Just like any funeral, even a Catholic burial is filled with grief and sadness over losing a loved a one. However, according to Catholic beliefs, the passing away of a loved one is seen as the person attaining eternal life. In any burial, there are many Catholic burial rituals that need to followed, but some of these rituals are no longer being followed by many people.

When a person dies, it is perfectly okay for the family members to get in touch with local parish priest before getting in touch with the funeral home. Depending on what the deceased wanted, it may not be necessary to have a funeral home hold the services. The services can be held at the church and the priest and local clergy will do their utmost to console the grieving family members.

A day before the funeral, in the evening, a vigil is held for the deceased. During this vigil, family and friends congregate to pray for the deceased as well as for the family. At this time, even a eulogy can be read in honor of the deceased instead of reading it at the funeral service.

Then, there is the funeral liturgy during which the Eucharist is invariably always performed. During this ceremony, death and resurrection of Christ is celebrated and prayers are said, hymns are sung, and a short message from priest is read. However, any part of the liturgy can be omitted depending on what the family wants.

Once the church funeral service is over, the body is taken to the grave site for burial. The body is treated with a lot of respect as Catholics believe that at the End of Days, the deceased will be resurrected. Where cremation is concerned, there is a lot of controversy among Catholics. The Church does permit cremation, but recommends that the body be given a religious burial. Also, the Church stipulates that if cremation is desired, then it should take place only after the funeral service and not before.

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