Funerals

To plan a funeral, please call our Parish Office.

Catholic funeral rites are made up of three parts: the Vigil (sometimes referred to as a wake), the Mass, and the Committal.

The Vigil for the deceased is celebrated after death and before the Funeral Mass, in the home of the deceased, a funeral home, a chapel, or some other suitable place. The point of the Vigil is for the parish community to come together and keep watch with the family in prayer to the God of mercy. In this time of loss, the community turns to the Word of God as a source of faith and hope, as light and life in the face of darkness and death. 

The Funeral Mass is the central celebration for the deceased. There is no better prayer that we can offer for someone than the Mass, because it is the prayer of Jesus. The parish gathers with the family of the deceased to 1) give praise and thanks to God for Christ’s victory over sin and death, 2) commend the deceased to God’s mercy, and 3) seek strength from the paschal mystery. The Most Holy Eucharist expresses our Communion with God and the Saints in heaven, and serves as food for the journey for us who remain. 

Lastly, there is the Rite of Committal, which concludes the funeral rites and is celebrated at the grave, tomb, or columbarium. During this rite the priest or deacon prays over the burial place: In sure hope of the resurrection to eternal life … we commit this body to its resting place: earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust. It concludes with the words: Eternal rest grant unto them, O Lord, and let perpetual light shine upon them. May the souls of the faithful departed, through the mercy of God, rest in peace.