It is truly wonderful to see how much the Orthodox funeral prayers are focused on healing, union and restoration into the divine life of Chist which is the Orthodox concept of salvation. Here are some excerpts from the prayers of the departed in the Coptic Rite:
Let us pray to embrace liturgical theology, our lived theology, and encounter the deeper mysteries of the Person of Christ within the life, word, deeds and being of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.
May the following excerpt from the Coptic Rite of the Orthodox Church encourage your prayer and deepen your encounter of Christ in the Liturgy after the Liturgy.
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Priest: Again,let us ask God the Pantocrator, the Father of our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ. We ask and entreat Your goodness, O lover of mankind, remember, O Lord, the souls of Your servants who have fallen asleep, our fathers and our brethren.
Deacon: Pray for our fathers and brethren who have fallen asleep and reposed in the faith of Christ since the beginning; our holy fathers the archbishops, our fathers the bishops, our fathers the hegomens, our fathers the priests, our brethren the deacons, our fathers the monks, and our fathers the laymen, and for the full repose of the Christians, that Christ our God may repose all their souls in the paradise of joy; and we too, accord mercy unto us, and forgive us our sins.
Congregation: Lord have mercy.
Priest: Graciously, O Lord, repose all their souls in the bosom of our holy fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Sustain them in a green pasture, by the water of rest, in the paradise of joy; the place out of which grief, sorrow and groaning have fled away, in the light of Your saints.
Raise up their bodies also, on the day which You have appointed, according to Your true promises, which are without lie. Grant them the good things of Your promises; that which an eye has not seen nor an ear heard, neither have come upon the heart of man; the things which You, O God, have prepared for them that love Your Holy Name.
For there is no death for Your servants, but a departure. Even if any negligence or heedlessness has overtaken them as men, since they were clothed in flesh and dwelt in this world, O God, as the Good One and Lover of Mankind, graciously accord, O Lord, Your servants the orthodox Christians, who are in the whole world, from the east to the west and from the north to the south, each one according to his name and each one according to her name, O Lord repose and forgive them. For no one is pure and without blemish even though his life on earth is a single day.
As for those, O Lord, whose souls You have taken, repose them, and may they be worthy of the kingdom of the heavens. As for us all, grant us our Christian perfection that would be pleasing unto You, and give them, and us, a share and an inheritance with all Your saints.
Deacon: In Christ Jesus our Lord.
Congregation: Bow your heads to the Lord.
Deacon: Before You, O Lord.
Congregation: Let us attend in the fear of God.
Priest: Yea, O Lord, the Lord who has given us authority to tread on serpents and scorpions and upon all the power of the enemy, crush his heads beneath our feet speedily and scatter before us his every design of wickedness against us. For You are King of us all, O Christ our God, and unto You we send up the glory, the honor, and the worship with Your good Father and the Holy Spirit, the Giver of Life, who is of one essence with You, now and at all times and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
You, O Lord, who bowed the heavens, You descended and became man for the salvation of the mankind. You are He who sits upon the cherubim and the seraphim, and beholds those who are lowly. You also now, O our Master, are He to whom we lift up the eyes of our heart; the Lord who forgives our iniquities and saves our souls from corruption. We worship Your ineffable compassion, and we ask You to give us Your peace, for You have given us all things. Acquire us to Yourself, O God our Savior, for we know none other but You.
Your holy name we utter. Turn us, O God, unto the fear of You and the desire of You. Be pleased that we may abide in the enjoyment of Your good things. And those who have bowed their heads beneath Your hand, exalt them in [their] ways of life and adorn them with virtues. And may we all be worthy of Your kingdom in the heavens, through the good will of God, Your good Father, with whom You are blessed with the Holy Spirit, the Giver of Life, who is of one essence with You, now and at all times and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
Priest: Peace be with all.
Congregation: And with your spirit.
Priest: O Master, Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son and Logos of Godthe Father, who has broken every bond of our sins through His saving, life-giving sufferings; who breathed into the face of His holy disciples and saintly apostles, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained. "You also now, O our Master, have given grace through Your holy apostles to those who for a time labor in the priesthood in Your holy Church to forgive sin upon the earth and to bind and to loose every bond of iniquity. Now also we ask and entreat Your goodness, O Lover of Mankind, for Your servants, my fathers and my brethren, and my weakness, those who bow their heads before Your holy glory. Dispense to us Your mercy and loose every bond of our sins, and, if we have committed any sin against You knowingly or unknowingly, or through anguish of heart, or indeed or word, or from faintheartedness, O Master who know the weakness of men, as a Good One and Lover of Mankind, O God, grant us the forgiveness of our sins, bless us, purify us, absolve us, and all Your people. Fill us with Your fear and straighten us for Your holy goodwill, for You are our God, and the glory, the honor, the dominion, and the worship are due unto You, with Your good Father and the Holy Spirit, the Giver of Life, who is of one essence with You, now and at all times
and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
Congregation: Amen. Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy.
Amen. Alleluia. Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of the ages. Amen.
We cry out saying, our Lord Jesus Christ who was crucified on the cross, trample down the satan under our feet. Save us and have mercy.
Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy. Lord bless. Amen. Bless me. Bless me. Behold the metania. Forgive me. Say the blessing.
Priest: May God have compassion upon us, bless us, manifest His face upon us, and have mercy upon us. O Lord, save Your people, bless Your inheritance, shepherd them, and raise them up forever. Exalt the horn of Christians through the power of the life-giving Cross and through the supplications and prayers which our Lady, the Lady of us all, the holy Theotokos, Saint Mary, makes for us. And [through the supplications and prayers of] the three great holy luminaries Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael; all the heavenly orders; and the prayers of the patriarchs,the prophets, theapostles, the martyrs, the whole choir of the cross-bearers; the just; the righteous; the angel of this blessed day; the angel of this church; and the blessing of the holy Theotokos Saint Mary, first and last. May their holy blessing, their grace, their power, their gift, their love, and their help rest upon us all for ever. Amen.
Priest: O Christ our God.
Congregation: Amen, so be it.
Priest: O King of Peace, grant us Your Peace, establish for us Your peace, and forgive us our sins. For Yours is the power, the Glory, the Blessing, and the Might, forever. Amen.
Make us worthy to pray thankfully: Our Father...
Priest (Benediction): The love of God the Father; the Grace of the Only-Begotten Son our Lord, God, and our Savior Jesus Christ; and the Communion and Gift of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Go in peace. The peace of the Lord be with you all.
Congregation: And with your spirit.
Singing: Remember me O Lord....(ie. Great Friday Hymn)
...You have created man for life and not death....
...You have not created humans for curses but for blessings. ...
...Clothe him/her with them the pure garment and unending joy in the sovereignty of light that You have prepared for those who please You...
...For there is no death to Your servant but a departure from death to life, and no death will overcome us because of the death of Your Only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord....Orthodox funeral prayers (in all the different rites of the many local Churches) actually say alot about life and the journey of the Church.
...all are alive with You, those who are worthy for Your greatness....
...You are our helper and our protector and our savior and our hope and our healing and our resurrection and our eternal life altogether....
...And we ask You, O our Master to number us with them, and give us rest with Your holy flock, who have attained to stand at Your right hand....
Let us pray to embrace liturgical theology, our lived theology, and encounter the deeper mysteries of the Person of Christ within the life, word, deeds and being of the One Holy Catholic and Apostolic Church.
May the following excerpt from the Coptic Rite of the Orthodox Church encourage your prayer and deepen your encounter of Christ in the Liturgy after the Liturgy.
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Prayers for the departed
Priest: Again,let us ask God the Pantocrator, the Father of our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ. We ask and entreat Your goodness, O lover of mankind, remember, O Lord, the souls of Your servants who have fallen asleep, our fathers and our brethren.
Deacon: Pray for our fathers and brethren who have fallen asleep and reposed in the faith of Christ since the beginning; our holy fathers the archbishops, our fathers the bishops, our fathers the hegomens, our fathers the priests, our brethren the deacons, our fathers the monks, and our fathers the laymen, and for the full repose of the Christians, that Christ our God may repose all their souls in the paradise of joy; and we too, accord mercy unto us, and forgive us our sins.
Congregation: Lord have mercy.
Priest: Graciously, O Lord, repose all their souls in the bosom of our holy fathers Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Sustain them in a green pasture, by the water of rest, in the paradise of joy; the place out of which grief, sorrow and groaning have fled away, in the light of Your saints.
Raise up their bodies also, on the day which You have appointed, according to Your true promises, which are without lie. Grant them the good things of Your promises; that which an eye has not seen nor an ear heard, neither have come upon the heart of man; the things which You, O God, have prepared for them that love Your Holy Name.
For there is no death for Your servants, but a departure. Even if any negligence or heedlessness has overtaken them as men, since they were clothed in flesh and dwelt in this world, O God, as the Good One and Lover of Mankind, graciously accord, O Lord, Your servants the orthodox Christians, who are in the whole world, from the east to the west and from the north to the south, each one according to his name and each one according to her name, O Lord repose and forgive them. For no one is pure and without blemish even though his life on earth is a single day.
As for those, O Lord, whose souls You have taken, repose them, and may they be worthy of the kingdom of the heavens. As for us all, grant us our Christian perfection that would be pleasing unto You, and give them, and us, a share and an inheritance with all Your saints.
[Depending on who has reposed, the following prayers are then prayed]
Prayer for Departed Men
O God eternal, Who knows the unrevealed before it is done, Who knows everything You made all things and brought them to being from nothing, in Whose hands lies the power of life and death, Who descended into Hades and ascended. Your creation of man was through Your own unfathomable mystery, O our Master, just as the transience of Your limited creatures unto eternal resurrection. You are the One Whom we thank for every condition, for our entrance to the world, and for our departure on the hope of resurrection. We bless the appearance of Your Christ, and the sonship that You gave us through Him when descended to our suffering and resurrected us with Him to no suffering. O Master, accept this holy trust that is the soul of Your servant (...), and preserve it in comfort until the resurrection and appearance of Your Christ, in the bosom of our fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the place that escaped from pain, sadness and sighing.
And if he committed any sin toward You, like the rest of mankind, forgive and pardon him. Abolish the remainder of his punishment, for You have created man for life and not death. Repose him in that place, and we also who are here, have mercy upon us. Make us worthy to worship You without interruption. Those who are mourning, console them. Those who are left behind, help them. Those who are bereaved of him, aid them. Those who have attended and participated in grievances, have mercy upon them and bless them. Grant them a heavenly recompense in the new dawning unto the age of ages. Because You are merciful and compassionate and unto -You do we send all glory, honor, and worship; O Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of ages. Amen.
Our Father...
Prayer for Departed Women
Truly, the abundance of Your compassion has been perfected, and Your words have never become obsolete, O Almighty God, the Father of our Savior and King, Christ, our life our healer, and rescuer, Jesus our Lord. Who came down and saved us from death traps by His life-giving death; He renewed our life once more by His resurrection from the dead, and gave us the pledge of resurrection; He crushed the bitter thorn by His cross, and was not ashamed of what happened to Him, because it fell to His lot through humbleness for our salvation.
We worship You with Him, and the Holy Spirit; we bow our heads before You, as slaves and servants, to Your holy commands. By Your command and power, You have united body and spirit in the life of sorrow, pain, and toil in this world as a punishment for sin. We acknowledge You with songs of praise for all Your works; and that rib taken from the body of man has cast sin on our human race, but You have forgiven that sin through your Only-begotten Son, Who was incarnated in the womb of a Virgin mother; He abolished the curse of our being cast down for judgment; He renewed our nature. We humble ourselves before You for Your servant (N.), who has passed away and has returned to the earth, her original place, while her soul has returned to You. We entreat You, O Philanthropic One, the compassionate at all times, to have mercy on her, repose her soul, and forgive her all her sins and disregard them, for You have not created humans for curses but for blessings.
Now, Your departed servant (N.) is standing before the throne of Your Christ, grant repose, rest, coolness, and joy to her soul. Give solace and comfort to those she has left behind; support those who have become orphans; bless those who are present with us here who share the sorrow with us and grant them a heavenly reward and good lot in Your kingdom, because everyone will come to You. O lord, give rest to the soul of this Your servant, for You are the One and Only True God, with Your Only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord, and the Holy Spirit, the Giver of Life, Who is One of Essence with You, now and always and forever and ever. Amen.
Our Father...
Prayer for Departed Children
Our true God, the Word of the Almighty Father, Master of every one, the incomprehensible, Existent in the Bosom of the Father, the Only God, our Master, Savior and Philanthropic One, Who does all good with us at all times. You know the unrevealed knowledge, apparent and conceited. For that we ask and beseech You, O Philanthropic One, that through Your compassion, forgiveness, and just peace, do accept this trust without blemish that is for Your servant (...) that no longer continues to live on earth and didn't enjoy the good, neither did give nor take. But has been drinking from the milk of truth, imperishable beauty, and undefiled virginity. We ask, repose him and have compassion upon his/her childhood. If You take by mistakes O God, no one will be pure before You; even if his/her life was one day on earth. You have granted the children from Your pure mouth commanding for them saying: "See, do not ignore any of those youngsters because I say to you that their angels in the heavens see my Father's face all the time in the heavens.”
So if this great grace has been given them in heaven, let Your servant (...) be among the children that preceded him, that are gathered at the peaceful places in Your kingdom: those that are the hundred and forty four thousands. Clothe him/her with them the pure garment and unending joy in the sovereignty of light that You have prepared for those who please You.
We worship You, O Lord, Jesus Christ, Who examines our nature, Creator of the heart and knowing because You know the revea1ed and unrevealed. For the sake of Your servant‟s father and mother, who in their sadness, weeping and mourning have attained to You. You, O Philanthropic One Who went to Nain and raise the widow's son without corruption, raise for them an offspring, a substitute for the dead, so that they may rejoice in exchange for the sadness, because You have taken away our sadness, O Jesus Christ our God. For to You is due all glory, honor and power with Your good Father and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto ages of ages. Amen.
Our Father...
Prayer for Departed Deacons and Arch-Deacons
We also ask God the Pantocrator, Father of our Lord, God and Savior, Jesus Christ to Whom is due all glory with Him and the Holy Spirit, the eternal forever. For through Your good, and just wisdom You brought on us judgement of death, and we passed it on from one generation to the other. The earth’s clay and street s dust is tread upon us, and we became under death’s authority due to our falling into judgment, deserving the just judge, for we have sinned against You with our own will because of the enmity of the old serpent. But You became our help and comfort continuously through Your prophets and saints, and at the end of ages You appeared to us alive, caring, compassionate and merciful. You remembered us, we who were sitting in the darkness and shadow of death, through Your Only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, our Savior, Philanthropic One, creator of all good, Who abolished death’s authority by His life-giving death on the holy wooden cross when He died by the flesh that He took from us.
He destroyed the old serpent and demolished its thorn and power for all of mankind. He freed us once more emancipating us from slavery, we sinners. He made us children of light, heirs of the heavens with the ranks of heaven through the Orthodox commands, and the blessings of the angels, and the hymns of the non-incarnate. For this we ask and beseech You O Philanthropic One, for Your servant (...) the deacon. He that went to You and became without flesh, a stranger from this world. Accept unto You his soul, righteously and holy. And as he served Your earthly altar, let him also be a servant for Your heavenly one, unblemished and immaculate.
Let him be pleasing to Your Holy will and if he sinned against You in anything as the rest of mankind, forgive him, for You are compassionate, merciful, righteous, and beneficent to all those who worship You. For there is no death to Your servant but a departure from death to life, and no death will overcome us because of the death of Your Only-begotten Son, Jesus Christ, our Lord. To You is due all glory with Him and the Holy Spirit, the Life-giver and one in essence with You, now and ever and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
Our Father...
Prayer for Departed Priests
Great is Your works O Lord, You have done everything in wisdom. Earth is filled with Your creatures. You have granted life and planned death, and all are alive with You, those who are worthy for Your greatness. You are God of the living, You are the Blessed eternal without end, for the sake of Your knowledge that our Lord Jesus Christ revealed unto us.
We ask and beseech You for the sake of our fathers who reposed, and for the blessed memory of Your servant(..), who left the flesh and came to You, O Lord of all. He returned to the earth which he was taken from, but his soul is a blessed and holy trust. May he be in rest, coolness and repose. May he be at a fine rank in the presence of your saints. May he be among those who preceded him in the saintly inheritance who have won in the church of the virgins in the order of the priesthood, the place which You promised those who pleased You, May he raise before You in holiness, righteousness and purity, O God of every living one.
As for us, protect us from every evil and struggle trap which is foreign to Your true purity, for our life on earth is short. May we approach Your holy place and be among Your saints, here, in this age and in the coming one. This is our hope, we Your servants the believers on Your Holy Name and Your Only begotten Son Jesus Christ our Lord and the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the age of ages. Amen.
Our Father....
Prayer for Departed Bishops, Metropolitans and Patriarchs
O Master, Lord Jesus Christ, Co-Creator of all creation, Who, according to the multitude of Your goodness endured to be a high priest. Who has adorned Your holy church with graces and diverse dogmas. This, which You have acquired with Your precious blood for the confirmation of Your people. Grant us that we may remember, in purity and truth, to offer unto You, O Lord, odes of Thanksgiving on behalf of all Your works. For You are our helper and our protector and our savior and our hope and our healing and our resurrection and our eternal life altogether.
You, also now, O Good One and lover of mankind, have set orders for all Your creation, seen or unseen, those in the heavens and those on earth and those beneath the earth. And most particularly, O Lord, You elect church which You have committed into the hands of guardians and watchers and shepherds, that they may shepherd Your people and catechize them, and divide the word without reproach, and prepare for You, people and sons for Your heavenly banquet.
We ask and entreat You, O Lover of mankind, and beneficent towards us, receive unto You in peace this charge unto salvation), even the blessed soul of our beloved Patriarch (or Metropolitan or Bishop) Abba.... who has come unto You, O Living God. For he is Your steward who was over Your holy church, and the book of his stewardship is with him. Grant him a heavenly reward and a good rank, that he may have a fellowship with them that have preceded him, those (who are) the shepherds and teachers who divided the word of truth in uprightness; and illuminated Your church with the true light of Your true knowledge; Whom You have led into the harbor of eternal life of the coming age. And we ask You, O our Master to number us with them, and give us rest with Your holy flock, who have attained to stand at Your right hand. And make us worthy of (their) prayers and intercessions that we may live blameless and without hindrance.
That we may serve You in fear and may attain to Your incomparable promises. You are the giver of the eternal good things and to You are due the glory with Your Good father and the Holy Spirit, forever. Amen.
Our Father..
[Then concludes the prayers for the Departed with the following prayers]
Deacon: In Christ Jesus our Lord.
Congregation: Bow your heads to the Lord.
Deacon: Before You, O Lord.
Congregation: Let us attend in the fear of God.
Priest: Yea, O Lord, the Lord who has given us authority to tread on serpents and scorpions and upon all the power of the enemy, crush his heads beneath our feet speedily and scatter before us his every design of wickedness against us. For You are King of us all, O Christ our God, and unto You we send up the glory, the honor, and the worship with Your good Father and the Holy Spirit, the Giver of Life, who is of one essence with You, now and at all times and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
You, O Lord, who bowed the heavens, You descended and became man for the salvation of the mankind. You are He who sits upon the cherubim and the seraphim, and beholds those who are lowly. You also now, O our Master, are He to whom we lift up the eyes of our heart; the Lord who forgives our iniquities and saves our souls from corruption. We worship Your ineffable compassion, and we ask You to give us Your peace, for You have given us all things. Acquire us to Yourself, O God our Savior, for we know none other but You.
Your holy name we utter. Turn us, O God, unto the fear of You and the desire of You. Be pleased that we may abide in the enjoyment of Your good things. And those who have bowed their heads beneath Your hand, exalt them in [their] ways of life and adorn them with virtues. And may we all be worthy of Your kingdom in the heavens, through the good will of God, Your good Father, with whom You are blessed with the Holy Spirit, the Giver of Life, who is of one essence with You, now and at all times and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
Priest: Peace be with all.
Congregation: And with your spirit.
Priest: O Master, Lord Jesus Christ, the only begotten Son and Logos of Godthe Father, who has broken every bond of our sins through His saving, life-giving sufferings; who breathed into the face of His holy disciples and saintly apostles, and said to them, "Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven; if you retain the sins of any, they are retained. "You also now, O our Master, have given grace through Your holy apostles to those who for a time labor in the priesthood in Your holy Church to forgive sin upon the earth and to bind and to loose every bond of iniquity. Now also we ask and entreat Your goodness, O Lover of Mankind, for Your servants, my fathers and my brethren, and my weakness, those who bow their heads before Your holy glory. Dispense to us Your mercy and loose every bond of our sins, and, if we have committed any sin against You knowingly or unknowingly, or through anguish of heart, or indeed or word, or from faintheartedness, O Master who know the weakness of men, as a Good One and Lover of Mankind, O God, grant us the forgiveness of our sins, bless us, purify us, absolve us, and all Your people. Fill us with Your fear and straighten us for Your holy goodwill, for You are our God, and the glory, the honor, the dominion, and the worship are due unto You, with Your good Father and the Holy Spirit, the Giver of Life, who is of one essence with You, now and at all times
and unto the age of all ages. Amen.
Congregation: Amen. Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy.
Amen. Alleluia. Glory be to the Father and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit, now and ever and unto the ages of the ages. Amen.
We cry out saying, our Lord Jesus Christ who was crucified on the cross, trample down the satan under our feet. Save us and have mercy.
Lord have mercy. Lord have mercy. Lord bless. Amen. Bless me. Bless me. Behold the metania. Forgive me. Say the blessing.
Priest: May God have compassion upon us, bless us, manifest His face upon us, and have mercy upon us. O Lord, save Your people, bless Your inheritance, shepherd them, and raise them up forever. Exalt the horn of Christians through the power of the life-giving Cross and through the supplications and prayers which our Lady, the Lady of us all, the holy Theotokos, Saint Mary, makes for us. And [through the supplications and prayers of] the three great holy luminaries Michael, Gabriel, and Raphael; all the heavenly orders; and the prayers of the patriarchs,the prophets, theapostles, the martyrs, the whole choir of the cross-bearers; the just; the righteous; the angel of this blessed day; the angel of this church; and the blessing of the holy Theotokos Saint Mary, first and last. May their holy blessing, their grace, their power, their gift, their love, and their help rest upon us all for ever. Amen.
Priest: O Christ our God.
Congregation: Amen, so be it.
Priest: O King of Peace, grant us Your Peace, establish for us Your peace, and forgive us our sins. For Yours is the power, the Glory, the Blessing, and the Might, forever. Amen.
Make us worthy to pray thankfully: Our Father...
Priest (Benediction): The love of God the Father; the Grace of the Only-Begotten Son our Lord, God, and our Savior Jesus Christ; and the Communion and Gift of the Holy Spirit be with you all. Go in peace. The peace of the Lord be with you all.
Congregation: And with your spirit.
Singing: Remember me O Lord....(ie. Great Friday Hymn)
