Departing the Family Home

On the day of the Orthodox funeral service the hearse arrives at the family so the deceased can depart from his/her home one last time accompanied by their family.

Upon arrival at the family home the funeral director collects the bottle of oil and red wine and the bowl of boiled wheat that the family has prepared and places it in the hearse. A member of the family can incense the deceased as they say their last farewells and prayers from the home where they lived while making the sign of a cross three times with a censer (θυμιατó). The funeral cortege then departs the family home for Church.