Senior Catholic bishop issues ban on family eulogies at funerals
● Bishop of Motherwell bars loved ones from speaking at service
A senior Catholic bishop has barred family members from giving eulogies at funeral services in his diocese.
The Bishop of Motherwell, Joseph Toal, issued a directive to priests to refuse requests from relatives who want to pay tribute to loved ones during the funeral Mass, according to reports.
The bishop said he did not feel the church was the appropriate location for eulogies and suggested they may be more suitable at the funeral reception afterwards.
In a letter issued to all priests and deacons in the diocese, Bishop Toal said the only person to speak at the service should be a priest or deacon and insisted it was “not a time for anyone else to be getting up to talk about the deceased, whoever they may be”.
A spokesman for the Catholic Church in Scotland told The Scotsman that Bishop Toal’s declaration applied universally on funeral rites.
But others criticised the comments as “dogmatic,” adding that they were “turning people away from religious ceremonies”.
Bishop Toal’s letter read: “The instruction specifically says the homily should not be a eulogy. It is a homily therefore spoken by the priest or deacon. It is not a time therefore for anyone else to be getting up to talk about the deceased, whoever they may be. It is appropriate for the preacher, though, to integrate some detail about the deceased’s life
0 Bishop Joseph Toal, right, on his appointment as Bishop of Motherwell in 2014 with his predecessor Joseph Devine
into his homily so that it is personal and recognises the family’s wish to recall their loved one in a sensitive way.”
It added: “Often what families want to hear and share can be offered in a more appropriate and less formal manner at the reception afterwards.”
The Diocese of Motherwell is one of the largest in Scotland, with 66 parishes serving more than 160,000 Catholics.
Stephen Evans, chief executive of the National Secular Society, said: “Dogmatic directives like this explains why people are increasingly turning away from religious ceremonies in search of more meaningful ways to mark births, deaths and marriages. With families increasingly eschewing traditional cus
toms in favour of something more relevant and personal, the Church is again showing itself to be out of step.”
Fraser Sutherland, of the Humanist Society Scotland, said: “Personal reflection, readings or storytelling can be a vital part of the grieving process. That is why at a Humanist funeral we would always be inclusive of such requests.”
A spokesman for the Catholic Church said: “Bishop Toal is simply restating instructions which apply universally on funeral rites, which clearly state that a homily should not be a eulogy. This would apply to every Catholic funeral in every Catholic church in the world, not just in the diocese of Motherwell.”