Church of England
The Anglican Church is known as the Church of England in England, as the Episcopal Church
in Scotland, as the Church of Wales in that
country and as the Church of Ireland in both Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic.
Services are regulated by powers delegated
by Parliament to the General Synod of the Church
When a Christian dies, it is seen as the end of his/her life on earth. A funeral is held
for friends and family to grieve for the person
who has died and give thanks for their life.
If someone is on their deathbed, a minister will prepare them for death. This is most
likely after a long period of illness. Prayers
of preparation and reconciliation may be said, with only the minister in the room.
Family and friends can participate in the Lord's
Prayer, the Word of God and Holy Communion.
Often, the deceased will have left information in his/her will concerning what they want
to be included in the funeral service (hymns,
prayers) and will also say whether they wanted to be buried or cremated. The funeral is
held about a week after death. It can either
take place in a church or at a crematorium. It usually includes:
- The Gathering: the minister will open the service with a short reading from the
scriptures
- Readings and sermon
- Eulogy and Personal readings, reflecting on the person's life and their role in the
Christian church. A family member or friend
may wish to read out a poem or a passage from the Bible.
- Prayers: prayers of thanksgiving, penitence and readiness for death are said.
- Reflection: Silent time for reflection when the congregation is given a short moment
to reflect on the deceased.
- Commendation and farewell: The minister speaks these words: "Let us commend (the
person's name) to the mercy of God, our maker
and redeemer." The minister then reads a prayer of entrusting and commending.
- The committal: this is probably the most solemn moment of the service. At a burial,
this is when the coffin is lowered into the
grave. At a cremation, the curtains are generally closed around the coffin, although
may at the family’s request remain open.
"We therefore commit (his or her) body to the ground; earth to earth, ashes to
ashes, dust to dust; in the sure and certain
hope of the Resurrection to eternal life."
Roman Catholic
Catholics believe in Heaven and Hell, but also in Purgatory. This is a place for those
who have died in a 'state of grace' (that is,
they have committed 'venial' or forgivable sins) and may not go straight to Heaven.
A Catholic funeral is slightly different and can be with or without Mass:
- The Vigil for the Deceased: this is a service of prayers, songs and homilies either
at the home of the deceased or in church, before
the day of the funeral.
- Introductory rites: the priest greets the congregation and says: "The grace of our
Lord Jesus Christ and the love of God and the
fellowship of the Holy Spirit be with you all." He leads the coffin and congregation
down the church aisle. Holy water is sprinkled
and there is an opening song and prayer.
- Liturgy of the Word: sermons from the Bible are read out, as well as a homily (a
practical rather than theological sermon) and
a Psalm.
- Liturgy of the Eucharist: there is a preparation of gifts, a Eucharist prayer is
said and Holy Communion is received.
- Final commendation: Mass ends, prayers are said and the coffin is taken out of the
church.
- Rite of Committal: prayers are said by the final resting place (at the graveside for
burial and before the curtains close for cremation).
A funeral is a farewell ceremony at which the person who has died is present. A
commemorative event at which the person who has died
is not present is called a memorial service, which may be held after the committal,
privately for the family or open to other mourners,
has already taken place beforehand.
Muslim
Muslims believe that the good deeds done in life will yield entry into Paradise on the
Day of Judgment or the Last Day, when the world
will be destroyed. Many Muslims believe that until the Last Day the dead will remain in
their tombs and those heading for Paradise
will experience peace while those heading for Hell will experience suffering.
When a Muslim is approaching death, family members and very close friends are present, to
offer the dying person hope and kindness,
and encourage the dying person to say the ‘shahada,’ confirming that there is no God but
Allah. According to Islamic law (‘shariah’),
the body should be buried as soon as possible from the time of death, which means that
funeral planning and preparations begin
immediately and there is no viewing before the funeral.
The preparation and undertaking of the funeral follows various key stages:
- Preparation of the body for burial, washing by close same-sex family members or
surviving spouse (‘Ghusl’) and shrouding (‘Kafan’):
- The body is washed three times. Or more if necessary, but always for an odd number
of times and in a specific order - upper right
side, upper left side, lower right side, lower left side
- Women’s hair is washed and braided into three braids and the body is covered in a
white sheet
- To shroud the body, three large white sheets of inexpensive material should be laid
on top of each other with the body placed on
top. Women should, at this point, be dressed in an ankle-length sleeveless dress and
head veil
- Where possible, the deceased’s left hand should rest on the chest and the right hand
should rest on the left hand, as in a position
of prayer, with the sheets folded over the body, first the right side and then the
left side, until all three sheets have wrapped
the body and the shrouding is secured with ropes, one tied above the head, two tied
around the body, and one tied below the
feet
- The body should then be transported to the mosque for funeral prayers, known as
‘Salat al-Janazah’, performed by all members of
the community, recited at the mosque, not inside the mosque but in a prayer room or
study room, or in the mosque’s courtyard.,
with those praying facing Mecca in at least three lines, with the male most closely
related to the person who died in the first
line, followed by men, then children, then women.
- The body is then transported to the place of burial, traditionally with only men
allowed to be present, though in some communities
all mourners, including women, will be allowed at the graveside.
- Once the body is in the grave, a layer of wood or stones are placed on top of the
body to prevent direct contact between the body
and the soil that will fill the grave and each mourner will place three handfuls of
soil into the grave.
- Once the grave has been filled, a small stone or marker may be placed at the grave
so that it is recognizable and traditionally
it is prohibited to erect a large monument on the grave or decorate the grave in an
elaborate way
- After the funeral and burial, the immediate family will gather to receive visitors
and the community provide food for the family
for the first few days of the mourning period (usually three days)
- Generally, the mourning period lasts 40 days, but depending on the degree of
religiousness of the family, the mourning period may
be much shorter and widows are expected to observe a longer mourning period,
generally of four months and ten days when they
are prohibited from interacting with men whom they could potentially marry
- It is acceptable in Islam to express grief over a death with crying and weeping at
the time of death, at the funeral, and at the
burial but wailing and shrieking, tearing of clothing and breaking of objects, and
expressing a lack of faith in Allah are
all prohibited.
- Organ donation is acceptable for Muslims, as it follows the Qur’an’s teaching that
‘Whosoever saves the life of one person it would
be as if he saved the life of all mankind.’
Various funeral practices are unacceptable in the Muslim religion:
- Routine autopsies are not acceptable in Islam as they are seen as a desecration of
the body.
- Embalming and cosmetology are not allowed unless required by state or federal law.
- As embalming is not allowed and the urgency with which the body must be buried, it
is not possible to transport the body from one
country to another.
- Cremation is forbidden for Muslims.
Sikh
Sikhs cremate people when they die. In the Sikh homeland of the Punjab this often happens
on the day of death but in other places it
may take longer so that relatives can travel to the funeral.
When someone appears close to death their family will come to their bedside and say
‘Sukhmani’ (the Hymn of Peace). The dying person
tries to reply Waheguru. The dead body is washed and then dressed in traditional Sikh
clothing.
The coffin is taken to the ‘gurdwara’ (Sikh place of worship) and placed in front of the
Guru Granth Sahib. The coffin is then carried
to the cremation ground. In India it is placed on a funeral pyre which is lit by a close
relative. As the coffin burns the evening
prayerthe’ Kirtan Sohila’ is said:
‘God has determined the time for my nuptials; come pour the oil of joy at my door.
Bless me, my friends, that I find that sweet union, dwelling as one with my Master
and Lord. All must receive their last call from the Master; daily he summons those
souls who must go. Hold in remembrance the Lord who will summon you; soon you will
hear his command’ (Kirtan Sohila 7-8)
This shows the belief that death is just a short sleep before rebirth and that everyone
must remember Waheguru in the hope of escaping
rebirth and reaching moksha (ultimate liberation from reincarnation) .
Afterwards, in the gurdwara, the Anand Sahib (prayer) is sung, and the Ardas (prayer) is
said. The ceremony ends with karah parshad
(offering of food blessed by the guru).
For the next ten days many families stay at home and read all of the Guru Granth Sahib.
Sometimes an Akhand path (complete reading
of the Guru Granth Sahib) takes place in the gurdwara after a funeral.
Hindu
Most Hindus are cremated as it is believed that this will help their soul to escape
quickly from the body. The exact details of the
funeral ceremonies, which form the last of the samskaras (antyeshti samskara, final
reincarnation), vary according to tradition
and place.
Funerals are usually conducted by a priest and by the eldest son of the deceased and
various rituals may take place around the dead
body:
- A lamp is placed by the head of the body
- Prayers and hymns are sung
- Pindas (rice balls) are placed in the coffin
- Water is sprinkled on the body
- A mala (necklace of wooden beads) may be put around the dead person’s neck as may
garlands of flowers
How the cremation takes place depends on where this happens:
- In the UK the coffin is closed and taken to a crematorium.
- In India people hope to have their funeral at the burning ghats on the shores of the
sacred river Ganga (Ganges). Here the body
is placed on a large pile of wood, then the eldest son says the appropriate Vedic
prayers and lights the fire. Incense and
ghee (cooked and clarified butter) are poured into the flames.
Prayers are said for the dead person:
‘O Supreme light, lead us from untruth to truth, from darkness to light and from
death to immortality’.
Afterwards the ashes of the deceased are sprinkled on water. Many people take the ashes
to India to put on the waters of the Ganga;
others may take them to the sea near to where they live.
After the funeral the widow or widower will wear white as a sign of mourning. The close
family may mourn for twelve days.
On the thirteenth day the samskara (reincarnation) ends with the ritual of Kriya. During
this, rice balls and milk are offered to the
deceased to show the gratitude of the family for the life of that person. After this,
the mourners can continue with their normal
lives. It is not wrong to mourn for too long, as Hindus believe that each death brings
the atman nearer to moksha.
Every year after the death Shraddha takes place. At this ceremony food such as pindas is
offered to the poor and needy in memory of
departed ancestors.
Salvation Army
The Salvation Army is a Protestant denomination of the Christian Church with over 800
Salvation Army parishes (corps) in the UK and
over 1,500 ordained ministers (officers) and 54,000 members (including senior soldiers,
adherents and junior soldiers).
Salvation Army officers wear a military-style uniform, though some officers may wear a
more informal uniform when undertaking certain
duties. Members of the church often choose to wear a uniform, but are not required to do
so. Salvation Army halls are registered
as places of worship. Salvation Army officers are ordained ministers of religion and can
conduct funerals.
Salvationists believe that when the physical body dies, the soul or spirit continues to
exist in another dimension. This new dimension
could be Heaven or 'glory' in which God is present, or hell which is the absence of God.
Salvationist believe that those who have
accepted God will go to Heaven, and so they use the phrase "Promotion to Glory" to refer
to the death of a Christian.
Salvationists may be buried or cremated. Soldiers attend funerals in uniform and may wear
a white ribbon round the sleeve of their
tunic.
Salvation Army funerals have an atmosphere of joy and hope, since despite the sadness of
losing a family member, friend or colleague,
there is joy in the belief that the dead person is happy in a new existence with God. So
instead of black the Army's funeral colour
is white and the flags which are walked to the graveside are draped with white ribbons.
Salvation Army funeral traditions include:
- A cap, Bible and Salvation Army song book placed on the coffin
- A white ribbon at the top of the flagpole
- A brass band leading the cortège, though this is increasingly rare
- An appeal to those present to be aware of the wisdom of accepting God
Other Faiths
We at A.W. Lymn have experience of tailoring funeral services to meet the beliefs and
faiths of the deceased.
