In class; remembering saints

Today was a day of raw emotion for me... as in it feels like my heart was sandblasted.  One of my classes is about worship and liturgy and we talked about funeral rites. The evidence we have from the early church about funerals (which isn't much until the 6th century) is that the Church sees its role in the death of a member as accompanying the dying member to the point of death, where the Church then lets go, and asks the heavenly hosts, saints and angels, to take over in the person's journey to God.  This was the view of the church (at least in Rome) in the 6th century AD. 

The class called to mind Aunt Mable.  When she breathed her last and before any of the other family members arrived, I said two prayers over her from the Book of Common Prayer:

Depart, O Christian soul, out of this world;
In the Name of God the Father Almighty who created you;
In the Name of Jesus Christ who redeemed you;
In the Name of the Holy Spirit who sanctifies you.
May your rest be this day in peace,
    and your dwelling place in the Paradise of God.

Into your hands, O merciful Savior, we commend your
servant N. Acknowledge, we humbly beseech you, a sheep of
your own fold, a lamb of your own flock, a sinner of your
own redeeming. Receive her into the arms of your mercy,
into the blessed rest of everlasting peace, and into the
glorious company of the saints in light. Amen.

See how these prayers continue that image of the early church, where we are accompanying the soul as far as we can? 

Here is a 6th c. funeral prayer, one of the earliest we have from the Church:

Come to help, you saints of God;
Hurry, you angels of the Lord;
Take up this soul {your servant} and offer him/her before the face of the Most High.

...A beautiful image.