Latter Day Funerals Essay

At some point in our lives, we all come to realize that death is a part of life. Cultural diversity provides a wide variety of lifestyles and traditions for each of the unique groups of people in our world. Within these different cultures, the rituals associated with death and burial can also be uniquely diverse. Many consider ritualistic traditions that differ from their own to be somewhat strange and often perceive them as unnatural. A prime example would be the burial rituals of the Native American people.

The two cultures that I decided to compare and contrast is the Mexican culture and ancient Egyptians. Mexicans have embraced death as a part of life. The Mayan and Aztecs practiced human sacrifices which gave and example of acceptance of death. In Mexico when a loved one passed on to a better life the viewing traditional takes place at the family’s home. A catholic priest comes to the family’s home and leads a mass in honor of the recently departed. The coffin in placed on a table along with candles on the side. After the funeral the family members get together and pray for nine days to guide the deceased into haven and ask forgiveness for their sins.On the other hand Egyptians were buried in pyramids directly in the ground. Often bodies were

Painful as it may be, such experiences brings home the finality of death. Something deep within us demands a confrontation with death. A last look assures us that the person we loved is, indeed, gone forever.” (108) Cable finishes his essay by asking, Tim if his job ever depressed him. Tim in reply says, “No it doesn’t, and I do what I can for people and take satisfaction in enabling relatives to see their loved ones as they were in real life.” (108) After reading this essay I feel as though sometimes we don’t understand death so therefore we do not talk much about it. By reading about what goes on after your loved one dies and is sent to these places to be prepared and ready for burial, it helps to understand why morticians and funeral directors do what they do. Knowing that someone enjoys taking the responsibility in providing that comfort in a sorrowful time makes me appreciate these people in these occupations a bit

Funerals are a dark, gloomy, and sometimes emotional subject for many people. Death rituals like funerals are times where we as a community come together to mourn someone’s loss; it is depressing and often turbulent. But we often overlook the positive aspects of events like these in favor of their negative ones. We can’t ignore the grief that comes with funerals and loss, but we can investigate how funerals are beneficial to those trying to cope with bereavement. In fact, funerals and death rites have many psychological benefits. This is pervasive to grief rituals no matter the culture or the time period: for example, the people of Ancient Greece and the people of modern-day America.

We must come together as a society in order to realize in a larger sense the ephemeral nature of our lives. Not only does the funeral rite and ritual serve to bring the living this reminder, but also to help unite them in a sense of concord. We have become disassociated with each other as a culture. America values the individualism of its citizens, but we have become withdrawn from each other by morphing this principle into an extreme version of isolation and instant gratification for the self. We have lost much of the meaning and value of our lives. We must realize that mortality is something that is and will be shared by everyone in the American culture and unite, rather than retreat from each

Three days of mourning follow the death. A special meal to remember the departed may be held. Mourners avoid decorative jewellery and clothing. Male family members visit the grave daily or weekly for 40 days. There will also be prayer gatherings at the home for 40 days following the death. After one year there will be a large gathering of family and friends. Everyone remembers the deceased in prayers.

One of the chapels in the cemetery is held by the Church of England, this chapel accommodates for people of the Christian faith. The other Chapel accommodates for a wider group of people as it accepts people from all religions, faith and no faith. This displays how the people who work for the cemetery try to accommodate to every person rather than only a specific group, so everyone can have a similar experience. Both chapels, although not specified for the same group of people, both show religious figures, such as images of Jesus and pictures of the cross; this could comfort some people when visiting the chapel as they are surrounded by holy and religious images during a hard time in their life; this could also be helpful in easing the mourning process. However, some people may not be satisfied with the displays of visible worship. For example, if a family member is setting up a service for a lost one who did not particularly believe in religion, or who came from a different religious background than Christianity, they may not want images associated to the Christian faith being so visible during their service. This could make it hard for the funeral directors, as although they may try their hardest to accommodate to the bereaved, they cannot necessarily cater to each individual and what they

America is a melting pot of different cultures. Each culture shares within its group their own beliefs, values, traditions and rituals. All cultures have their own way of handling death and expressing grief often through customs and rituals which are reflected in our understanding of death. Grieflink stated, when someone close to us dies, we mourn this loss inwardly (we might refer to this as the inner experience of grief) but we also mourn in an outward public way (the mourning customs or rituals of our particular society). According to the Cancer.net (2015), in the wake of chaos and confusion created by death customs and rituals help bring a sense of routine and normalcy as well as provide ways for the community to support the bereaved

Whether death is sudden or prolonged, anticipated or unexpected, it leaves many family members and friends feeling the effects of loss. Eventually they are expected to come to terms with the death and eventually let go and move on. All human cultures participate in ritual mourning, a set of symbolic rites and ceremonies associated with death. The rituals associated with death have a clear and important function. According to sociologists Victor Marshall and Judith Levy, “Rituals provide a…means through which societies simultaneously seek to control the disruptions of death and to make it meaningful…The funeral exists as a formal means to accomplish the work of completing a biography, managing grief, and

Have you ever wondered how other culture’s funerals play out? Diverse cultures have different religions. Therefore, funerals and mourning look different depending on their religion. The Greek, Roman, and Egyptian mourning and funerals are strange, fascinating, and somewhat gross.

Growing up, I was introduced to death and funerals. I understood what was happening, but I never knew what was going on. I would ask the questions, “Are they coming back?” or, “ Do they even get a second chance of life?”

Here in the United states it is common to have a funeral, this usually being called a receiving friends and family, where people gather and morn the death of the lost. “The funeral service include prayers; reading from the Bible; hymns; and words of comfort by the clergy” (U.S. Funeral Customs & Traditions). The funeral is often times followed by a burial either same day or soon following and gatherings where people bring food for survivors of the lost. To other countries such as Africa and Scotland, the U.S. probably doesn't give the proper

Within the United States and Canada, the funeral rituals can be divided

End of life beliefs is a vital part of their religion. Preventative care is not encouraged. Life support is acceptable if there is some hope of revival, but once death is inevitable, families accept God’s will and should not keep organs functioning artificially. The initial bereavement period lasts three days. Prayers are recited continuously. Traditionally, friends and other members of the community bring food so family does not have to worry about cooking (Lipson & Meleis, 1983, p. 857).

In pursuing this further, there are several aspects to this topic; such as, preplanning, financial planning, cost, and the surviving family members. Funeral planning is something we all will have to do at one point in our lives, but where should we begin? It is a good idea to start with the preplanning of the funeral. Preplanning is crucial; it provides piece of mind, especially for surviving family. As said earlier, discussing one 's mortality is an extremely uncomfortable topic; however, by preplanning a funeral, it will relieve the family of having to make important decisions during a period of immense stress and grief. Furthermore, preplanning gives time to explore the options for a ceremony and allows time to discuss the financial aspects. It also gives a chance to choose a funeral home that best suit ones needs and budget.