Funerals across the world are characterized by a number of rites and rituals. Funeral is a service where friends and family pray for the deceased and settle with the fate of the loss of their loved one.
Christian funerals adhere to the rites of the Church. However, as there are more than 200 different Christian community offshoots, there are various differences in the manner in which the funeral services are organized by each community.
An important ritual of a Christian funeral, called wake, is the first and foremost ritual that is performed before the actual funeral and involves a nightly watch over the deceased and recital of prayers for the eternal peace of his soul. According to present day practices, this is the time where friends and family see the deceased for the last time and pay their heartfelt homage. The body is properly preserved and kept either in a Church or at the home, and the time is specified. In earlier times, the deceased was sought to be absolved of his sins of this birth by performing the ritual of absolution after wake. This involved placing a cross on the departed's body and offertory in the casket, where gifts offered were kept.
Then comes the actual ceremony itself, where the dead is first carried to the Church in a vehicle and prayers from the Holy Bible are recited and prayers are sung in the church. This is then followed by the clergy asking one of the close friends or family to present a eulogy. In some cases funeral rituals include the tolling of bells to signify the end of the ceremony. Then the casket with the deceased's body is transported to the burial place for the final set of rituals, called the burial service which precedes the burying.
Finally, the funeral's end is marked by a mourners' lunch organised for the family and those present at the funeral ceremony. The primary aim of such rituals is to provide support to the mourning family and help them overcome their grief and accept the fate.
Christian funerals adhere to the rites of the Church. However, as there are more than 200 different Christian community offshoots, there are various differences in the manner in which the funeral services are organized by each community.
An important ritual of a Christian funeral, called wake, is the first and foremost ritual that is performed before the actual funeral and involves a nightly watch over the deceased and recital of prayers for the eternal peace of his soul. According to present day practices, this is the time where friends and family see the deceased for the last time and pay their heartfelt homage. The body is properly preserved and kept either in a Church or at the home, and the time is specified. In earlier times, the deceased was sought to be absolved of his sins of this birth by performing the ritual of absolution after wake. This involved placing a cross on the departed's body and offertory in the casket, where gifts offered were kept.
Then comes the actual ceremony itself, where the dead is first carried to the Church in a vehicle and prayers from the Holy Bible are recited and prayers are sung in the church. This is then followed by the clergy asking one of the close friends or family to present a eulogy. In some cases funeral rituals include the tolling of bells to signify the end of the ceremony. Then the casket with the deceased's body is transported to the burial place for the final set of rituals, called the burial service which precedes the burying.
Finally, the funeral's end is marked by a mourners' lunch organised for the family and those present at the funeral ceremony. The primary aim of such rituals is to provide support to the mourning family and help them overcome their grief and accept the fate.
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