The Somerset herald. [volume] (Somerset, Pa.) 1870-1936, 1888-06-06
Funeral Reforms.
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ciple oftiivine teaching. the rule of right
the sense of the fitness of things. the pliysi-
!. cal, financial, and spiritual good Of bcref,
friends and the community in general. all
cry aloud for reform of some funeral practic-
es- Some places need more, some less re-
form. Some need one kind of reform, Others
different kind, but nearly every commune
ty needs some funeral reforms that should
be made
What are some of these reforms list, The
custom of wakes for the dead should be re-
formed by abolishing them entirely. Ac-
cording TO Chambers, wakes originated in
superstitious fear either Of passing the night
alone with dead body, or of lis being inter
fered with by evil spirits" Wakes are al
most universal among the Irish. are quite
common in this country. in German speak
ing communities, and are by no means rare
in English-speaking communities.
What is done at these wakes Besides sit
ting up all night with the corpse, there is
usually in the earlier part of the night, sing
ing Sometimes, too, a prayer or two is Of
fered. Certainly singing and praying are
right. but even this kept up long is out of
place at such time Usually the bereft are
worn out by many anxious, sleepless nights,
and what they most need at such time is
sleep, and long, loud religious service is not
favorable 10 repose.
But religious services at wakes are not so
much Objectionable as other things often
done at them. Often games are played,
courting is carried on, and noisy plays are
engaged in Sometimes even drinking and
carousing are resorted to, and place where
quiet and solemnity should be, becomes a
place of noise and hilarity.
Wakes ought to be abolished for many
reasons. They are not needed. They keep
alive superstitious beliefs They are heath
enish, as usually carried on. They cause
| needless loss OF sleep TO the berefi and those
who take part in them. They often are
causes of expense that can be lily borne.
| They subyert the very teaching a death ought
TO impress They rob aifiiction of all its
| quiet solemn lessons. They are repusive to
refined bereft ones. They are a relic of bar
barism,a and are kept alive only by ignorance,
superstition and fogyism.
| All that is really needed, where there
is death. is simply for from one to three
persons to remain in the house over night
| Even this is not needed. but would be right
and proper if desired
/ 2nd Another reform needed more univer-
sally especially in cities and towns, is that of
1 lessening funeral expenses. A funeral is no
| place for display Of wealth, no place to out
| shine in splendor and number of carriages,
/ expensiveness of dress or costliness of ex-
pense for the dead
! What burdens this desire for show, this
eager false aping after richer neighbor i'm
poses on the poor. The physicians fee,
and the necessary cost of attending the sick
and decent burial are usually hard enough
to meet but add to this all that pride and
false idea of respectable funeral imposes, and
the financial straits to which many are re-
duced are not only pitiable, but also crimin-
al. proper respect for the dead does not
require many a costly carriage, an expensive
coffin or shroud or the needless but custom
AIRY wearing OF mourning apparel. Display
Death ougi,, to be humbling to pride
'Oh, why should the spirit of mortal be
proud ~
Let ministers denounce display at funerals
Let the rich start the reform, and the poor
viii gladly follow. Let the poor exercise
common sense, and not initiate the display
of the rich The gaudiness, expensiveness,
ostentation OF many funerals now are not
only altogether out of keeping, but are abso-
lutely sinful.
Sd. Another reform needed is that in re-
gard 10 abolishing unnecessary Sunday fu-
nerals. Sometimes a corpse is kept from |
Wednesday. oitener from Thursday, till |
Sunday, for burial, and that, too, when the |
condition of the corpse demands interment |
from one TO three days sooner The reason
Of this is because it IS customary, and to get |
larger attendance at the funeral. Except in
cases of absolute necessity, all Sunday fu-
nerals should be avoided.
Sach funerals break the Sabbath as to its
rest obligation. The labor of cooking, tray
cling, attending horses, dressing, often max
ing garments, etc, is neither labor of mercy
or necessity, and hence is q direct violation
of the command, "a Thou shalt not do any
work. thou. nor thy son, nor thy daughter,
thy man servant, nor thy maid servant, thy
cattle. nor thy stranger
Often, too. Sunday funeral disappoints
and deprives two whole congregations of
their regular worship yea, il often brings
4 4. I
congregations, and all this and more to
crafty the vain, selfish desire of few friends
As TO bringing unnecessary Sunday fu-
nerals into disuse, the following will prove
eiiectual let the officiating minister be con-
suited before any arrangements are made
for the fnneral. As he ought to be, and gem
orally is, opposed to unnecessary Sunday fi-
nerals, the funeral can generally be made to
take place on week day.
Let church authorities have standing
resolution fcrbidding their pastor 10 offici-
ate at unnecessary Sunday funerals or let
pastors give frequent notice that they will
oificiate at no Sunday funerals unless abso-
luiely necessary
Jlb. aUotiler reform needed Is that oil fu-
neral professions moving faster Ii is now
almost the universal custom TO drive no fas-
ter than slow walk. This is done out Of
respect for the strange and false idea that a
faster gait might somehow injure the dead
Such gait, indeed may be great cruelty TO
the living.
On cold. wet day, to driveata slow walk.
all the way from five 10 ten miles. is often
very injurius to children, or weakly persons.
and uncomfortable To all. In bad weather, /
it is not disrespectful TO the dead or bereft to
travel al the rate of from four to five miles
an hour.
Another reform needed IS to disconue car
rying the corpse into church, and exhibiting
it there 10 public gaze. Far better IS il 10
have services at the house of the deceased. If
and then bury or, to bury first.
and then 90 to church for services A corpse
in a church can DO no good. II often may
be the occasion of much harm. How can
a preacher preach 10 edifcation, standin
over or above an offensive corpse, or how
can a people be profted in the presence of an
offensive corpse, and a bursting, cracking
coffin
Where there is death from contagious
disease, or the body is offensive, the corpse
certainly should never be taken into church.