Christian Funeral Rites And Rituals
A funeral can either be a family or a State ceremony, and it is held in the memory of the departed person. It involves a series of rites and customs that vary according to the deceased’s culture and belief system.
Generally at the Christian funerals, the ceremonies can be classified under three main heads – visitation, funeral and the burial. The funeral and visitation ceremonies have greater importance from the point of view of rituals and have been detailed here.
Visitation is the ceremony that comes first, when the deceased’s body is placed in a coffin for the family and friends to see. The body is dressed in the finest clothes and adorned with jewellery. Some cultures need embalming the body for the visitation, while others don’t.
Some families prefer displaying memories from the life of the dead person at visitation in the form of photos and personal items that were prized possessions of the dead person. Some families also run a slideshow or video from the deceased’s lifetime.
This part is then followed by the funeral, which is a memorial service that is usually held at the church. The coffin with the dead body in it is brought to the church in a hearse, surrounded by a funeral procession of mourners. The coffin with its floral decoration is then placed inside the church.
Funeral services normally include chants and readings from the Bible or the Holy Scriptures. The mourning groups also sing devotional songs in chorus. The pastor presiding over the ceremony delivers a comforting speech, and it is followed by tributes or eulogies given by relatives and close friends of the deceased, who speak of the latter’s merits and accomplishments. Though this is not a mandatory custom, but in some cultures, people are allowed to see the body once before leaving the church for final burial. Church bells may be rung both before the service and after it.
Once these ceremonies are over, the body is taken in a funeral procession for burial, which finally concludes the funeral ceremony.
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