FUNERAL POLICY
The Resurrection is a central doctrine of the Christian faith and shapes Christians’ attitudes and responses to the event of death. In the face of death, Christians affirm with tears and joy the hope of the Gospel. Christians do not bear bereavement in isolation, but are sustained by the power of the Spirit and the community of faith. The church offers a ministry of love and hope to all who grieve. Just as the church embraces us in our baptism and throughout our Christian life, so it should embrace us in our death and in our hope of resurrection to eternal life. Christians believe that the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ gives them hope and cause for thanksgiving in the face of death. In this faith, we entrust those who have died to the infinite mercy and love of God.
It is the commitment of the clergy and music leadership of First United Methodist Church to present a properly balanced and theologically sound service that both honors our loved ones and praises God through worship and word.
PASTORAL STAFF
Upon the death of one of our members, please contact Dr. Shera Atkinson, our liaison for funeral and memorial services, at the congregational care office, 806-763-4607 ext. 240, as soon as possible. Upon receiving your call, arrangements will begin to be made to secure the pastor of your choice, if available, reserve the sanctuary or chapel and inform our music ministers of the service. You may request the pastor of your choice and the pastor will make every effort to officiate. Unfortunately, there are times when pastors are out of town. Please note that each of three pastors are here to serve and care for you and your family.
Our pastors also earnestly desire to know of those who need comfort and counsel as they face death. By being involved early in situations of death or impending death, the pastor can help immensely with the necessary decisions regarding serve arrangements as well as caring for the spiritual needs of those involved.
TYPES OF SERVICES
All services conducted by the pastors of the church are services of worship for the community of faith. While the form of the services may differ, each is a Service of Witness to the Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Memorial Service—The Memorial Service is a service in which the body is not present. Interment of the remains in a Service of Committal has either preceded the Memorial Service or will take place at a later time.
Funeral Service—The Funeral Service is a service in which the body is present in either a casket or an urn. The Funeral Service is concluded with a Service of Committal.
Graveside Service—The Graveside Service is a service that takes place at the burial site. The Service of Committal is part of the Graveside Service.
LOCATION OF SERVICE
The service on the occasion of death ordinarily should be held in the usual place of worship in order to join this service to the community’s continuing life and witness to the Resurrection. The service shall be under the direction of the pastor.
The church Sanctuary, Christian Life Worship Center or Bowman Chapel are appropriate places for a Memorial or Funeral Service. Here on the church property is where we worship every Sunday. Here is where we baptize our children, celebrate marriage, gather at the Lord’s Table, remembering the love and grace of God. Here we are surrounded by the symbols of our Christian faith. In this place we have tangible reminders of the “great cloud of witnesses” that surround us and the community of faith that supports us with compassion and love.
VISITATION
The Parlor located on the church property, provides a warm and familiar place for visitation with family and friends. Members are encouraged to use this facility for visitation as part of their arrangements. Rooms 106/107 in the CLC and Room 18 in the Education Building are also appropriate for gathering for lunch or to receive friends and family.
THE SERVICE
Memorial, Funeral and Graveside Services are acts of worship among the Christian community. The purpose of such services of worship are to glorify God, to affirm our belief in the resurrection to life everlasting and to comfort the bereaved. Additionally, gratitude and honor are to be expressed to God for the life and witness of the deceased. The pastor will collaborate with the family to design a service that both honors your loved one and glorifies God.
The service typically begins with scriptural sentences. It is appropriate for worships to sing hymns, psalms, spirituals or spiritual songs which affirm God’s power over death, a belief in the resurrection to life everlasting and the assurance of the communion of saints.
The Scriptures are a rich source to which Christians have turned for comfort and assurance in times of grief. The pastor will guide the selection of appropriate scripture passages and would welcome suggestions of those with particular meaning for the family and/or the deceased.
MUSIC
Hymns should be chosen which affirm the goodness and grace of God and which give comfort and support to those who grieve. The pastor and the organist will guide the selection of appropriate hymns. The appropriateness of musical selections will be determined by the church’s music department. Additional instrumentalists or vocalists may also be employed but must be approved by the church’s music department. The family is expected to contact and to cover the cost of additional musicians. No CD’s or taped music is allowed the Sanctuary. Please see further attached information.
THE PALL
The church may provide a pall for a member’s Funeral Service. A pall is a large cloth which covers the casket during the service. It represents the covering of the Christian by the righteousness of Christ and alludes to the baptismal waters of death and new life in Jesus. Since righteousness is an unmerited gift from God and all people stand equal in the eyes of God, the outer appearance of the casket in its cost or beauty is of no consequence to the Christian community. By use of the pall, the focus of the service may remain on the goodness and grace of God. If a casket is present at the service, it may be covered with the pall furnished by the church. Where appropriate the American flag may be used in lieu of the pall. The family may choose to use a flower pall.
CREMATION URN
In the case of cremation, the urn containing the ashes is usually only present at the time of committal, following or preceding the Funeral Service.
FLOWERS
Typically, the family of the deceased will furnish the arrangement of flowers for the service. The church receptionist is present to receive flowers for an upcoming service from 9 until 4, Monday through Friday.
OTHER FRATERNAL, CIVIC OR MILITARY RITES
The service shall be complete in itself; however, fraternal, civic or military rites may be included at the discretion of the pastor.
COSTS AND FEES
There are no charges or fees for members for use of the church’s facilities. Costs to the family will be for flowers the family provides at the service and for musicians and vocalists the family may request. It will be the responsibility of the family to order flowers from the florist of their choice. Please see the attached policy from the Music Department regarding fees.
SCHEDULING
Members
For members, the church is available for services Monday through Saturday, except holidays and as venues are available. On Fridays and Saturdays, Funerals may be held during morning hours only. Every effort will be made to work around prior scheduled events.
The church is closed or has limited availability on the following days: New Year’s Day, Martin Luther Kind Day, Holy Week, July 4th, Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.
Non-Members
The church is honored to host funerals of non-members Monday through Thursday during normal working hours as our schedule allows. Services may also be held on Friday morning when staffing and scheduling allows.
VENUE
When considering a worship venue, keep in mind that our Sanctuary seats 1200; Bowman Chapel seats 140 and our Christian Life Center seats 300-600.
VIDEOS
Videos may be shown in the CLC Worship Center. For services held in the Sanctuary or Chapel, videos may be shown in the Parlor.
MEALS
Often, families desire a meal before or after the service. Members who are affiliated with a Sunday School class or other small group may have their small group host the meal. We encourage the use of our catering services led by Charles Norton who may be reached by calling the church 806-763-4607. Please note that if lunch is brought in by others, they will be responsible for all facets of the meals including drinks and clean-up. Also, please note that due to insurance issues, non-staff members may not use the professional kitchen. There are microwave ovens and an oven in the church that members are welcome to use.
Music Guidelines for Funeral or Memorial Services at FUMC Lubbock
The music for a funeral or memorial service shall be sacred and reflect the tradition of music at FUMC. All are invited to join in singing of hymns as an expression of our common faith. Hymns should be chosen which affirm the Christian faith, celebrate the life of the deceased and offer consolation to those who grieve.
Music should be scriptural in nature and primarily focused on God. Electronically produced or pre-recorded music may not be used in the Sanctuary. Our music department will provide traditional and religious music for the service, in consultation with the pastor(s). For assistance in choosing hymns, please see the list below. All hymns that are sung must be chosen from the most current United Methodist Hymnal unless special arrangements have been made with the Director of Music.
The Director of Music or Associate Director of Music/Organist is available for funeral and memorial services. The organist will provide suitable sacred service music (prelude/recessional/postlude) and hymns to be selected by the family and pastor. Instrumentalists and vocalists may also be used through the family’s arrangement and coordination with the Director of Music.
If one of the choir members or a family member of the choir passes away, the choir maybe asked to sing for the service. The Director of Music may arrange a small ensemble or a quartet when the choir is unavailable. If requested, professional soloists and instrumentalists may be arranged through the Director of Music. When additional musicians are requested, a gift to the Music Department is expected to cover associated fees.
In regard to honoraria: it is customary for musicians to receive honoraria from the family for their contributions to the service. The guide below will assist the family in that process.
Direct of Music/Organist $100-150
Soloist, instrumentalists, each member of an ensemble: $75-100
Sound technician: $50