In the dioceses of the United States, the principal rituals in the Order of Christian Funerals are the Vigil for the Deceased, The Funeral Mass, and the Rite of Christian Burial. The Funeral Mass is the central liturgy of the Christian funeral in the Archdiocese of San Francisco.
The Eucharist is the heart of the Paschal reality of Christian death (Catechism of the Catholic Church #1689). In the celebration of the Eucharist, the Church most perfectly expresses her communion with those who have died. The celebration of the Eucharist at the funeral is an opportunity for the community of the faithful, and for the family, to "learn to live in communion with the one who has 'fallen asleep in the Lord,' by communicating the Body of Christ of which he is a living member and, then, by praying for him and with him" (CCC #1689).
The Catholic community wishes to stand with the family and friends in this difficult time. Please contact your parish to discuss funeral arrangements. The parish will assist you in the process of planning and celebrating the funeral Liturgy (and/or the Vigil service) of your loved one.
Our Catholic funeral rites are intended to bring hope and consolation to the living, while proclaiming and witnessing our faith in the Resurrection. Christian hope faces the reality of death and the anguish of grief but trusts in God’s mercy and victory over death. Our funeral rites strive to meet the human need to turn always to God in times of crisis as well as pray for the deceased.
Job 1: 23-27a: I know that my Redeemer lives
Wisdom 3: 1-9: He accepted them as a holocaust.
Wisdom 3: 1-6 9 short (short version)
Wisdom 4: 7-15: A blameless life is a ripe old age.
Isaiah 25: 6 7-9: The Lord God will destroy death forever.
Lamentations 3: 17-26: It is good to wait in silence for the Lord God to save.
Daniel 12: 1-3: Of those who lie sleeping in the dust of the earth many will awake.
2 Maccabees 12: 43-46: It is good and holy to think of the dead rising again.
Psalm 23: The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.
--or-- Though I walk in the valley of darkness, I fear no evil, for you
are with me.
Psalm 25: To you, Lord, I lift my soul.
--or-- No one who waits for you, O Lord, will ever be put to shame.
Psalm 27: The Lord is my light and my salvation.
--or-- I believe that I shall see the good things of the Lord in the
land of the living.
Psalm 42 & 43: My soul is thirsting for the living God; when shall I see him face to face?
Psalm 63: My soul is thirsting for you, O Lord my God.
Psalm 103: The Lord is kind and merciful.
--or-- The salvation of the just comes from the Lord.
Psalm 116: I will walk in the presence of the Lord in the land of the living
--or-- Alleluia.
Psalm 122: I rejoiced when I heard them say; let us go to the house of the
Lord.
Psalm 122 Let us go rejoicing to the house of the Lord.
Psalm 130: Out of the depths, I cry to you, Lord.
--or-- I hope in the Lord, I trust in his word.
Psalm 143: O Lord, hear my prayer.
During the Easter Season, reading 1, 17, 18 or 19 is used as the first reading
instead of a reading from the Old Testament.
Acts 10: 34-43: God has appointed Jesus to judge everyone, alive and dead.
NT 1 short Acts 10 34-36 42-43 (short version)
Romans 5: 5-11: Having been justified by his blood, we will be saved from God’s anger through him.
Romans 5: 17-21: Where sin increased, there grace abounded all the more.
Romans 6: 3-9: Let us walk in the newness of life.
Romans 6: 3-4 8-9 short (short version)
Romans 6: 3-4 8-9 short: We groan while we wait for the redemption of our bodies.
Romans 8: 31-35 37-39: Who can ever come between us in the love of Christ?
Romans 14: 7-9 10-12: Whether alive or dead, we belong to the Lord.
Corinthians 15: 20-24a 25-28: All people will be brought to life in Christ.
Corinthians 15: 20-23 short (short version)
Corinthians 15: 51-57: Death is swallowed up in victory.
Corinthians 4: 14 - 15:1: What is seen is transitory; what is unseen is eternal.
2 Corinthians 5:1, 6-10: We have an everlasting home in heaven.
Philippians 3: 20-21: Jesus will transfigure these wretched bodies of ours to be like his glorious body.
Thessalonians 4: 13-18: We shall stay with the Lord forever.
Timothy 2: 8-13: If we have died with him, we shall live with him.
John 3:1-2: We shall see God as he really is.
John 3: 14-16: We have passed from death to life, because we love our brothers and sisters.
Revelations 14: 13: Happy are those who die in the Lord.
Revelations 20: 11 - 21: 1: The dead have been judged according to their works.
Revelations 21: 1-5 6-7: There will be no more death.
Matthew 5: 1-12: Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven
Matthew 11: 25-30: Come to me… and I will give you rest.
Matthew 25: 1-13: Look. The bridegroom comes. Go out to meet him.
Matthew 25: 31-46: Come, you whom my Father has blessed.
Mark 15: 33 - 16: 6: Jesus gave a loud cry and breathed his last.
Mark 15: 33-39 short (short form)
Luke 7: 11-17: Young man, I say to you, arise.
Luke 12: 35-40: Be prepared.
Luke 23: 33, 39-43: Today you will be with me in paradise.
Luke 23: 44-46, 50 52-53 24:1-6a: Father, I put my life in your hands.
Luke 23: 44-46, 50 52-53 short (short form)
Luke 24: 13-35: Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer and so enter into his glory?
Luke 24: 13-16 28-35 short(short form)
John 5: 24-29: Whoever hears my word and believes has passed from death to life.
John 6:37-40: All who believe in the Son will have eternal life and I will raise them to life again on the last day.
John 6: 51-58: All who eat this bread will live forever; and I will raise them up on the last day.
John 11: 17-27: I am the resurrection and the life.
John 11: 21-27 short (short version)
John 11: 32-45: Lazarus, come out.
John 12: 23-28: If a grain of wheat falls on the ground and dies, it yields a rich harvest.
John 12: 23-26 short (short version)
John 14: 1-6: There are many rooms in my Father’s house.
John 17: 24-26: Father, I want those you have given me to be with me where I am.
John 19: 17-18 25-30: Jesus bowed his head and gave up his spirit.
Macabeos 12: 43-46: Obró con gran rectitud y nobleza, pensando en la resurrección.
Job 19: 1, 23-27: Yo sé bien que mi defensor está vivo.
Sabiduría 3: 1-9 Los aceptó como un holocausto agradable.
Sabiduría 3: 1-6 9 forma breve
Sabiduría 4: 7-15: La edad avanzada se mide por una vida intachable.
Isaías 25: 6,7-9: El Señor destruirá la muerte para siempre.
Lamentaciones: 3 17-26: Es bueno esperar en silencio la salvación de Señor.
Daniel 12: 1-3: Muchos de los que duermen en el polvo, despertarán.
Salmo 22: El señor es mi pastor, nada me falta.
--o-- Aunque camine por cañadas oscuras, Nada temo, porque tú vas
conmigo.
Salmo 24: A ti Señor, levanto mi alma.
--o-- Los que esperan en ti, Señor, no quedan defraudados.
Salmo 26: El Señor es me luz y mu salvación.
--o-- Espero gozar de la dicha del Señor en el país de la vida.
Salmo 41 & 42: Mi alma tiene sed el Dios vivo.
Salmo 62: Mi alma está sedienta de ti, mi Dios.
Salmo 102: El Señor es compasivo y misericordioso.
--o-- El Señor es quien salva a los justos.
Salmo 114: Caminare en presencia del Señor en el país de la vida.
--o-- Aleluya.
Salmo 121: ¡Que alegría cuando me dijeron: “Vamos a la casa del Señor!”
--o-- Vamos alegres a la case del Señor.
Salmo 129: Desde lo hondo a ti grito, Señor.
--o-- Espero en el Señor, espero en su palabra.
Salmo 142: Señor, escucha mi oracion.
Durante el tiempo Pascual se usa la lectura 1, la 17, la 18, o la 19 como primero lectura en vez de una lectura del Antiguo Testamento.
Hechos 10: 34-43: Dios ha constituido a Jesús como juez de los vivos y muertos.
Hechos 10: 34-36, 42-43 forma breve
Romanos 5: 5-11: Justificados por la sangre de Cristo, seremos salvados por él del castigo final.
Romanos 5: 17-21: Donde abundó el pecado, sobreabundó la gracia.
Romanos 6: 3-9: Fuimos sepultados con él por medio del bautismo para que emprendamos una vida nueva.
Romanos 6: 3-4, 8-9 forma breve
Romanos 8: 14-23: Anhelemos la redención de nuestro cuerpo.
Romanos 8: 31-35, 37-39: ¿Qué cosa podrá apartarnos de amor con que nos ama Cristo?
Romanos 14: 7-9, 10-12: Si vivimos, para el Señor vivimos; y si morimos, para el Señor morimos.
Corintios 15: 20-24a, 25-28: En Cristo todos volverán a la vida.
Corintios 15: 20-23 forma breve
Corintios 15: 51-57: La muerte ha sido aniquilada por la victoria.
Corintios 4: 14-15 1: Lo que se ve es transitorio y lo que no se ve es eterno.
Corintios 5:1, 6-10: Dios nos tiene preparada en el cielo una morada eterna.
Filipenses 3: 20-21: El transfigurará nuestro cuerpo miserable es un cuerpo glorioso, semejante al suyo.
Tesalonicenses 4: 13-18: Estaremos con el Señor para siempre.
Timoteo 2: 8-13: Si morimos con él, viviremos con él.
Juan 3: 1-2 Aún no se ha manifestado cómo seremos al fin.
Juan 3: 14-16: Estamos seguros de haber pasado de la muerte a la vida, porque amamos a nuestros hermanos.
Apocalipsis 14: 13: Dichosos los que mueren en el Señor.
Apocalipsis 20: 11-21 1: Los muertos fueron juzgados conforme a sus obras.
Apocalipsis 21: 1-5, 6-7: Ya no habrá muerte.