Prayer and Opening Statement

HUS SAITH the Lord: “He that believeth in Me though dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever believeth in Me shall never die.” God is a spirit, and they that worship Him worship Him in spirit.

Into Thy hands, O God, we commit our souls.

In the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost. Amen.

Ritual benefits, which will sustain the family and those near and dear to her during this time of separation.

Enable us, O God, through these sacred moments to unite us with that which is eternal. And together we repeat the family prayer:

Our Father, Which 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 trespassers as we forgive them who trespass against us. And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil. For Thine is the kingdom, the power and the glory, for ever and ever. Amen.

And with those words of assurance the Master and the faithful who followed him they felt they were conscious of a change and they were really human and they were concerned about a separation. And He said to them, “In my father’s house are many mansions. If it were not so, I would have told you. I go and prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you unto myself, that where I am, there ye may be also. My peace I give unto you, not as the world giveth, give I unto you, let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid, for lo I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.”

We have this assurance, and this is the link we have as we are able through this act of thanksgiving for the life of Hazel.

I came across this and I’d like to read it to you. It was written only for a funeral I conducted last week by the lady that I ministered to. And I would like just to read these few words. I thought of Hazel. I’ll read them:

“Although I’m no longer here with you, it is as if I’ve only slipped away into another room. Whatever we were to each other, we are still. Call me by the old familiar name. Speak of me in the same way that you always have. Let nothing be different. My boundless love will remain with you for ever. Life means all that it ever meant; it is the same as it always was, with absolute unbroken continuity. For you whom I love and always will, life has so much more to give for you to enjoy, and that is the way it must be. Laugh and smile for me and with me as you reflect upon all those things which we have shared together. Relax as you think of me, and, when you can, pray for me. Let my name be used in all your activities, in no different way. Above all, speak of me without effort, as though I am close by you. I am at peace, and where I am there is no other room. It is an interval somewhere that has an infinite happiness and joy, and some day we’ll meet again to be one together.”

I want you to read this. This is written by a lady who is deceased, and I thought that I would share it with you today, because it seems to meet and to fit in that in spite of all else sometimes death is not obliteration but it is a nearness and part of us for ever and ever, and I’m sure, Robert, and your family, you’ll have that support from that which is unseeen and with you always.

— The Reverend Frederick Lambert Carter