day.
Comfort us today with the word of your promise
as we return the ashes of our brother/sister to the earth.
Grant N. a place of rest and peace where death has no dominion.
Confirm us in our hope that he/she will be created anew on the day when you will raise him/her up in glory to live with you and all the saints for ever and ever. Amen.
PRAYERS
The Lord’s Prayer may be said.
As our Saviour taught us, we boldly pray:
Our Father who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come,
thy will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
and forgive us our trespasses
as we forgive those
who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation
but deliver us from evil.
For thine is the kingdom,
the power and the glory,
for ever and ever. Amen.
or
Let us pray with confidence to the Father:
Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name;
your kingdom come,
your will done,
on earth as in heaven.
Give us today our daily bread.
Forgive us our sins
as we forgive those who sin against us.
Save us from the time of trial
and deliver us from evil.
For the kingdom,
the power and the glory are yours,
now and for ever. Amen.
Heavenly Father,
we thank you for all those whom we love but see no longer.
As we remember N. in this place,
hold before us our beginning and our ending,
the dust from which we come
and the death to which we move,
with a firm hope in your eternal love and purposes for us,
in Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Other prayers may be used, ending with:
God of hope,
grant that we, with all who have believed in you,
may be united in the full knowledge of your love
and the unclouded vision of your glory;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
THE DISMISSAL (The Burial of Cremated Remains)
May the infinite and glorious Trinity, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, direct our life in good works, and after our journey through this world grant us eternal rest with all the saints. Amen.
THE 1984 BOOK OF COMMON PRAYER - ORDER FOR THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD
THE RECEPTION OF THE BODY INTO CHURCH (1984 BCP)
At the time of burial or previously
The Minister, meeting the body at the entrance to the churchyard, or at the church door, goes before it while one or more of these sentences, or of the psalms following, is said or sung.
I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die.
I know that my Redeemer lives, and at last he will stand upon the earth; whom I shall see for myself, and my eyes shall behold, and not another.
Let not your hearts be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many dwelling-places; if it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And when I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.
If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
We brought nothing into the world, and we cannot take anything out of the world. The Lord gave, and the Lord has taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. By his great mercy we have been born anew to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.
The Lord is my light and my salvation; * whom then/shall I / fear: the Lord is the strength of my life; * of whom then / shall I / be a-/fraid?
One thing have I desired of the Lord/that I / long for: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord/all the/days of . my/life.
To behold the fair beauty / of the/Lord: and to/seek him/in his /temple.
For in the time of trouble he shall hide me/in his/shadow: yea in the secret place of his dwelling shall he hide me, * and set me up up-/on a/rock of/stone.
O hide not thou thy/face/from me: nor cast thy servant a-/way/in dis-/pleasure.
Thou hast / been my / succour: leave me not neither forsake me, O/God of/my sal-/vation.
Teach me thy/way O/Lord: and lead me in the right/way be-/cause of . mine/enemies.
Deliver me not over into the/will of . mine/adversaries: for there are false witnesses risen up against me, * and/such as/ breathe out/cruelty.
I believe verily to see the goodness / of the / Lord: even in the / land/of the/living.
O wait for the Lord, * be strong and let thine / heart take / courage: and put thou thy/trust/in the/Lord.
Out of the deep have I called unto / thee O / Lord: Lord / hearken / unto . my / voice.
O let thine ears con-/sider / well: the / voice of . my / suppli- / cations.
If thou Lord shouldest mark what is / done a-/miss: O / Lord who / could a-/bide it?
But there is / mercy . with / thee: that / so thou / mayest . be / feared.
I wait for the Lord, * my / soul doth / wait for him: and in his / word / is my / trust.
My soul doth / wait . for the / Lord: more than watchmen for
the morning, * yea more than / watchmen / for the / morning.
O Israel trust in the Lord, * for with the / Lord . there is / mercy: and with / him is / plenteous . re- / demption.
And he shall re-/deem Israel: from the / multi.tude / of his / sins.
If not used in the Procession, either of these psalms may be used before the Lesson when the body is brought into church on the eve of the burial, or in place of the psalms in The Service in Church (if the Eucharist is not celebrated).
READINGS AND PRAYERS FOR THE EVE OF BURIAL (1984 BCP)
When the body is brought into church on the eve of burial, one of the lessons printed in Lessons shall be read.
The Minister says:
The Lord be with you;
And with your spirit.
Let us pray.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Then shall be said one or more of the prayers following, ending with the Grace.
Father of all, we pray to thee for those we love, but now no longer see. Grant them thy peace; let light perpetual shine upon them; and in thy loving wisdom and almighty power work in them the good purpose of thy perfect will; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Lord Jesus Christ, Son of the living God, who did rest in the sepulchre and did thereby sanctify the grave to be a bed of hope to thy people: make us so to abound in sorrow for our sins which were the cause of thy passion, that, when our bodies lie in the dust, our souls may live with thee; who lives and reigns with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Grant, O Lord, that as we are baptised into the death of thy blessed Son our Saviour Jesus Christ, so by continual mortifying our corrupt affections we may be buried with him; and that through the grave, and gate of death, we may pass to our joyful resurrection; for his merits, who died, and was buried, and rose again for us, thy Son Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen.
The two preceding sections of this Order, or any part of them, may also be used for prayers in the house, where this is the local custom.
THE SERVICE IN CHURCH (If it be the Eucharist) (1984 BCP)
When all are assembled, the Minister may say:
We have come together to commend our brother/sister N. into the hands of Almighty God our heavenly Father. In the presence of death, Christians have sure ground for hope and confidence, and even for joy, because the Lord Jesus Christ, who shared our human life and death, was raised again triumphant and lives for evermore. In him his people find eternal life, and, in this faith, we put our whole trust in his goodness and mercy.
The order for the Holy Eucharist now begins. One or both of the following Collects shall be used:
O God, the maker and Redeemer of all believers: grant to thy servant N. and all the faithful departed the unsearchable benefits of thy Son’s passion; that, in the day of his appearing, they may be manifested as thy children; through the same Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who lives and reigns with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
O God, who for our redemption gave thine only-begotten Son to the death of the cross, and has delivered us from the power of our enemy by his glorious resurrection: grant us so to die daily unto sin, that we may evermore live with him in the joy of his resurrection; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
One of the lessons from those printed in Lessons shall be read. This should not be taken from the Gospels.
The following psalm or anthems may be used:
The cords of death compassed me round about, * and the snares of the grave laid / hold up-/ on me: I suffered / sore dis-/tress and / sorrow.
Then I called upon the / name . of the / Lord: ‘O Lord I be-/ seech . thee de-/liver . my / soul.’
Gracious is the / Lord and / righteous: yea our / God is / full . of com-/passion.
The Lord pre-/serveth . the / simple: I was brought / low, / and he / saved me.
Turn again then unto thy rest / O my / soul: for the Lord hath / dealt so / loving.ly / with thee.
For thou hast saved my / soul from / death: mine eyes from / tears . and my / feet from / falling.
Christ being raised from the dead / dieth . no / more: death hath no / more do-/minion / over him.
For in that he died, * he died unto / sin / once: but in that he liveth, * he / liveth / unto / God.
Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed / unto / sin: but alive unto God, through / Jesus / Christ our / Lord.
Christ is / risen . from the dead: and become the / firstfruits . of / them that / slept.
For since by / man came / death: by man came also the resur-/ rection / of the / dead.
For as in Adam / all / die: even so in Christ shall / all be / made a- / live.
A Gospel taken from those printed in Lessons shall be read. After the Communion the following shall be said:
He hath given food unto them that fear him;
He shall ever be mindful of his covenant.
Almighty God, our heavenly Father, who has given unto us thy Son Jesus Christ to be the bread of life eternal; grant that all we who are partakers of his body and blood may at the last day be raised up in him; who lives and reigns with thee in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
The Service in Church continues with the Commendation and Conclusion.
THE SERVICE IN CHURCH (If the Eucharist is not celebrated) (1984 BCP)
This service may be used at the graveside or in the chapel of the crematorium or cemetery.
When all are assembled, the Minister may say:
We have come together to commend our brother/sister N. into the hands of Almighty God our heavenly Father.
In the presence of death, Christians have sure ground for hope and confidence, and even for joy, because the Lord Jesus Christ, who shared our human life and death, was raised again triumphant and lives for evermore. In him his people find eternal life, and, in this faith, we put our whole trust in his goodness and mercy.
One or more of the following psalms shall be said or sung. Before and after any psalm or group of psalms this antiphon may be said or sung.
O Saviour of the world, who by thy cross and precious blood hast redeemed us: save us and help us, we humbly beseech thee, O Lord.
The Lord / is my / shepherd: therefore / can I / lack / nothing.
He shall make me to lie down in / green / pastures: and lead me forth be- / side the / waters . of / comfort.
He shall re-/fresh my / soul: and bring me forth in the right way / for his / name’s / sake.
Yea, though I walk through the darkest valley, * I will / fear no / evil: for thou art with me, * thy / rod . and thy / staff / comfort me.
Thou shalt prepare a table before me, * in the presence of / them that / trouble me: thou hast anointed my head with oil, * and my / cup / shall be / full.
Yea thy loving-kindness and mercy shall follow me * all the / days of . my / life: and I will dwell in the / house . of the / Lord for / ever.
Lord thou hast / been our / refuge: from one gener-/ation / to an-/other.
Before the mountains were brought forth, * or ever the earth and the / world were / made: thou art God from ever-/lasting . and / world with . out / end.
Thou turnest man / back . to the / dust; yea thou sayest * ‘Re-/ turn ye / children . of / men.’
For a thousand years in thy sight / are . but as / yesterday: even as it / were a / day . that is / past.
As a night-watch that cometh quickly to an end thou / scatter . est / them: they are even as a / dream and / fade a-/way.
They are like the grass, which in the / morning . is / green: but in the / evening . is / dried . up and / withered.
The days of our age are threescore years and ten; * and though men be so strong that they come to / fourscore / years: yet is their span but labour and sorrow, * so soon passeth it a-/way and / we are / gone.
So teach us to / number . our / days: that we may ap-/ply our / hearts . unto / wisdom.
Turn thee again O / Lord, and / tarry not: be / gracious / unto thy / servants.
O satisfy us in the morning with thy / loving-/kindness: so shall we rejoice and be glad / all the / days of . our life.
Make us glad, * according to the number of the days wherein thou / hast af-/flicted us: and of the years where-/in . we have suffered . ad-/versity.
Shew thy / servants . thy work: and thy / glory / unto . their / children.
† And may the grace of the Lord our God / be up-/on us: prosper thou the work of our hands, * O / prosper / thou our / handiwork.
Praise the Lord / O my / soul: and all that is within me / praise his / holy / name.
Praise the Lord / O my / soul: and for-/get not / all his / benefits,
Who forgiveth / all thy / sin: and / healeth / all . thine in-/firmities,
Who saveth thy / life . from the pit: and crowneth thee with / mercy . and loving-kindness.
Like as a father hath compassion up-/on his / children: so hath the Lord compassion up-/on / them that / fear him.
For he knoweth where-/of . we are / made: he remembereth / that we / are but / dust.
The days of man / are . but as / grass: he flourisheth / as a / flower . of the / field;
For as soon as the wind goeth over it / it is / gone: and the place there-/of shall / know it . no / more.
But the merciful goodness of the Lord endureth for ever and ever upon / them that / fear him: and his righteousness up-/ on / children’s / children,
Even upon such as / keep his / covenant: and think upon / his com-/mandments . to / do them.
I will lift up mine eyes / unto . the / hills: from / whence / cometh . my / help?
My help cometh / from the / Lord: who hath / made / heaven . and / earth.
He will not suffer thy / foot . to be / moved: and he that / keepeth . thee / will not / sleep.
Behold he that / keepeth / Israel: shall / neither / slumber . nor / sleep.
The Lord him-/self . is thy / keeper: the Lord upon thy right / hand shall / give thee / shade;
The sun shall not / strike . thee by / day: neither / shall the / moon by / night.
The Lord shall preserve thee from / all / evil: yea it is / he . that shall / keep thee / safe.
The Lord shall preserve thy going out and thy / coming / in: from this time / forth for / ever-/more.
O Lord thou hast searched me / out and / known me: thou knowest my down-sitting and mine up-rising, * thou under- standest my / thoughts / from a-/far.
Thou art ever about my path * and the places / where I / rest: and art ac-/quainted . with / all my / ways.
For lo there is not a / word . in my / mouth: but thou O Lord / knowest . it / alto-/gether.
Thou hast protected me be-/hind . and be-/fore: and hast / covered . me / with thine / hand.
† Such knowledge is too / wonder.ful / for me: so excellent that I / cannot . at-/tain / unto it.
Whither shall I go / from thy / spirit: or whither shall I / flee / from thy / presence?
If I climb up into heaven / thou art / there: if I make my bed in the grave / thou art / there / also.
If I fly on the / wings . of the / morning: or alight in the / utter-.most / parts . of the / west,
Even there shall / thy hand / lead me: and / thy right / hand shall / hold me.
If I say * ‘Surely the / darkness . shall / cover me: and my / day be / turned to / night’,
The darkness is no darkness with thee, * but the night is as / clear . as the / day: the darkness and the / light are / both a-/like.
One of the lessons printed in Lessons shall be read. Then a hymn may be sung.
THE PRAYERS
The Minister says:
The Lord be with you;
And with your spirit.
Let us pray.
*Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
*The Lesser Litany and Lord’s Prayer may be used either at this point or at the point indicated after the Committal.
Thou art the King of glory, O Christ;
Thou art the everlasting Son of the Father.
When thou hadst overcome the sharpness of death;
Thou didst open the kingdom of heaven to all believers.
Thou sittest at the right hand of God, in the glory of the Father;
We believe that thou shalt come to be our Judge.
We therefore pray thee, help thy servants;
Whom thou hast redeemed with thy precious blood.
Make them to be numbered with thy saints;
In glory everlasting.
The Minister may add one or more of these prayers:
Be gracious, Lord, to this our brother/sister departed, that, loosed from the bonds of sin and death, he/she may be perfected by thy grace and enter into life everlasting: through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Almighty God, who has revealed thy only-begotten Son as the resurrection and the life: raise us, we pray thee, from the death of sin to the life of righteousness, that, when we depart this life, we may rest in him, as we hope our brother/sister does, and at the last may receive the blessing: Well done, good and faithful servant; enter thou into the joy of thy Lord. Grant this, O merciful Father, through Jesus Christ, our Mediator and Redeemer. Amen.
Heavenly Father, who in thy Son Jesus Christ has given us a true faith and a sure hope: help us, we pray thee, to live as those who believe and trust in the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, and the resurrection to life everlasting; and strengthen this faith and hope in us all the days of our life: through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Almighty God, Father of all mercies and giver of all comfort: deal graciously, we pray thee, with those who mourn, that casting every care on thee, they may know the consolation of thy love; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
We thank you, Lord God,
for the grace you gave
to those who lived according to your will
and are now at rest.
We pray that their good example
may encourage and guide us
all the days of our life;
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
God of all mercy,
in love you gave us your Son
to conquer death
and restore eternal life to your people.
Comfort your servants in their sorrow,
and strengthen our faith and hope in your Son,
our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
Heavenly Father,
you are our refuge and strength.
Help and comfort us today; increase our faith,
dispel our fears, revive our hope.
May the Holy Spirit lift us
from the darkness of our grief to the light of your presence:
through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The service continues with the Commendation and Conclusion.
THE COMMENDATION, THE CONCLUSION and THE COMMITTAL (1984 BCP)
THE COMMENDATION
The Minister, standing, says:
Let us commend our brother/sister N. into the hands of God, our Maker and Redeemer.
O God our heavenly Father, who by thy mighty power has given us life, and by thy loving-kindness has bestowed upon us new life in Christ Jesus: we commend to thy merciful keeping N. our brother/sister, through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord, who died and rose again to save us, and now lives and reigns with thee in glory for ever. Amen.
THE CONCLUSION
Give rest, O Christ, to thy servant with thy saints;
Where sorrow and pain are no more,
Neither sighing but life everlasting.
Thou only art immortal,
The Creator and Maker of man;
And we are mortal, formed of the earth,
And unto earth shall we return:
For so thou didst ordain
When thou createdst me, saying,
Dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
All we go down to the dust;
And, weeping o’er the grave, we make our song:
Alleluya, alleluya, alleluya.
or
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen.
or
Grant him, O Lord, eternal rest;
And let light perpetual shine upon him/her.
or
Let us go forth in peace;
In the name of Christ. Amen.
THE COMMITTAL
If the ground in which the burial is to take place is not consecrated, the Priest says, immediately before the Committal, the prayer provided for the Blessing of the Grave.
At the place of the committal of the body, the Minister says:
In the midst of life we are in death; of whom may we seek for succour but of thee, O Lord, who for our sins art justly displeased?
Yet, O Lord God most holy, O Lord most mighty, O holy and most merciful Saviour, deliver us from the bitterness of eternal death.
Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our hearts; shut not thy merciful ears to our prayer; but spare us, Lord most holy, O God most mighty, O holy and merciful Saviour, thou most worthy Judge eternal, suffer us not at our last hour for any pains of death to fall from thee.
If the Commendation has not already been used, it shall be used here.
Then the Minister says:
In the faith of Christ, and believing that our brother/sister is in the hands of God, we commit his/her body.
to the ground, earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust,
to be cremated,
to the deep,
in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life, through our Lord Jesus Christ; who shall change our corruptible body, that it may be like unto his glorious body, according to the mighty working whereby he is able to subdue all things to himself.
I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from henceforth; Even so, says the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours.
If it has not already been used in the Prayers, shall be added:
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come; thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Any others of the Prayers previously set out which have not been used already may be used here.
THE CONCLUSION
May God’s help remain with us always, and may the souls of the faithful, through the mercy of God, rest in peace. Amen.
or
May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope. For from him and through
him and in him are all things. To him be glory for ever. Amen.
or
The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Spirit, be with us all evermore. Amen.
or
Now may the God of peace who brought again from the dead our Lord Jesus, the great shepherd of the sheep, by the blood of the eternal covenant, equip you with everything good that you may do his will, working in you that which is pleasing in his sight, through Jesus Christ; to whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
or
May God in his infinite love and mercy bring the whole Church, living and departed in the Lord Jesus, to a joyful resurrection and the fulfilment of his eternal kingdom. Amen.
Note.
The Service in the Church, excluding the Commendation, may be used as a Memorial Service. One of the Conclusions which follow the Commendation should be used to end the service.
If a sermon is to be preached, it shall follow the Lesson, or, if The Service in Church be a celebration of the Eucharist, it shall follow the Gospel.
THE ORDER FOR THE BURIAL OF A CHILD (1984 BCP)
The Mininster, meeting the body and going before it, either into the church or towards the grave, says one or more of these sentences:
I am the resurrection and the life, says the Lord; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die.
I am the good shepherd: I know my own and my own know me.
Blessed are the pure in heart: for they shall see God.
Let not your hearts be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many dwelling-places; if it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And when I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, that where I am you may be also.
Beloved, we are God’s children now; it does not yet appear what we shall be, but we know that when he appears we shall be like him, for we shall see him as he is.
If we live, we live to the Lord, and if we die, we die to the Lord; so then, whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s. For to this end Christ died and lived again, that he might be Lord both of the dead and of the living.
In church, the Eucharist may now be celebrated. Matthew 18. 1-5, 10 may be used as the Gospel.
The Eucharist shall be followed by the Commendation.
If the Eucharist is not celebrated, the service continues as follows:
The Lord / is my / shepherd: therefore / can I / lack / nothing.
He shall make me to lie down in / green / pastures: and lead me forth be- / side the / waters . of / comfort.
He shall re-/fresh my / soul: and bring me forth in the right way / for his / name’s / sake.
Yea, though I walk through the darkest valley, * I will / fear no / evil: for thou art with me, * thy / rod . and thy / staff / comfort me.
Thou shalt prepare a table before me, * in the presence of / them that / trouble me: thou hast anointed my head with oil, * and my / cup / shall be / full.
Yea thy loving-kindness and mercy shall follow me * all the / days of . my / life: and I will dwell in the / house . of the / Lord for / ever.
At that time the disciples came to Jesus, saying, “Who is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?” And calling to him a child, he put him in the midst of them, and said, “Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven. Whoever humbles himself like this child, he is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me. See that you do not despise one of these little ones; for I tell you that in heaven their angels always behold the face of my Father who is in heaven.”
A hymn may be sung.
THE PRAYERS
The Lord be with you;
And with your spirit.
Let us pray.
*Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come;
thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Almighty God, our heavenly Father, who through thy Son Jesus Christ has promised us eternal life: grant us steadfastly to believe that this child is safe in the protection of thy eternal love; through the same Jesus Christ our Lord, who lives and reigns with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
Other prayers, from among those previously provided, may be said at the Minister’s discretion, either here or after the Committal.
THE COMMENDATION
To thee, O holy God and loving Father, we commend thy child N., praying that in thine own good time we may
rejoice with him/her in thy eternal kingdom; through Jesus Christ thy Son our Lord. Amen.
*The Lesser Litany and Lord’s Prayer may be used either at this point or at the point indicated after the Committal.
THE COMMITTAL
If the ground in which the burial is to take place is not consecrated, the Priest says, immediately before the Committal, the prayer provided for the Blessing of the Grave.
At the place of the committal of the body, the Minister says:
Like as a father hath compassion upon his children: so hath the Lord compassion upon them that fear him. For he knoweth whereof we are made: he remembereth that we are but dust. The days of man are but as grass: he flourisheth as a flower of the field; For as soon as the wind goeth over it, it is gone: and the place thereof shall know it no more. But the merciful goodness of the Lord endureth for ever and ever upon him that fear him: and his righteousness upon children’s children.
In the faith of Christ, and believing that this child is in the hands of God, we commit his/her body.
to the ground, earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust,
to be cremated,
to the deep,
in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life, through our Lord Jesus Christ; who shall change our corruptible body, that it may be like unto his glorious body, according to the mighty working whereby he is able to subdue all things to himself.
If it has not already been used in the Prayers, shall be added:
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come; thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread.
And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us.
And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Any others of the Prayers previously provided which have not been used already may be used here.
THE CONCLUSION
Now to him who is able to keep us from falling and to present us without blemish before the presence of his glory with rejoicing, to the only God, our Saviour, through Jesus Christ our Lord, be glory, majesty, dominion, and authority, before all time and now and for ever. Amen.
- Back to topJude 24, 25
THE BURIAL OF ASHES AFTER CREMATION (1984 BCP)
When cremated remains are to be buried in consecrated ground, cremation may take place without any formal service. In this case the appropriate form of Committal shall be used at the burial of the cremated remains.
The Service in Church may either precede or follow the cremation.
The ashes of Christians should be buried in consecrated ground, except where burial is at sea. No clergyman of the Church in Wales may take part in the scattering of ashes, nor may he permit ashes to be scattered in any churchyard under his control.
When ashes are to be buried and the Committal has been used at the Crematorium, the Minister may first use The Service in Church, with any of the Prayers.
At the place of burial, the Minister says:
Believing that our brother/sister is at rest in Christ, and rejoicing in the communion of saints, we commit his/her ashes to the ground, in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
Then, if it has not already been used, shall be added:
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Our Father, who art in heaven,
hallowed be thy name;
thy kingdom come; thy will be done;
on earth as it is in heaven.
Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses,
as we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation;
but deliver us from evil. Amen.
Any other of the Prayers previously provided which have not been used already may be used here.
THE CONCLUSION
To the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honour and glory for ever and ever. Amen.
THE BLESSING OF THE GRAVE
This prayer shall be used before the Committal when burial takes place in unconsecrated ground.
O God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, bless this grave to be the resting-place of the body of thy servant; through the same thy blessed Son, who is the resurrection and the life, and who lives and reigns with thee and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without end. Amen.
LESSONS (1984 BCP)
But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and no torment will ever touch them. In the eyes of the foolish they seemed to have died, and their departure was thought to be an affliction, and their going from us to be their destruction; but they are at peace. For though in the sight of men they were punished, their hope is full of immortality. Having been disciplined a little, they will receive great good, because God tested them and found them worthy of himself; like gold in the furnace he tried them, and like a sacrificial burnt offering he accepted them. In the time of their visitation they will shine forth, and will run like sparks through the stubble. They will govern nations and rule over peoples, and the Lord will reign over them for ever. Those who trust in him will understand truth, and the faithful will abide with him in love, because grace and mercy are upon his elect, and he watches over his holy ones.
JOHN 5. 24-29 and 6. 37-40
Jesus said to his disciples, “Truly, truly, I say to you, he who hears my word and believes him who sent me, has eternal life; he does not come into judgement, but has passed from death to life. Truly, truly, I say to you, the hour is coming, and now is, when the dead will hear the voice of the Son of God, and those who hear will live. For as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself, and has given him authority to execute judgement, because he is the Son of man. Do not marvel at this: for the hour is coming when all who are in the tombs will hear his voice and come forth, those who have done good, to the resurrection of life, and those who have done evil, to the resurrection of judgement.”
“All that the Father gives me will come to me; and him who comes to me I will not cast out. For I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will, but the will of him who sent me; and this is the will of him who sent me, that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me, but raise it up at the last day. For this is the will of my Father, that every one who sees the Son and believes in him should have eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.”
Jesus said to the Jews, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me. This is the bread which came down from heaven, not such as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live for ever.”
JOHN 11. 21-27
Martha said to Jesus, “Lord, if you had been here, my brother would not have died. And even now I know that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.” Jesus said to her, “Your brother will rise again.” Martha said to him, “I know that he will rise again in the resurrection at the last day.” Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who lives and believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die. Do you believe this?” She said to him, “Yes, Lord; I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God, he who is coming into the world.”
ROMANS 8. 31-39
If God is for us, who is against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, will he not also give us all things with him? Who shall bring any charge against God’s elect? It is God who justifies; who is to condemn? It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised from the dead, who is at the right hand of God, who indeed intercedes for us? Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? As it is written, “For thy sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered.” No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
1 CORINTHIANS 15. 3-20
I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the scriptures, and that he appeared to Cephas, then to the twelve.Then he appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time, most of whom are still alive, though some have fallen asleep. Then he appeared to James, then to all the apostles. Last of all, as to one untimely born, he appeared also to me. For I am the least of the apostles, unfit to be called an apostle, because I persecuted the church of God. But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace toward me was not in vain. On the contrary, I worked harder than any of them, though it was not I, but the grace of God which is with me. Whether then it was I or they, so we preach and so you believed.
Now if Christ is preached as raised from the dead, how can some of you say that there is no resurrection of the dead? But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then Christ has not been raised; if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain. We are even found to be mis- representing God, because we testified of God that he raised Christ, whom he did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised. If Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins. Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished. If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all men most to be pitied. But in fact Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
1 CORINTHIANS 15. 20-26 and 35-38
Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep. For as by a man came death, by a man has come also the resurrection of the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, then at his coming those who belong to Christ. Then comes the end, when he delivers the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power. For he must reign until he has put all his enemies under his feet. The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
But someone will ask, “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?” You foolish man! What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. And what you sow is not the body which is to be, but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. But God gives it a body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body. For not all flesh is alike, but there is one kind for men, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish. There are celestial bodies and there are terrestrial bodies; but the glory of the celestial is one, and the glory of the terrestrial is another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory.
So it is with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable, what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonour, it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness, it is raised in power. It is sown a physical body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a physical body, there is also a spiritual body. Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual which is first but the physical and then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. As was the man of dust, so are those who are of the dust; and as is the man of heaven, so are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven. I tell you this, brethren: flesh
and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable.
Lo! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable nature must put on the imperishable, and this mortal nature must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory.” “O death, where is thy victory? O death, where is thy sting?” The sting of death is sin, and the power of sin is the law. But thanks be to God, who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
Therefore, my beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that in the Lord your labour is not in vain.
REVELATION 20. 11-13
Then I saw a great white throne and him who sat upon it; from his presence earth and sky fled away, and no place was found for them. And I saw the dead, great and small, standing before the throne, and books were opened. Also another book was opened, which is the book of life. And the dead were judged by what was written in the books, by what they had done. And the sea gave up the dead in it, Death and Hades gave up the dead in them, and all were judged by what they had done.