Funeral reading
The Old Rugged Cross
George Bennard, 1913
“The Old Rugged Cross” by George Bennard, 1913 is a hymn read at a funeral or memorial service. It takes about 4 minutes read aloud, usually by everyone together. It is in the public domain but too long to print in a ceremony script, so this page points at a full text rather than reproducing one.
Why the words are not printed here
Public domain. Confirm the verses — it is usually shortened.
Pieces still in copyright are listed by title and author only — we name them and tell you where to get them, but we do not reproduce the words. Public-domain text is printed in your script in full.
What it is about
A staple at traditional Protestant services.
Read at a funeral or memorial service. Themes: traditional · evangelical · a country church · well known.
Questions about reading it aloud
How long does “The Old Rugged Cross” take to read aloud?
“The Old Rugged Cross” takes about 4 minutes read aloud at a ceremony pace, which is slower than conversation — roughly 130 words a minute. That is the figure the run-sheet uses when it works out the timing for the whole service.
Who usually reads “The Old Rugged Cross”?
Everyone together, rather than one reader. “The Old Rugged Cross” runs about 4 minutes and needs the words in front of the room — in an order of service, on a screen, or led line by line by the officiant.
Can “The Old Rugged Cross” be printed in a ceremony script?
Not in full here. Public domain. Confirm the verses — it is usually shortened.
A reading is two minutes of the hour.
The rest is the welcome, the life, the remembrances, the committal — and knowing what comes next. Answer some questions about them and get the whole service, written out, with this reading in its place.
Other readings that suit the same service
- Abide With Me4 minutesHenry Francis Lyte, 1847
- The Lord's My Shepherd (Crimond)4 minutesScottish Psalter, 1650
- Nearer, My God, to Thee4 minutesSarah Flower Adams, 1841
- What a Friend We Have in Jesus4 minutesJoseph Scriven, 1855
- Amazing Grace4 minutesJohn Newton, 1779
- How Great Thou Art5 minutesStuart K. Hine (English text, 1949)