A practical theology of bereavement care: Re-ritualization within a paradigm of “comforting presence”

Abstract

The investigation focuses on a concern for the marginalization of bereaved human beings in the context of cultural shifts now shaping twenty-first century pastoral care. The article advocates for a practical theology of bereavement to aid in nurturing care and eudaimonic well-being (including both vocational pastors and funeral directors) within the paradigmatic framework of a theopaschitic understanding of compassion (oiktirmos). The investigation examines the growing threat of deritualization – a public openness to revise, replace, minimize the significance of, and even eliminate or avoid long-held funerary rituals to assist in the adaptation of loss. The notion of re-ritualization is operationalized as an intentional act of restoring and re-engaging in creative and meaningful ritual forms that give symbolic expression to significant thoughts and feelings of the bereaved within a social ethos that is no longer committed to a conventional or fixed approach to ritualization. In order to facilitate a process of re-ritualization, bereavement care is linked to the notion of “comforting presence”.

Mortality Salience and Cemetery Memorialization

“…To combat the current trend of deritualization that is contributing to potential distress through death avoidance and perceived cemetery irrelevance, the investigation found that making death salient and cemetery memorialization normative may evoke positive psychological mechanisms, such as worldview defences, self-esteem, and nostalgic reverie among the bereaved. Regardless of the final disposition method of a deceased human body (e.g., cremation or casket burial), to better support grieving communities, future research and practice is warranted to assist deathcare practitioners in connecting the bereaved with more meaningful and creative ritual forms (Gibson & Troyer 2017;Gibson & Louw 2018). In advancing the connection between mortality salience and cemetery memorialization, caregivers may improve bereavement outcomes among care-seekers by heralding a compelling relationship).…”

“…long-held funerary rituals to assist in the adaptation of loss" (Gibson & Louw 2018). As a growing number of bereaved people continue to choose cremation as the preferred mode of disposition over burial at a cemetery, traditional forms of memorialization and ceremonies are on the decline.…”

“…To combat deritualization, cemeterians must engage their communities to create favourable contexts for re-ritualization where caregivers can provide truly meaningful experiences for the bereaved to find comfort, meaning, and hope (Gibson & Louw 2018). 6 Cemeterians can provide better support for the bereaved by further exploring non-traditional options for permanent placement, such as: (a) memorialization without formal ceremonies, (b) virtual or on-line memorization to connect families who are separated by geography, and (c) green memorialization that supports an improved ecology of death, including natural burial (without nonbiodegradable caskets and toxic embalming chemicals) and new technologies of human composting (Tekle 2016; Spade 2014).…”

“…Re-ritualization has been operationalized as an intentional act of restoring and reengaging in creative and meaningful ritual forms that give symbolic expression to significant thoughts and feelings of the bereaved within a social ethos that is no longer committed to a conventional or fixed approach to ritualization (Gibson & Louw, 2018).…”