The Book of Common Prayer of the Church of Ireland: Burial · The Book of Common Prayer of the Church of Ireland: Front Matter

The Book of Common Prayer

	The Book of Common Prayer of the Church of Ireland: Burial

THE ORDER FOR
THE BURIAL OF THE DEAD.
¶ Here is to be
noted, that the Office ensuing is not to be used for any that die unbaptized,	"felo de se" =
or excommunicate, or in whose case a verdict shall have been found of	suicide
felo de se. But if any be brought for burial who have died unbaptized,
being infants of tender age, the offspring of Christian parents, and not
having been withheld from Baptism by wilful default or neglect, or being
persons known or certified to the Minister to have been at the time of
their death prepared for or desirous of Baptism, the Minister shall, in
such cases, read one of the following Psalms and Lessons, or such portion
of them as he shall see fit, and the four Sentences at the Grave, concluding
with the Lord's Prayer, and the Benediction at the close of the Office.
¶ The Priest and
Clerks, meeting the Corpse at the entrance of the Churchyard, and going
before it, either into the Church, or towards the Grave, shall say, or
sing,
I AM the resurrection
and the life, saith the Lord: he that believeth in me, though he were
dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall
never die.
St. John 11. 25, 26.
I KNOW that my Redeemer
liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and
though after my skin worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I
see God: whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and
not another.
Job 19. 25, 26, 27.
WE brought nothing into this world, and
it is certain we can carry nothing out. The Lord gave, and the Lord hath
taken away; blessed be the Name of the Lord.
1 Tim. 6. 7; Job l. 21.
¶ After they are
come into the Church, shall be read one or more of these Psalms following:
Dixi, custodiam.
Psalm 39.
I will take heed to my ways : that I offend not my
tongue.
I will keep my mouth as it were with a bridle while
the ungodly is in my sight.
I held my tongue, and spake nothing : I kept silence,
yea, even from good words; but it was pain and grief to me.
My heart was hot within me, and while I was thus musing
the fire kindled and at the last I spake with my tongue.
LORD, let me know mine end,
and the number of my days : that I may be certified how long I have to
live.
Behold, thou hast made my days as it were a span long;
and mine age is even as nothing in respect of thee : and verily every
man living is altogether vanity.
For man walketh in a vain shadow, and disquieteth himself
in vain : he heapeth up riches, and cannot tell who shall gather them.
AND now, Lord, what is my
hope : truly my hope is even in thee.
Deliver me from all mine offences : and make me not
a rebuke unto the foolish.
I became dumb, and opened not my mouth : for it was
thy doing.
Take thy plague away from me : I am even consumed by
the means of thy heavy hand.
When thou with rebukes dost chasten man for sin, thou
makest his beauty to consume away, like as it were a moth fretting a garment
: every man therefore is but vanity.
HEAR my prayer, O LORD,
and with thine ears consider my calling : hold not thy peace at my tears.
For I am a stranger with thee: and a sojourner, as
all my fathers were.
O spare me a little, that I may recover my strength
: before I go hence, and be no more seen.
GLORY be to the Father, and
to the Son : and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall
be : world without end. Amen.
Domine, refugium.
Psalm 90.
LORD, thou hast been our refuge : from
one generation to another.
Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever the
earth and the world were made : thou art God from everlasting, and world
without end.
Thou turnest man to destruction : again thou sayest,
Come again, ye children of men.
For a thousand years in thy sight are but as yesterday
: seeing that is past as a watch in the night.
As soon as thou scatterest them, they are even as a
sleep : and fade away suddenly like the grass.
In the morning it is green, and groweth up : but in
the evening it is cut down, dried up, and withered.
FOR we consume away in thy
displeasure : and are afraid at thy wrathful indignation.
Thou hast set our misdeeds before thee : and our secret
sins in the light of thy countenance.
FOR when thou art angry all
our days are gone : we bring our years to an end, as it were a tale that
is told.
The days of our age are threescore years and ten; and
though men be so strong that they come to fourscore years : yet is their
strength then but labour and sorrow; so soon passeth it away, and we are
gone.
But who regardeth the power of thy wrath : for even
thereafter as a man feareth, so is thy displeasure.
So teach us to number our days : that we may apply
our hearts unto wisdom.
TURN thee again, O LORD,
at the last : and be gracious unto thy servants.
O satisfy us with thy mercy, and that soon : so shall
we rejoice and be glad all the days of our life.
Comfort us again now after the time that thou hast
plagued us : and for the years wherein we have suffered adversity.
Shew thy servants thy work : and their children thy
glory.
And the glorious majesty of the Lord our God be upon
us : prosper thou the work of our hands upon us, O prosper thou our handywork.
GLORY be to the Father, and
to the Son : and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall
be : world without end. Amen.
Dominus regit me.
Psalm 23,
THE LORD is my shepherd : therefore can
I lack nothing.
He shall feed me in a green pasture : and lead me forth beside the waters
of comfort.
He shall convert my soul : and bring me forth in the
paths of righteousness, for his Name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow
of death, I will fear no evil : for thou art with me; thy rod and thy
staff comfort me.
Thou shalt prepare a table before me against them that
trouble me thou hast anointed my head with oil, and my cup shall be full.
But thy loving-kindness and mercy shall follow me all
the days of my life : and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
for ever.
GLORY be to the Father, and
to the Son : and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall
be : world without end. Amen.
Benedic, anima mea.
Psalm 103.
PRAISE the LORD,
O my soul : and all that is within me praise his holy Name.
Praise the LORD, O my soul :
and forget not all his benefits;
Who forgiveth all thy sin : and healeth all thine infirmities;
Who saveth thy life from destruction : and crowneth
thee with mercy and loving-kindness;
Who satisfieth thy mouth with good things : making
thee young and lusty as an eagle.
THE LORD
executeth righteousness and judgement : for all them that are oppressed
with wrong.
He shewed his ways unto Moses : his works unto the
children of Israel.
The LORD is full of compassion
and mercy : long-suffering, and of great goodness.
He will not alway be chiding : neither keepeth he his
anger for ever.
He hath not dealt with us after our sins : nor rewarded
us according to our wickednesses.
For look how high the heaven is in comparison of the earth
: so great is his mercy also toward them that fear him.
Look how wide also the east is from the west : so far
hath he set our sins from us.
Yea, like as a father pitieth his own children : even
so is the LORD merciful unto them that fear him.
For he knoweth whereof we are made : he remembereth
that we are but dust.
The days of man are but as grass : for he flourisheth
as a flower of the field.
For as soon as the wind goeth over it, it is gone :
and the place thereof shall know it no more.
But the merciful goodness of the LORD
endureth for ever and ever upon them that fear him : and his righteousness
upon children's children;
Even upon such as keep his covenant : and think upon
his commandments to do them.
THE LORD
hath prepared his seat in heaven : and his kingdom ruleth over all.
O praise the LORD, ye angels
of his, ye that excel in strength : ye that fulfil his commandment, and
hearken unto the voice of his words.
O praise the LORD, all ye his
hosts : ye servants of his that do his pleasure.
O speak good of the LORD, all
ye works of his, in all places of his dominion : praise thou the LORD,
O my soul.
GLORY be to the Father, and
to the Son : and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall
be : world without end. Amen.
¶	The
Then shall follow the Lesson taken out of the fifteenth chapter of the	Lessons are printed out at length in the original; only the citations
former Epistle of Saint Paul to the Corinthians.	are given here.
1 Cor 15. 20.
Or,	1 Cor. 15:20-58.
1 Thess. 4. 13.
¶ Then may be said one or both	1 Thess. 4:13-18
of these Prayers following:
GRANT, O Lord, that as we are baptized
into the death of thy blessed Son our Saviour Jesus Christ, so by continual
mortifying our corrupt affections we may be buried with him; and that
through the grave, and gate of death, we may pass to our joyful resurrection;
for his merits, who died, and was buried, and rose again for us, thy Son
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
GRANT, O Lord, to all who are bereaved,
the spirit of faith and courage, that they may have strength to meet the
days to come with stedfastness and patience, not sorrowing as those without
hope, but in thankful remembrance of thy great goodness in past years,
and in the sure expectation of a joyful reunion in the heavenly places;
and this we ask in the Name of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
¶ When they come
to the Grave, while the Corpse is made ready to be laid into the earth,
the Priest shall say or the Priest and Clerks shall sing,
MAN that is born of a woman hath but a
short time to live, and is full of misery. He cometh up, and is cut down,
like a flower; he fleeth as it were a shadow, and never continueth in
one stay.
In the midst of life we are in death: of whom may we
seek for succour, but of thee, O Lord, who for our sins art justly displeased
Yet O Lord God most holy, O Lord most mighty, O holy
and most merciful Saviour, deliver us not into the bitter pains of eternal
death.
Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our hearts shut
not thy merciful ears to our prayers; but spare us, Lord most holy, O
God most mighty, O holy and merciful Saviour, thou most worthy Judge eternal,
suffer us not, at our last hour, for any pains of death, to fall from
thee.
¶ Then, while
the earth shall be cast upon the Body by some standing by, the Priest
shall say,
FORASMUCH as it hath pleased Almighty God
to take unto himself the soul of our dear brother here departed
we therefore commit his body to the ground ; earth to earth,
ashes to ashes, dust to dust; in sure and certain hope of the resurrection
to eternal life, through our Lord Jesus Christ who shall change our vile
body, that it may be like unto his glorious body, according to the mighty
working, whereby he is able to subdue all things to himself.
¶ Then shall be said or sung,
I HEARD a voice from
heaven, saying unto me, Write, From henceforth blessed are the dead which
die in the Lord: even so, saith the Spirit; for they rest from their labours.
Rev.
14 1.
¶ Then the Priest shall say,
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
OUR Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed
be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, As it is in
heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation;
But deliver us from evil. Amen.
Priest.
ALMIGHTY God, with whom do live the spirits
of them that depart hence in the Lord, and with whom the souls of the
faithful, after they are delivered from the burden of the flesh are in
joy and felicity; We bless thy holy Name for all thy servants departed
this life in thy faith and fear; beseeching thee that it may please thee,
of thy gracious goodness, shortly to accomplish the number of thine elect,
and to hasten thy kingdom; that we, with all those that are departed in
the true faith of thy holy Name, may have our perfect consummation and
bliss, both in body and soul, in thy eternal and everlasting glory; through
Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.
The Collect.
O MERCIFUL God. the Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, who is the resurrection and the life; in whom
whosoever believeth shall live, though he die; and whosoever liveth, and
believeth in him, shall not die eternally; who also hath taught us, by
his holy Apostle Saint Paul, not to be sorry, as men without hope, for
them that sleep in him; We meekly beseech thee, O Father, to raise us
from the death of sin unto the life of righteousness; that, when we shall
depart this life, we may rest in him, as our hope is this our brother
doth; and that, at the general resurrection in the last day, we may be
found acceptable in thy sight; and receive that blessing, which thy well-beloved
Son shall then pronounce to all that love and fear thee, saying, Come,
ye blessed children of my Father, receive the kingdom prepared for you
from the beginning of the world: Grant this, we beseech thee, O merciful
Father, through Jesus Christ, our Mediator and Redeemer. Amen.
THE grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, and
the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, be with us all
evermore. Amen.
¶ In case of inclement
weather, it shall be lawful to say the whole of this Office in the Church,
with the exception of the words of Committal, Forasmuch as it hath
pleased Almighty God, etc., and The grace, etc., which shall
always be said by the graveside.
¶ When they come
to the Grave, if the Burial Ground is not consecrated, the Minister shall
say,
O LORD Jesus Christ, who by thy burial
didst sanctify an earthly sepulchre; Vouchsafe, we beseech thee to bless
and hallow this grave, that it may be a peaceful resting place for the
body of thy servant; through thy mercy, O Blessed Saviour, who livest
and reignest with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one God, world without
end. Amen.
	This
¶ When this Order	rubric added since 1936.
is used for the burial of the ashes after the cremation of the body, in
place of the words commit his body to the ground; earth
to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust shall be said the words
commit his ashes to their resting. place; earth to earth, dust
todust. And when this Order is so used there may be substituted for
the opening Sentence that begins with the words I know that my Redeemer
liveth the following: I am persuaded, that neither death, nor
life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present,
nor things to come, nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall
be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus
our Lord.
Rom. 8. 38. 39.
AN
ORDER FOR
THE BURIAL OF CHILDREN
WHO HAVE BEEN BAPTIZED.
¶ The Priest and
Clerks, meeting the Corpse at the entrance of the Churchyard, and going
before it, either into the Church, or towards the Grave, shall say or
sing,
I AM the resurrection
and the life, saith the Lord: he that believeth in me, though he were
dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall
never die.
St. John 11. 25, 26.
I KNOW that my Redeemer liveth, and that
he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though after my skin
worms destroy this body, yet in my flesh shall I see God: whom I shall
see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not another.
Job 19. 25, 26, 27.
WE brought nothing into this world, and
it is certain we can carry nothing out. The Lord gave, and the Lord hath
taken away; blessed be the Name of the Lord.
1 Tim. 6. 7; Job 1.21.
¶ After they are
come into the Church, shall be said this Psalm following:
Dominus regit me.
Psalm 23.
THE LORD is my shepherd : therefore can
I lack nothing.
He shall feed me in a green pasture : and lead me forth beside the waters
of comfort.
He shall convert my soul : and bring me forth in the
paths of righteousness, for his Name's sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow
of death, I will fear no evil : for thou art with me; thy rod and thy
staff comfort me.
Thou shalt prepare a table before me against them that
trouble me : thou hast anointed my head with oil, and my cup shall be
full.
But thy loving-kindness and mercy shall follow me all
the days of my life : and I will dwell in the house of the LORD
for ever.
GLORY be to the Father, and
to the Son : and to the Holy Ghost;
As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall
be : world without end. Amen.
¶	The
Then shall follow the Lesson taken out of the fourth chapter of the former	Lessons are printed out at length in the original; only the citations
Epistle of Saint Paul to the Thessalonians.	are given here.
1 Thess. 4. 13.
Or,	1 Thess. 4:13-18
Rev. 21. 3.
¶ When they come	Rev. 21:3-5
to the Grave, while the Corpse is made ready to be laid into the earth,
the Priest shall say or the Priest and Clerks shall sing,
MAN that is born of a woman hath but a
short time to live, and is full of misery. He cometh up, and is cut down,
like a flower; he fleet as it were a shadow, and never continueth in one
stay.
In the midst of life we are in death: of whom may
we seek for succour, but of thee, O Lord, who for our sins art justly
displeased?
Yet O Lord God most holy, O Lord most mighty O holy
and most merciful Saviour, deliver us not into the bitter pains of eternal
death.
Thou knowest, Lord, the secrets of our hearts; shut
not thy merciful ears to our prayers; but spare us, Lord most holy O God
most mighty, O holy and merciful Saviour, thou most worthy Judge eternal,
suffer us not, at our last hour for any pains of death, to fall from thee.
¶ Then, while
the earth shall be cast upon the Body by some standing by, the Priest
shall say,
FORASMUCH as it hath pleased Almighty God
to take unto himself the soul of this dear child here departed, we therefore
commit his body to the ground; earth to earth, ashes to ashes,
dust to dust; in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal
life, through our Lord Jesus Christ; who shall change our mortal body,
that it may be like unto his glorious body, according to the mighty working,
whereby he is able to subdue all things to himself.
¶ Then shall be said or sung,
THESE are they which
follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. And in their mouth was found no
guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.
Rev. 14. 4, 5.
¶ Then the Priest shall say,
Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
Lord, have mercy upon us.
OUR Father, which art in heaven, Hallowed
be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, As it is in
heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses,
As we forgive them that trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation;
But deliver us from evil. Amen.
¶ Then shall the Priest say
either or both of these Collects following:
O LORD Jesu Christ, who didst take little
children into thine arms and bless them; Open thou our eyes, we beseech
thee, that we may perceive that thou hast taken this child into the arms
of thy love, and blessed him with the blessings of thy gracious
favour; who livest and reignest with the Father and the Holy Spirit, one
God, world without end. Amen.
O GOD, the fountain of life, whose ways
are hidden and whose work is wonderful; who makest nothing in vain, and
lovest that which thou hast made; Comfort the souls of thy servants, who
by the death of this child are sore stricken and bereaved ; and grant
that they may so love and serve thee in this present life, that they,
with him, may in the end obtain the fulness of thy promises,
and be clothed with the perfection of glory in thy eternal kingdom ; through
the merits of thy Son, our Saviour Jesus Christ. Amen.
THE grace of our Lord Jesus
Christ, and the love of God, and the fellowship of the Holy Ghost, be
with us all evermore. Amen.

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