Yesterday afternoon, we had our annual cemetery services at some of the cemeteries in the deanery. I led the one at Sidcup cemetery which is where Fr Koch, the founding parish priest of Blackfen, is buried. (The Church of Our Lady of the Rosary in Blackfen was built in 1936 and operated as a chapel of ease for Welling parish but was made up to a parish in 1945.)
First of all we said the prayers for the Pope's intentions after I reminded people of the indulgence. Then I said various other prayers for the dead and the traditional prayer for the mourners. The main part of the proceedings is then for me to go around to graves as requested, say a short prayer and sprinkle the graves with holy water - starting with Fr Koch's grave.
This is an important function for local Catholics. As well as visiting the graves of people's relatives and friends, there are many others we remember whose family are no longer around or whose relatives cannot be there. There is a whole section of the cemetery where every row has several people whose funerals I have conducted. I remember the different characters and their lives. Some particularly sad visits are to the graves of young people who have died.
Sometimes non-Catholics who just happen to be there to attend to the graves of their loved ones ask me to come and say a prayer at their family graves too. Of course, we remember all the others buried there, too. It isn't quite the Festa dei Morti of the Campo Verano in Rome but it is all a great help, especially for those who are widowed, to know that we remember their loved ones and continue to pray for them.
2 comments:
It's also helpful for those of us who have no grave at which to mourn a loved one...
It was a beautiful and moving service. Thank you!
Our parish cemetery in Ireland, like many, has what's called its "Pattern Day" (from Irish "Patrún" and I suspect derived from the adjective "partronal") on the 3rd Sunday in July, and it comprises Rosary, Benediction and blessing of the graves. It's a lovely day - and not unlike the Festa dei Morti - but I've always felt a bit disappointed that nothing is done in November, except for an early morning Mass in the little chapel attached to the cemetery on All Souls' (about the only day of the year it's opened, I think). Of course there are always numbers of people there at any time, which is good, but since the July "pattern" is an ancient tradition it's highly unlikely it would ever be transferred to November. And then there's the weather factor, of course.
Another "tradition" is that people visit the graves on Christmas Day, especially in the case of a recent death. My family never did it and I always thought it a bit odd (albeit nice) until I read recently about the belief that more souls are released on Christmas night than on All Souls'. I'm not sure if that actually has anything to do with it, but it does chime in. So I'm going to do it this year. Jaykay.
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