Australian Cardinal George Pell Limits Funeral Mass Eulogies
It’s my understanding that the Funeral Mass should never contain a eulogy of any kind, but apparently the church in Australia allows for words of remembrance from a family member or friend at the end of a funeral Mass. Cardinal George Pell should seriously consider following the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, given the trend of the laity turning the sacramental Mass into re-makes of comedic funeral services commonly found in Hollywood scripts.
“On NOT a few occasions, inappropriate remarks glossing over the deceased’s proclivities (drinking prowess, romantic conquests etc) or about the Church (attacking its moral teachings) have been made at funeral masses,” Pell’s new guidelines say.
Quoting Archbishop Pilarczyk of Cincinnati: “The funeral liturgy is a celebration of salvation and mercy, of grace and eternal life. It is not meant to be a commemoration of the person who has died. Extended remembering of the deceased often results in forgetting the Lord.”
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So, I guess this means no more of those “Good old Uncle Harry, he really loved his beer and pretty girls” sorts of eulogies…?
Comment by Fr. Christopher G. Phillips — February 23, 2007 @ 2:25 pm
Hopefully!
Comment by shelray — February 24, 2007 @ 8:56 am
I wonder if Abp. Pilarczyk has ever read the traditional funeral offertory:
Hostias et preces tibi, Domine, laudis offerimus. Tu suscipe pro animabus illis quarum hodie MEMORIAM facimus.
Sacrifices and prayers to You, Lord, of praise we offer. Receive them on behalf of the souls of those of whom today we make MEMORIAL.
Comment by Cantor — March 4, 2007 @ 7:32 pm
David, the Ordo exsequiarum explicitly allows for words of remembrance.
The grey area between such words and “eulogies†(i.e. words of praise) is a frequent topic of discussion among liturgy-minded folks.
Comment by Cantor — March 4, 2007 @ 7:33 pm