Guide · five services, written out in full
Funeral order of service examples
Five running orders to start from, one for each kind of service most families arrange. Copy the one closest to yours into the free template and change what does not fit. The celebrant, the priest or the funeral director will have the running order for the actual service; these show the shape, and the wording that usually goes around it.
The pages, whichever service it is
An A5 folded order of service has four pages. The front carries a line such as “In loving memory of”, the photograph, the full name and the name everyone used, the dates, and where and when the service is. The inside carries the running order, with who is speaking or reading and the words of anything people join in. The back carries the family’s thanks, where people can gather afterwards, and any request for donations in place of flowers. Every example below follows that shape; what changes is the order in the middle.
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1. A Catholic requiem Mass
The Mass of Christian Burial, in outline · the parish has the full rite
Front
In loving memory of
Full name
Date of birth – date of death
Requiem Mass
Day, date and time
St Patrick’s Church, Parramatta
Order of service
Entrance hymn — The Lord’s my Shepherd
Reception of the body and placing of the pall
Words of welcome — Father (name)
Opening prayer
First reading — read by (name)
Responsorial psalm — Psalm 23
Second reading — read by (name)
Gospel acclamation
Gospel
Homily
Prayers of the faithful — read by (name)
Preparation of the gifts — brought forward by (names)
Eucharistic prayer
The Lord’s Prayer
Communion
Communion hymn — Ave Maria
Words of remembrance — (name)
Final commendation and farewell
Recessional hymn — Amazing Grace
Back
The family thanks you for your presence today, your prayers and your kindness over the past weeks.
Following the Mass, the committal will take place at (cemetery), and all are welcome.
Please join the family afterwards at (place).
In lieu of flowers, a donation to (charity) would be warmly appreciated.
The words of the responses and the Lord’s Prayer are often printed so that guests who are not Catholic can follow; ask the parish, which will have them in the form it uses. A Catholic funeral may also be a Liturgy of the Word without the Eucharist, which is shorter: the Mass section from the preparation of the gifts to Communion is left out.
2. An Anglican or Uniting Church service
A church funeral with hymns and readings
Front
A service of thanksgiving for the life of
Full name
“Known as”
Date of birth – date of death
Day, date and time
St John’s Anglican Church, (suburb)
Order of service
Entrance music
Welcome and opening prayer — the Reverend (name)
Hymn — Abide with Me
Reading — Psalm 23, read by (name)
Eulogy — (name)
Tribute — (name)
Reflection — music, or a slideshow of photographs
Reading — John 14:1–6, read by (name)
Address — the Reverend (name)
Prayers
The Lord’s Prayer
Hymn — The Day Thou Gavest, Lord, Is Ended
Commendation and blessing
Recessional music
Back
The family thanks you for being here today.
The committal will be private.
Please join us afterwards in the church hall for refreshments.
Donations in (name)’s memory may be made to (charity).
Print the words of the hymns at the point they are sung, so nobody turns a page mid-verse; the words of these hymns are free to print. Two hymns and two readings usually means an 8-page booklet rather than a folded card.
3. A celebration of life
Non-religious, led by a celebrant
Front
A celebration of the life of
Full name
Date of birth – date of death
Day, date and time
(Chapel or venue)
Order of service
Entrance music — (a song she loved)
Welcome — the celebrant, (name)
Opening words
The story of her life — (name)
Memories — from (name) and (name)
Reading — Death Is Nothing at All, read by (name)
Reflection — (a song), with photographs
Open tributes — anyone who would like to speak
Words of farewell — the celebrant
Closing music — (a song)
Back
Thank you for being part of (name)’s life, and for being here today.
Please stay and share a drink and a story at (place), straight after the service.
No flowers, please — (name) asked that anything you would have spent go to (charity).
Forever in our hearts
A celebration of life is usually shorter on the page than a church service, which leaves room for a second photograph or a favourite saying. Song titles and artists can be printed freely; the lyrics cannot, so they are read or played rather than printed.
4. A graveside committal
A short service at the cemetery · a DL card is enough
Front
In memory of
Full name
Date of birth – date of death
Graveside service
Day, date and time
(Cemetery), (suburb)
Back
Words of welcome — (celebrant or minister)
Reading — Psalm 23
Words of remembrance — (name)
Committal
The Lord’s Prayer
Closing words
The family thanks you for standing with them today.
Please join us afterwards at (place).
A committal is brief and often outdoors, so the card is small and the running order is short. A DL card, 99 × 210mm, printed front and back on a heavy stock, is enough; the template makes one.
5. A memorial service
Held days or weeks later, without the casket, often at a hall or a club
Front
Remembering
Full name
Date of birth – date of death
A memorial gathering
Day, date and time
(Club, hall or garden), (suburb)
Order of the afternoon
Arrival — music from (name)’s own collection
Welcome — (name)
A life in photographs — slideshow
Memories — (name), (name) and (name)
Reading — Remember, by Christina Rossetti, read by (name)
A minute’s silence
A toast — (name)
Open floor — stories from anyone who would like to tell one
Closing words — (name)
Back
Thank you for coming, for the stories, and for everything you did for (name) and for us.
Please stay as long as you like. Food and drinks are on the table at the back.
If you have photographs of (name) you would like to share, (name) is collecting them at (email).
Because a memorial is planned with more time, it is the service most often printed as an 8-page booklet with a page of photographs, and the one most often paired with a memorial bookmark for guests to take home.
Wording for the front, the back and the thanks
The line above the name
In loving memory of · A celebration of the life of · A service of thanksgiving for the life of · In memory of · Remembering · Celebrating the life of · A requiem Mass for
The thank-you
The family thanks you for being here today. · Thank you for your presence, your prayers and your kindness over the past weeks. · Thank you for being part of (name)’s life, and for sharing today with us. · (Name)’s family thanks the staff of (hospital or hospice) for their care.
Afterwards
Please join us afterwards at (place) for refreshments. · The committal will be private; please join us at (place) from (time). · All are welcome at (cemetery) for the committal, and afterwards at (place).
Flowers and donations
In lieu of flowers, donations to (charity) would be warmly appreciated. · No flowers by request; donations to (charity) in (name)’s memory may be made at the door or online. · Family flowers only.
A closing line
Forever in our hearts · Always loved, never forgotten · Rest in peace · Until we meet again · Loved beyond words, missed beyond measure
Having it printed
Copy the running order into the free template with the photograph and the wording, and it gives you the print-ready PDF, for a home printer or for us. Or send the wording and the photographs and we set it: the order of service is quoted the same business day and delivered to you or the funeral director.
Common questions
What is the order of a Catholic funeral Mass?
In outline: the entrance and reception of the body, the readings and the Gospel, the homily, the prayers of the faithful, the Eucharist, Communion, words of remembrance, and the final commendation and farewell. The parish has the full rite and the exact wording of the responses; ask for them so the booklet matches what is said.
What goes in a celebration of life program?
The welcome, the story of the person’s life, memories from family and friends, a reading or a poem, music or a slideshow, open tributes, and words of farewell. There is no fixed form; the celebrant will shape it with the family.
How long should a funeral order of service be?
Four pages — an A5 folded card — for most services. A church service with two hymns and two readings printed in full needs eight pages. A graveside committal needs a DL card with a front and a back.
Who writes the running order?
The celebrant, the priest or the minister sets the order of the service and the funeral director usually coordinates it; the family chooses the readings, the music and who speaks. Ask for the running order early, because the booklet cannot be finished without it.
Should the eulogy be printed?
Usually not: the eulogy is spoken, and the booklet lists it with the speaker’s name. Families who want the words kept sometimes print it as a separate sheet afterwards, or post it with the photographs.
Related
What goes in it
The guide: each page, the size and paper, how many to print and how soon to order.
Poems and readings
The words of readings and hymns that can be printed without asking, and the ones to ask about.
Funeral order of service
A5 folded, an 8-page booklet or a DL card, set from your wording, proofed and delivered.
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