c. 2006 Religion News Service
WASHINGTON _ The funeral service for former President Gerald Ford at Washington National Cathedral on Tuesday (Jan. 2) will follow the formal burial rites of his Episcopal faith, feature Bible readings by his children and remembrances by President Bush and former President George H.W. Bush.
Ford, 93, died Tuesday (Dec. 26) at his home in Rancho Mirage, Calif.
Held beneath the soaring arches of the national cathedral, the funeral will include all the military pomp befitting a former head of state, as well as personal touches provided by the Ford family.
It is the second state funeral at the Washington landmark in two years, following former president Ronald Reagan’s 2004 funeral. The Rev. Carol L. Wade, the Cathedral liturgist, said the two funerals will be “very similar.”
Cathedral staff and the U.S. Military District of Washington, which officially oversees the ceremony, keep in constant communication to stay ready for such events, according to Wade.
“We have procedures in place. It’s very organized. It’s one of the wonderful things about the National Cathedral,” said Wade.
The cathedral’s bell will toll 38 times, in honor of Ford’s role as the 38th president, as the funeral cortege moves from the Capitol to the cathedral.
Ford’s family requested that Tuesday’s funeral follow the “Burial of the Dead: Rite One” in the Episcopal Book of Common Prayer, according to Wade. Rite One is the more formal of the two burial rites included in the Book of Common Prayer.
“It has a slightly formal sensibility to the language,” said Wade.
Washington Episcopal Bishop John Chane, Cathedral Dean Samuel Lloyd and the Rev. Robert Certain, rector of St. Margaret’s Episcopal Church in Palm Desert, Calif., will preside over the funeral. Ford and his wife Betty worshipped at St. Margaret’s when they lived in Rancho Mirage, Calif.
President Bush, his father, former Secretary of State Henry Kissinger and former newscaster Tom Brokaw will offer remembrances of Ford.
The Bible passages chosen by the Ford family for the funeral are Isaiah 40: 28-31, “a very uplifting reading,” Wade said, that will be read by Ford’s son John (“Jack”). President Ford’s daughter, Susan Ford Bales, will read from the Letter of James.
“(The reading is) about the good conduct of a person, putting faith into action. It’s certainly appropriate for President Ford in his service for the country and his service to the church.”
Certain, from California, will read a passage from the Gospel of John (14:1-6) that counsels “do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God.”
“It offers consolation for those of us who are grieving. It also offers great reassurance,” Wade said.
Music at the funeral will include two pieces by American composer Aaron Copland: “Fanfare for the Common Man” and “The Promise of Living.”
Representatives from various faiths, including the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington and the Greek Orthodox Archdiocese of America, will attend Ford’s funeral, according to Wade.
Funeral services for Ford will also be held at St. Margaret’s on Friday (Dec. 29), the U.S. Capitol on Saturday (Dec. 30), and at Grace Episcopal Church in Grand Rapids, Mich., on Wednesday (Jan. 3) where the former president will be buried near his presidential museum.
KRE/RB END BURKE
