“Don’t let your heart be troubled. Believe in God. Believe also in me. In my Father’s house are many homes. If it weren’t so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will receive you to myself; that where I am, you may be there also. You know where I go, and you know the way.”
Thomas said to him, “Lord, we don’t know where you are going. How can we know the way?”
Jesus said to him, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father, except through me.”
John 14:1-6, World English Bible Updated edition, which is in the public domain. The one change on this page and in the booklet: the closing quotation mark added at the end of verse 6, where Jesus' words continue beyond the extract.
Which funeral services use it
- Catholic, US (Lectionary for Masses for the Dead): John 14:1-6, as a Gospel.
- Catholic, England and Wales (Order of Christian Funerals): John 14:1-6, as a Gospel.
- Church of England (Common Worship funeral readings): John 14.1-6.
- Shown among popular choices on the Church of England's own funeral planning page.
Where it comes in the service
At a Catholic funeral Mass the Gospel is the last reading, proclaimed by the deacon or priest after the Gospel acclamation. In a Church of England funeral the Bible readings come in the readings and sermon part of the service; when the funeral is held within Holy Communion there should be a Gospel reading, preceded by one or two other Bible readings.
At a Catholic Mass the reader uses the parish Lectionary, which is a different translation from the one printed here, and in the US its text may not be reproduced without permission. You may prefer to print only the reference and the reader in the running order, for example "Gospel: John 14:1-6, read by Anne Hughes".
Add John 14:1-6 to your booklet, typeset in full, with the order of service around it. You can see the whole booklet before paying anything.
Put John 14:1-6 in my bookletAbout this translation
The words here are the World English Bible, a modern English translation whose translators dedicated it to the public domain, so it can be printed in a booklet in the US and the UK without permission or a fee. The King James Version is public domain in the US but is covered by Crown letters patent in the UK, which is why it is not used here. If your church prefers another translation, add it in step 5 with "Use your own words".
Funeral lists checked on September 28, 2026 against the USCCB, the Liturgy Office of England and Wales and the Church of England's Common Worship pages.