Reflections on Death & Burial from the 1979 Book of Common Prayer Service

As a priest in the Episcopal Church, I attended the deaths of many and presided over their burial. I found comfort in the rites provided for that purpose—The Litany at the Time of Death and The Burial of the Dead. These rites consist of prayers, scripture readings, and hymns. They proclaim hope in God’s promise of more life to come. By commenting on these texts, and sharing my own reflections, I seek to share this hope with others.

This hope is centered upon the revelation of God’s love manifested in the life and ministry of Jesus Christ, especially in his death, resurrection, ascension, and ongoing pouring out of the Holy Spirit. It is the Holy Spirit that inspires faith to believe in the goodness of the Father, as Jesus refers to God, and that belief in turn inspires hope. A prayer appointed for the Eucharist at the time of burial expresses that hope, saying, “It is right, and a good and joyful thing, always and everywhere to give thanks to you, Father Almighty, Creator of heaven and earth, through Jesus Christ our Lord; who rose victorious from the dead, and comforts us with the blessed hope of everlasting life. For to your faithful people, O Lord, life is changed, not ended; and when our mortal body lies in death, there is prepared for us a dwelling place eternal in the heavens” (The Book of Common Prayer 1979, pages 381-382).

This prayer is based upon Jesus’ words to his disciples on the evening before his own death when he said, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father’s house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go to prepare a place for you, I will come again to take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also” (John 14:1-3). That evening he also promised the disciples that he would not leave them alone in this world but would send a Comforter, the Holy Spirit, to be with them forever. It is this Comforter, then, that inspires both faith and hope by testifying to the Father’s love for us, revealed in his Son, Jesus Christ.