Funerals
Christianity View
The Service
Friends and relatives will gather together for the funeral service. The minister will say some words of Jesus: 'I am the resurrection, and I am the life; he who believes in me shall never die.' After hymns are sung and prayers are read, normally the eulogy will be said about the dead person, reflecting and remembering their life.
If the person is to be buried the committal is said as they are lowered into the grave: 'We entrusted to God our brother/sister [NAME] to God's merciful keeping, and we now commit his/her body to the ground: earth to earth, ashes to ashes, dust to dust: in sure and certain hope of the resurrection to eternal life through our Lord Jesus Christ, who died, was buried, and rose again for us. To him be glory for ever and ever.'
After the service
There will usually be a meal or gathering after the service for all the guests. This allows them time to share their sorrows and memories, as well as meet people they have not seen in some time.
More traditional cultures will hold a wake, a time for partying and mourning and laughter mixed with tears.
The Value of the Service
A funeral service helps people to face up to the loss of a friend or relative. It is a public act of saying farewell and all the people there share in the sorrow to some degree. It is a formal 'goodbye' and it helps the process of mourning and adjusting to loss.