Funeral rites among Ashanti immigrants in Toronto: A case study (Ontario)

The Ashantis are well known for their strict observance and co-operation during funeral rites. I attempt to answer the following questions: To what extent do the Ashantis who have migrated to Canada still hold on to indigenous concepts and funeral practices? By virtue of their being in two worlds what difficulties come their way if they try to follow indigenous practice to its letter? What innovations have been introduced into their funeral rites? Can a symbol or procedure be radically altered and yet perceived as the same? In a foreign context does ritual retain its unifying function? The method for this study combines library research with participation in, and observation of, Ashanti funeral rites in Toronto. It is essentially an ethnographic description of the funeral rites of Toronto Ashantis set in the context of comparative data from traditional and contemporary Ghana, as well as contemporary, non-Ashanti, Canadian funeral practices. My conclusion is that funeral rites among Ashanti immigrants in Toronto represent a mix of Ashanti and Western cultures. The Ashanti immigrant community in Toronto has undergone tremendous acculturation due to emigration, but they still adhere to modifications of old values. The innovations introduced have not displaced the fundamental belief in ancestors. Ashanti funeral rites in Toronto exhibit a unifying function. The pleasure of the reunion of family and friends eclipses the grief that is felt

A Biblical and Missiological Framework for Cross-Cultural Mission: A Case Study of the Lobi Funeral Rites in Burkina Faso

Problem Converts to Christianity in traditional contexts often face pressure to continue traditional rituals and practices which sometimes contain unbiblical elements. Non-selective performance of traditional practices can produce dual allegiance and syncretism. Such is the case with Lobi Seventh-day Adventists concerning their traditional funeral rites of passage. Some core elements of these traditional funeral rites, in which all community members are expected to fully participate, conflict with biblical teachings on the human condition after death. Method This dissertation starts by laying the theoretical and theological basis for addressing the problem. The dissertation then uses ethnographic research of funeral rites among the Lobi people of Burkina Faso to understand the biblical and missiological issues they raise. The process of data collection during my field research was based on observation of people’s behavior at a funeral ceremony and on a purposeful sampling of 16 participants for interviews to have a personal and deeper understanding of the Lobi cultural and religious contexts in relation to funeral rites. I interviewed three Lobi religious leaders, six Lobi Adventists who have taken part in traditional funeral rites before becoming Adventists, two Lobi Adventists who continue to take part in traditional funeral rites, four Lobi Adventists who are being pressured to participate in funeral rites, and a Lobi Catholic priest who has published on Lobi funeral rites. Results My findings broadened my understanding of the religious and sociocultural significance of the Lobi funeral rites as well as the challenges some traditional practices pose to those committed to being fully biblical Christians. A biblical and missiological framework was developed to address the challenges such traditional rites pose to Christian mission in general and to Seventh-day Adventist mission in particular. Conclusion Given that the number of converts to Christianity among the Lobi of Burkina Faso is only five percent of their population, the Joshua Project considers them to be an unreached people group. If more Lobi are to be won to Christ and become mature disciples, their real-life situations need to be understood and addressed both biblically and missiologically. A well-planned ethnographic study is helpful in reaching this goal. Biblical and missiological principles derived from such a process can also be generalized to other cross-cultural mission contexts

Speech act analysis of Igbo utterances in funeral rites

This paper attempts to classify speech acts in Igbo funeral rites in some towns in Awka South and Aguata local government areas in Anambra State. Paying the last respect to the dead is a common practice in Africa. In Igbo land, it is obligatory to bury the dead following the funeral rites practised by the various communities. In a funeral, there are utterances addressed to God, to the deceased, to the relatives of the deceased and to in-laws, friends and well-wishers. These utterances are meant to soothe the feelings of the mourners, to show solidarity and condole with the bereaved by encouraging them, to pay the last respect to the deceased, to express appreciation for the legacies of the deceased and to offer prayers for the repose of his/her soul. This study examines these utterances as speech acts using Searle’s (1976) classification of speech acts. The aim is to identify the most common utterance speech forms that are manifested and used in funeral rites. The data were collected from funeral rites held in Igbo speaking areas in Anambra State such as Awka, Amawbia, Uga and Nkpologwu by means of a digital tape recorder. The study reveals that the directive, expressive, representative/ assertive, commissive and declarative speech acts are used in funeral rites, with the expressive speech act utterances having the highest percentage (48.3%), followed by the directive and assertive (17.2%) and the commissive (13.8%). However, the declarative speech act is the least in our data (3.5%). One could conclude from this that the expressive speech act is essentially used to condole with the bereaved

AVAILMENT OF FUNERAL PLANNING MANAGEMENT SERVICE AMONG CHINESE AND FILIPINO: PREPARATION OF A SERVICE DEVELOPMENT PACKAGE FOR A FUNERAL EVENT BUSINESS

The funeral industry has grown rapidly over the years.  It is very evident that in the Philippines, many funeral parlors are sprouting all over the country as well funeral insurance policy companies.  The funeral industry has taken more major roles in the burial rituals, funeral arrangements, body disposition procedures, last rites, and after care services to attend to the special needs. One of the richest customs in celebrating a funeral event was the Chinese society.  Chinese was well known for their custom of following a lot of superstitions.  Filipinos also believed in superstitions like the Chinese, but their way of celebrating the funeral rites was different.  These customs make managing a funeral event difficult. That is why seeking professional guidance and support is a good idea. The study looks into the comparative study of the availment of the funeral planning management service among Chinese and Filipino to observe the difference and similarities on the level of awareness, interest, the desire and actions of the two different cultures regarding the funeral planning management service. The researcher’s purpose was to make a basis for developing an event strategy that would facilitate the acceptability of the funeral planning management service in the Philippines.

Трансформация погребально-поминальной обрядности в советское время: пример белорусов Подвинья

The article discusses changes in funeral and memorial ceremonies of Belarusians of Podvinye in Soviet times. The first covers the period from 1920 to the end of the 1940s. At this stage, there are new forms of funeral rites ("red" funerals and civic memorial rituals in the 1920s and 1930s.). The changes in this period were the mass, referred to specific categories of the dead, existed mainly in the urban environment. They almost did not affect the traditional funeral rites of Belarusians of Podvinye. At this stage separately allocated during the Great Patriotic War. At the time of her funeral rites numbers of parts and components disappear. The second stage falls on the 1950-1980-ies. For its characteristic extension of civil funeral rites, reducing the number of church funerals and memorial services, the disappearance of a number of traditional rituals elements, the appearance of new ones.В статье рассматриваются изменения в погребальной и поминальной обрядности белорусов Подвинья в советское время. Первый период охватывает время с 1920 до конца 1940-х годов. На данном этапе существуют новые формы погребального обряда ("красные" и гражданские погребально-поминальные обряды в 1920-х и 1930-х гг.). Изменения в этот период касались отдельных категорий умерших и существовали в основном в городской среде. Они почти не затронули традиционной погребальной обрядности белорусов Подвинья. На этом этапе отдельно выступают годы Великой Отечественной войны. В это время изменяется последовательность погребальных обрядов и исчезают некоторые их компоненты. Второй этап приходится на 1950-1980-е годы. Он характеризуется распространением гражданской панихиды, уменьшением количества церковных погребальных обрядов и поминальных служб, исчезновением ряда традиционных элементов обряда и появлением новых

Памінальная абраднасць беларусаў Падзвіння ў веснавы перыяд (па этнаграфічных матэрыялах ХІХ – пачатку ХХІ стагоддзя)

FUNERAL RITES OF PADZVINNE BELARUSSIANS AT SPRING PERIOD (ON THE ETHNORGAPFICAL MATERIALS OF THE 19TH – BEGINNING OF THE 21ST CENTURIES)/ U. AUSEICHYKНа аснове этнаграфічных матэрыялаў ХІХ – пачатку ХХІ стагоддзя разгледжана памінальная абраднасць беларусаў Падзвіння ў веснавы перыяд. Прааналізаваны памінальныя традыцыі на Масленіч-ныя і Вербныя Дзяды, велікодна-радаўніцкія і траецкія абрады ўшанавання продкаў. Дадзена характа-рыстыка варыянтам назваў абрадаў, выяўлены іх арэалы, разгледжаны парадак рытуальных дзеянняў, ахарактарызаваны сучасны стан абрадаў, выяўлены іх рэгіянальныя рысы і лакальныя адрозненні ў ме-жах Падзвіння. Да этналагічнага вывучэння прыцягнуты новыя палявыя матэрыялы, частка якіх зафік-савана аўтарам. Вынікі даследавання будуць карыснымі як для вывучэння светапогляду і вераванняў беларусаў, так і для вырашэння праблем этнічнай гісторыі рэгіёна. = On the basic of the ethnographical materials of the 19th–20th centuries it is devoted the funeral rites of Padzvinne belarussians at spring period. The funeral traditions are analyzed at Maslianitsa and Verbnitsa Dziady, as the rites of consideration of forefathers at Easter, Radaunitsa and Holy Trinity. The characteristic of variants of rites names is given, their areas are determined, the order of ritual actions is considered, the modern position of the rites is characterized, their region particularities and local differences in Padzvinne are exposed. The new field materials are drawn to the ethnological studies, the part of them is fixed by the author. The results of research can be used for the learning of world outlook and religion beliefs as for solutions of problems in the ethnic history of the region

Rites funèbres et sciences humaines : synthèse et hypothèses

Les rites funèbres sont des rites de passage vieux de 100 millénaires. Ils ont différentes fonctions sociales, dont celle de se placer entre la mort et nous, entre la mort et la culture. Plusieurs auteurs de diverses sciences humaines ont écrit à propos des modifications récentes et profondes du monde de la ritualité funéraire en Occident, soit pour parler de déritualisation, soit pour parler d’invention de « nouveaux rituels ». Nous proposons ici une synthèse des savoirs sur la place des rites funèbres fondée par l’observation des sociétés de la tradition et de la modernité, de même qu’une série d’hypothèses, à vérifier empiriquement, en contexte de postmodernité.The practice of funeral rites has existed for more than one hundred thousand years. These rites have many social functions, particularly that of erecting a social construct between death and the living, between death and society. Many authors from the social sciences have discussed the recent major changes in funeral rites throughout the Western world, and have suggested either deritualization or the creation of new funeral rites. Through an examination of writings on funeral rites in both traditional and modern societies, we propose a synthesis of the actual state of knowledge about the nature of funeral rites in these societies. We then put forward a number of hypotheses in order to verify if the changes now apparent in postmodern society suggest a change in the very nature of these rites

The Chiasmus of Mourning and Identification in Jean Genet

The theories of psychological identification proposed by Sigmund Freud and Kaja Silverman are explored in relation to Jean Genet\u27s Funeral Rites and his later essay on Rembrandt. Genet can be seen to separate mourning (which for Freud lies at the basis of identification) from a process of generalized identification in which his difference from other people dissolves. A narcissistic formation of personality, evident in the symbolism of mirrors in Funeral Rites, gives to this process an added impetus. But the fundamental condition of possibility for such generalized identification is the void it reveals at the center of all personality. This void not only makes possible the different kinds of identification (heteropathic and idiopathic) described by Silverman, it also disturbs any clear distinction between them. It is for these reasons that the glamorization of Nazism in Funeral Rites is coextensive with a demystification of its power, and the often brutal eroticism of the book is suffused with an ineradicable dimension of tenderness. Taken further in the essay on Rembrandt, these themes lead to an ambiguous mysticism in which the source of creativity is revealed as inseparable from its ultimate obliteration

Believer Perspectives on Death and Funeral Practices in a Non-believing Country

The article describes attitudes towards death and funeral rites in contemporary Czech society. It begins by revealing the attitudes to death held by the majority of the Czech population - non-believers. The customary secular funeral ceremony, held in a crematorium, is not entirely well suited to meeting the needs of the bereaved, and this is borne out by the fact that about one-third of all cremations are held without a funeral ceremony. The author argues that the current situation is not solely the result of the economic situation of individuals but also stems from the deeply rooted attitudes and values and the approach to religion of the Czech population. The second part of the article is devoted to the attitudes towards death and the funeral rite preferences of believers, based on a survey conducted with members of three religious groups: Roman Catholics, Protestants (Church of the Czech Brethren), and Jehovah's Witnesses. Finally, the author compares the attitudes of the secular majority and believers, and also outlines the connections between conditions today and under the former communist regime regarding the general approach to death and funeral rites

Mass meeting in Huffman Hall

Announcement of mass meeting to outline Alternate College Program. The Guerilla Theater to conduct funeral rites for the old Denison and baptism for the Alternate College