As the sickly-sweet smell of incense wafted up from the chambers of the thurible and into the rafters of the church, I just thought I was doing my job. Since fifth grade, I have been serving alongside priests as an altar server, and then an Master of Ceremonies (MC). As an altar server I have assisted the priests through many rites of passage including matrimony, funerals, and masses of remembrance. I also have carried the processional cross for Sunday mass. As an MC I directly aid the priest in the mass. The Funeral Mass started like any other. As I prepared the Altar with the necessary sacramental vessels, I took a second to peer out from the sacristy to see the congregation. Unlike any funeral I had served before then, the congregation was overflowing with family, teachers, and friends. Then it was time for the …show more content…
In a Catholic Mass, the homily is like a sermon, however, in a funeral the homily is the priest’s eulogy. During the homily I looked out on the congregation and saw many of my friends crying, and heard her sister’s unstifled sobs in anguish and despair at her Megan’s passing. I tried to put myself in her shoes to try and feel what she was feeling at that moment, but I was unable to imagine the enormity of the impact on her life this had made. After the homily was the Liturgy of the Eucharist, which is when Communion is consecrated and distributed to eligible Catholics in the congregation. Finally, the closing procession, where we process out of the church, and back into the sacristy. As we were clearing and setting the Altar for the next mass, I reflected on the mass that I just served. It was at this point that I realized the enormity of what I had just participated in. I walked out of the church into the fresh air, and reflected on how life is short, and how you need to take opportunities when they are presented to
• This quote is significant because of my experiences with people passing away. The careful wording and language you speak leaves a significant mark on one’s heart. Describing the process of death is extremely agonizing even when funerals are formal and well planned out events. The ceremony is filled with tears and pain, words cannot fully describe exactly what it feels like. All we can hope for is for them to have a good afterlife.
The funeral was supposed to be a family affair. She had not wanted to invite so many people, most of them strangers to her, to be there at the moment she said goodbye. Yet, she was not the only person who had a right to his last moments above the earth, it seemed. Everyone, from the family who knew nothing of the anguish he had suffered in his last years, to the colleagues who saw him every day but hadn’t actually seen him, to the long-lost friends and passing acquaintances who were surprised to find that he was married, let alone dead, wanted to have a last chance to gaze upon him in his open coffin and say goodbye.
While in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the highly-regarded American novelist Willa Sibert Cather was captivated by the story of Archbishop Jean Baptiste Lamy and his friend, Father Macheboeuf. She was so enchanted by these two men that she decided to write a novel based on the events of their lives serving as Roman Catholic clergy in New Mexico. Her 1927 novel, Death Comes for the Archbishop, tells the story of Bishop Jean Latour and his friend, Father Joseph Vaillant, as they travel to New Mexico in the mid-nineteenth century to strengthen the Catholic faith of the natives. In Death Comes for the Archbishop, the natives of New Mexico are devout, but their religion has been corrupted by superstition because there have been no priests to instruct them on their faith. “This country was evangelized in fifteen hundred, by the Franciscan Fathers. It has been
‘…the characters’ strength was a direct result of their necessary stoicism in the face of so much hostility.’ Discuss the role of women in Burial Rites.
As expected, they waved their arms wildly to catch my attention. I smiled and waved back, though my wave was much smaller than theirs as I was doing my best not to draw attention to myself. For a moment, I was at ease because of their presence. But just as the girl in front of me stepped forward to take her place behind the microphone, my heart undeniably started to race once more. It had taken all of us days to prepare to give our last testament.
‘For both past and present, cremation can be regarded as a strategy of commemoration that involves the rapid, but culturally and technologically-varied, transformation of the corpse by fire’ (Williams, 2011, 113). This is the definition Williams (2011) gave to the term cremation, a concept which can be confusing, as most of the time the word is used in the meaning of ‘the remains of a cremation burial’ (McKinley, 2013, 149).
The long parade to the graveyard! Father, Mother. Margaret, that is a dreadful way! You just came home in time for the funeral, Stella. And funerals are pretty much compared to deaths.
In the past, when a person died no one asked, ¡§When should we schedule the funeral?¡¨ or ¡§How much would you like to spend on a casket?¡¨ Members of the community simply appeared and began preparing the body for burial and the mourners would provide comfort to the bereaved. Death itself has become something of a stranger because it used to be that death was an everyday occurrence of life, for example people did not live as long, higher infant mortality rates, etc. People usually died at home, surrounded by loved ones. ¡§Funerals, like weddings, were not invitational events, but community-wide gatherings. But today, it is possible to reach the age of forty without ever attending a funeral or visiting a house of mourning.
The Mass is the ultimate gift and sacrifice ever existed. The sacrifice of the Mass was not just more than two-thousand years ago, at the last super, it still goes on every day throughout the world. Whenever we are at Mass we are standing at the foot of the cross, were Jesus died. Without the priest how are we able to even receive he sacrament. In the following paragraphs I am going to be speaking about, the priest receiving Christ in the Eucharist and what it does to him, what is the main point of the priest in the Mass and, how can a priest be without the Eucharist.
When discussing any topic, from medicines to death, history is always relevant. Funeral service dates back to 1685, which involved providing mourning merchandise to the society. Many undertakers at this time in history were also furniture builders, building the coffins for burial, as well as other household furniture. It wasn’t until the 19th century that funeral directors were utilized often. Before this time, families took care of their deceased loved ones. Around the time of the civil war embalming was introduced and shed a new light on funeral service. Listed below is a brief summary of some important events in funeral service history.
As my family planned the funeral over the next few days, we began reminiscing about our time with my mom. This made me realize that I never take any of the time I spent with her for granted and I will cherish every moment I had with
In modern day America, a lot of changes have occurred with a standard funeral. A standard funeral is viewed as a coping mechanism for the living. While coping with death, there are several ways that a body can be disposed .A body can be buried in the earth, buried in the sea, burned (cremation), exposed to air or preserved. After the body is buried, a memorial service is held in honor of the deceased. The manner in which the body is prepared for the funeral and the manner the memorial service is held is determined by the person’s culture and religion.
Most people dismiss anything having to do with death out of fear. The uncertainty some associate with death has caused Funeral Service to be a particularly taboo subject in society. One may assume funeral directors are the sketchy personalities enthralled with death, but that couldn’t be further from the truth. Over the years, Funeral Service has progressed and become a larger industry. Funeral Service has changed in its history over time, affecting the education required, and the job they do today.
Jesus Christ’s life and mission, which is now present worldwide, is the origin of the Roman Catholicism. Catholics believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God who became man, died and rose from the dead to redeem humanity from sin (Catholic Truth Society, 3). He passed his mission of salvation to the Catholic Church through his apostles and then their successors (Catholic Truth Society, 4).
At the end of the aisle there was a small pedestal which was watched over by our pastor. To the right of the pedestal was where I stood, with the best seat in the house, and behind me stood a line of groomsmen. Behind all of us was a small table with a glass of wine, bread, and three candles. All of the guests were seated and we all waited for the main attraction. Soon we would all witness the stunning