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Frequently asked questions

Error notification: error in Burial of Ashes service

In the Burial of Ashes service, the text that should be offered in the position currently labelled “Prayer of entrusting and commendng” (sic) is missing from the database, and the text for the prayer of committal from other funeral services is being mistakenly offered in its place. This text is inappropriate for use when conducting a service for the Burial of Ashes, as although the prayer is broadly the same, it uses the phrase “body”, which should be replaced by “mortal remains” in the context of the Burial of Ashes service.

This error was fixed in the Visual Liturgy 3.1 service pack and the easiest solution is to download and install the service pack to correct the error automatically. If you do not wish to download the service pack, then you can follow these instructions to correct the error yourself:

How do I fix this problem?

As the problem is really one a missing text, rather than an incorrect one (the one that is coming up is the correct committal prayer for other services) you should NOT alter the text itself as it would then become incorrect in those places where it is needed. What you should do instead is follow through these steps:

1. Open the Burial of Ashes template.
2. In the service list, right-click on Prayer of entrusting...
3. Hold down the Ctrl key, and while still holding it down, choose Create New Text from the pop-up menu.
4. You should get asked whether you want to copy lectionary entries etc. as well, which is a sign that you are creating a copy of a text, rather than a new text. Say NO. (Because you don't want the new text to be offered in all the places that the current on doesthat the current one does).
5. An item details box will open up. Amend as necessary (eg change the Title so that it indicates this is the version for use in Burial of Ashes services).
6. Open the Text tab, and make the correction. For this instance, “body” should be replaced with “mortal remains”.
7. Close the item. You will probably be asked if you want it to be the new default in this point in the service. Say YES, as this is the correct text for the Burial of Ashes service.
8. There is also a mistake in the item label in the service list for the name of this item. It should be called “Words of Committal” rather than “Prayer of Entrusting and Commendng”. This is also easy to change. Just right-click on the item in the service list, and choose Rename. Then you can correct the typo.

Please accept our sincere apologies for any inconvenience and embarassment caused by this error in the database.