It’s a little-known fact that a funeral can be led by anyone. There are many options when deciding who should conduct the funeral of your loved one, depending on whether they were religious or not and what you feel would be most fitting.
Religious leaders
Leaders of religion such as a vicar or an imam have traditionally led a funeral service, combining prayer and worship in the ceremony. In most faiths there is a traditional way of conducting a service, or specific readings and prayers that are always included.
Where the deceased was religious, you may want to continue their burial at a local place of worship and ask religious leaders to do the funeral, who can assist in the planning and running of the funeral. Usually they will meet with the family and discuss the funeral, the deceased, and any other spiritual needs as you say goodbye to your loved one.
The majority of religious leaders also offer ongoing support once the funeral is over, which may not be the case with other types of celebrant. They often greet the bereaved family and friends and welcome them to visit again for spiritual guidance, advice or just for company in difficult times. Find out more from your Funeral Directors Essex at a site like https://www.tcribb.co.uk/
Civil celebrant
You can choose to have a civil celebrant to conduct a funeral. Civil celebrants are not part of religion or belief system and can perform a service without religious content at all, or with some religious content such as prayer and readings.
Civil funerals are usually focused on meeting the needs of families and those who have died and not sticking to the traditional religious elements of a funeral. Civil celebrants will meet with the bereaved and talk about what kind of ceremony they want. Civil celebrants can combine elements of religion if you want but won’t be able to carry out specific rituals or blessings.
Humanist celebrant
Humanism, in general, is a belief that science is the only way to fathom the universe and emphasizes the importance of finding happiness in this life while also being a generous and compassionate person. A humanist funeral focuses on the lives of individuals, expressing sadness at the loss, but also celebrating the life they had.
This type of funeral is becoming increasingly popular and offers an entirely non-religious service. Humanists do not believe in life after death or god, so the service will not make any reference to religious ideas.
Humanist celebrants are also loving and supportive and will meet with families to discuss their loved one and discuss ideas for the service. Although they will not be open to any religious content, they are very open to a personalized service that reflects the character of your loved one.
A friend, family member or yourself
Anyone can conduct a funeral, including you or other family members or friends. As long as you have an order to the service and are comfortable speaking in front of people, you should be able to lead the service. By acting as a celebrant, you’ll lead the service by speaking in front of the church. This may include a prayer, a speech, poem or other reading.