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Funeral Traditions And Rituals
by: Sarah James
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Funerals around the world are performed by following several traditions, rites and rituals. Funeral provides a chance to the relatives of the deceased to pray for him and come to terms with their loss and sorrow.
Christian funerals adhere to the rules of the Church. However, considering the fact that there are more than 200 denominations of Christian communities, the rituals can vary depending on the allegiance of the family.
An important ceremony of a Christian funeral, known as wake, is the first and foremost custom that is performed before the actual funeral and involves a nightly watch over the deceased and recital of Biblical psalms for the peace of his soul. According to the present day rituals, this is when the family and acquaintances pay a last visit to the deceased and offer their final respects. The deceased is carefully preserved and placed either at the home or in a Church with only a specified number of visiting hours. In old times, the wake was succeeded by the ritual of absolution, which involved absolving the person of all his or her sins in the present life, and placing a cross on the chest and performing offertory where people placed gifts in the casket.
Then comes the main ceremony, which starts with the transportation of the deceased's body to the Church in a coach and is succeeded by recitation of hymns and prayers from the Bible. After this, the priest asks a family member or a friend to offer a eulogy before the burial. Some Christian communities have tolling of the bells as a part of the proceedings that marks the end of service. Following the funeral proceedings, the casket is taken to the burial place where before burying there is a burial service conducted.
Lastly, the family members arrange for a lunch for the friends, relatives and acquaintances who are attending the funeral. The primary purpose of such customs is to provide support to the mourning family and help them tide over their grief and resign themselves to the fate.
Keywords: funeral,funeral services,spirituality,business,undertakers,Catholic,Buddhist,casket
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Author: Sarah James
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