How to write a Funeral Order of Service

The aims of an Order of Service are often to:

• Help guests to follow the ceremony, and know what comes next

• Share lyrics for songs or hymns, especially if guests will be singing

• Share passages that people will read out, for people who prefer to read along

• Give guests something physical to take away from the ceremony

• Help guests remember the person who’s died, by e.g. sharing photographs of them at different points in their life

The Order of Service will typically list the different parts of the event, in the order in which they will happen.

They will tend to have a strong grasp on how all the different parts of the funeral are coming together.

If this is you, you do not need to go it alone! You could ask for some assistance from your funeral director, if you have one. You can also ask friends, family and loved ones for help and advice.

This mirrors the structure of a traditional Christian funeral:

• Opening music - hymns (or other music) play as guests enter the venue

• Readings - someone reads a particular text, often a poem or a Bible passage

• Blessings/Prayers - guests join a specific speaker in prayer

• Eulogy - a loved one gives a speech about the person who’s died

• Committal - guests say their goodbyes to the person who’s died, before they reach their final resting place

• Closing music - hymns (or other music) play as guests leave the venue

Typically, a brief heading will indicate each section. The Order of Service might also include the full text of particular prayers, readings or verses which a loved one will read out, or which guests will read or sing along with.

However, this will vary with denomination (meaning the specific group you belong to within a religion), cultural background, and personal preferences. It’s important that your Order of Service makes sense for your event.

Some end-of-life events will be more relaxed, or have less of a clear structure. For example, a wake tends to be more of a relaxed gathering, where loved ones gather to celebrate the life of the person who’s died.

Whilst these events tend not to have an Order of Service, you can absolutely make one if you think it would be appropriate.

In this case, the Order of Service might focus less on the order things will happen in. Instead, it might indicate the different activities that are happening and where - such as “refreshments in the kitchen and living room, a spare room dedicated to quiet prayer”.

What’s important is that the Order of Service helps guests navigate the end-of-life event, whatever that event looks like.

In addition to guiding guests through the ceremony, the Order of Service might be something guests attending the funeral will want to keep. It might include some details of the person who’s died, including:

• Their name

• A photograph

• Their dates of birth and death

• The date, time and location of their end-of-life event

You might also choose to add a special message to your guests, details of any further events (e.g. a wake), or a request to donate to a particular charity.

These tend to cover the front and back pages of the booklet, with the order of events appearing on the internal pages. However, you are free to design the Order of Service however you want.

A well-designed Order of Service should be easy to understand, and build on the event’s tone.

If you want to, you could design the Order of Service yourself - either on a specific digital design software package, or via scanning in a hand-drawn version.

There are also various online tools to help you design the Order of Service, such as Canva. You could also ask loved ones for help, especially if someone you know has experience in design.

Equally, the Order of Service doesn’t need to be a feat of artistic genius. It’s possible to make an Order of Service in a standard word processor, such as Microsoft Word or Pages.

Some things to keep in mind might be:

• Durability - if someone keeps hold of the booklet, is it going to stand the test of time?

• Texture - do you want the paper to be smooth and glossy, or more rough and textured?

• Design - do you want design ‘details’, like embossed text? Will the booklet need to be in colour?

• Number of copies - how many guests are you expecting?

• Environmental concerns - are you (or was the person who’s died) big on environmentalism? Is there a way of making the Order of Service booklets more sustainable?

You might choose to print your Order of Service from a home printer, if you have one.

You could also contact a professional print shop, especially if the print job is complex or you’d prefer a special paper stock. However, this can be expensive, especially if your request is more technical.

This might be a service offered by your funeral director, so it’s always worth asking.

Whilst an Order of Service might traditionally be more formal and have a religious undertone, this might not be right for you, your guests, or the person who’s died. It will vary with the sort of event you’re planning, and how your guests would prefer to receive information.