The Order for
The Burial of the Dead
Jennifer Tallant Gilliam

The Officiant, meeting the Body, and going before it, either into the Church or towards the Grave, shall say or sing,

I AM the resurrection and the life, saith the Lord: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: and whosoever liveth and believeth in me, shall never die.

I know that my redeemer liveth, and that he shall stand at the latter day upon the earth: and though this body be destroyed, yet shall I see God: whom I shall see for myself, and mine eyes shall behold, and not as a stranger.

We brought nothing into this world, and it is certain we can carry nothing out. The Lord gave, and the Lord hath taken away; blessed be the name of the Lord. 

After they are come into the Church, shall be said one or more of the following Selections, taken from the Psalms. The Gloria Patri may be omitted except at the end of the whole portion or selection from the Psalter.

Levavi oculos. Psalm cxxi.

I WILL lift up mine eyes unto the hills; * from whence cometh my help?

My help cometh even from the Lord, * who hath made heaven and earth.

He will not suffer thy foot to be moved; * and he that keepeth thee will not sleep.

Behold, he that keepeth Israel * shall neither slumber nor sleep.

The Lord himself is thy keeper; * the Lord is thy defence upon thy right hand;

So that the sun shall not burn thee by day, * neither the moon by night.

The Lord shall preserve thy going out, and thy coming in, * from this time forth for evermore.

GLORY be to the Father, and to the Son, * and to the Holy Ghost;

As it was in the beginning, is now, and ever shall be, * world without end. Amen.

Then shall follow the Lesson, taken from the Apocrypha, coming from the 3^rd chapter of the Wisdom of Solomon, beginning at the 1^st verse.

Wisdom of Solomon iii.1.

THE souls of the righteous are in the hand of God, and there shall no torment touch them.

In the sight of the unwise they seemed to die: and their departure is taken for misery,

And their going from us to be utter destruction: but they are in peace.

For though they be punished in the sight of men, yet is their hope full of immortality.

And having been a little chastised, they shall be greatly rewarded: for God proved them, and found them worthy for himself.

As gold in the furnace hath he tried them, and received them as a burnt offering.

And in the time of their visitation they shall shine, and run to and fro like sparks among the stubble.

They shall judge the nations, and have dominion over the people, and their Lord shall reign for ever.

They that put their trust in him shall understand the truth: and such as be faithful in love shall abide with him: for grace and mercy is to his saints, and he hath care for his elect.

The Lord be with you.
And with thy spirit.
Let us pray.

REMEMBER thou thy servant Jennifer, O Lord, according to the favour which thou bearest unto thy people, and grant that, increasing in knowledge and love of thee, she may go from strength to strength, in the life of perfect service, in thy heavenly kingdom; through Jesus Christ our Lord, who liveth and reigneth with thee and the Holy Ghost ever, one God, world without end. Amen.

UNTO God's gracious mercy and protection we commit Jennifer.  The Lord bless us and keep us. The Lord make his face to shine upon us, and be gracious unto us. The Lord lift up his countenance upon us, and give us peace, both now and evermore. Amen.

Then, while the earth shall be cast upon the Body by some standing by, the Officiant shall say,

UNTO Almighty God we commend the soul of our sister departed, and we commit her body to the grave; earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust; in sure and certain hope of the Resurrection unto eternal life, through our Lord Jesus Christ; at whose coming in glorious majesty to judge the world, the earth and the sea shall give up their dead; and the corruptible bodies of those who sleep in him shall be changed, and made like unto his own glorious body; according to the mighty working whereby he is able to subdue all things unto himself. 

Then shall be said or sung,

Then the Officiant shall say,

The Lord be with you.
And with thy spirit.
Let us pray.

Lord, have mercy upon us.
Christ, have mercy upon us.
 Lord, have mercy upon us.

OUR Father, who art in heaven, Hallowed be thy Name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, On earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread. And forgive us our trespasses, As we forgive those who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, But deliver us from evil. Amen. 

Then the Officiant shall say one or more of the following Prayers, at his discretion.

MOST merciful Father, who hast been pleased to take unto thyself the soul of this thy servant; Grant to us who are still in our pilgrimage, and who walk as yet by faith, that having served thee with constancy on earth, we may be joined hereafter with thy blessed saints in glory everlasting; through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

O LORD Jesus Christ, who by thy death didst take away the sting of death; Grant unto us thy servants so to follow in faith where thou hast led the way, that we may at length fall asleep peacefully in thee, and awake up after thy likeness; through thy mercy, who livest with the Father and the Holy Ghost, one God, world without end. Amen.

Inasmuch as it may sometimes be expedient to say under shelter of the Church the whole or a part of the service appointed to be said at the Grave, the same is hereby allowed for weighty cause.

       I'm Joe Sallenger and the burial rites I just used come from the liturgy of the Anglican Catholic Church, a decidedly conservative branch of mainstream Christianity.  I wasn't always quite this conservative.

      Back in high school, when I first met Jennifer and the rest of the Tallant family, I wore loud socks that didn't match.  In my silly little way, I was trying to be a bit non‑conformist. In memory of Jennifer, my socks don't match today.  OK, I was a very small time rebel.

      One of the first things that attracted me to Jennifer was the way she kept the people around her off‑balance.  I enjoyed feeling off‑balance.  Around Florence there weren't a whole lot of people rocking the boat.  If Jennifer couldn't sink the boat, she would at least capsize it.

      In retrospect, this was probably how Jennifer was coping with the early stages of a disorder that would trouble her throughout her life.  But to us at that time, it was just Jennifer being Jennifer. And we loved her for who and what she was.

      Jennifer went on to be challenged with all kinds of trials and tribulations in this life. Although she was a firebrand of determination, she suffered enough to test anyone's faith.

      To me, one of the greatest gifts God gave Jennifer was her incredible artistic ability.  I can't color between the lines, and she could draw anything, and not just the things you and I could see, but also the things only she could imagine. With her sparkling, volatile and, let's face it, often cynical wit, she was able to use her artistic talent to interpret and create upon God's creation, and add to the world's  beauty with beauty of her own.

      God gave Jennifer such an appreciation of the beauty surrounding her in the world! Beauty is no random accident. In order to even see the beauty in creation, I am confident that Jennifer had to have that seed of faith ‑‑ an abiding, inherent faith in the benevolence of the world, and of her Creator.

      We need only faith as a grain of mustard seed; and with such faith all things are possible.

The Lord be with you.
And with thy spirit.
Let us pray.

O  HEAVENLY Father, who hast filled the world with beauty; Open, we beseech thee, our eyes to behold thy gracious hand in all thy works; that rejoicing in thy whole creation, we may learn to serve thee with gladness; for the sake of him by whom all things were made, thy Son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Invitation to speak

Closing Prayers, Benediction