Aus church: No pop at funerals
2010-09-10 09:25
Melbourne - Football club songs and pop or rock music have been banned from funerals in Catholic churches in Australia under new guidelines distributed this week to priests and funeral directors.
A funeral should not be a "celebration" of the deceased's life, Archbishop of Melbourne Denis Hart said in the rules, but a final sacred farewell. Celebrations of that life should be held at social occasions before or after the funeral, he said.
"The wishes of the deceased, family and friends should be taken into account ... but in planning the liturgy, the celebrant should moderate any tendency to turn the funeral into a secular celebration of the life of the deceased," the guidelines state.
"Secular items are never to be sung or played at a Catholic funeral, such as romantic ballads, pop or rock music, political songs, football club songs."
Some funeral directors, however, said the directive was insensitive to relatives' needs as many grieving families wanted to incorporate multimedia presentations, including photographs and video of the deceased person's life as well as music.
"Funerals have become a celebration of people's lives and there aren't many that don't include a DVD presentation," John Fowler, the general manager of Le Pine Funerals, told Melbourne's Herald Sun newspaper.
"It really gives you a sense of the joy that this person has brought to the world."
Most popular funeral songs
Pop songs have become more common at funerals as new technology allows churches and funeral parlours to install sound systems and more people opt for services conducted by celebrants instead of religious ministers.
Centennial Park, a leading provider of cemetery, crematorium and memorial services in Australia, in 2008 compiled a list of the 10 most popular songs at Australian funerals.
The top song was Frank Sinatra's version of My Way, followed by Wonderful World by Louis Armstrong, Time To Say Goodbye by Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman, and Unforgettable by Nat King Cole.
Rounding out the top 10 were The Wind Beneath My Wings by Bette Midler, Amazing Grace, We'll Meet Again by Vera Lynn, Over the Rainbow by Judy Garland, Abide With Me by Harry Secombe, and Danny Boy.
The list of top 10 most popular unusual funeral songs included listed as Queen's Another One Bites the Dust, AC/DC's Highway to Hell, Always Look on the Bright Side of Life by Monty Python, and Ding Dong the Witch is Dead from The Wizard of Oz.
