Humanist funerals: to die as we do?
Published: 5 October 2009
Author: Rose Gamble
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Celebrity chef Keith Floyd was remembered in a humanist ceremony
If you don’t have faith in God, presumably you wouldn’t want a religious ceremony. But choosing a Humanist funeral – brought to the public’s attention when celebrity chef, Keith Floyd, was remembered in a one such ceremony – is perhaps not about avoiding religion, but choosing another type of faith.
Humanists believe we have one life - this one:
"There's probably no God. Now stop worrying and enjoy your life," adverts on London buses proclaimed in a British Humanist Association (BHA) supported campaign.
If humanism is about our one life, what about death?
"A humanist funeral is about celebrating someone’s life, said Tana Wollen, BHA Head of Ceremonies. "It’s about celebrating an individual and celebrating their place on earth."
Of course, every funeral is about remembering a loved one and celebrating their life. But the unavoidable reality of death in a philosophy that centres on enjoying what we’ve got while we’ve got it, seems ironic.
Paul Woolley, director of public theology think tank Theos, described a humanist funeral as, in essence, pretty bleak.
"It’s bleak in terms of their outlook on life," he said. "The point is that if this is all there is, it’s neither good nor bad but, without the hope of something more, it’s hopeless."
An increase in humanist funerals
The BHA performs around 7,000 ceremonies each year. Tana Wollen cites the 37% of Britain’s population who identify themselves as non-religious as the reason for this surge.
"If people are non–religious, it’s important for them to conduct a service for someone that they’ve loved that is very much in tune with their non-religious principles," she said.
Wollen also points out that many people feel they are automatically funneled into Christian funeral.
"I think that’s nonsense, said Woolley. "I don’t think anyone is marched into a Christian ceremony. Of course humanists are absolutely right to have humanist funerals – if you’re a humanist you should have a humanist funeral - but to somehow pretend there’s this kind of obligation is ridiculous."
Humanism: not to be confused with atheism
Humanists have a belief-system - even though, like atheism, it does not involve God. Therefore, choosing a humanist ceremony cannot be just about avoiding a particular belief system – you could even go as far as to say that it’s another one.
"I would say that humanism is a faith position," said Woolley. "If you are humanist, you have a faith that God does not exist and that influences your life. Humanists often want to present themselves as taking a neutral stance on issues but they are not neutral."
Therefore, perhaps choosing a humanist funeral is an equally emphatic statement as choosing a religious ceremony. After all, Humanism, undoubtedly, requires faith.
"In a sense I admire their faith, I think you need to have a lot of faith to say that God doesn’t exist," said Woolley, a Christian.
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Comments
The key point here is that no matter how much a funeral (no matter what faith position concerned) celebrates an individuals life, one cannot seperate it from death and what happens aftewards.
What's clear is that for the humanist, there is, at best utter ambiguity and at worst vacuous, hopeless nothingness. In this sense, a humanist ceremony is surely a bleak prospect.
This article is junk. Your anti-humanism/atheism bias is pretty obvious. Great quotes from a fundamental religious nut job from one of the nuttiest religious think tanks around too. Keep up the great work of being scared of your imaginary friend. I'll be patiently waiting for you article about young earth creationism as well.
What's the matter, couldn't get any Humanists to give you interesting quotes? That can be the only reason an article about Humanism is dominated by critical quotes from a spokesman for a christian organisation.
This article ignores the fact that some Humanists self define as agnostic. Also, atheists do not believe there is not a God because of faith (or at least none that I have ever met). Instead they find the evidence for a god(s) unconvincing and lead there life on the assumption that there probably isn’t a god(s).
This is a logical default position, not one based on faith. If it wasn’t then logically people would be compelled to belief in everything they couldn’t disprove!
Paul Woollley is typically muddled in calling Humanism a "faith position". For Christians, faith is a virtue - the more so the more it flies in the face of the evidence.
By contrast Humanists follow the evidence and draw the rational conclusion that this is the only life we have and that it is therefore incumbent on us to make it as good as possible. Experience shows that this can usually best be done by cooperating together for the good of all - cooperation being a trait natural to humans by virtue of our evolution as social animals.
As to death, it is usually the religious who get so het up about it (last judgement and all that nonsense) - humanists see it as the natural end of life and something in due time to be embraced.
Humanist funerals 'bleak''? What a lot of nonsense!
A humanist funeral is the celebration of an individual life, and judging by the public response to those I've attended, they are life affirming, joyous and positive.
In Scotland, where humanists have been able to conduct legal marriages since June 2005, the demand for Humanist ceremonies has grown to such an extent that by 2008, they had already become the 4th most popular form of marriage in Scotland, overtaking the Episcopalian Church in the process. If this trend continues, Humanist weddings will outnumber Catholic ones by 2010.
Humanist Funerals in Scotland also grew by 15% in 2008, and according to the figures released by the Registrar General for Scotland, account for 1 in 22 funeral ceremonies. You can read some feedback on them here http://www.humanism-scotland.org.uk/guestbook.html
Humanism is not a faith position; stated simply, Humanists believe that we can lead good and worthwhile lives guided by reason and compassion rather than religion or superstition, and that there are more things that unite humanity than divide it. Or, as we say in Scotland, “We’re a’ Jock Tamson’s bairns” - we’re all the same under the skin.