麻豆约拍

A spiritual comment and prayer to begin the day with the Bishop of Manchester David Walker

Good Morning.

Funerals have, over the last few decades, become a lot more personal. Close friends and relatives line up to share precious stories that, to them, sum up the one whose loss they wish to mourn. Music and readings are chosen with great care and because of what they signified in or about the life of the deceased. We are in this place, mourning the death of this person, who meant these very particular things to us. There's a lot I can cheer in that. And yet the very distinctness of the ceremony obscures the central fact that what has happened to this one individual is what will, in due course, befall us all. We commend and commit our loved ones to the common lot of humanity, the fate of prince and pauper alike.

Today's funeral service will, beneath the pomp and ceremonial of state, be grounded in the common prayers of the Church of England. The words will be largely ones that can be prayed over any Christian's coffin. They offer a hope that remains rooted in the universal mission of Jesus Christ, who came for the eternal salvation of all. They are words not just for the Duke of Edinburgh over whom they will be spoken this day. They are words for you, and for me.

Heavenly Father,
Whose Son Jesus Christ came for the salvation of all,
Grant that the words of today's funeral may live long in our memories.
May they be a source of hope in times of sadness,
A comfort in times of need,
And an assurance that we too are included in their promises.

Amen.