*2.1. The Christian Funeral after Vatican II*

After Vatican II (Second Vatican Council 1962–1965), the entire ritual repertoire of the Roman Catholic Church has been profoundly revised, in an attempt to close the gap between Church and society and to restore the liturgical life of the Church. In the aftermath of the Council, also the funeral rite (*ordo exsequiarum*, 1969, see (Johnson 1993)) underwent some drastic revisions in comparison to the former, Tridentine rite, which was more or less unchanged since 1614. The character of the rite changed profoundly, taking much more the perspective of death as an Easter-event, whereas in the Tridentine rite the funeral liturgy was more focused on the fear of judgment and subsequent punishment for ones sins (Rutherford 1990; Quartier 2007). On the level of specific rituals, this transformation lead for example to the abolishment of traditional songs like the *Dies irae* and the *Libera me*. In accordance with already existing local practices, the "new" funeral rite of 1969 prescribes three different models (Johnson 1993, pp. 34–51). The first model has three ritual stages or "stations": the house of the deceased for a short prayer, a first farewell and condolences, the church building for the funeral liturgy in combination with the funeral mass, and the graveyard for some last rituals and the final farewell. The second model has two ritual places: the chapel on the graveyards grounds, where the basics of the funeral liturgy are executed, but without funeral mass, and the grave itself. The third model is a short model for a domestic rite, often used in countries and regions with tropical climates. These models—and their differences—illustrate well how Christian ritual is very much bound to specific places. From its origins, Christian liturgy has been, and still is "station liturgy", as it is mentioned in every manual on the history of Christian ritual.

In Flanders, the first model was more or less the standard during the last few centuries (Lamberts 2007). However, with the growing role of the undertaker in the funeral service and rituals, the first "station"—the home of the deceased—slowly disappeared from the ritual sequence or was moved to the mortuary. With the increasing de-Christianization, the second model became more and more popular in Flanders: a funeral liturgy without Eucharistic celebration in the church building or graveyard chapel and last rituals at the grave, often not even presided by a priest. This evolution goes hand in hand with the growing practice of cremation.
