Making Funeral Arrangements in Advance

Making Funeral Arrangements in Advance

Tuesday, May 1st, 2012 Posted in Funeral Planning | No Condolences »

funeral planning mississaugaWhether you like it or not, everyone will eventually pass away. No matter how careful and healthy people are, there are certainly some events that cannot be planned or changed. Because of the inevitability of death, many people are already resorting to pre-planning their funeral arrangements.

Accomplishing your own funeral planning arrangements is a very good way to help your family by the time that you are gone. They would not waste a lot of time guessing what you want for your funeral since everything has already been planned. And if you are wise enough, you can even pay those arrangements in an installment basis too.

  1. Inquire from different funeral houses in your area. These homes offer pre-planning packages and deals. You just have to look for the one which can address your wishes best. You have to consider the price since you will also be paying for it in advance.
  2. Detail everything in your funeral arrangement. The funeral house will be asking you different questions like if you want to be cremated or buried and what would you want for your tombstone. If cremated, they will also need to know how you want your remains to be arranged after the cremation process. If you want to be buried, then they will show you available plots for the grave and this will affect the price tag as well.
  3. Determine the kind of service that you want to have in your funeral. This process is strongly related to your religious background. You can contact your church to ask some details on how to go about with a traditional service. You should write everything down so you will have a record of your plan.
  4. Funeral flowers can also be pre-determined. You can go around town and look for local flowers that you would want to have in your arrangements.
  5. Discuss your funeral arrangement details with the family. This way, they are aware of what you want to happen during the time of your passing.
  6. If you are particular enough, you can even write your own obituary ahead of time.

East Facing Tombstones

Tuesday, April 24th, 2012 Posted in Funeral Services | No Condolences »

east facing funeral tombstonesIf you pay a visit to a western cemetery, the first thing that you will notice is that all the tombstones are aligned very well and they are almost following a pattern. Well, the pattern actually goes beyond just following a line. This is not just for aesthetics purposes but all tombstones are positioned to face the east direction. Here are some information about it:

  • Ancient civilizations have always believed that a dead body must be buried in a fashion that it will be facing the direction where the sun is rising which is the east. Other beliefs have also followed this practice throughout the years.
  • As the traditions have evolved, not many people are still practicing this today. This all started with the Judeo- Christians. These people have this belief that Jesus will come back in the same direction as where the sun rises. And when He does, the departed will be facing the direction where Jesus is. So in theory, it is not just the tombstone that is facing the east but the caskets as well.
  • In relation to this, you will also be able to observe that many Christian churches have entrances that are facing the west. This way, the people can face the east when they are looking at the altar.
  • People are not just making this tradition up. There are actually scriptures and readings taken from the bible that will show that this practice has been used for millions of years. The bible specifically indicates that the son of man who is Jesus will come from the east. With this reason alone, the people made sure that their late loved ones will be prepared for the coming of Jesus.
  • What is unique in this tradition is that the clergymen are buried facing the west. The reason for this is that by the time that the final judgment will begin and Jesus will come back, the people will be facing the east while the clergy are facing the Christians so that they can lead them to the right path.

Today, not all Christian cemeteries follow this east-facing tradition. But traditions like playing of songs and offering funeral flowers still live on.

Japan’s Suicide Forest

Thursday, April 19th, 2012 Posted in Funeral Services | No Condolences »

aokigahara forestSuicide incidents are not extraordinary happenings. They happen all over the world. But did you know that in Japan, there is a specific place where many people commit suicide.?

Aokigahara Forest

The Aokigahara Forest in Mount Fuji is one of the favorite spots of people to kill themselves. Here are some facts about the woodland:

  • An ocular survey of the forest will show you many different skeletons scattered in various places and police officers also found many dead bodies hanging from the trees.
  • According to the estimates of the local officials, every year, they are able to remove over one hundred bodies from the forest.
  • The forest is endowed with lush vegetation and tall trees that make it easy for people to go to the spot unnoticed.
  • Because many people take their own lives in the area, families of these people often offer funeral flowers in the forest grounds as well in their efforts to appease the soul of their loved ones.

Many people are still baffled as to why this forest is a common place for suicide. Even the experts who have dedicated years of their lives to study this phenomenon still cannot explain the exact reason of these events.

There are many clues around the area that will indicate different explanations as to why a person may have taken his or her own life. These clues come in the form of articles in the tress, on the ground and some messages that those people have left before they commit the act of suicide.

The reasons gathered by the experts vary greatly from one another. There are letters found, dolls pinned on trees, ropes that are cut and other items that can be interpreted in different ways.

But not all who visit the forest always end up killing themselves. Some actually come to realization that their problems can be solved so they walk away from the area with new hope.

It is always painful to visit funeral services of persons who committed suicide. That is why experts say they study this phenomenon not only to find out why this spot is a favorite but also find ways on how to stop these frequent occurrences.

Funeral Traditions of the Greek Orthodox

Monday, April 9th, 2012 Posted in Funeral Planning | No Condolences »

greek orthadox church funeral servicesThe Church of the Greek Orthodox was actually once a part of the Catholic Church but it was separated by the Great Schism. Today, the Orthodox Church has a lot of sects and Greek Orthodox is one of them.

Funeral Beliefs and Practices

Across all Orthodox beliefs, the basic principle and traditions when it comes to funerals is still prevalent.

  • It is important to know that in a traditional Orthodoxy, cremation is not very well accepted.
  • There are even churches that would not allow the family to hold a funeral if the body has been cremated. This is because in Greek Orthodox, people believe that the body is the temple of the soul and that it should be treated with respect.
  • In Greek Orthodox, funeral planning is extremely important. The relatives and friends are then informed of where the wake will be which is usually in a mortuary. The people will be able to view the remains of the dead member of the church.
  • The actual funeral ceremony will be held in a Greek Orthodox Church.
  • Different hymns, readings and scriptures will be read during the service. Chosen families and friends will also be invited to say something about the deceased.
  • It is important to know how to write eulogy in order to respect the traditions and beliefs of the Orthodox Church.
  • The ceremony is usually held a few days after the death of the person and they do not usually hold long wakes.
  • During the service, the coffin will be opened and there will be a time in the ceremony where the people will be allowed to view the deceased before laying him or her to rest.
  • Funeral ceremonies in the Greek Orthodox Church can fall on any day of the week except Sundays. Holy Saturday is also not allowed to hold a funeral.
  • Members of the Greek Orthodox usually kiss a cross on the chest of the dead person before closing the coffin. Since not all guests are members of the Orthodox Church, it is definitely not required for all of the attendees to do so.
  • It is also a tradition for guests to put a flower on the coffin right before it is brought down to the ground.

How to Pick a Funeral Provider

Thursday, March 29th, 2012 Posted in Funeral Planning | No Condolences »

funeral homes mississaugaWhen someone dies, the family is often faced with the task of arranging everything regarding the funeral of their loved one. Unfortunately, because this time is very devastating, the family tends to miss a lot of important things that must be pondered upon for the burial.

First of all, the family must choose from a wide variety of funeral homes.

  • Choosing a funeral home must always be systematic.
  • Do not choose a certain company just because their location is more proximal to your place.
  • If you want to save money, you can research on the funeral companies in your local area and check their prices.
  • Correlate their prices with the kind of services that they offer.
  • Never limit your choices just because a friend asked you to choose a certain company.
  • An easy thing that a family can do is to call several funeral companies and ask about their prices.

Usually, these service providers can email their lists so you could easily compare. Because the inquiry is done over the phone, you will not be easily persuaded by the agent.

Funeral Packages

Aside from insurances, people today are also looking at getting funeral packages to help their families in paying the funeral prices in the event of death.

There are different terms in these packages but most of the time, the fees are paid in advance and is done in a monthly, quarterly or yearly basis.

Many companies are now offering this service to their customers. So when a family member dies, always check if he or she has a pre-paid funeral plan in a certain company or provider. If there is so, then automatically that company will be the one to take care of the funeral. If you have this kind of setup, do not forget to tell your family regarding the plan.

Each funeral house will offer different types of services and inclusions in their packages. You need to check carefully what a certain package consists of. If you see that a package has a lot of components that are unnecessary, you might as well just go with an itemized system to save money.

Do Beliefs on Afterlife Impact Funerals?

Monday, March 26th, 2012 Posted in Funeral Services | No Condolences »

christian funerals mississaugaPeople may not realize this but there is actually a relationship between funerals and the beliefs of a certain person regarding afterlife. The beliefs of a person on different aspects of life are hugely contributed by his or her religion.

Religion is almost like a set of beliefs that people use throughout their lives. Depending on a person’s religion, the family will do some activities that are unique to that tradition to assist the deceased in afterlife.

Christian Belief

Christianity always imposes that death is not the end of a person’s life since it is the start of a life with Jesus in heaven. This belief is being reflected in the funerals by the prayers and funeral songs that are sung. These prayers are believed to help cleanse the souls of their sins to help them enter heaven.

Islamic Belief

The Islamic belief is also different. Muslims believe that the life that we have now is given by Allah, therefore, it can be taken away by Allah anytime without any warning.

A Muslim funeral will celebrate how their loved one has used the time that Allah gave him or her in this world. That is why it is always reiterated in Islam to live a good life for this is the only chance that we will be getting.

Buddhist Belief

Buddhists also have a unique way in conducting funerals. The belief of Buddhists about afterlife actually differs depending on the type of Buddhism that they practice.

Tibetan Buddhists practice the act of letting the birds feed on the remains of the deceased. This is because they believe that, by doing the act people will be able to thank the entire animal kingdom in the promulgation of the life of human beings.

There are also people who do not have any religion. Most of these people do not believe in afterlife too. There are funeral poems that will be recited during their service instead of prayers. Most of these people also ask for their ashes to be spread in different places. This is their way of repaying the earth for all the help that they got when they were still alive.

 
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