In an eight-day span, I have attended three funerals.  I’ve attended my share of funerals in the last few years but this may be a record for me.   This grouping included an aunt, the father of a co-worker and a civic organization colleague.  The services ranged from Southern Baptist to Free Will Baptist to Catholic.

It was interested to see how, in different faiths, we deal with the inevitable reality of death.  Interestingly, in these three situations, the funeral services were celebrations of lives well lived.  Each of the individuals had lived long and full lives.  Each died suddenly and unexpectedly.

While the services were different, the focus of each was similar.  The Southern Baptist service leaned toward informal.  The Free Will Baptist service was in a small, rural country church with the burial service out back behind the church in the cold, biting February wind.  The Catholic service was filled with pageantry packed with symbolism.  Because he was aware of the percentage of non-Catholics in the service, Father Ed, who is also a colleague in the same civic organization, did an excellent job explaining the rituals to us.

Whether in the eulogy of the Southern Baptist service or the commendation of the Catholic service, each one focused on highlights of the individual’s life.

None of us are going to make it out of this world alive.  Whether you exit soon and abruptly or fade off into the sunset, somebody is going to have something to say at your service.  Are you living a life well enough to provide detail for a celebration?

This entry was posted on Thursday, March 4th, 2010 at 5:11 am and is filed under Christianity, Family, Friendship, Motivation. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.