Jul 10, 2007

Funeral Rites


I have just had the privilege of officiating at my first funeral. Some friends have wondered if they should ask “Did it go well?” Well, yes, thank you, it went beautifully. I don’t know about you, but I have been to some BAD funerals – ones where barely anything is revealed about the person who died and you feel like this funeral was exactly the same as the one that took place 30 minutes previous except the name is different.
It is essential to mark a death well. The person well grieved is the person well loved. I mean it really is a privilege to meet a family and have them share their stories about the person they loved so much. It is an honour for me to hold space for them heal and grieve together and then to take their sharings and craft a funeral with personally meaningful rituals and a eulogy that honours a life.
I believe that it is a calling and a gift well offered when the family members told me that they thought the service was beautiful and exactly what they wanted. His death marks the beginning of their new life without him and it is key for them to have beauty with them in that time of transition.
 
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