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Information about how the Uniting Church in Australia understands Funerals - downloadable paper
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Funeral, Memorial or Thanksgiving Services and other Pastoral Services Briefing Notes for Funeral Directors
The Eastwood Uniting Church Congregation is inspired by God's own compassion for the grieving, in offering pastoral support, spiritual companionship and religious services at times of grief and loss. Just as Christ wept both for his close friend, Lazarus, and for all of Jerusalem, there is no one who falls outside the love and compassion of God. Eastwood UC's services are available to all, whatever the background or situation in life.
Under normal circumstances, enquiries about Funeral, Memorial or Thanksgiving Services should be directed as follows:
The Church Office
The Ministers (please leave a message - they will get back to you)
These notes are provided in recognition of the professional relationship that is established between Funeral Directors and Church Workers. We hope this helps to clarify expectations and open dialogue about ways in which we can work together well.
Funeral Directors or Next-of-kin, seeking to book a funeral in the Church, are requested to nominate at least two possible times. Please consider the need for the Minister to plan to make a pastoral visit prior to the Funeral. The Minister (often accompanied by an Elder or Carer) is also available to attend viewings, services in Chapels and at Cemeteries and Crematoria. There is no Columbarium (for the internment of ashes) at the Church, however, there is a garden.
Funeral and Thanksgiving Services are celebrated by the Minister-in-Placement or by others, at her invitation. Scheduling of Services needs to take into account the availability of: Funeral Directors; Minister/celebrant; Church; Cemetery or Crematorium; Organist (if requested). Every effort will be made to accommodate special requests and needs, but we do ask your understanding - depending on the particular circumstance, there may be a number of different people to coordinate.
Under normal circumstances, enquiries about Funeral, Memorial or Thanksgiving Services should be directed as follows:
The Church Office
The Ministers (please leave a message - they will get back to you)
These notes are provided in recognition of the professional relationship that is established between Funeral Directors and Church Workers. We hope this helps to clarify expectations and open dialogue about ways in which we can work together well.
Funeral Directors or Next-of-kin, seeking to book a funeral in the Church, are requested to nominate at least two possible times. Please consider the need for the Minister to plan to make a pastoral visit prior to the Funeral. The Minister (often accompanied by an Elder or Carer) is also available to attend viewings, services in Chapels and at Cemeteries and Crematoria. There is no Columbarium (for the internment of ashes) at the Church, however, there is a garden.
Funeral and Thanksgiving Services are celebrated by the Minister-in-Placement or by others, at her invitation. Scheduling of Services needs to take into account the availability of: Funeral Directors; Minister/celebrant; Church; Cemetery or Crematorium; Organist (if requested). Every effort will be made to accommodate special requests and needs, but we do ask your understanding - depending on the particular circumstance, there may be a number of different people to coordinate.
What can we expect?
Generally, the Minister (and often with an Elder/Carer) will want to visit once or twice in order to meet with the bereaved and prepare appropriately. In exceptional circumstances some preparation may be possible by telephone or email contact, but at least one face-to-face meeting is preferable. Every Service is tailored to reflect the uniqueness of each person. We understand that this time is important and often difficult, so it is our care and concern to be respectful and diligent in our support.
When visiting, the Minister has the following aims:
- to offer the condolences of the Congregation;
- to provide any practical and spiritual assistance that may be required;
- to evaluate the particular needs and circumstances;
- to learn something of personality, character and story of the deceased - what/who they loved and valued and what they might best be remembered for; and
- to meet with (and pray for) those who are most effected by the deceased's passing.
Sometimes when a Minister visits, people are still 'in shock'. Others have been prepared for what is happening for a long time. Some conversations are very practical and straightforward, others involve stories that ramble, some laughter and some tears. The time following a death can be a roller-coaster of emotions and reactions. The Minister will try to respond to the needs of the situation, so feel free to say what is helpful or not.
Generally, the Minister (and often with an Elder/Carer) will want to visit once or twice in order to meet with the bereaved and prepare appropriately. In exceptional circumstances some preparation may be possible by telephone or email contact, but at least one face-to-face meeting is preferable. Every Service is tailored to reflect the uniqueness of each person. We understand that this time is important and often difficult, so it is our care and concern to be respectful and diligent in our support.
When visiting, the Minister has the following aims:
- to offer the condolences of the Congregation;
- to provide any practical and spiritual assistance that may be required;
- to evaluate the particular needs and circumstances;
- to learn something of personality, character and story of the deceased - what/who they loved and valued and what they might best be remembered for; and
- to meet with (and pray for) those who are most effected by the deceased's passing.
Sometimes when a Minister visits, people are still 'in shock'. Others have been prepared for what is happening for a long time. Some conversations are very practical and straightforward, others involve stories that ramble, some laughter and some tears. The time following a death can be a roller-coaster of emotions and reactions. The Minister will try to respond to the needs of the situation, so feel free to say what is helpful or not.
Guest Presiders or Celebrants
When invited Guest Presiders or Celebrants are leading the Service, The Welcome, Call to Worship and Closing Benediction (Blessing) will be given by the Minister-in-Placement, one of the Congregation's Commissioned Celebrants or an Elder of the Congregation.
What Pastoral Services are available that are related to times of Grief and Loss?
Funeral Service
People gather to acknowledge the life of the deceased and to mourn with those who are left behind. The pattern of Service includes: Gathering as a Community of People before God - Remembering and Celebrating a Human Life - Prayers for those who remain - Committing the Soul of the Deceased to God's care - Laying to rest the Deceased's earthly remains.
There is considerable flexibility to personalize both the Service and the space where it is held.
Memorial Service OR Thanksgiving for a Life OR Celebration of a Life
Similar to a Funeral, this Service acknowledges the life of the deceased and provides for people to mourn with those who are left behind, but there is no Committal of Earthly remains. The pattern of Service includes: Gathering as a Community of People before God - Remembering or Giving Thanks for a Human Life - Prayers for those who remain - prayers for the Soul of the Deceased now in God's care.
Internment (or Scattering of Ashes)
The reverent disposal of Ashes takes place some time after the Funeral or Memorial. The Church is able to provide a brief but tailored Service which usually includes a Prayer, some Story-sharing and a Blessing of those who are left behind.
Eastwood UC also offers the following Gathered Community Service annually:
Blue Christmas - a gathering of people who face Christmas without loved ones - a time of mutual support and acknowledgement that this Christmas represents a time of loss.
Follow-up Pastoral Visits
Pastoral Visits can take place 'at home', in a coffee shop, in a park, or in the Church. This is a time for informal conversation and, if desired, a prayer or blessing. At such times, our role is to offer spiritual companionship and support. Where professional counseling is desirable, we are happy to make referrals to suitably qualified Counsellors and Therapists
Church Costs, Fees and Donations
Please consider the use of 'Dressed' Church Building for Service (includes use of space, cleaning, electricity, COVID-safe requirements – sanitizer, masks, air purifiers, microphones, sound system, use of projection).
Contact the Office to discuss your needs.
Floral Arrangements – fresh floral arrangements can be provided according to budget (these may be externally provided, but the Congregation can also provide arrangements of silk or non-perishable flowers for use in the Church at no charge).
Refreshments and spaces for Gathering before and after Services can also be arranged. Please talk to us about your needs. Several options are available.
Pastoral Visits are a gift of the Congregation. Costs are met through the weekly offerings at Congregational worship.
In cases of financial hardship, the Congregation also bears the Church's costs related to Funerals, offering this gift in Christ's name. The Congregation welcomes donations, from those who are able, to support this ministry. Many people also support this work and the maintenance of the property through donations and the provision of bequests (considerations made in people's wills). This also enables the Minister to be available to conduct some ‘Pauper Funerals’.
OTHER INFORMATION
From time to time, Eastwood Uniting Church also hosts Bereavement Support Groups, Carer Support Groups and Workshops about Loss and Grief. If you would like to know more, please let the office know and someone will contact you. People who are interested in being Celebrants, Carers or Volunteers, in this ministry of compassion, are invited to meet with the Minister to discuss the possibilities of service and the expectations about training and accountability. (Training is provided.)
When invited Guest Presiders or Celebrants are leading the Service, The Welcome, Call to Worship and Closing Benediction (Blessing) will be given by the Minister-in-Placement, one of the Congregation's Commissioned Celebrants or an Elder of the Congregation.
What Pastoral Services are available that are related to times of Grief and Loss?
Funeral Service
People gather to acknowledge the life of the deceased and to mourn with those who are left behind. The pattern of Service includes: Gathering as a Community of People before God - Remembering and Celebrating a Human Life - Prayers for those who remain - Committing the Soul of the Deceased to God's care - Laying to rest the Deceased's earthly remains.
There is considerable flexibility to personalize both the Service and the space where it is held.
Memorial Service OR Thanksgiving for a Life OR Celebration of a Life
Similar to a Funeral, this Service acknowledges the life of the deceased and provides for people to mourn with those who are left behind, but there is no Committal of Earthly remains. The pattern of Service includes: Gathering as a Community of People before God - Remembering or Giving Thanks for a Human Life - Prayers for those who remain - prayers for the Soul of the Deceased now in God's care.
Internment (or Scattering of Ashes)
The reverent disposal of Ashes takes place some time after the Funeral or Memorial. The Church is able to provide a brief but tailored Service which usually includes a Prayer, some Story-sharing and a Blessing of those who are left behind.
Eastwood UC also offers the following Gathered Community Service annually:
Blue Christmas - a gathering of people who face Christmas without loved ones - a time of mutual support and acknowledgement that this Christmas represents a time of loss.
Follow-up Pastoral Visits
Pastoral Visits can take place 'at home', in a coffee shop, in a park, or in the Church. This is a time for informal conversation and, if desired, a prayer or blessing. At such times, our role is to offer spiritual companionship and support. Where professional counseling is desirable, we are happy to make referrals to suitably qualified Counsellors and Therapists
Church Costs, Fees and Donations
Please consider the use of 'Dressed' Church Building for Service (includes use of space, cleaning, electricity, COVID-safe requirements – sanitizer, masks, air purifiers, microphones, sound system, use of projection).
Contact the Office to discuss your needs.
Floral Arrangements – fresh floral arrangements can be provided according to budget (these may be externally provided, but the Congregation can also provide arrangements of silk or non-perishable flowers for use in the Church at no charge).
Refreshments and spaces for Gathering before and after Services can also be arranged. Please talk to us about your needs. Several options are available.
Pastoral Visits are a gift of the Congregation. Costs are met through the weekly offerings at Congregational worship.
In cases of financial hardship, the Congregation also bears the Church's costs related to Funerals, offering this gift in Christ's name. The Congregation welcomes donations, from those who are able, to support this ministry. Many people also support this work and the maintenance of the property through donations and the provision of bequests (considerations made in people's wills). This also enables the Minister to be available to conduct some ‘Pauper Funerals’.
OTHER INFORMATION
From time to time, Eastwood Uniting Church also hosts Bereavement Support Groups, Carer Support Groups and Workshops about Loss and Grief. If you would like to know more, please let the office know and someone will contact you. People who are interested in being Celebrants, Carers or Volunteers, in this ministry of compassion, are invited to meet with the Minister to discuss the possibilities of service and the expectations about training and accountability. (Training is provided.)
Blank Sample Order of Service
| order_of_service_ppl_-_draft.docx |
Sample Hymns and Readings
O for a thousand tongues. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X-dEfvz6Vms
How great thou art https://youtu.be/ed3EhvlNGsI
Great is thy faithfulness. https://youtu.be/7rPeZNSa7rE
I will sing the wondrous story. https://youtu.be/hDPCFbAysBc
Immortal, invisible, God only wise. https://youtu.be/pfu1dqKCGd8
Guide me, O thou great redeemer. https://youtu.be/OQ7ZD_FmfYI
And can it be. https://youtu.be/sQeIGbKqiw8
Love divine, all loves excelling. https://youtu.be/sw5ZCZeS32M
Come down, O Love divine. https://youtu.be/fIvKDgktutI (Cathedral)
https://youtu.be/qUYjP4V5SJc (lockdown version)
LORD, YOU HAVE BEEN OUR REFUGE (Ps 90:16,10,12,14-17)
Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
You turn us back to dust, and say, ‘Turn back, you mortals’.
For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past,
or like a watch in the night.
You sweep them away; they are like a dream,
like grass that is renewed in the morning;
in the morning it flourishes and is renewed;
in the evening it fades and withers.
The days of our life are seventy years, or perhaps eighty, if we are strong;
even then their span is only toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.
So teach us to count our days that we may gain a wise heart.
Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,
so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
Make us glad as many days as you have afflicted us,
and as many years as we have seen evil.
Let your work be manifest to your servants,
and your glorious power to their children.
Let the favour of the Lord our God be upon us,
and prosper for us the work of our hands –
O prosper the work of our hands!
I LIFT UP MY EYES TO THE HILLS (Ps 121)
I lift up my eyes to the hills –from where will my help come?
My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.
He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade at your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life.
The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in
from this time on and forevermore.
EVEN IN YOUR OLD AGE I AM GOD (Isaiah 46:3-4)
Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all the remnant of the house of Israel,
who have been borne by me from your birth, carried from the womb;
even to your old age I am God, even when you turn grey I will carry you.
I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save.
A GARLAND INSTEAD OF ASHES (Isaiah 61:1-3)
The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me;
and has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and release to the prisoners;
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour, and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
to provide for those who mourn in Zion –to give them a garland instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.
They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord,
to display God’s glory.
NOTHING WILL BE ABLE TO SEPARATE US FROM THE LOVE OF GOD
(Romans 8:18, 28, 31-35, 37-39)
I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing
with the glory about to be revealed to us.
We know that all things work together for good for those who love God,
who are called according to his purpose.
If God is for us, who is against us?
He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us,
will he not with him also give us everything else?
Who will bring any charge against God’s elect?
It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn?
It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God,
who indeed intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ?
Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
For I am convinced that neither death, nor life,
nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come,
nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation,
will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
THE FATHER FROM WHOM EVERY FAMILY IS NAMED
(Ephesians 3:14-19)
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father,
from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name.
I pray that, according to the riches of his glory,
he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit,
and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith,
as you are being rooted and grounded in love.
I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints,
what is the breadth and length and height and depth,
and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge,
so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
A LIVING HOPE THROUGH THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST
(1 Peter 1:3-9)
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
and into an inheritance that is imperishable,
undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for you,
who are being protected by the power of God through faith
for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials,
so that the genuineness of your faith –being more precious than gold that,
though perishable, is tested by fire –may be found to result
in praise and glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed.
Although you have not seen him, you love him;
and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with
an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith,
the salvation of your souls.
I WILL RAISE THEM UP ON THE LAST DAY (John 6:35-40)
Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life.
Whoever comes to me will never be hungry,
and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.
Everything that the Father gives me will come to me,
and anyone who comes to me I will never drive away;
for I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will,
but the will of him who sent me.
And this is the will of him who sent me,
that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me,
but raise it up on the last day.
This is indeed the will of my Father, that all who see the Son and believe in him
may have eternal life; and I will raise them up on the last day’.
I AM THE GOOD SHEPHERD (John 10:14-16, 27-30)
Jesus said, ‘I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,
just as the Father knows me and I know the Father.
And I lay down my life for the sheep.
I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold.
I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice.
So there will be one flock, one shepherd.
My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish.
No one will snatch them out of my hand.
What my Father has given me is greater than all else,
and no one can snatch it out of the Father’s hand.
The Father and I are one’.
IN MY FATHER’S HOUSE THERE ARE MANY DWELLING PLACES
(John 14:1-6, 18-19, 27)
Jesus said, ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me.
In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.
If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself,
so that where I am, there you may be also.
And you know the way to the place where I am going’.
Thomas said to him,
“Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’
Jesus said to him,
‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me.
I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you.
In a little while the world will no longer see me,
but you will see me; because I live, you also will live.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
I do not give to you as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid’.
OLD TESTAMENT
Job 19:1, 23-27b. I know that my Redeemer lives...
Ecclesiastes 3:1-11. For everything there is a season...
Lamentations 3:17-26, 31-33. The steadfast love of God never ceases...
Isaiah 25:6-9. The Lord God will swallow up death for ever...
PSALMS
Psalm 27. The Lord is my light and my salvation
Psalm 42. My soul thirsts for the living God
Psalm 118:14-21, 28-29 The Lord has become my salvation
Psalm 130. Out of the depths have I called you, O Lord
NEW TESTAMENT
Acts 10:34-43 God raised Jesus from death
Romans 5:5-11. God shows his love for us
Romans 6:3-11. We believe that we shall also live with him
Romans 14:7-9. Whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s
1 Corinthians 15:19-26. Christ the first fruits of the dead
1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-44, 50-58. How are the dead raised?
2 Corinthians 1:3-7. We are comforted by God
2 Corinthians 4:7-15. He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us
2 Corinthians 4:16 to 5:10 We have a building from God
Philippians 3:8-11, 20-21. That I may know him and the power of his resurrection
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. The coming of the Lord
Revelation 7:9-17. God will wipe away every tear from their eyes
Revelation 21:1-7 Behold, I make all things new
Revelation 22:1-7 The Lord God will be their light
GOSPEL
Matthew 5:1-12. Blessed are those who mourn
Matthew 11:25-30. Come to me and rest
Luke 23:33, 39-43. Today you will be with me in paradise
John 5:19-24. The Son gives life to whom he will
John 11:17-27. I am the resurrection and the life
and these stories of the Resurrection:
Matthew 28:1-10; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-12; Luke 24:13-35 (especially 13-17a, 18-21, 24-27, 29b-35); John 20:1-18 (especially 1-2, 6-9, 11-18); John 20:19-23.
How great thou art https://youtu.be/ed3EhvlNGsI
Great is thy faithfulness. https://youtu.be/7rPeZNSa7rE
I will sing the wondrous story. https://youtu.be/hDPCFbAysBc
Immortal, invisible, God only wise. https://youtu.be/pfu1dqKCGd8
Guide me, O thou great redeemer. https://youtu.be/OQ7ZD_FmfYI
And can it be. https://youtu.be/sQeIGbKqiw8
Love divine, all loves excelling. https://youtu.be/sw5ZCZeS32M
Come down, O Love divine. https://youtu.be/fIvKDgktutI (Cathedral)
https://youtu.be/qUYjP4V5SJc (lockdown version)
LORD, YOU HAVE BEEN OUR REFUGE (Ps 90:16,10,12,14-17)
Lord, you have been our dwelling place in all generations.
Before the mountains were brought forth,
or ever you had formed the earth and the world,
from everlasting to everlasting you are God.
You turn us back to dust, and say, ‘Turn back, you mortals’.
For a thousand years in your sight are like yesterday when it is past,
or like a watch in the night.
You sweep them away; they are like a dream,
like grass that is renewed in the morning;
in the morning it flourishes and is renewed;
in the evening it fades and withers.
The days of our life are seventy years, or perhaps eighty, if we are strong;
even then their span is only toil and trouble; they are soon gone, and we fly away.
So teach us to count our days that we may gain a wise heart.
Satisfy us in the morning with your steadfast love,
so that we may rejoice and be glad all our days.
Make us glad as many days as you have afflicted us,
and as many years as we have seen evil.
Let your work be manifest to your servants,
and your glorious power to their children.
Let the favour of the Lord our God be upon us,
and prosper for us the work of our hands –
O prosper the work of our hands!
I LIFT UP MY EYES TO THE HILLS (Ps 121)
I lift up my eyes to the hills –from where will my help come?
My help comes from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.
He will not let your foot be moved; he who keeps you will not slumber.
He who keeps Israel will neither slumber nor sleep.
The Lord is your keeper; the Lord is your shade at your right hand.
The sun shall not strike you by day, nor the moon by night.
The Lord will keep you from all evil; he will keep your life.
The Lord will keep your going out and your coming in
from this time on and forevermore.
EVEN IN YOUR OLD AGE I AM GOD (Isaiah 46:3-4)
Listen to me, O house of Jacob, all the remnant of the house of Israel,
who have been borne by me from your birth, carried from the womb;
even to your old age I am God, even when you turn grey I will carry you.
I have made, and I will bear; I will carry and will save.
A GARLAND INSTEAD OF ASHES (Isaiah 61:1-3)
The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because the Lord has anointed me;
and has sent me to bring good news to the oppressed,
to bind up the broken-hearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives,
and release to the prisoners;
to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favour, and the day of vengeance of our God;
to comfort all who mourn;
to provide for those who mourn in Zion –to give them a garland instead of ashes,
the oil of gladness instead of mourning, the mantle of praise instead of a faint spirit.
They will be called oaks of righteousness, the planting of the Lord,
to display God’s glory.
NOTHING WILL BE ABLE TO SEPARATE US FROM THE LOVE OF GOD
(Romans 8:18, 28, 31-35, 37-39)
I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing
with the glory about to be revealed to us.
We know that all things work together for good for those who love God,
who are called according to his purpose.
If God is for us, who is against us?
He who did not withhold his own Son, but gave him up for all of us,
will he not with him also give us everything else?
Who will bring any charge against God’s elect?
It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn?
It is Christ Jesus, who died, yes, who was raised, who is at the right hand of God,
who indeed intercedes for us. Who will separate us from the love of Christ?
Will hardship, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us.
For I am convinced that neither death, nor life,
nor angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come,
nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation,
will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
THE FATHER FROM WHOM EVERY FAMILY IS NAMED
(Ephesians 3:14-19)
For this reason I bow my knees before the Father,
from whom every family in heaven and on earth takes its name.
I pray that, according to the riches of his glory,
he may grant that you may be strengthened in your inner being with power through his Spirit,
and that Christ may dwell in your hearts through faith,
as you are being rooted and grounded in love.
I pray that you may have the power to comprehend, with all the saints,
what is the breadth and length and height and depth,
and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge,
so that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.
A LIVING HOPE THROUGH THE RESURRECTION OF CHRIST
(1 Peter 1:3-9)
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope
through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
and into an inheritance that is imperishable,
undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for you,
who are being protected by the power of God through faith
for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
In this you rejoice, even if now for a little while you have had to suffer various trials,
so that the genuineness of your faith –being more precious than gold that,
though perishable, is tested by fire –may be found to result
in praise and glory and honour when Jesus Christ is revealed.
Although you have not seen him, you love him;
and even though you do not see him now, you believe in him and rejoice with
an indescribable and glorious joy, for you are receiving the outcome of your faith,
the salvation of your souls.
I WILL RAISE THEM UP ON THE LAST DAY (John 6:35-40)
Jesus said to them, ‘I am the bread of life.
Whoever comes to me will never be hungry,
and whoever believes in me will never be thirsty.
But I said to you that you have seen me and yet do not believe.
Everything that the Father gives me will come to me,
and anyone who comes to me I will never drive away;
for I have come down from heaven, not to do my own will,
but the will of him who sent me.
And this is the will of him who sent me,
that I should lose nothing of all that he has given me,
but raise it up on the last day.
This is indeed the will of my Father, that all who see the Son and believe in him
may have eternal life; and I will raise them up on the last day’.
I AM THE GOOD SHEPHERD (John 10:14-16, 27-30)
Jesus said, ‘I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me,
just as the Father knows me and I know the Father.
And I lay down my life for the sheep.
I have other sheep that do not belong to this fold.
I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice.
So there will be one flock, one shepherd.
My sheep hear my voice. I know them, and they follow me.
I give them eternal life, and they will never perish.
No one will snatch them out of my hand.
What my Father has given me is greater than all else,
and no one can snatch it out of the Father’s hand.
The Father and I are one’.
IN MY FATHER’S HOUSE THERE ARE MANY DWELLING PLACES
(John 14:1-6, 18-19, 27)
Jesus said, ‘Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me.
In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.
If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you?
And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself,
so that where I am, there you may be also.
And you know the way to the place where I am going’.
Thomas said to him,
“Lord, we do not know where you are going. How can we know the way?’
Jesus said to him,
‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life.
No one comes to the Father except through me.
I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you.
In a little while the world will no longer see me,
but you will see me; because I live, you also will live.
Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
I do not give to you as the world gives.
Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid’.
OLD TESTAMENT
Job 19:1, 23-27b. I know that my Redeemer lives...
Ecclesiastes 3:1-11. For everything there is a season...
Lamentations 3:17-26, 31-33. The steadfast love of God never ceases...
Isaiah 25:6-9. The Lord God will swallow up death for ever...
PSALMS
Psalm 27. The Lord is my light and my salvation
Psalm 42. My soul thirsts for the living God
Psalm 118:14-21, 28-29 The Lord has become my salvation
Psalm 130. Out of the depths have I called you, O Lord
NEW TESTAMENT
Acts 10:34-43 God raised Jesus from death
Romans 5:5-11. God shows his love for us
Romans 6:3-11. We believe that we shall also live with him
Romans 14:7-9. Whether we live or die, we are the Lord’s
1 Corinthians 15:19-26. Christ the first fruits of the dead
1 Corinthians 15:35-38, 42-44, 50-58. How are the dead raised?
2 Corinthians 1:3-7. We are comforted by God
2 Corinthians 4:7-15. He who raised the Lord Jesus will raise us
2 Corinthians 4:16 to 5:10 We have a building from God
Philippians 3:8-11, 20-21. That I may know him and the power of his resurrection
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. The coming of the Lord
Revelation 7:9-17. God will wipe away every tear from their eyes
Revelation 21:1-7 Behold, I make all things new
Revelation 22:1-7 The Lord God will be their light
GOSPEL
Matthew 5:1-12. Blessed are those who mourn
Matthew 11:25-30. Come to me and rest
Luke 23:33, 39-43. Today you will be with me in paradise
John 5:19-24. The Son gives life to whom he will
John 11:17-27. I am the resurrection and the life
and these stories of the Resurrection:
Matthew 28:1-10; Mark 16:1-8; Luke 24:1-12; Luke 24:13-35 (especially 13-17a, 18-21, 24-27, 29b-35); John 20:1-18 (especially 1-2, 6-9, 11-18); John 20:19-23.