Rest in peace (RIP), a phrase from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power ...

(), is sometimes used in traditional

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words '' Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρ ...

services and prayers, such as in the

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwide . It is am ...

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and Protestant Reformers, reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Cathol ...

, Anglican, and

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related Christian denomination, denominations of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John W ...

denominations, to wish the soul of a decedent eternal rest and peace. It became ubiquitous on

headstone A headstone, tombstone, or gravestone is a stele or marker, usually stone, that is placed over a grave. It is traditional for burials in the Christian, Jewish, and Muslim religions, among others. In most cases, it has the deceased's name, ...

s in the 18th century, and is widely used today when mentioning someone's death.

Description

The phrase ''dormit in pace'' (English: " esleeps in peace") was found in the catacombs of the early Christians and indicated that "they died in the peace of the Church, that is, united in Christ." The abbreviation R.I.P., meaning ''Requiescat in pace'', "Rest in peace", continues to be engraved on the gravestones of Christians, especially in the

, and Anglican denominations. In the Tridentine Requiem Mass of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

the phrase appears several times. Other variations include "Requiescat in pace et in amore" for " ay he/sherest in peace and love", and "In pace requiescat et in amore". The word order is variable because Latin syntactical relationships are indicated by the inflexional endings, not by word order. If "Rest in peace" is used in an imperative mood, it would be "Requiesce in pace" (acronym R.I.P.) in the second person singular, or "Requiescite in pace" in the second person plural. In the common phrase "Requiescat in pace" the "-at" ending is appropriate because the verb is a third-person singular present active subjunctive used in a hortative sense: " ay he/sherest in peace."

History

The phrase was first found on tombstones some time before the fifth century. It became ubiquitous on the tombs of Christians in the 18th century, and for

High Church The term ''high church'' refers to beliefs and practices of Christian ecclesiology, liturgy, and theology that emphasize formality and resistance to modernisation. Although used in connection with various Christian traditions, the term originat ...

Anglicans, Methodists, as well as Roman Catholics in particular, it was a prayerful request that their

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '':wikt:soul, soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The ea ...

should find peace in the afterlife. When the phrase became conventional, the absence of a reference to the soul led people to suppose that it was the physical body that was enjoined to lie peacefully in the

grave A grave is a location where a dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial, such as grave ...

. This is associated with the Christian doctrine of the

particular judgment Particular judgment, according to Christian eschatology, is the divine judgment that a departed person undergoes immediately after death, in contradistinction to the general judgment (or Last Judgment) of all people at the end of the world. ...

; that is, that the soul is parted from the body upon death, but that the soul and body will be reunited on

Judgment Day The Last Judgment, Final Judgment, Day of Reckoning, Day of Judgment, Judgment Day, Doomsday, Day of Resurrection or The Day of the Lord (; ar, یوم القيامة, translit=Yawm al-Qiyāmah or ar, یوم الدین, translit=Yawm ad-Dīn, ...

Use in various religions

Irish Protestantism

In 2017, members of the

Orange Order The Loyal Orange Institution, commonly known as the Orange Order, is an international Protestant fraternal order based in Northern Ireland and primarily associated with Ulster Protestants, particularly those of Ulster Scots people, Ulster Sco ...

in Northern Ireland called on

Protestant Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...

s to stop using the phrase "RIP" or "Rest in Peace". Wallace Thompson, the secretary of the

Evangelical Protestant Society The Evangelical Protestant Society (EPS) is a pressure group representing Christian evangelicalism in Northern Ireland. It was founded in Belfast in 1946 and opposes what it terms "liberalism and false ecumenism", "Romanism" and "Popery". History ...

, said on a BBC Radio Ulster programme that he would encourage Protestants to refrain from using the term "RIP". Thompson said that he regards "RIP" as a

prayer for the dead Religions with the belief in a future judgment, a resurrection of the dead or a purgatory often offer prayers on behalf of the dead to God. Buddhism For most funerals that follow the tradition of Chinese Buddhism, common practices include chantin ...

, which he believes contradicts biblical doctrine. In the same radio programme,

Presbyterian Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their na ...

Ken Newell disagreed that people are praying for the dead when they use the phrase.

Judaism

The expression "rest in peace" is "not commonly used in Jewish contexts", though some commentators say that it is "consistent with Jewish practice". The traditional Hebrew expression , literally 'may peace be upon him', is sometimes rendered in English as 'may he rest in peace'. On the other hand, some Jews object to using the phrase for Jews, considering it to reflect a Christian perspective.Shlomo Zuckier, "What Ruth Bader Ginsburg's Online Mourners Got Right and Wrong about Jews, Death, and the Afterlife", ''Mosaic: Advancing Jewish Thought''
September 25, 2020
/ref>

Image gallery

File:Requiescat ponaszymu.JPG, This Lutheran Christian grave reads "Rest in Peace" in the local Cieszyn Silesian Polish dialect. File:San Sebastián - Cementerio de Polloe 175.jpg, The epitaph R.I.P. on a

in a

churchyard In Christian countries a churchyard is a patch of land adjoining or surrounding a church, which is usually owned by the relevant church or local parish itself. In the Scots language and in both Scottish English and Ulster-Scots, this can al ...

of Donostia-San Sebastián File:R.I.P..jpg, Excerpt from gravestone in Święciechowa, showing R.I.P File:Ainhoa Croix1.JPG, This cross from 1720 bears the complete Latin phrase in its plural form ("Requiescant in pace") File:Early Christian Funerary inscription.jpg, This funerary tablet from 525 AD begins with the phrase File:Briton Rivière - Requiescat - Google Art Project.jpg, ''Requiescat'', oil on canvas painting by

Briton Rivière Briton Rivière (14 August 1840 in London20 April 1920 in London) was a British artist of Huguenot descent. He exhibited a variety of paintings at the Royal Academy, but devoted much of his life to animal paintings. Biography Briton's fa ...

, 1888, Art Gallery of New South Wales.

References

{{Gregorian chants of the Roman mass Death customs English-language idioms Modern Latin inscriptions Christian terminology