Customer Reviews

Funerals Without God: A Practical Guide to Non-Religious Funerals

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The main purpose of this booklet is twofold: to help Humanists who are thinking of becoming officiants on a regular basis; and to help families and friends who are faced with the need to organise a ceremony themselves at short notice. A third group who may find parts of it useful are funeral directors coping with funerals where there is no officiant and the family has no wish to play an active role. The booklet aims to set out clearly the basic format of a Humanist ceremony, to suggest possible readings and turns of phrase, and to state simply the various practical measures that need to be taken. In short, it is a straightforward working manual. After the event . . . . "(It was) the first funeral I had attended where I felt comfortable, and comforted by the words spoken." " . . . it gave me a sense of great peace." "To hear others publicly proclaim their love, respect and admiration for my husband made the funeral an uplifting experience. Afterwards so many who had attended told me that it was the most interesting, most moving, most relevant and best funeral that they had ever been to. Their remarks gave me a great deal of comfort and I knew that I had treated my husband's atheism with the respect and dignity that it deserved." "A large number of those present, from a wide range of beliefs and backgrounds, later expressed what we can only call enthusiasm for an experience that was new to them, and in many cases compared very favourable with the often awkward and impersonal alternatives with which they were familiar." "Bearing in mind that this is a form of ceremony which has not yet gained wide acceptance, we consider ourselves fortunate . . . to have received such expert and personal attention."

Although I am a Christian minister, I am called upon more and more to officiate at funerals for the unchurched. For me, this book has been pretty much a roadmap for how to conduct services which are meaningful to families or loved ones who have little or no experience with a church, or who simply do not believe. It has been a great help to me in organizing ceremonies and in finding readings to use in these circumstances. It has also helped members of my congregation gain greater understanding of ways they can "be present" for hurting people whose beliefs are outside their realm of experience.

Or Pound as the case may be. Humanist or non-religious ceremonies don't seem to be as popular in the US as they are in GB, so it probably shouldn't have surprised me that this booklet is centered around ceremonial practices in England rather than a focusing on a universal approach to the subject. I found the examples of ceremonies kind of flat, lacking compassion, and not terribly creative, but everyone has their own style. Having said that, it was a start, and I'm glad to see someone out there is trying to add to the knowledge base of non-religious ceremonies. If the price were significantly lower, I would recommend this work as a good place to get some direction, but don't get your hopes up.