Q: Thanks so much for all your posts. They are very helpful in ministry.
The question I have is as follows. I know the norm for a Funeral Mass is to have the body present. While attending a presentation on end of life issues, the presenter stated that if cremains are present at the Mass it is considered a Memorial Mass and not a Funeral Mass. I thought the rite allowed for when cremains are present at a Mass that it would be considered a Funeral Mass and not a Memorial Mass. Can you explain/clarify?
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A: Thanks for your comments on my blog.
Neither the Order of Christian of Christian Funerals nor the Roman Missal uses the term “Memorial Mass.” It’s used in popular Catholic culture to mean a funeral when the body is not present. If we have the body or the ashes of the deceased present, the OCF calls it a funeral Mass.
Also, the OCF in the United States never uses the word “cremains.” It prefers “cremated remains” because this more clearly expresses that we are dealing with the remains of a person.