Although not one of the Seven Sacraments, we include the Funeral, or Requiem, Mass here because it still makes up an important- some would say essential- "rite of passage" for the faithful.  A Catholic Funeral Mass:

• helps confirm the reality and finality of death
• provides a climate for mourning and the expression of grief
• allows the sorrows of one to become the sorrows of many
• is a vehicle for the community of believers to pay their respects
• encourages the affirmation of religious faith
• is a celebration of a life that has been lived, as well as a sociological statement that a death has occurred.

There are two types of Funeral Masses- a "Mass of Christian Burial", where the remains are present, and a "Memorial Mass", where the remains are not present.  The preference in our Diocese is always for the Mass of Christian Burial to take place with the deceased's body present, but cremation is not against Church doctrine, and the Mass can still be said with just ashes present.  Interment should take place as soon as reasonably possible; the Catholic Church does not hold with loved ones holding on to a deceased person's ashes, nor with the increasingly common practice of having jewelry, items of glass, etc. made from them.  Neither is the scattering of some or all of a person's ashes considered acceptable, as the Church teaches resurrection of the body and soul.

At Holy Family Notre Dame, it would be our privelege to assist you in planning your loved one's Funeral Mass.  Planning usually begins after the initial visit to the Funeral Home; if you are not working with a Funeral Home, or the deceased's passing was not recent, please feel free to download the "Pre-Planning" form under "Links", or to contact the office for more information.  For interment in the Catholic cemetery, please visit our page "St. Peter's Cemetery".