The Diocese of Youngstown has issued a decree that calling hours before funerals can no longer take place inside a church building, effective Dec. 1.

More families are requesting funeral visitation for loved ones at church rather than at funeral homes. Bishop David Bonnar said the increasing trend can be attributed to several factors, including convenience, cutting cost and making it easier for family and friends to attend all parts of the funeral rites.

Over the past year, Bonnar has met with funeral directors, the Diocesan Presbyteral Council and county deans, in hopes of establishing a uniform policy for funeral visitations.

Ultimately, with their unanimous support, it has been decided that funeral visitation will no longer be allowed in a church building or church facility.

Officials said the structure of the “Order of Christian Funerals” serves as a guide in the discernment of this matter.

The order states that “we celebrate the funeral rites to offer worship, praise and thanksgiving to God for the gift of a life which has now been returned to God, the author of life and the hope of the just.”

The first part of a funeral liturgy is the vigil, or prayers to be prayed during the visitation, which is followed by the transfer of the body to the Church and then a committal at the cemetery.

“That there should be a transfer to the church is a clear sign that the ritual does not envision a viewing in the church building. The church building is where the community gathers to hear the Word of God, to pray together, receive the sacraments and to celebrate the Eucharist. The church building is both the house of God on earth and a house

fit for prayer. Churches are sacred buildings intended for divine worship and not to serve as spaces for funeral visitations,” Bonnar said.

Bonnar said he knows the decision will cause some distress for some but said it’s his responsibility “to avoid any semblance of disconnect between a trend and the parameters established by the Order of Christian Funerals.”