When you are attending a funeral, it is important that you know the right way to behave and what to say. This ensures you are respectful and are there to support the deceased's closest relatives and that you get the opportunity to pay your respects. However, there are also some things you should avoid mentioning during a funeral or memorial service.
Mentioning the Person's Flaws
A funeral is not the place to start talking about all the person's flaws or reasons you didn't like them. This is the time for only talking about their positive attributes. Their closest loved ones don't want to hear about the negative memories you have, but the good ones. Share a funny or touching story, talk about how they were a hard worker, or simply don't say anything at all if you don't have anything nice to say.
Saying You Know How They Feel
Unless you have lost someone close to you at around the same age or within the same circumstances, don't tell someone you know how they feel. In most cases, the circumstances of the loss are much different than your own. A funeral is not the place for trying to talk about your own struggles, regardless of how similar the situation is. You should only be focusing on the people who are grieving someone they lost by offering them sympathy and emotional support. Save these stories for later on when the funeral service is no longer taking place.
They Are in a Better Place
While this may seem like a harmless comment that is meant with the best intentions, it is not the best thing to say during a funeral service, wake, or viewing. By saying the person is in a better place, it sometimes sounds to a loved one that their passing was a good thing. Even if they were suffering from a terrible disease and had a lot of pain and suffering, this can still be hard to hear. If you can't think of a better way to say it, simply tell the family that you are sorry for their loss.
Observing How the Body Looked
A common mistake made during wakes and open-casket funerals is to make comments about how the body looked. Don't make positive or negative comments about the body you witnessed. Even if you are mentioning this to someone next to you and not the deceased's close relatives, it is a disrespectful comment that should be avoided.
For more information, talk to a professional like M J Murphy Funeral Home.