When planning end-of-life gatherings, you may find information on organizing a funeral and a celebration of life. But what exactly is the difference between these two events?
While there are several common differences between a funeral and a celebration of life, it’s essential to acknowledge that these aren’t necessarily the limits of either event.
We’ve created this guide to share what both gatherings are, their similarities, and what makes them different.
What is the meaning of a celebration of life?
A celebration of life is an event in which friends and family gather to meaningfully celebrate a loved one. Typically, this happens after a funeral, but it can also replace the service entirely, depending on the person’s values.
There are countless options when planning a celebration of life to infuse as much creativity as desired.
What is a funeral?
Funerals are celebrated differently throughout the world and amongst different religions. They’re rooted in rich traditions and rituals and are structured with a formal order of events. They may include readings, chanting, singing, eulogies, and prayers led by a spiritual leader or funeral celebrant. A traditional, full-service funeral consists of a visitation or wake, a ceremony, a funeral procession followed by a graveside service, and sometimes, a reception.
What are the similarities between a celebration of life vs. a funeral?
Both a celebration of life and a funeral have the shared goal of gathering friends and family together to reflect on the life of their loved one while supporting one another during this difficult time.
Since the person being remembered’s memory is at the heart of both gatherings, they commonly have some form of physical tribute. For a funeral, this might mean a tribute around the casket or cremated remains, whereas a celebration of life may have a tribute table and, in some cases, have the urn present.
With both events, you also have the choice to plan it as a family or to collaborate with the help of event planning professionals. For both, a funeral director can help you curate the day. If you’re looking for a specialist for a life celebration, a celebration of life event planner can support you. From offering creative ideas that reflect your loved one’s life to arranging the logistics, they’ll ensure that no box goes unticked.
What makes a celebration of life different from a funeral?
1. A celebration of life can happen anywhere.
From the family’s cottage to the person’s dream destination, there are endless ways to curate a unique event. Families might consider hosting the event somewhere the person loved to visit on special occasions, like Casa Loma, or if they were a regular, anywhere, like a restaurant or a coffee shop.
On the other hand, a funeral can happen at a place of worship, a funeral home, or the family’s home.
Having a home funeral allows the family to remember their loved one in a private and intimate setting. The service can be celebrated however the family wishes. Services at a place of worship, like a church, mosque, synagogue, or temple, will typically have set customs and rituals to partake in. A service at a funeral home can be led by a clergy member or a non-secular officiant, allowing families to customize a service aligned with their values.
2. A celebration of life can be as casual or as formal as you’d like.
As previously mentioned, funerals are structured and, depending on the type, have set rituals and customs to celebrate.
In a full-service funeral, there would first be the visitation, where the casket is present and people can pay their respects. Then, the funeral service, which typically includes music, poetry or spiritual text readings, and eulogies. Often, the family can select the readings and songs for a personalized service. Afterward, the body is transported for final interment or cremation, and a committal or graveside service may happen right after the funeral or at a later date. Finally, a reception may take place.
Celebrations of life have the flexibility of being as formal or as casual as the family wishes. Similar to a funeral, there can be a celebrant, eulogies, readings, or music, but there doesn’t have to be any of these elements. They can be informal and as simple as a picnic in the park, or they can have more structure where there’s a set schedule. The choice is up to the family.
3. When planning a celebration of life, there’s as much time as you need.
Usually, a funeral happens a few days to two weeks after a person’s passing. Unless pre-planned, this doesn’t leave much time to organize everything. It can be overwhelming, from filling out necessary paperwork to choosing a casket, burial vault or urn and composing the obituary.
With a celebration of life, however, you don’t have to abide by these stricter timelines. You can move at a pace that feels right for you and plan it a few weeks or months after the passing. This flexible schedule allows you more time to think about the person and all the creative ways you can tell their story.
4. The general tone of a celebration of life is brighter.
This isn’t to say that grief isn’t present at a celebration of life or that a funeral can’t have moments of lightheartedness. The family sets the tone for either gathering to reflect the person’s character and values best with their customizations. That being said, funerals tend to be more sombre and reserved, whereas celebrations of life generally have a more uplifting tone that is euphoric.
A celebration of life opens the door to flexibility and creativity.
The possibilities are endless, from organizing a golf tournament to seeing the person’s favourite ballet to having a potluck where everyone brings a dish that reminds them of the person being remembered. To learn more about celebrations of life and how our celebration of life event planners can support you, follow us on Facebook.
