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Year 11
Eduqas

Christian and humanist funerals

I can explain Christian and humanist funeral practices and the meanings behind them.

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New
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Year 11
Eduqas

Christian and humanist funerals

I can explain Christian and humanist funeral practices and the meanings behind them.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Funerals are ceremonies before a burial or cremation that honour the deceased and support those in mourning.
  2. Durkheim saw them as vital for social unity, offering structured grief and reinforcing shared beliefs.
  3. Christian funerals usually include prayers, readings, and a committal at the final resting place, with some variations.
  4. Catholics pray for the soul, Quakers opt for silence, and Pentecostals incorporate music and worship.
  5. Humanist funerals, being secular, celebrate the deceased's life and relationships with eulogies and meaningful readings.

Keywords

  • Afterlife - what follows the physical life on earth; belief in life after death

  • Ceremony - a formal event or ritual held to mark a significant occasion

  • Eulogy - a speech given to honour and remember someone

  • Funeral - a ceremony marking a person's death which takes place before burial or cremation; family and friends gather to honour the deceased and support one another

  • Readings - passages of text read aloud during an event to convey a message, offer reflection, or provide comfort

Common misconception

Funerals are always religious ceremonies.

Funerals are not always religious. Many, like humanist funerals, focus on remembering the deceased without religious rituals. They bring people together and provide a structure for grief.


To help you plan your year 11 religious education lesson on: Christian and humanist funerals, download all teaching resources for free and adapt to suit your pupils' needs...

Include some retrieval tasks on Christian beliefs about life after death and on humanist beliefs in general.
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Adult supervision recommended

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This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2025), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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Starter quiz

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5 Questions

Q1.
Which of the following statements about non-religious individuals’ views on life after death is true?
All non-religious individuals reject the idea of an afterlife.
Correct answer: Some non-religious individuals believe in an afterlife or a soul.
Non-religious individuals believe in reincarnation.
Q2.
Which of the following non-religious views involves the idea that consciousness continues through the transfer of energy after death?
psychological continuity
technological immortality
Correct answer: energy transformation
reincarnation
Q3.
Humanists reject the idea of life after and instead focus on making the most of the present life.
Correct Answer: death, Death
Q4.
What do humanists emphasise in place of a belief in life after death?
the importance of religious teachings about the afterlife
Correct answer: focusing on the present life and the human experience
the hope for an eternal soul that lives on
the need for personal salvation in the afterlife
Q5.
Arguments against the existence of an afterlife often emphasise brain-dependent , contradictions in religious teachings, and the use of beliefs about an afterlife as a form of social control.
Correct Answer: consciousness, Consciousness

Exit quiz

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6 Questions

Q1.
What is the primary purpose of funerals, regardless of whether they are religious or not?
to focus on religious teachings about death
Correct answer: to bring people together and provide a structure for mourners
to hold large, elaborate celebrations
to strictly follow a set of rituals with no room for personal expression
Q2.
Which of the following statements about non-religious funerals, such as humanist funerals, is true?
they always include religious rituals
Correct answer: they focus on remembering the deceased without religious rituals
they are only for people who do not believe in any religion
Q3.
What is the main purpose of funerals according to Durkheim?
to celebrate the deceased's life with festivities
Correct answer: to reinforce social unity and shared beliefs
to provide a time for family members to grieve alone
to focus on the physical aspects of burial or cremation
Q4.
Which of the following statements about Catholic funeral practices is correct?
Catholics do not pray for the soul of the deceased
Catholics emphasise silence rather than prayers
Correct answer: Catholics pray for the soul of the deceased
Catholics only include music in their funeral ceremonies
Q5.
What is a common feature of Pentecostal funerals?
they include only prayers with no music
Correct answer: music and worship are incorporated into the ceremony
they focus on silent reflection
they do not have any specific rituals for the deceased
Q6.
Funerals, including humanist ones, bring people together and provide a structure for .
Correct Answer: grief, Grief