When we are faced with the death of a loved, we are overwhelmed by the grief and all that has to be done. In response to questions that we are often asked at the time of a funeral these are some things to keep in mind.

When your loved one dies, the priests of the Parish are willing to come to the house to bless them and pray with the family.

The first step in organising the funeral is to contact an undertaker. Their role is to make the necessary arrangements, care for your
loved one and organise the burial or cremation.

The role of the Parish is to help give thanks to God for the life of your loved one, celebrate the Christian Funeral Liturgy, witness to the hope we believe in as a Christin people and honour the life of your loved one.

We celebrate the Funeral either as a Funeral Mass or a Funeral Service.

We will provide you with a selection of readings and prayers, go through the hymns and make sure that everything is done respectfully on the day.

• With the Priest there will be a member of the funeral team to help you. In the Church the Sacristan will make sure everything that we need is in place.
• You will be given some options for the Funeral celebration:
• You choose the readings. We will provide a selection of options.
• You choose the Prayer of the Faithful from this book, adapted your needs.
• You can choose a poem or reflection for after communion
• You can ask a member of the family to speak at the beginning or end of the Funeral but for no more than five minutes.
• You can choose symbols to be brought up at the beginning of the Funeral. In choosing symbols and flower displays they must be respectful to the Church and may not be associated with illegal activity.
• Members of your family can place the pall on the coffin, a white cloth which reminds us of the white shawl they were clothed in at their baptism.
• If your loved one was a member of a sports club their flag may be on the coffin as it enters and leaves the Church, but on the memory table for the Funeral Mass or Service.
• Both Churches have trained singers and musicians who know what is appropriate and give many choices of the hymns available. They also follow the requirements of the Church in the responses and acclamations of the Mass.
• If you are using a musician or singer who is not part of the Parish Music Ministry, then they must ring the priest 48 hours before the funeral before the music is finalised.
• During the Funeral we ask that you use religious music with a singer and musician, you can have a song they liked at the end only.
• The use of drones or recording equipment is not permitted in the Church. The Parish will record the webstream of the funeral and this is on our website for 30days after the funeral for download.