All baptized Catholics have the right to an ecclesiastical funeral celebrated according to Church law (c. 1176)
When it concerns funerals, catechumens must be counted as Christian faithful (c. 1183, §1; OCF 18).
Children whom the parents intended to baptize, but died before Baptism, are also to receive Christian funeral rites (c. 1183, §2).
Denial of Ecclesiastical Funeral Rites:
The bishop is to be consulted before the complete refusal of funeral rites to members of the faithful.
Unless some sign of repentance has been shown before death, the following must be deprived of an ecclesiastical funeral:
Those who are notorious apostates, heretics, or schismatics
Those who have chosen cremation for anti-Christian reasons or
Those who were manifest sinners whose funeral would cause scandal to the faithful (c. 1184)
Those who preside at funerals are encouraged to review Canons 1176–1185, on funeral rites and Canons 1240–1243, on cemeteries, as well as the general introduction and commentaries in the Order of Christian Funerals.
Note well the items in the faculties of priests serving in the Diocese referring to Christian burial.
When Catholic clergy or Catholic facilities are used for funerals, the Order of Christian Funerals is to be followed, not other para-liturgical practices.
The vigil service for the deceased is an integral part of the funeral rite. The vigil service may be supplemented by praying the Rosary, especially if most of the people present are Catholic. However, the Rosary alone is never to take the place of the vigil service. Pastors should ensure that obituary notices in the newspapers avoid calling the vigil service a “Rosary service.”
Using church property for keeping vigil with the body of the deceased is allowed, provided that assurance is obtained from the family that people stay with the body the entire time and that the place not be left in disarray after the funeral. Local parish guidelines should be drawn up by pastoral councils to determine these policies.
Funeral Mass is usually celebrated in the parish church of the deceased in either the parish where they were formally registered or the parish in whose territory they resided. Any member of the Christian faithful, or those commissioned to arrange for their funeral, may choose another parish/mission for the funeral rites with the consent of its pastor and after informing the departed person’s pastor (c. 1177). The pastor of the place celebrates the Mass, or he may delegate another priest.
Recording in the Death Register: After the interment/inurnment, an entry must be made in the death register in the parish where the funeral was conducted (c. 1182).
The place of burial of the body, or repository for ashes, should be chosen either by the departed person or those responsible for arranging for their interment, unless prohibited by Church law (c. 1180).
The appropriate blessing from the Order of Christian Funerals should be prayed over the place of committal if it has not been already blessed (OCF 218, 405).
A prayer of praise and thanksgiving is recited over the place of committal if it has already been blessed (OCF 218, 405).
Christian symbols should be used appropriately in the rites of Christian funerals.
These may include an Easter candle, holy water, incense, fresh flowers, the Book of the Gospels, the Bible, a Rosary, or a cross on the casket.
At the doors of the church or chapel, the flowers, and flag, if any, are removed from the casket as the Funeral Mass or Catholic Funeral Liturgy outside Mass begins. The pall is placed on the casket. The family may place the pall on the casket.
Only Christian symbols may rest on or be placed near the casket during the funeral liturgy (OCF 35-38).
The liturgical color chosen for funerals should express Christian hope but should not be offensive to human grief or sorrow. In the United States, white, violet, or black vestments may be worn at funeral rites and at other offices and Masses for the dead (OCF 39).
Flowers are a sign of new life, respect, and love for the deceased. Their use in the sanctuary during the funeral liturgy may be allowed; however, they should be placed where they will not obstruct the view of the altar and ambo or hinder movement in the sanctuary. If desired, flowers may be appropriate at the funeral home. At the church, flowers are a decoration governed by liturgical norms. Coordinating with the priest during the liturgical seasons of Christmas, Easter, and Ordinary Time, at the Funeral Mass or Funeral Liturgy outside Mass, flowers used in moderation may be placed near the altar or doors of the Church. However, due to the penitential character of the seasons, e.g., during Advent, Lent, and Holy Week, placing flowers in the church's sanctuary would not be appropriate.
Pictures of the Deceased:
If desired, pictures of the deceased may be appropriate in the viewing room at the funeral home.
It is up to the pastor whether or not to allow a photograph of the deceased to be used during a funeral liturgy in the church.
Memorabilia of the person’s life may be used only at the funeral home or in the church's narthex.
The liturgy for the rites of Christian funerals may take place at several different stations, i.e., the home, the funeral home, the church, the cemetery, and/or a chapel. Appropriate rites are provided for each.
Mass may not be celebrated in funeral homes in the Diocese of San Angelo.
If the Funeral Rite Outside of Mass is celebrated, a Memorial Mass is to be offered, without the body present, either before or after the funeral rites, by the pastor of the parish that handled the funeral rite, within a reasonable time (GIRM 381).
A Funeral Mass may be celebrated on any day except for Solemnities that are Holy Days of Obligation, Thursday of Holy Week (Holy Thursday), the Paschal Triduum, and the Sundays of Advent, Lent, and Easter, with due regard also for all the other requirements of the norm of the law (GIRM 380). On these prohibited days, the funeral liturgy outside of Mass, without the distribution of Communion, is permitted. The funeral liturgy is then followed by the Rite of Committal. In this circumstance, a Memorial Mass for the deceased may be celebrated later at the convenience of the family and local parish.
Priests should be mindful not to exceed the canonical limit of three masses on Sundays (c. 905).
The funeral liturgy may take place outside the Mass. This rite may be used for various reasons:
When the Funeral Mass is not permitted, namely on Solemnities that are Holy Days of Obligation, Thursday of Holy Week (Holy Thursday), the Paschal Triduum, and the Sundays of Advent, Lent, and Easter.
When in some places or circumstances, it is not possible to celebrate the Funeral Mass before the committal, for example, if a priest is not available
When for pastoral reasons, the parish priest and the family judge that the funeral liturgy outside Mass is a more suitable form of celebration. This may be the case when a non-practicing Catholic dies.
The family of the deceased should be invited to assist in planning the funeral rites and, if possible, should exercise some of the liturgical ministries within the liturgy (OCF 15- 17).
It is recommended that a priest or other representative of the parish meet with the family members to plan the funeral. Parish policies concerning decorations, music, readings, etc., can be clarified at this meeting.
Scripture readings should be chosen with care and with input from the family, respecting the wishes of the deceased.
Parishes should notify their local funeral homes about their policies.
Readers who are properly trained and extraordinary ministers of Holy Communion who are commissioned may be used during the Mass of Christian Burial if they are presently exercising these ministries. The pastor may allow others to serve in these roles by exception according to the law.
A brief homily based on the readings is always given after the Gospel reading at the funeral liturgy. The homily may also be given after the readings at the vigil service. However, there is never to be a eulogy (OCF 27).
After the Prayer after Communion, one person representing the family of the deceased may give a short (two-minute) talk.
Music is integral to the funeral rites and should be chosen with care.
Music should be provided for the vigil, the funeral liturgy, whenever possible for the funeral processions, and the rite of committal (OCF 30-33).
The music should reflect the themes of Christian death, resurrection, and hope, as well as human sadness. Music should not be chosen simply for sentimental reasons.
The principles for choosing music at funerals are the same as choosing music for weddings.
It is important that the ministers of music do all that is possible to enable the assembly to sing. Therefore, songs chosen should be a part of the parish funeral music repertoire.
The use of parish choirs and cantors is highly recommended. Members of the parish who are available during the week may be invited to form a choir or be altar servers for funeral liturgies.
Funeral rites for a baptized person belonging to a non-Catholic church or ecclesial community are allowed, provided this is not clearly contrary to the wishes of the deceased and provided a minister of the faith of the deceased, for whatever reason, is not available (c. 1183, §3).
When a priest or deacon is asked by the family to officiate at the funeral service and burial of a member of another church, he may do so at the funeral home, the home, or graveside.
As stated in the pagella of faculties of priests serving in the Diocese of San Angelo, pastors and parochial vicars assigned to a parish have the faculty to allow Catholic funeral rites for a baptized person belonging to a non-Catholic Church or ecclesial community, at the request of the family of the deceased, provided this is not clearly contrary to the wishes of the deceased, and provided a minister of the faith of the deceased, for whatever reason, is not available.
As a norm, a deceased non-Catholic would not receive a Funeral Mass as part of the funeral rite. However, a Funeral Mass can be celebrated if the following conditions are verified:
A public celebration of Mass is expressly requested by members of the family, by friends, or subjects of the deceased out of a genuine religious motive
Scandal on the part of the faithful is absent
In these two (2) cases, a public Mass can be celebrated. However, the name of the deceased is not mentioned in the Eucharistic prayer since that would suppose full communion with the Catholic Church (Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of Faith [June 11, 1976]).
Members of other faiths may be buried in a Catholic cemetery and with the clergy of another faith conducting cemetery rites.
Members of other faiths may be invited to read from the Scriptures during a funeral service outside the celebration of the Eucharist.
Catholic teaching stresses the preference for burial or entombment of the body of the deceased.
Those who have chosen cremation may certainly receive a Christian funeral unless their choice for cremation reflects a denial of the resurrection of the body or is dictated by motives contrary to Christian doctrine (OCF 15; c. 1176, §3). Otherwise, the mere fact of choosing cremation is not sufficient grounds for denying a funeral.
In the case of cremation, the Church clearly prefers that the body of the deceased be present for the funeral rites.
When circumstances prevent the presence of the body at the Funeral Mass, it is appropriate that the cremated remains be present for the entire course of the Funeral Mass (Vigil for the Deceased, Funeral Liturgy, Rite of Committal).
The cremated remains should be treated with the same respect given to the corporeal remains of the body.
The cremated remains should be entombed in a mausoleum or columbarium. However, they may also be buried in an individual or common grave in a cemetery.
The practices of scattering the remains, keeping them in a home, dividing them among various family members, or making jewelry out of them, are not the reverent disposition that the Church requires.
The Church allows and encourages that funeral rites be celebrated for those who have taken their own lives in suicide.
A family requesting a funeral service is usually distraught and grief-filled. It should not be made difficult for them to bury their loved one.
Priests and deacons should be generous in accommodating families, even if the deceased is no longer a parishioner or the funeral is requested on the priest's day off (BCL 2/17/92, 8/94).
In the Diocese of San Angelo, no fee may be required for a funeral. Family members of the deceased may give a donation to the parish or a personal gift to the clergy member presiding at the funeral and/or other helpers. These gifts are voluntary.
In some parishes, a fee may be charged for musicians.
When possible, it is a commendable practice for a parish to offer a meal after the funeral as a form of compassionate outreach, free of charge.