Funerals

For generations, the Roman Catholic Funeral Rites have helped us, the faithful, to express our faith and hope in Christ’s gift of eternal life for each one of us.

Funerals

Whether you are planning the funeral of a loved one or doing some advance planning for your own funeral, your parish family at Our Lady of Guadalupe is ready to accompany you during this time.


If you are planning the funeral of a loved one who is dying or has died, and a mortuary will be handling the arrangements for the funeral, we recommend that you first contact the mortuary to begin making the arrangements.


The mortuary then will coordinate with our Parish Office to schedule the funeral. If a mortuary will not be involved with the funeral (often the case when the body will be cremated), please contact the Parish Office directly at (562) 691-0533 to schedule the funeral.

Please read throught the "Planning a Catholic Christian Funeral" pamphlet (available below). 


Call the parish office to scheduele your funeral date and time. 

 

Fill out the "Funerals Selections" Form and turn into the Parish Office. 

Since sung music within the funeral rites is “sung prayer,” live music and singing of Christian hymns and songs are encouraged.  A parish cantor/soloist and/or instrumentalist can be assigned to the funeral liturgy if the family so desires.  There is an additional charge. 


The assigned cantor/soloist or instrumentalist will contact the designated family member to help in the selection of Christian hymns and songs for your loved one’s funeral.  Please note that recorded music, popular songs and other types of secular music are not permitted during the funeral rites in the church (these are best done at the visitation at the mortuary the day or evening before the funeral).


Musicians other than the parish’s designated musicians generally are not allowed to serve as music ministers during funeral liturgies in the church, although there are rare exceptions (e.g., when a close family member or friend is a trained musician who works as a music minister in another Catholic parish).  Please discuss this possibility with the parish’s assigned cantor/soloist or instrumentalist.


The list below includes some appropriate and commonly-selected hymns and songs for funerals:


Entrance

Amazing Grace (Music Source: New Britain)


Be Not Afraid (Dufford)


Here I Am Lord (Schutte)


How Great Thou Art (Hine)


O Lord, I Am Not Worthy (Music Source: Non Dignus) 


Responsorial Psalm

Psalm 23:  The Lord is my shepherd; there is nothing I shall want.


Psalm 27:  The Lord is my light and my salvation.


Psalm 42:  Like a deer that longs for running streams, my soul longs for you, my God.


Psalm 103:  The Lord is kind and merciful.


Presentation of the Gifts

Amazing Grace (Music Source: New Britain)


Because the Lord is My Shepherd (Walker)


Eye Has Not Seen (Haugen)


Only a Shadow (Landry)


Prayer of St. Francis (Temple)


Communion

I Am the Bread of Life (Toolan)


Panis Angelicus (Franck) - classical


Panis Angelicus/ Holy and Living Bread (Sacris Solemnis) 


Psalm 42:  As the Deer Longs (O Waly Waly)


Psalm 42:  As the Deer Longs (Hurd)


Shelter Me, O God (Hurd)


Shepherd Me, O God (Haugen)


Second Communion

Ave Maria (Schubert) - classical


Ave Maria (Bach/Gounod) - classical


Ave Maria/ Hail Mary (chant)


Hear My Prayer (Moses Hogan) - American spiritual hymn tune


May You Walk With Christ Beside You (Stephen Dean)


Song of Farewell

Song of Farewell (Old Hundredth)


May Angels Lead You/In Paradisum (chant)


May the Angels Lead You Into Paradise (Howard Hughes)


Recessional

On Eagle’s Wings (Joncas)


How Great Thou Art (Hine)


I Know that my Redeemer Lives (Soper)


Precious Lord, Take My Hand (Allen/Ringwald) - American spiritual hymn tune