The Roman Catholic Funeral Rite vs. the Jewish Funeral Rite
The Roman Catholic Funeral Rite vs. the Jewish Funeral Rite
Funeral services in the 1990’s are more complex that they have ever been before. The modern funeral director must not only be aware of and comply with their own state and local rules and regulations, but also with the Federal Trade Commission’s Funeral Rule and a variety of Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) rules. Add to this the fact that the so-called “traditional funeral” has become less and less traditional. While the religious aspects still play a major role in the majority of the funerals held in the United States, changes in the attitude of the clergy and the families, changes in funeral home structuring and pricing, and changes in the funeral home facilities and services that they render have caused a great change in the funeral itself. There are several religions that practice funeral rites, however, in this paper I will attempt to compare/contrast the Roman Catholic Funeral Rite vs. the Jewish Funeral Rite.
Introduction to the Roman Catholic Church Of all the Christian religions in the world, the Roman Catholic Church is the largest, claiming approximately one billion members worldwide. In the United States there are about 55 million members. Roman Catholics believe that since Jesus Christ brought salvation into the world, He was the founder of their Church. They also believe that the Church has preserved the teachings of Christ and that the Holy Spirit guides the Church through its ministry. In regard to funeral rites, the Roman Catholic Church believes that all Catholics should be buried from the Church with a Mass. There is no actual charge for being buried from the Church. The funeral director should be able to guide the family as to the practices if an honorarium is customarily given to the celebrant.
Clergy Notification The practice of notifying the deceased’s clergyman when a death occurs was at one time a common as well as sensible practice. However,
Funeral services in the 1990’s are more complex that they have ever been before. The modern funeral director must not only be aware of and comply with their own state and local rules and regulations, but also with the Federal Trade Commission’s Funeral Rule and a variety of Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) rules. Add to this the fact that the so-called “traditional funeral” has become less and less traditional. While the religious aspects still play a major role in the majority of the funerals held in the United States, changes in the attitude of the clergy and the families, changes in funeral home structuring and pricing, and changes in the funeral home facilities and services that they render have caused a great change in the funeral itself. There are several religions that practice funeral rites, however, in this paper I will attempt to compare/contrast the Roman Catholic Funeral Rite vs. the Jewish Funeral Rite.
Introduction to the Roman Catholic Church Of all the Christian religions in the world, the Roman Catholic Church is the largest, claiming approximately one billion members worldwide. In the United States there are about 55 million members. Roman Catholics believe that since Jesus Christ brought salvation into the world, He was the founder of their Church. They also believe that the Church has preserved the teachings of Christ and that the Holy Spirit guides the Church through its ministry. In regard to funeral rites, the Roman Catholic Church believes that all Catholics should be buried from the Church with a Mass. There is no actual charge for being buried from the Church. The funeral director should be able to guide the family as to the practices if an honorarium is customarily given to the celebrant.
Clergy Notification The practice of notifying the deceased’s clergyman when a death occurs was at one time a common as well as sensible practice. However,
Cited: Curley, Terrance, P. Planning the Catholic Funeral. Liturgical Press, July 2005. Funeral Etiquette. Google.com. 13 April 2008. http://www.mountcastle.net/ funeral.htm#Funeral_Etiquette_. Gambrel, Leslie. Personal Interview. 12 April 2008. Greenberg, Blu. How to Run a Traditional Jewish Household. Simon & Schuster, September 1985. Conservative Judaism. Google.com. 13 April 2008. http://uscj.org/index1.html. Watson, Ron. A Time to Mourn, a Time to Comfort. Jewish Lights Publishing, New York. November 1995.