Funeral Service Outline for a Veteran / Member

Suggested format:

(At the church)

COMMANDER::

We meet today in this place to pay honor and respect to ( state full name, rank, branch of service) who has answered his / her final call to assembly.

CHAPLAIN:

Almighty God, Father of all, we come to thee in this solemn hour with full realization of our utter helplessness. We are brought face to face with the inevitable fact of death. God, be with us now. Helper of the helpless, Giver of eternal peace, Consoler of the disconsolate, take into Thine arms the soul of our departed brother / sister and mend the wounds of his / her bereaved family. Surround them with Thy loving kindness. Give to their troubled hearts that peace and comfort which only Thou can give. Amen.

COMMANDER:

We recognize that all people are Gods' children and that His power and authority extends beyond the universe we know. We know that our ways are not always His ways, and that by way of our human frailty, we often depart from His way. It is not always given to us to understand His purpose and we often see as through a glass darkly. Often we do not subordinate ourselves to His divine power and teachings; nevertheless, from time to time, occasions like this bring us to a clearer understanding of our dependence upon God, and the futility of trying to exist without Him. He has seen fit to call our brother / sister to his / her final reward at this time. Why it should be now rather than later we cannot understand. We must bow in submission to His divine will and learn to say with a humble heart and in a contrite spirit, "Thy will be done...." As a symbol of the comradeship which grew from our common service to our nation that he / she loved so well, we place this insignia (branch of service emblem) upon his / her breast. We will ever cherish his / her memory until we, in turn, take our place beside him / her in the silent halls of death.

CHAPLAIN:

The Lord is my Shepherd, I shall not want. He maketh me to lie down in green pastures; He leadeth me beside the still waters; He restoreth my soul; He leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for His name's sake. Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for Thou art with me; Thy rod and Thy staff, they comfort me. Thou annointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over. Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life, and I will dwell in the house of the Lord forever. Amen.

COMMANDER:

All of you within the sound of my voice, think deeply and well concerning the things which you have heard here today. Give heed unto the promises and assurances of the Heavenly Father. Let them not be to you words without meaning. Ponder the inevitable fact that you will surely, and may soon be, called to your reward. Let the devotion of our departed brother / sister serve as an example to you in your association with your fellow man. As he / she enters the great unknown, resolve to govern your life that you may, as I am sure our departed friend will, hear from the Heavenly Father these words, "Well done, thou good and faithful servant. Enter into the joys of thy Lord." Hear once more the words of our chaplain.

CHAPLAIN:

Once more, O God, we come to Thee in prayer for our departed friend and brother / sister, and once more we beseech Thee to receive his / her soul into the joys of Thy kingdom. Bowed down with grief and a sense of the futility of human existence apart from Thee, we are not always able to understand Thy divine purposes. It has pleasured Thee to take our departed friend and to leave his / her loved ones without his / her companionship; nevertheless, help us to say with resignation and faith, 'Thy will be done. Wilt Thou giveth strength and courage to complete the life we have yet to live, to fight the good fight with strength, courage, and with a faith that through Thy grace, in Thine own good time we shall stand in the light of Thy love, face to face with Thee, when Thou shalt make all things known to us? Grant to us to know and do that which is right. Bring to the hearts of the bereaved ones the peace and comfort which passes all understanding. Guide and direct them in all their days. Enable them to understand that this is not goodbye forever, and that in yet a little while they may reunite with he / she who has gone before, in happiness and peace, forever. As we depart to go our separate ways, continue to watch over us, and if it be Thy will that the time of our departure is delayed a while, may we be granted the strength and courage to face the coming days with fortitude. And now, to Him Who hath given, and Who taketh away, we give honor, power, and glory. Amen.

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 or daily bread, and forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil; for Thine is the kingdom, and the pwer, and the glory, forever and ever. Amen.

The Lord bless thee and keep thee. The Lord make His face to shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee. The Lord lift up His countenance uupon thee, and give thee peace. Amen and amen!

(At the grave)

COMMANDER:

Brothers in arms and friends, we have come to the place of final rest of our departed brother / sister. He / she is not here unless it be in spirit. His / her earthly body, the house in which he / she lived, is all that is left to us. From the earth it came, to the earth we return it. It is a common end to which we all must come. With him / her, the golden bowl is broken, the silver string is loosed. He / she is no longer fettered with an earthly body. His / her soul can soar through the infinite space of Gods' universe. O death, where is thy sting? O grave, where is thy victory? And now, dear friend, farewell on earth. God grant that we meet again in our celestial home.

CHAPLAIN:

Our Heavenly Father, be Thou with us as we go our several ways. Keep our feet firmly on the path of righteousness. Protect and comfort the widow / widower and children of our departed friend. And, finally, when our tour of duty ends on this earth, receive us unto Thyself. Amen.

(At this time, the honor guard will fold the American flag which has been draped over the casket. They will hand it over to the Commander who will present it to the appropiate family member, i.e., the widow / widower, mother, father, oldest child, or whoever else is designated in advance by the family.)

COMMANDER:

(Stated as flag is presented)

On behalf of the President of the United States of America, a grateful nation, and (state branch of service), I wish to prsent you this humble token of remembrance for services rendered by (state full name of deceased).