Responsive Funeral Readings

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1.
A Funeral Litany

Leader: Loving God, we give you thanks for the life of Name,
        and for the gifts we have received through her life.
All: We have been blessed, in ways we know and ways that are hidden.
       We are grateful, and we give you thanks.
Leader: We are also brokenhearted, for we will miss her.
All: Receive our grief and bless our sorrow,
      As Jesus wept at the graveside, you weep with us now

Leader: Jesus has promised, “I will not leave you orphaned;
     my Father and I will come to you and make our home with you.”
All: We give you thanks, for when we are broken you are with us;
     when we are bewildered you give yourself to us.
Leader: May our sorrow give us humility and soften our hearts.
All: May we love more deeply, live more honestly,
      and attend more closely to your leading.
Leader: Give us grace to be present for one another,
     for there are none who do not grieve.
All: We pledge our love to each other. By your grace
     may we forgive one another, repent of our sin,
     and live in harmony in the time we are given.
Leader: As weface the mystery of death we are mindful of our own.
All: We entrust ourselves to your presence and your guidance,
     to your unfailing love. We give thanks
     that by our love we participate in yours, which is eternal life.
Leader: Jesus said, Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.”
All: In the name of the Risen One, we give our lives to you. Amen.


2. A Funeral Litany (based on Psalm 23)

Leader: Loving God, in times of grief we seek your presence.
       We need your gentle care.
All: Lord, you are my my shepherd; I shall not want.
            You make me lie down in green pastures;
     you lead me beside still waters;
            you restore my soul.

Leader: When we are bewildered we seek your guidance.
     Lead us in lives of grace and love.
All: You lead me in right paths
    for your name’s sake.
Leader: When we face the mystery of death
    may your presence grant us peace.
All: Even though I walk through the valley
          of the shadow of death,
          I fear no evil,
   for you are with me;
          your rod and your staff,
          they comfort me.
Leader: May our sorrow soften our hearts,
    our grief open us to the grief of others;
    may it deepen our compassion and our gratitude,
   that we may All: You prepare a table before me
    in the presence of my enemies.

you anoint my head with oil;
    my cup overflows.
   Leader: Free from our fear of death,
       
may we live in harmony and peace.
All: Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me
    all the days of my life,
and I shall dwell in the house of the Lord
    my whole life long.

3.
A Funeral Litany (based on John 14)

Leader: Loving God, we come with grief. We come with gratitude.
All: We have been blessed. And our hearts are broken.
Leader:
Jesus said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled.”
All: We give you our grief, for even you have wept at the graveside.
     Remind us again, Beloved, that death has not the last word.
Leader: “Trust in God, trust also in me.”
All: As we entrust our dearly beloved to you,
       we think of our own death. Receive us, O God,

Leader: “In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places.
      I go to prepare a place for you, and I will come again
      and will take you to myself,
      so that where I am, there you may be also.”
All: In the face of death, we need you.
      When we are bewildered, be present with us.
Leader: “I will not leave you orphaned; I am coming to you.”
All: Let your resurrection be real, not only in the past but now.
Leader: “Because I live, you also will live.”
All: Help us to live well, to live with love.
      Help us to not feel alone in this world.

Leader: “Those who love me will keep my word,
     and my Father will love them,
      and we will come to them and make our home with them.”
All: Loving God, receive our grieving hearts;
      even in our sorrow give us peace.
Leader: “Peace I leave with you; my peace I give to you.
      I do not give to you as the world gives.
      Do not let your hearts be troubled, and do not let them be afraid.”
All: Loving God, we thank you. We love you.
      And we entrust ourselves to you, in the name of Christ. Amen.

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