FUNERALS AT ST. THOMAS MORE

Because of our belief, not only in the immortality of the soul, but also in the resurrection of the body, the Church professes hope in the face of death, and acts with charity in the funeral rites. The Church provides a number of prayers for the faithful to offer both to accompany the dying of a loved one and to strengthen our faith upon their death. Through private prayer and public funeral rites, we strengthen our faith and hope, comfort those who mourn, and bury the bodily remains of the deceased with care befitting what was the Temple of the Holy Spirit.

(United States Conference of Catholic Bishops)

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When a death occurs

Please contact Sybil Frey in our church office to help set up a date and time and set a planning meeting with you to finalize rites.
​(434) 237-5911 or [email protected]

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funeral liturgy

The principal liturgies in the Order of Christian Funerals are the Funeral Mass or Funeral Liturgy Outside Mass, and the Rite of Committal.

• Funeral Mass (celebrated at St. Thomas More) or Funeral Liturgy Outside Mass (celebrated at a funeral home chapel).
• The Parish will supply a presider (priest/deacon), cantor, pianist and a funeral program for a Funeral Mass at the church.  Here are some things you may want to consider:
  • Scripture Readings – You may choose three readings: An old testament reading, a new testament reading and a Gospel reading.  These readings must be chosen from the approved USCCB Readings for Funerals.  The parish will supply a planning booklet with these readings and musical selections. 
  • Music – The Parish will provide a cantor, an pianist, and guidance for musical selections.​
  • Program – The Parish will provide a funeral program.Family involvement - The Parish will provide lectors to read the 1st and 2nd Readings and the Prayers of the Faithful.  The Responsorial Psalm is sung by the cantor.  However, if it is important to the family that family members fill some of these roles, that can be arranged.  Some opportunities for friends/family to be involved in the liturgy are the presentation of the gifts (2+ people). 
  • Rite of Committal – The presider for burial or inurnment will be a Priest or Deacon.  The committal should occur immediately following the Funeral Liturgy if at all possible.   The Rite takes place graveside or in a mausoleum.

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Rite of Committal (Burial or Interment)

​The Rite of Committal, the conclusion of the funeral rites, is the final act of the community of faith in caring for the body of its deceased member. Burial or Interment should be celebrated immediately following the funeral liturgy or as soon as possible afterward.  It should be celebrated at the place of committal, that is, beside the open grave, mausoleum or columbarium. In committing the body to its resting place, the community expresses the hope that, with all those who have gone before us marked with the sign of faith, the deceased awaits the glory of the resurrection. The Rite of Committal is an expression of the communion that exists between the Church on earth and the Church in heaven: the deceased passes with the farewell prayers of the community of believers into the welcoming company of those who need faith no longer.

Guidelines on Cremation

​If a body is to be cremated, the family must still hold a Funeral Mass with traditional funeral rites. The Church strongly urges and prefers that the full body (before cremation) of the deceased be present during the Funeral Mass, but ashes are also allowed to be present at the Funeral Mass if necessary.
If a Catholic family chooses cremation, the Church requires reverent disposition of the ashes. The Church requires that ashes must be treated in the same way a body would be. The ashes are to be kept in a sacred place, not in one’s home, not scattered, not divided among family members, or worn in jewelry. Burial in a Catholic cemetery or other sacred place is “above all the most fitting way to express faith and hope in the resurrection of the body”.  Ashes in an urn can be buried in a cemetery plot or interred in a columbarium or mausoleum as a final resting place.

Guidance on the Disposition of Cremated Remains

2024_4.23_-_guidance_on_the_disposition_of_cremated_remains.pdf
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In a memo that came from the USCCB surrounding some new forms of “cremation”. The first is Humand Composting and the second is Alkaline Hydrolysis. The USCCB has put out the statement below. Please be aware that I do not believe that any funeral homes in Virginia currently offer either of these services, however, since they are used in some states around the country you may run across requests to inter the remains. The statement from the USCCB discusses the teaching on whether we can accept these or not.

st thomas more columbarium

St. Thomas More Columbarium is to the left of the entrance to the Nave and right of the Blessed Sacrament Chapel. Inquiries for purchasing columbarium niches can be directed to Sybil Frey at (434) 237-5911 or [email protected]. 

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