Today more than ever, personal funeral services that capture the essence of the departed person - their character, spirit and legacy - are being planned and conducted by civil celebrants in collaboration with family and friends of the deceased. With this move away from traditional funeral services, comes an increased responsibility for the funeral celebrant to honour the departed in an appropriate way, and make sure each service runs as smoothly as possible. This handbook is the ideal companion for qualified celebrants or church leaders, celebrants-in-training, or those who are thinking about entering this vocation. It covers every aspect of a service, beginning at the time of initial contact and the first meeting with the bereaved, right through to the service itself. In this book you will also find a varied collection of readings, poems and sample eulogies for each type of funeral service, as well as advice about conducting memorial services and funeral services with a difference.
Today more than ever, personal funeral services that capture the essence of the departed person - their character, spirit and legacy - are being planned and conducted by civil celebrants in collaboration with family and friends of the deceased. With this move away from traditional funeral services, comes an increased responsibility for the funeral celebrant, to honour the departed in an appropriate way, and make sure each service runs as smoothly as possible. This handbook is the ideal companion for qualified celebrants or church leaders, celebrants-in-training, or those who are thinking about entering this vocation. It covers every aspect of a service, beginning at the time of initial contact and the first meeting with the bereaved, right through to the service itself. In this book you will also find a varied collection of readings, poems and sample eulogies for each type of funeral service, as well as advice about conducting memorial services and funeral services with a difference. Barry H Young is better known as an author of historical literature, but is also a civil service funeral celebrant of many years' experience. The personal satisfaction he has received in this calling has compelled him to write this book to share his knowledge and experiences with aspiring funeral celebrants.
Suitable for qualified celebrants or church leaders, celebrants-in-training, or those who are thinking about entering the vocation of funeral service, this handbook covers different aspects of a service, beginning at the time of initial contact and the first meeting with the bereaved, right through to the service itself.
Within these pages you will find an invaluable blueprint to building creative, exciting, organized, professional-level ceremonies of every kind. Whether you are looking to design a single spectacular dream event, improve your business, or launch a whole new career, this book will be your handy companion, as you move from planning to amazing success!* Unity Rituals * Cultural Etiquette* Ceremonial Diagrams * Business advice* Sample Questionnaires * Contracts* Legal Requirements by State * 100 Ceremony Readings * Preparation instructions for every modern ceremony
Home Funeral Guides and funeral celebrants, Donna Belk and Kateyanne Unullisi, have midwifed the dying, the dead, and the grieving many times. They know how important and healing it is to intentionally mark a transitional time with ceremony and ritual. This simple yet powerful guidebook will help you with ceremonies to make the journey through a death - from being with the dying person, to preparing the body, vigil, leave-taking, disposition, and beyond. Weaving the practical with poetry and insight, these ceremonies guide with intention and clarity, to bring ritual into the room where death dwells. As Dorry Bless writes in the forward, "As you companion your loved one, let this book be your companion." During a home funeral, we are challenged to blend three elements: physical (where will the body lay in honor, are there enough chairs in the house, when is the memorial service, etc.); emotional (grieving, regrets about things left undone or unsaid); and spiritual (bringing the mystery of life or the sacred into the space). The ceremonies in this book are tools for weaving together the physical, emotional and spiritual elements into a process that honors and serves everyone who is involved. Caitlin Doughty, mortician, author of Smoke Gets in Your Eyes, writes, "Having benefited from Donna Belk's clear-headed wisdom in my own work, I am thrilled that she and Kateyanne have created ceremonies that will be available to a wider audience. The important work of re-invigorating ritual around death and dying must be shared and passed on." Dr. Karen Wyatt, physician, and author of What Really Matters: 7 Lessons for Living from the Stories of the Dying writes, "To accompany a loved one through life's final passage at home is the greatest gift of love you can bestow. Home Funeral Ceremonies provides the guidance needed to create sacred space, honor the life of the beloved, and usher them through their transition with compassion, beauty, and grace. Home Funeral Ceremonies is a book that can be adapted for any faith, in any situation. You can use the ceremonies as they are written, or customize them with your values and beliefs. It's a book you will want to own, and to give as a gift to someone facing a last goodbye.
The Good Funeral Guide is the first ever independent consumer guide to the funeral industry. It is for anyone who: - needs to arrange a funeral for someone now - has sick or elderly relatives or friends and knows that a funeral is imminent - wants to find a good funeral director and have some say in the funeral itself - wants to make future arrangements for their own funeral - would like to learn about deaths and funerals Authoritative, impartial and empowering, it is indispensable for those who don't want a conventional religious ceremony and invaluable for those who do. This is a book we will all need - probably at least twice.
The Wiley Blackwell Handbook of Humanism presents anedited collection of essays that explore the nature of Humanism asan approach to life, and a philosophical analysis of the keyhumanist propositions from naturalism and science to morality andmeaning. Represents the first book of its kind to look at Humanism notjust in terms of its theoretical underpinnings, but also itsconsequences and its diverse manifestations Features contributions from international and emergingscholars, plus renowned figures such as Stephen Law, CharlesFreeman and Jeaneanne Fowler Presents Humanism as a positive alternative to theism Brings together the world’s leading Humanist academics inone reference work
This book unravels the many different experiences, meanings and realities of natural burial. Twenty years after the first natural burial ground opened there is an opportunity to reflect on how a concept for a very different approach to caring for our dead has become a reality: new providers, new landscapes and a hybrid of new and traditional rituals. In this short time the natural burial movement has flourished. In the UK there are more than 200 sites, and the concept has travelled to North America, Holland, Australia, New Zealand and Japan. This survey of natural burials draws on interviews with those involved in the natural burial process – including burial ground managers, celebrants, priests, bereaved family, funeral directors – providing a variety of viewpoints on the concept as a philosophy and landscape practice. Site surveys, design plans and case studies illustrate the challenges involved in creating a natural burial site, and a key longitudinal case study of a single site investigates the evolving nature of the practice. Natural Burial is the first book on this subject to bring together all the groups and individuals involved in the practice, explaining the facts behind this type of burial and exploring a topic which is attracting significant media interest and an upsurge of sites internationally.
Soul Midwives, a movement begun by Felicity Warner, has changed the face of modern holistic and spiritual palliative care in the UK and abroad.Soul Midwives are holistic and spiritual companions to the dying. They draw on traditional skills, now largely forgotten, applying them to our modern world to ease the passage of those who are dying. Their services are used within people's own homes, in hospices and in care homes.Anyone with an open and compassionate heart and a desire to help others can train to become a Soul Midwife. This book will guide you through the core principles and techniques of this practice.
'Wonderful, thoughtful, practical' - Cariad Lloyd, Griefcast 'Encouraging and inspiring' - Dr Kathryn Mannix, author of Amazon bestseller With the End in Mind End-of-life doula Anna Lyons and funeral director Louise Winter have joined forces to share a collection of the heartbreaking, surprising and uplifting stories of the ordinary and extraordinary lives they encounter every single day. From working with the living, the dying, the dead and the grieving, Anna and Louise reveal the lessons they've learned about life, death, love and loss. Together they've created a profound but practical guide to rethinking the one thing that's guaranteed to happen to us all. We are all going to die, and that's ok. Let's talk about it. This is a book about life and living, as much as it's a book about death and dying. It's a reflection on the beauties, blessings and tragedies of life, the exquisite agony and ecstasy of being alive, and the fragility of everything we hold dear. It's as simple and as complicated as that.
