ABSTRACT
The churches whose liturgies appear in this chapter mark the twentieth-century ecumenical reformation. Bom from concerns of mission, the ecumenical movement represents a considerable challenge to inherited ways of "being church". The Australian Uniting Church is not itself one of the ancient Reformation churches. Like the United Reformed Church in Great Britain, it is an ecumenical marriage. The Funeral Service witnesses to the fact that death is a reality and a basic part of our common humanity that all people must face. However, as each human life is of individual worth to God, the minister should make each funeral a unique occasion. Death is both end and beginning. A more explicit declaration of the nature of the rite as a rite of passage could scarcely be given. Concluding prayers seek faith, comfort and consolation, and hope. What is intended by this service is the pastoral care due to those whose child is lost to them in the moment of birth.
