Anywhere is the short answer. Mostly we tend to hold funerals as a two stage process. 1) First, there’s the part where we say goodbye: usually at ‘the place of rest’… the burial ground or crematorium. Burial grounds are sometimes attached to churches so the ceremony may be in the church, the churchyard or if the […]
Rites of passage are common to every culture. It’s a term used for the ceremonies and rituals we use to mark and celebrate stages in life: from starting and leaving school, loosing teeth to fairies and learning to drive to other markers of independence and coming-of-age: 18th and 21st birthdays, leaving home.
These days, we often look upon a funeral as a celebration of life as well as an opportunity to mourn a death.
Funeral, ceremony, wake, memorial… whatever you call it, these goodbyes are all ‘rites of passage’ – events for friends and families to come together after a death to say farewell and honour a life. Ceremonies called ‘life celebrations’ may also be held before a death.