Second Readings from the New Testament
'I am convinced that neither death, nor life, nor Angels, nor rulers, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in creation will be able to seperate us from the Love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.' Romans 8: 38-39
First Readings choose one
Second Reading choose one
Gospel Reading selected and read by the parish Priest
During the funeral the Scriptures will be proclaimed from the Lectionary provided to you by the parish. The parish Priest is available to guide you in your selection of the readings. During the funeral liturgy, the Biblical readings may not be replaced by nonbiblical readings, poems, quotations or unapproved translations of the Bible. During the vigil prayer service with the family, nonbiblical readings, poems and quotations may be used in addition to readings from Scripture.
Romans 5:5-11 1014(1)
Justified by his blood, we will be saved.
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
Brothers and sisters:
Hope does not disappoint us,
because God’s love has been poured into our hearts
through the Holy Spirit that has been give to us.
For while we were still weak,
at the right time Christ died for the ungodly.
Indeed, rarely will anyone die for a righteous person –
though perhaps for a good person someone
might actually dare to die.
But God proves his love for us
in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us.
Much more surely then,
now that we have been justified by his blood,
will we be saved through him from the wrath of God.
For if while we were enemies,
we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son,
much more surely, having been reconciled,
will we be saved by his life.
But more than that,
we even boast in God through our Lord Jesus Christ,
through whom we have now received reconciliation.
The word of the Lord.
Romans 5:17:21 1014(2)
Where sin increased, grace abounded all the more.
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
Brothers and sisters:
If, because of the one man’s trespass,
death exercised dominion through that one,
much more surely will those who receive
the abundance of grace
and the free gift of righteousness
exercise dominion in life through the one man, Jesus Christ.
Therefore just as one man’s trespass
led to condemnation for all people,
so one man’s act of righteousness
leads to justification and life for all.
For just as by the one man’s disobedience
the many were made sinners,
so by the one man’s obedience
the many will be made righteous.
But law came in,
with the result that the trespass multiplied;
but where sin increased,
grace abounded all the more,
so that, just as sin exercised dominion in death,
so grace might also exercise dominion
through justification leading to eternal life
through Jesus Christ our Lord.
The Word of the Lord
Romans 6:3-9 1014(3)
Let us walk in newness of life. (long version)
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
Brothers and sisters:
Do you not know
that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus
were baptized into his death?
Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death,
so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead
by the glory of the Father,
so we too might walk in newness of life.
For if we have been united with him in a death like his,
we will certainly be united with him in a resurrection like his.
We know that our old self was crucified with him
so that the body of sin might be destroyed,
and we might no longer be enslaved to sin.
For whoever has died is freed from sin.
But if we have died with Christ,
we believe that we will also live with him.
We know that Christ, being raised from the dead,
will never dieagain;
death no longer has dominion over him.
The Word of the Lord
OR
Romans 6:3-4, 8-9
Let us walk in newness of life. (short version)
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
Brothers and sisters:
Do you not know
that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus
were baptized into his death?
Therefore we have been buried with him by baptism into death,
so that, just as Christ was raised from the dead
by the glory of the Father,
so we too might walk in newness of life.
But if we have died with Christ,
we believe that we will also live with him.
We know that Christ, being raised from the dead,
will never dieagain;
death no longer has dominion over him.
The Word of the Lord
Romans 8:14-23 1014(4)
We wait for the redemption of our bodies
A reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
Brothers and sisters:
All who are led by the Spirit of God are
sons and daughters of God.
For you did not receive a spirit of slavery
to fall back into fear,
but you have received a spirit of adoption to sonship.
When we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’
it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit
that we are children of God,
and if children, then heirs,
heirs of God and joint heirs with Christ—
if, in fact, we suffer with him
so that we may also be glorified with him.
I consider that the sufferings of this present time
are not worth comparing with the glory
about to be revealed to us.
For the creation waits with eager longing
for the revealing of the children of God;
for the creation was subjected to futility,
not of its own will
but by the will of the one who subjected it,
in hope that the creation itself
will be set free from its bondage to decay
and will obtain the freedom of the glory
of the children of God.
We know that the whole creation
has been groaning in labour pains until now;
and not only the creation
but we ourselves, who have the first fruits of the Spirit,
groan inwardly while we wait for adoption of sonship,
the redemption of our bodies.
The Word of the Lord
Romans 8:31b-35, 37-39 1014(5)
Who will separate us from the love of Christ?
A Reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
Brothers and sisters:
If God is for us, who is against us?
He who did not withhold his own Son,
but gave him up for all of us,
will he not with him also give us everything else?
Who will bring any charge against God’s elect?
It is God who justifies.
Who is to condemn?
It is Christ Jesus, who died,
yes, who was raised,
who is at the right hand of God,
who indeed intercedes for us.
Who will separate us from the love of Christ?
Will hardship, or distress, or persecution,
or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword?
No, in all these things we are more than conquerors
through him who loved us.
For I am convinced that neither death, nor life,
nor angels, nor rulers,
nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers,
nor height, nor depth, nor anything else in all creation,
will be able to separate us
from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.
The Word of the Lord
Romans 14: 7-9, 10b-12 1014(6)
Whether we live or whether we die, we are the Lord’s.
A Reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Romans
Brothers and sisters:
We do not live to ourselves,
and we do not die to ourselves.
If we live, we live to the Lord,
and if we die, we die to the Lord;
so then, whether we live or whether we die,
we are the Lord’s.
For to this end, Christ died and lived again
so that he might be Lord of both the dead and the living.
10For we will all stand before the judgment seat of God.
For it is written,
‘As I live, says the Lord, every knee shall bow to me,
and every tongue shall give praise to God.’
So then, each of us will be accountable to God.
The Word of the Lord.
1 Corinthians 15: 12, 16-20 1014(6A)
If for this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.
A Reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
If Christ is proclaimed as raised from the dead,
how can some of you say there is no resurrection of the dead?
For if the dead are not raised,
then Christ has not been raised.
If Christ has not been raised,
your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.
Then those also who have died in Christ have perished.
If for this life only we have hoped in Christ,
we are of all people most to be pitied.
But in fact, Christ has been raised from the dead,
the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
The Word of the Lord.
1 Corinthians 15:20-24a, 25-28 1014(7)
So all will be made alive in Christ (long version)
A Reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
Brothers and sisters:
Christ has been raised from the dead,
the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since death came through a man,
the resurrection of the dead has also come through a man
for as all die in Adam,
so all will be made alive in Christ.
But each in his own order:
Christ the first fruits,
then at his coming those who belong to Christ.
Then comes the end,
when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father.
For he must reign until he has put all his enemies
under his feet.
The last enemy to be destroyed is death.
For ‘God has put all things in subjection under his feet.’
But when it says, ‘All things are put in subjection,’
it is plain that this does not include the one
who put all things in subjection under him.
When all things are subjected to him,
then the Son himself will also be subjected to the one
who put all things in subjection under him,
so that God may be all in all.
The Word of the Lord.
OR
1 Corinthians 15:20-24
So all will be made alive in Christ (short version)
A Reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
Brothers and sisters:
Christ has been raised from the dead,
the first fruits of those who have fallen asleep.
For since death came through a man,
the resurrection of the dead has also come through a man
for as all die in Adam,
so all will be made alive in Christ.
But each in his own order:
Christ the first fruits,
then at his coming those who belong to Christ.
Then comes the end,
when he hands over the kingdom to God the Father.
1 Corinthians 15:51-57 1014(8)
Death has been swallowed up in victory
A Reading from the first Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
Brothers and sisters:
Listen, I will tell you a mystery!
We will not all die,
but we will all be changed,
in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet.
For the trumpet will sound,
And the dead will be raised imperishable,
And we will be changed.
For this perishable body must put on imperishability,
And this mortal body must put on immortality.
When this perishable body puts on imperishability,
And this mortal body puts on immortality,
Then the saying that is written will be fulfilled:
“Death has been swallowed up in victory.”
“Where, O death, is your victory?
Where, O death, is your sting?”
The sting of death is sin,
And the power of sin is the law,
But thanks be to God,
who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.
The Word of the Lord.
2 Corinthians 4:14 – 5:1 1014(9)
What can be seen is temporary, but what cannot be seen is eternal.
A reading from the second Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
Brothers and sisters:
We know that the one who raised the Lord Jesus
will raise us also with Jesus,
and will bring us with you into his presence.
Yes, everything is for your sake,
so that grace, as it extends to more and more people,
may increase thanksgiving, to the glory of God.
So we do not lose heart.
Even though our outer nature is wasting away,
our inner nature is being renewed day by day.
For this slight momentary affliction
is preparing us for an eternal weight of glory
beyond all measure,
because we look not at what can be seen
but at what cannot be seen;
for what can be seen is temporary,
but what cannot be seen is eternal.
For we know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed,
we have a building from God,
a house not made with hands,
eternal in the heavens.
The Word of the Lord
2 Corinthians 5:1,6-10 1014(10)
We have a house eternal in the heavens.
A Reading from the second Letter of Saint Paul to the Corinthians
Brothers and sisters:
We know that if the earthly tent we live in is destroyed,
we have a building from God,
a house not made with hands,
eternal in the heavens.
So we are always confident;
even though we know that while we are at home in the body,
we are away from the Lord—
for we walk by faith, not by sight.
Yes, we do have confidence,
and we would rather be away from the body
and at home with the Lord.
So whether we are at home or away,
we make it our aim to please him.
For all of us must appear before the judgement seat of Christ,
so that each may receive recompense
for what has been done in the body,
whether good or evil.
The Word of the Lord
Philippians 3:20-21 1014(11)
He will transform the body of our humiliation that it may be confirmed to the body of his glory.
A Reading from the Letter of Saint Paul to the Philippians
Brothers and sisters:
Our citizenship is in heaven,
and it is from there that we are expecting a Saviour,
the Lord Jesus Christ.
He will transform the body of our humiliation
that it may be conformed to the body of his glory,
by the power that also enables him
to make all things subject to himself.
The Word of the Lord
1 Thessalonians 4:13-18 1014(12)
We will be with the Lord forever.
A reading from the first letter of Saint Paul to the Thessalonians
We do not want you to be uninformed, brothers and sisters,
about those who have died,
so that you may not grieve as others do who have no hope.
For since we believe that Jesus died and rose again,
even so, through Jesus,
God will bring with him those who have died.
For this, we declare to you by the word of the Lord,
that we who are alive,
who are left until the coming of the Lord,
will by no means precede those who have died.
For the Lord himself, with a cry of command,
with the Archangel’s call and with the sound of God’s trumpet,
will descend from heaven,
and the dead in Christ will rise first.
Then we who are alive, who are left,
will be caught up in the clouds
together with them to meet the Lord in the air;
and so we will be with the Lord forever.
Therefore, encourage one another with these words.
The Word of the Lord.
2 Timothy 2:8-13 1014(13)
If we have died with him, we will also live with him.
A reading from the second Letter of Saint Paul to Timothy
Beloved:
Remember Jesus Christ,
raised from the dead, a descendant of David—
that is my Gospel,
for which I suffer hardship,
even to the point of being chained like a criminal.
But the word of God is not chained.
Therefore I endure everything for the sake of the elect,
so that they may also obtain the salvation
that is in Christ Jesus,
with eternal glory.
The saying is sure:
If we have died with him,
we will also live with him;
if we endure,
we will also reign with him;
if we deny him,
he will also deny us;
if we are faithless,
he remains faithful—
for he cannot deny himself.
The Word of the Lord
2 Timothy 4:6-8 1014(13A)
There is reserved for me the crown of righteousness
A reading from the second Letter of Saint Paul to Timothy.
Beloved:
I am already being poured out as a libation,
and the time of my departure has come.
I have fought the good fight,
I have finished the race,
I have kept the faith.
From now on
there is reserved for me the crown of righteousness
which the Lord, the righteous judge,
will give me on that day,
and not only to me but also to all who have
longed for his appearing.
The word of the Lord.
1 Peter 1:3-7 1014(13B)
God has given us a birth into an inheritance that is imperishable,
undefiled and unfading.
A reading from the second Letter of Saint Paul to Peter.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ!
By his great mercy he has given us a new birth into a living hope
Through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead:
a birth into an inheritance
that is imperishable, undefiled and unfading,
kept in heaven for you,
who are being protected by the power of God through faith
for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.
In this you rejoice,
Even if now for a little while
You have had to suffer various trials,
So that the genuineness of your faith
-being more precious than gold that,
Through perishable, is tested by fire –
May be found to result in praise and glory and honour
When Jesus Christ is revealed.
The word of the Lord.
1 John 3:1-2 1014(14)
We will see God as He is
A reading from the first Letter of Saint John
Beloved:
See what love the Father has given us,
that we should be called children of God;
and that is what we are.
The reason the world does not know us
is that it did not know him.
Beloved, we are God’s children now;
what we will be has not yet been revealed.
What we do know is this:
when he is revealed, we will be like him,
for we will see him as he is.
The Word of the Lord
1 John 3:14-16 1014(15)
We know that we have passed from death to life because we love one another.
A reading from the first Letter of Saint John
Beloved:
We know that we have passed from death to life
because we love our brothers and sisters.
Whoever does not love abides in death.
Whoever hates a brother or sister is a murderer,
and you know that murderers do not have
eternal life abiding in them.
We know love by this,
that he laid down his life for us—
and we ought to lay down our lives for one another.
The Word of the Lord
First Readings from Old Testament outside Easter
First Readings from New Testament during Easter
Springfield Funeral Home
Disclaimer: Every effort has been made to ensure the information in these pages is accurate and in accordance with the teachings of the Church and/or the customs and practices of the local church, specifically the Diocese of Nelson. Springfield Funeral Home does not represent or speak on behalf of the Diocese of Nelson. Please defer to the directive of the local ordinary or to the Pastor of the parish if there is a discrepancy of information contained in these pages. Local parishes may have their own traditions, requests and/or resources. We would appreciate to be notified of any errors, whether liturgical or grammatical in nature. Please send any such notices to contact@springfieldfuneralhome.com.
