Funeral Planning and Policies

Funeral Pre-Planning Process

  • All year round, at Our Lady of Lourdes Office, a Red Funeral Pre-Planning Packet can be picked up for your family to discuss and pre-plan the same you pre-plan with your selected Funeral Home.
  • All year round, you can schedule an appointment with our, Director of Pastoral Care, Fernando Gomez, 623-344-7285, fgomez@ololscw.org, to sit down and go over Pre-Planning and Funeral Liturgy questions to help you and your family with Pre-Planning needs.

Funeral Planning Process

  • At time of death, Contact funeral home to make arrangements for casket or urn and final resting place in a cemetery. If you would like an obituary, be prepared to provide that information to the funeral home or local newspaper.
  • Contact Parish Office to make arrangements for funeral services (Vigil, Mass, Committal).
  • Notify relatives, friends, church, employer (if employed) and organizations of which the deceased was a member (e.g., Knights of Columbus, veterans associations).
  • Decide whether or not to have a luncheon or gathering for relatives and friends after the services. Make necessary arrangements.
  • Begin a list to keep track of flowers, sympathy cards, etc., sent by friends and relatives.
  • Death Certificates: You can order certified copies of the death certificate from the funeral director or your hospice. Often you can get them from the local Department of Health office in the county where the death occurred.

Funeral Liturgy

The Three Sacred Moments

Vigil

The Vigil, celebrated prior to the Funeral Mass, is a major component of the Order of Christian Funerals.  The Vigil follows a model of the Liturgy of the Word, centering on the Word of God proclaimed from Scripture.  After a brief reflection on the Scripture readings, the presider may invite family and friends to share their memories of the deceased.  The presider is usually a deacon.

Some families may choose to have the rosary recited at the Vigil or before the funeral Mass.

Funeral Liturgy

“The Mass, the memorial of Christ’s death and resurrection, is the principal celebration of the Christian funeral.” (OCF, 5)  There are three different forms:

  • Funeral Mass with the body present (preferred option)
  • Funeral Mass with cremated remains present
  • Memorial Mass (no remains present)

The liturgy is rich with baptismal imagery.  The body, when present, is greeted at the door of the church and sprinkled with holy water.  The casket is covered with the pall, a white garment that reflects the white garment worn at Baptism. The casket or urn is placed by the lighted Paschal candle, a symbol of the gift of new life after death.  Near the end of the liturgy, the priest incenses the body as we entrust the deceased to the care of God through the angels.

In planning the funeral liturgy, family members may select from our appropriate lists the following:

  • The three Scripture readings and the responsorial psalm
  • The Christian reader who proclaims the readings
  • The four hymns sung during Mass
  • The gift bearers and pall bearers

Commital

The Rite of Committal is the final act of the community of faith in caring for the body of the deceased. When possible, it is celebrated at the site of committal, at the grave, mausoleum or columbarium, immediately following the funeral Mass.   With the prayers of the community, the body is committed to its final resting place with hope in the glory of the resurrection.  (OCF 204, 206)

Funeral Pre-Planning Form

PRE-PLANNING FORM (PDF)  ONLINE PRE-PLANNING FORM

Please submit the Online Pre-Planning Form prior to meeting with the Funeral Coordinator. For more information, contact Director of Pastoral Care, Fernando Gomez, at 623-344-7285 or fgomez@ololscw.org.