How to Arrange a Humanist Funeral Service In London
If you’ve recently lost a loved one, the stress and emotional toll may seem unbearable. You may want to find closure and peace through a sentimental celebration of the life of the deceased. Most funerals tend to offer peace by focusing on the religion, afterlife or spirituality of the deceased. However, if your dead loved one led a fairly secular life, a humanist funeral service might be a better option. What is a humanist service and how can you arrange one?
What Is a Humanist Funeral Service?
A humanist service is a non-spiritual service that commemorates the life of someone who has died. Without mentioning God or religion, these services are usually led by a celebrant who helps guests find solace through secular music and readings.
What takes place during a funeral service such as these is quite open-ended. The family of the deceased are free to decide the format and the focus of the service. The service can even be similar to a traditional, religious service, but without spiritual hymns and prayers. Or the service can take a completely different approach, such as scattering the ashes of the deceased on the beach.
How to Arrange a Humanist Service
Because the proceedings of humanist services are so open to interpretation, it might be somewhat complicated for the family and friends of the deceased to arrange one. There are certain things you can incorporate to make the arrangements of a humanist service less overwhelming.
Contact a Funeral Director For Assistance
Humanist services are usually led by a celebrant. This is someone who acts as the speaker and guide throughout the service. Because it can be difficult to find an appropriate celebrant, it’s often advisable to contact a reputable funeral director like Southall Funeral Service. They can help you find a celebrant who can guide this important celebration of life.
At Southall Funeral Services, we can help you organise your loved one’s humanist funeral without the stress and hassle that often comes with organising funerals. We even have eco-friendly services that can add a certain beauty to the commemoration of your dead loved one. You may also wonder whether to cremate the deceased or keep their body in a coffin for the service: at Southall, we can help you weigh both options so you can come to a satisfactory decision.
Use a Sample Format
If you find it hard to decide how to arrange the service or where to even begin, our funeral service can help you by offering some sample formats to work from. Formats usually call for beginning the service with non-religious music while visitors are welcomed by a celebrant.
After the guests are welcomed, the celebrant or a close family member reads something known as a “tribute”, which is quite similar to a eulogy. Friends and family then stand up to give greetings and observe a moment of silence for the deceased. After the coffin is taken from view, the celebrant gives some final thoughts and the service ends with music as the guests exit the hall.
The death of a loved one is a heavy burden to bear. The burden can become even more weighty when deciding how to organize your loved one’s commemoration. At Southall Funeral Services, we can help lighten the load by offering assistance and direction for the arrangement of a humanist service. Contact Southall Funeral Services in Southall London for help with arranging your loved one’s service.
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