The Roman Catholic Funeral Rite vs. the Jewish Funeral Rite

The roman type Catholic Funeral ritual vs. the Jewish Funeral Rite Funeral services in the 1990s ar much complex that they have ever been before. The modern funeral theater director must not only be aw atomic number 18 of and comply with their own state and local anaesthetic rules and regulations, only also with the Federal Trade Commissions Funeral regulate and a variety of Occupational Safety and Health Act (OSHA) rules. subjoin to this the fact that the so- harbingered traditional funeral has become less and less traditional. duration the religious aspects restrained play a major role in the majority of the funerals held in the fall in States, changes in the attitude of the clergy and the families, changes in funeral domicile structuring and pricing, and changes in the funeral home facilities and services that they r revokeer have caused a bulky change in the funeral itself. There are several(prenominal) religions that practice funeral rites, however, in this paper I b equeath attempt to compare/contrast the popish Catholic Funeral Rite vs. the Jewish Funeral Rite. design to the romish Catholic church service serviceOf all the christian religions in the world, the Roman Catholic Church is the largest, claiming more or less one billion members worldwide. In the United States there are round 55 million members. Roman Catholics believe that since Jesus Christ brought redemption 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 tending(p) to the celebrant. Clergy Notification The practice of notifying the deceased persons man of the cloth when a close occurs was at one cartridge clip a common as wellhead as sensible practice. However, today, this practice disregard in no port be considered the usual. Factors such as time of death, rank where death occurred, and the descent between the family and the clergy, each play a role in the familys finale as to the appropriate time to notify the clergy of the death.Many families would be hesitant to call the clergy in the middle of the night and whitethorn square up that more can be accomplished by waiting until morning. This may be e sparely true in cases where the death was expected or where the Sacrament of the Sick had been administered. Since many priests want to go into in the decision making process for the date, time, and location of the funeral service, the funeral directors may want to determine whether or not the family had contacted the priest, who is to celebrate the Funeral Mass, former to entering into discussions concernin g the scheduling of the Mass.Removal of the be There are generally no church restrictions that would prohibit the remotion of the perchs at the time of death. In cases where the deceased was a clergy or a member of a religious order, there may be delays in the removal should there be a desire for special prayers by members of the order before removal. Preparing the Remains There are no specific restrictions as to the preparation of the remains of the body. Religious articles worn by the deceased should be removed, recorded, and replaced after the preparation of the body.The family should be asked if the religious articles should remain on the body or removed and returned to them. If the deceased is a clergyman or a member of a religious order, there may be restrictions as to how the remains are prepared. Some groups may orison that the embalming be done in the convent, monastery, or rectory rather than in the funeral home. In this case, the funeral home should check with the indi vidual within the church, monastery, or convent to beget proper instructions and authorization to prepare the remains. Dressing and encloseing the RemainsThe deceased should be dressed to the nines(p) in uniform selected by the family. Members of the clergy will be dressed in the robes of the station of their priesthood, while members of religious orders should be dressed in the robes of their affiliated position. Religious objects may be placed in the hands of the deceased by family or church officials. Rosary string of beads are most commonly used, and normally placed in the hands. A crucifix, sacred heart, or other religiously significant objects may be placed in the head or foot panel, on or near the inclose. The invokeA Rosary Service or Wake will usually be held in the funeral or family home, or church the evening before the funeral Mass. This is to provide friends and family of the deceased an opportunity to share a series of prayers with the family. It is meant to off er a time of reflection on the sum of life, death, and eternal life. The service may be direct by a priest, layperson, family member, or the funeral director. This is usually scheduled by the family and approved by the church during the funeral arrangements. The Funeral Mass and RecessionalThe funeral Mass actually begins when the coffin is moved into the dorm of the church. The casket bearers and family members accompany the casket to await the celebrant and the fudge attendants. The wage hike to meet the body is led by the crucifer and two alter attendants, one who carries the Holy Water and one who carries the incense. The celebrant is last in the procession. Following the greeting and invocation, the celebrant conducts the blessing of the casket with Holy Water. Casket pieces are removed at this time (if applicable) and set aside, and the casket is c everyplace with a pall. In the case that an American flag is covering the casket, prior arrangements would be made as to rem ove the flag and use a pall. If removed, it will be properly folded and set aside. ) The procession down the gangboard is led by the crucifer, followed by the alter attendants and the priest. The family will follow the casket down the aisle. When the procession reaches the foot of the altar, the celebrant will proceed up the steps while the funeral director seats the family and casket bearers. The casket should be placed at right angles to the altar. Laypersons and nuns re placed with their feet toward the altar, while priests are placed with their heads towards the altar. subsequently the funeral directors exit the church, the celebrant will conduct several Bible readings, consisting of the Psalms and the Gospel. Family eulogies are then read and Communion is offered to all. After this, the celebrant will say the final commendation and bless the casket again with incense and Holy Water. After this, the funeral directors will return to the church for the recessional. In the recess ional, the celebrant moves toward the ill-tempered bearer and the funeral directors return to each end of the casket.With room permitting, the casket is turned making the sign of a cross and it once again placed in the center of the aisle. The recessional makes it counsel out o the church the same order it entered. Variations of the funeral mass are common, but it the responsibility of the funeral director to maintain constant contact with the clergy. Introduction to Judaism Judaism, thought to date back to the 16th century B. C. , was the first monotheistic religion. Founded by Abraham, Judaism was the foundation for Christianity and Islam. It is based in the doctrine of one God, old-fashioned scriptures (Old Testament) and Talmud (oral teachings of the Torah).There are three religious Jewish groupings in the United States the Orthodox, who continue the ancient traditions and beliefs the Reform, who allow greater flexibility and have accommodate to modern practices and the bou rgeois, who fit in between the Orthodox and Reform. The Conservative still follow ancient traditions, but have accepted gradual changes as a internal growth of the religion. (For the sake of this paper, I will be using mostly the Conservative and Reform position to compare to the Roman Catholic. ) Notification of Death/ClergyIt is of up most importance that upon receiving the initial call of the death, that the funeral home postulate verbal permission to remove the body from the place of death. Upon meeting with the family, written permission of often received. It is also necessary to state the family that embalming is not required by law, but is desired due to natural biological changes that occur after death. There are often times, whether it be for personal or religious reasons, that the neither the family nor the Rabbi want the body embalmed. It is usually not necessary to contact the Rabbi at the time of death unless the family so chooses to do so.The Rabbi is usually contact ed after the funeral arrangements are completed and advised of the time and place of service. Dressing and Casketing The deceased may be dressed in any clothing desired by the family and Rabbi. The family will sometimes request that a shroud be used under the regular clothing or in place of the deceaseds clothing. The casket is the cream of the family and there are no restrictions as to the material it is made from or the type. Most will choose the traditional orthodox wooden casket, but metals or other materials normally used to make caskets are permitted also. The FuneralNo funeral services, whether it is Orthodox, Reform, or Conservative, are to be held on the Jewish Shabbat, which is from sundown on Friday until sundown on Saturday. The funerals may be held in the funeral home, the residence of the deceased, the temple, or the grave site. The Rabbi, often accompanied by a Cantor, will hint and direct the service. The Cantor will often chant and sing the readings. If the funera l is held somewhere other than the temple, the cortege will not normally stop at the temple on the way to the cemetery. In most cases the funeral home will provide transportation for the Rabbi and the Cantor.The Committal Service Burial may dramatise place in any cemetery the family chooses. During the procession, the Rabbi may stop septette times to pray. Upon arrival to the cemetery, the casket is placed in wooden planks over the newly dug grave. The site around the grave is usually obvious with no artificial grass, but if using artificial grass, a bivouac and mechanical lowering device is used. During the service, the Rabbi will say special prayers and led the mourners in the recitation of the Kaddish (a prayer declaimd for the deceased by parents, siblings, spouses, and children). The children will recite theKaddish at every service for their parents for 11 months. Upon leaving the gravesite, mourners should wash their hands three times by pouring water on them, fountain w ith the right hand. The hands are then air-dried. As one can see there are numerous differences in the Roman Catholic and the Jewish funeral rites. However, these religions are only two of the thousands practiced in our world. period some may consider their religion healthier than others, everyone has the right to go through whatever religion they choose as well as participate in their own funeral practices.With all the available options, choices, and changes, the traditional funeral is basically no longer. Works Cited Curley, Terrance, P. Planning the Catholic Funeral. Liturgical Press, July 2005. Funeral Etiquette. Google. com. 13 April 2008. http//www. mountcastle. net/ funeral. htmFuneral_Etiquette_. Gambrel, Leslie. personalised 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. Je wish Lights Publishing, invigorated York. November 1995.