The Mass of Christian Burial is an opportunity to express deep feelings of love and sorrow, but also and opportunity for Christian believers to affirm their trust and faith in the Paschal mystery, “Christ has died, Christ has risen, Christ will come again!”
Our celebration of the Eucharist is our strongest statement that Christ contradicts the death we experience. It is the greatest challenge for the Christian to trust the Lord’s promise that even “in the valley of darkness,” The Risen Christ is still with us.
Without denying our emotions at this difficult time, our church invites us to express our faith in an act of worship. We must ask ourselves if the service we plan for our loved ones express the hope and faith to which (we and they) are called. As members of the Church, we believe that we have membership in a larger family - the household of faith and the Communion of Saints. For this reason, we stress the importance of bringing the remains of the deceased to the church for the funeral liturgy, even if cremation is to follow. It is the church building that is the place of the catholic community’s celebration. There we gather for Baptism and the other sacraments of the church’s life.
Our Chapel can accommodate up to 70 people, for a more intimate worship service. The main church seats around 600 comfortably and is wheel chair accessible for the elderly or handicapped. It is our hope that as many neighbors and parish members as possible can join the family of the deceased in prayer.
Time can be made for a family member to give a brief remembrance and invitation to funeral reception or banquet. The better time for a quality Eulogy is during the wake or vigil. The role of the funeral homily is to remember the deceased in the mystery of the Lord’s death and resurrection which is the reason for our hope.