Where Therapy Meets Faith: Christian Funerals

There is a noticeable shift in how we, as a culture, approach Christian funerals. There is an understandably different appreciation of death as generations grow and mature. This is unavoidable. A pastor needs to be attentive to these changes but must also never fail to remind one's parish that there is a relationship between ourselves and God that is still expressed even in death itself.

Bill Tammeus, a protestant theologian speaks of his personal experience of Christian death and what it means for him as a believer. The thoughts in his latest column speak of his experience of the changing trends in regards to funerals.

We have moved from the traditional funeral expressions where a loved one's body is present in favor of "disembodied memorial services that are primarily about therapy for the bereaved."

The primary focus of funeral needs to see that "It’s a chance to retell the gospel story as we accompany a loved one to the edge of mystery. Yes, some therapy occurs, but that’s not primarily what should be going on."

Timmeus gives me hope in reshaping my own approach to teaching about Christian death and dying. It is something more than providing pastoral care and understanding - its about teaching our belief in the "resurrection of the body and the life everlasting."


The full article is available here.