Please let the priest know the readings you have chosen and he will use these at the Funeral Mass.
INTRODUCTION.
The Rite of Christian Funerals offers a wide selection of scriptural
readings for use at a funeral. Normally,
the relatives of the deceased choose the readings, the responsorial psalm, and
the gospel acclamation to be used at the funeral Mass. In choosing the appropriate reading we should
to seek find in the readings a particular idea which best expresses the quality
of Christian living of the deceased and sets before us the basis of our faith -
the Resurrection of Christ and our hope of Resurrection.
Please choose one reading from either those entitled GOLD pages or from
those entitled GREEN pages, a responsorial psalm from the BLUE pages and a
gospel acclamation from the WHITE pages.
The priest will choose a gospel reading from those entitled Red pages.
You may ask someone in the family, a relative or a friend to read the
readings you have chosen. It is usually
wise to ask someone familiar with reading in the church and who will not get
upset. The same person, or another, may
read the Prayers of Intercession which will be provided by the parish. The parish organist will help you to select
the music and hymns you feel best express the faith of the Church and the faith
of the deceased. To help you in your
choice, you may borrow a hymn book from the church but we would appreciate your
returning this as soon as possible.
Please choose hymns that are widely known and which those attending will
sing out as fitting praise and prayer to God.
Choose one hymn for the ENTRANCE; one Hymn for the PREPARATION OF THE
GIFTS; two hymns for the COMMUNION and one hymn for the EXIT from the Church.
Note that hymns to Our Lady or the Saints should not be sung at Communion
time. If a hymn to Our Lady or the
Saints is thought to be appropriate, then the best setting for such a hymn is
at the end as the coffin is led from the Church.
May the Faithful Departed rest in peace. Amen.
Organists:
Please contact Parish Secretary Mrs Kathleen Stewart on 01475 721084
GOLD
ONE.
JOB
19:1,23-27.
I
SHALL LOOK ON GOD.
A reading from the book of Job 19:1.23-27
Job said:
'Ah, would that these
words of mine were written down,
inscribed on some
monument
with iron chisel and
engraving tool,
cut into the rock for
ever.
This I know: that my
Avenger lives,
and he, the Last, will
take his stand on earth.
After my awaking, he
will set me close to him,
and from my flesh I
shall look on God.
He whom I shall see will
take my part:
these eyes will gaze on
him and find him not aloof.'
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOLD
TWO.
WISDOM
3:1-6,9.
THE
VIRTUOUS IN GOD'S HANDS.
A reading from the book of Wisdom.
The souls of the virtuous are in the hands of God,
no torment shall ever touch them.
In the eyes of the unwise, they did appear to die,
their going looked like a disaster,
their leaving us, like annihilation;
but they are in peace.
If they experienced punishment as men see it,
their hope was rich with immortality;
slight was their affliction, great will their blessings be.
God has put them to the test
and proved them worthy to be with him;
he has tested them like gold in a furnace,
and accepted them as a holocaust.
When the time comes for his visitation they will shine out;
as sparks run through the stubble, so will they.
They shall judge nations, rule over peoples,
and the Lord will be their king for ever.
They who trust in him will understand the truth,
those who are faithful will live with him in love;
for grace and mercy await those he has chosen.
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOLD
THREE.
WISDOM
4:7-15.
HE
SOUGHT TO PLEASE GOD.
A reading from the book of Wisdom. 4:7-15
The virtuous man, though he die before his time, will find rest.
Length of days is not what makes age honourable,
nor number of years the true measure of life;
understanding, this is man's grey hairs,
untarnished life, this is ripe old age.
He has sought to please God, so God has loved him;
as he was living among sinners, he has been taken up.
He has been carried off so that evil may not warp his understanding or
treachery seduce his soul;
for the fascination of evil throws good things into the shade,
and the whirlwind of desire corrupts a simple heart.
Coming to perfection in so short a while, he achieved long life;
his soul being pleasing to the Lord,
he has taken him quickly from the wickedness around him.
Yet people look on, uncomprehending;
it does not enter their heads
that grace and mercy await the chosen of the Lord,
and protection, his holy ones.
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOLD
FOUR.
ISAIAH
25;6-9.
SEE,
THIS IS OUR GOD.
A reading from the prophet Isaiah 25:6-9
On this mountain,
the Lord of hosts will prepare for all peoples
a banquet of rich food.
On this mountain he will remove
the mourning veil covering all peoples,
and the shroud enwrapping all nations,
he will destroy Death for ever.
The Lord will wipe away
the tears from every cheek;
he will take away his people's shame
everywhere on earth,
for the Lord has said so.
That day, it will be said: See, this is our God
in whom we hoped for salvation;
the Lord is the one in whom we hoped.
We exult and we rejoice
that he has saved us.
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOLD
FIVE.
LAMENTATIONS
3:17-26.
THE LORD'S
FAVOURS ARE NOT ALL PAST.
A reading from the book of Lamentations.
My soul is shut out from peace;
I have forgotten happiness.
An now I say, 'My strength is gone
that hope which came from the Lord'.
Brooding on my anguish and affliction
is gall and wormwood.
My spirit ponders it continually
and sinks within me.
This is what I shall tell my heart,
and so recover hope:
the favours of the Lord are not all past,
his kindnesses are not exhausted;
every morning they are renewed;
great in his faithfulness.
'My portion is the Lord' says my soul
'and so I will hope in him.'
The Lord is good to those who trust him,
to the soul that searches for him.
It is good to wait in silence
for the Lord to save.
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOLD
SIX.
DANIEL
12:1-3.
THOSE WHO
SLEEP IN DUST WILL AWAKE.
A reading from the prophet Daniel.
I, Daniel, was doing penance when I received this message from the
Lord:
'At that time Michael will stand up, the great prince who mounts guard
over your people. There is going to be a
time of great distress unparalleled since nations first came into existence. When that time comes, your own people will be
spared, all those whose names are found written in the Book. Of those who lie sleeping in the dust of the
earth many will awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting
disgrace. The learned will shine as
brightly as the vault of heaven, and those who have instructed many in virtue,
as bright as stars for all eternity.'
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOLD
SEVEN.
2
MACCABEES 12:43-45.
A
HOLY AND DEVOUT ACTION.
A reading from the second book of Maccabees
Judas, the leader of the Jews, took a collection from the people
individually, amounting to nearly two thousand drachmae, and sent it to
Jerusalem to have a sacrifice for sin offered, an altogether fine and noble
action, in which he took full account of the resurrection. For if he had not expected the fallen to rise
again it would have been superfluous and foolish to pray for the dead, whereas
if he had in view the splendid recompense reserved for those who make a pious
end, the thought was holy and devout.
This was why he had this atonement sacrifice offered for the dead, so
that they might be released from their sin.
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOLD
EIGHT.
ACTS OF
THE APOSTLES 10:34-43.
GOD HAS
APPOINTED CHRIST AS JUDGE.
A reading from the Acts of the Apostles
Peter addressed Cornelius and his household:
'The truth I have now come to realise,' he said 'is that God does not
have favourites, but that anybody of any nationality who fears God and does
what is right is acceptable to him.'
'It is true, God sent his word to the people of Israel, and it was to
them that the good news of peace was brought by Jesus Christ - but Jesus Christ
is Lord of all men. You must have heard
about the recent happenings in Judaea; about Jesus of Nazareth and how he began
in Galilee, after John had been preaching baptism. God had anointed him with the Holy Spirit and
with power, and because God was with him, Jesus went about doing good and
curing all who had fallen into the power of the devil. Now I, and those with me, can witness to
everything he did throughout the countryside of Judaea and in Jerusalem itself:
and also to the fact that they killed him by hanging him on a tree, yet three
days afterwards God raised him to life and allowed him to be seen, not by the
whole people but only by certain witnesses God had chosen beforehand. Now we are those witnesses - we have eaten
and drunk with him after his resurrection from the dead - and he has ordered us
to proclaim this to his people and to tell them that God has appointed him to
judge everyone alive or dead. It is to
him that all the prophets bear this witness: that all who believe in Jesus will
have their sins forgiven through his name.'
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOLD
NINE.
REVELATION
14:13.
HAPPY ARE
THOSE WHO DIE IN THE LORD.
A reading from the book of
Revelation.
I, John, heard a voice from heaven say to me, 'Write down: Happy are
those who die in the Lord! Happy indeed,
the Spirit says; now they can rest for ever after their work, since their good
deeds go with them.'
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOLD
TEN.
REVELATION
20:11-21:1.
JUDGED
ACCORDING TO OUR DEEDS.
A reading from the book of Revelation.
I, John, saw a great white throne and the One who was sitting on
it. In his presence, earth and sky
vanished, leaving no trace. I saw the
dead, both great and small, standing in front of his throne, while the book of
life was opened, and other books opened which were the record of what they had
done in their lives, by which the dead were judged.
The sea gave up all the dead who were in it; Death and Hades were
emptied of the dead that were in them, and every one was judged according to
the way in which he had lived. Then
Death and Hades were thrown into the burning lake. This burning lake is the second death; and
anybody whose name could not be found written in the book of life was thrown
into the burning lake.
Then I saw a new heaven and a new earth; the first heaven and the first
earth had disappeared now, and there was no longer any sea.
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
GOLD
ELEVEN.
REVELATION
21:1-7.
THERE
WILL BE NO MORE DEATH.
A reading from the book of Revelation.
I, John, saw a new heaven and a new earth; the first heaven and the
first earth had disappeared now, and there was no longer any sea. I saw the holy city, and the new Jerusalem,
coming down from God out of heaven, as beautiful as a bride all dressed for her
husband. Then I heard a loud voice call
from the throne. 'You see this
city? Here God lives among men. He will make his home among them; they shall
be his people, and he will be their God; his name is God-with-them. He will wipe away all tears from their eyes;
there will be no more death, and no more mourning or sadness. The world of the past has gone.'
Then the One sitting on the throne spoke: 'Now I am making the whole of
creation new,' he said. 'I will give
water from the well of life free to anybody who is thirsty; it is the rightful
inheritance of the one who proves victorious; and I will be his God and he a
son to me.'
This is the word of the Lord.
Thanks be to God.
BLUE ONE.
Responsorial Psalm
The response to the Reading is:
The Lord is my light and my help.