 |
||
 |
||
|
Dear Brothers and Sisters in the Lord:
"In the face of death, the Church confidently proclaims that God has created each person for eternal life and that Jesus, the Son of God, by his death and resurrection, has broken the chains of sin and death that bound humanity."
The proclamation of the death and resurrection of Christ is at the center of the Church's life. The victory of Christ's resurrection enables the faithful who experience the death of a loved one to celebrate the Church's funeral rites with the sure and certain hope that death is not the end of human life. For as Saint Paul writes: "Through baptism into his death we were buried with him, so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might live a new life. If we have been united with him through likeness to his death, so shall we be through a like resurrection.”
It is this hope rooted in the Paschal Mystery of Christ's death and resurrection that gives meaning to the Church's ministry of consolation for those who mourn the death of a loved one. This ministry of support and love, strengthened by our faith in the promises of the Lord Jesus is the responsibility of all members of Christ's body, the Church. Pastors, priests, deacons, religious, and laity need to share in this important pastoral ministry of the parish according to their gifts, talents, and pastoral responsibilities. The growth of the ministry of consolation in so many parishes throughout the diocese has enriched the Church's pastoral ministry to those who mourn during this difficult moment of our life, both as members of the human family and members of the family of the Church.
The funeral rites of the Church proclaim the centrality of the Paschal Mystery in our life as Christians especially at the time of death and continue in a unique way the Church's ministry of consolation for the mourners.
In addition, the Order of Christian Funerals (OCF) published and mandated for use in the dioceses of the United States on November 2, 1989 provides a variety of liturgical rites to be used to commend the deceased to the mercy and love of God. Among these various rites "the funeral liturgy is the central liturgical celebration of the Christian Community for the deceased. “. Although providing a ritual for the funeral liturgy outside Mass, the Order of Christian Funerals clearly reaffirms the Church's encouragement that the celebration of Mass takes place when one of its members dies.
Pastors and all those involved in the pastoral ministry of the Church at the time of death should make full use of the rites of the Order of Christian Funerals and the options given in the rites. Special care is to be to insure that the Funeral Mass is celebrated for the deceased. Celebration of the liturgical rites of the OCF is an essential component of good pastoral care. I would, therefore, encourage parishes to provide ongoing formation and catechesis on the Church’s funeral rites, not only as a way to ensure their faithful implementation but to foster a true appreciation of their beauty and power to express and form our faith.
Both in its pastoral ministry and in particular in its funeral rites the church facesthe mystery of death and proclaims its victory over death through Christ. "When the corruptible frame takes on incorruptibility and the mortal, immortality, than will the saying of scripture be fulfilled: 'Death is swallowed up in victory, ' 'O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?…’ But thanks be to God who has given us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.”
Through its funeral rites the Church has sought “as a tender mother, not simply to commend thedead to God but also to raise high the hope of its children and to give witness to its own faith in the future resurrection of thebaptized with Christ. "'
Remaining faithful to this desire in the face of changing funeral practices, in particular the growing use of cremation, the NCCB requested and was granted by the Holy See an indult allowing for the presence of the cremated remains of a body at the funeral liturgy in a decree from the Congregation for Divine Worship and Discipline of the Sacraments, dated 21 March 1997.
As the 1989 edition of the OCF did not make provision for the presence of the cremated remains at the funeral liturgy, the NCCB approved an appendix to the OCF on November 12, 1996 containing texts and ritual adaptations of the funeral rites. The Appendix was confirmed by the congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments on July 30, 1997.
After prayerful reflection and in response to pastoral need, I grant priests and deacons permission for the use of the indult permitting the presence of the cremated remains of a body at the Funeral Liturgy in the Diocese of Brooklyn, as of the publication of this instruction. It is understood that in making use of this indult sacred ministers will "(take) into account the concrete circumstances in each individual case, " judging its pastoral appropriateness "in harmony with the spirit and precise content of the current canonical and liturgical norms. " The appendix on cremation to the Order of Christian Funerals is the mandated rite to be used in the celebration of the funeral rites in the presence of the cremated remains of the deceased.
The use of the indult permitting the presence of the cremated remains during the Funeral Mass is an opportunity to ponder seriously on the interaction of the Church's funeral rites and pastoral issues surrounding the entire process of death and burial in our society today.
The body of the deceased holds a long and honored tradition of respect, love and care within the funeral rites of the Church. Such a tradition flows from the Church's respect for the human body in life. For the human body is the temple of the Holy Spirit and finds its true destiny in the glory of the resurrection. It is the body of the believer that "is also the body once washed in baptism, anointed with the oil of salvation, and fed with the Bread of Life." Likewise, "it is the body whose hands clothed the poor and embraced the sorrowing."' Such reverence, respect, and true love for the human body as the highest expression of God's creative act is surely needed today in our society that often does not share those values.
It is the responsibility of those charged with pastoral leadership in the parish to maintain this tradition through preaching arid various means of education and formation. The faithful should be informed of the proper order of the Church's' funeral rites which see cremation following, the celebration of the funeral liturgy.
The Church's teaching on the importance of the burial of the body and the cremated remains "should be a regular part of catechesis on all levels and pastors should make particular efforts to preserve this important teaching."' The Church respects and honors the body of the deceased not only in its funeral rites but in the places where they are buried. This same teaching must apply to the cremated remains of the deceased.
Concern to provide a proper place for the burial of our brothers and sisters in the faith has been a constant part of the Church's life. Devotion to the saints can trace its origins to the visits of the early Christians to the tombs of the martyrs.
This corporal work of mercy continues today within the Church in the ministry of our Catholic Cemeteries. "The Catholic Cemetery holds the bodies, once temples of the Holy Spirit, until the Lord comes again in glory. "' Cemeteries then call to mind the resurrection of the dead and should be "the focus for the Church's remembering of the dead and offering of prayer for them. "
We must insure that the cremated remains of a body be treated with the same reverence, respect, and love as the human body from which they come. Burial of the cremated remains should be treated as important as burial of the human body.
The implementation of this indult provides an opportunity for the local church to reflect upon our funeral rites and to ponder anew their place in our lives as Catholics in order to rediscover, maintain, and preserve their meaning as we move toward the new millennium. This reflection must also include an honest appraisal of the changes and developments taking place in contemporary funerals practices and their impact on the Church's funeral rites. I urge all pastors, parish staffs, and all those involved in the Church’s Ministry of Consolation to use this occasion as an opportunity to consider carefully the pastoral issues involved in light of the Church’s teaching and tradition. I have enclosed, therefore, a publication of the National Conference of Catholic Bishops entitled, Reflections on the Body, Cremation and Catholic Funeral Rites. I am confident you will find it helpful.
In order to further assist in this process of reflection and to provide an orderly implementation of this new liturgical rite, I have asked Reverend Monsignor John C. Tosi, in conjunction with the Diocesan Liturgical Commission, the Chancery Office and the Catholic Cemeteries Office to provide a program of catechesis and formation for the various groups of the diocese involved in this area of the Church’s pastoral work. You will be receiving very shortly more detailed in formation in this regard.
Each year in celebrating the feasts of All Saints and All Souls the Church reaffirms the spiritual bonds which exists within the Church between the living and the dead. As His Holiness, Pope Paul VI wrote, “We believe in the communion of all the faithful of Christ, those who are pilgrims on earth, the dead who are being purified, and the blessed in heaven, all together forming one Church and we believe that in this communion, the merciful love of God and his saints is always [attentive] to our prayers." Likewise, the Council Fathers of Vatican 11 acknowledged this great Communion of Saints as "the venerable faith of our ancestors. ""The Church on earth prays to the saints in heaven and receives their intercession and help; the Church on earth although separated by death is still one with the dead still "being purified" who can benefit by our prayers and intercessions.
The funeral rites affirm and express this one great Communion of Saints. May we live in this one Communion of Saints ‑ in a sure and certain hope that one day "all the faithful will be raised up and reunited in the new heavens and a new earth, where death will be no more. "
Most Reverend Thomas V Daily, D. D. Bishop of Brooklyn
January 1998
|
|
|
||