A funeral reception luncheon, or funeral repast, is a gathering for a meal after the funeral service. The person who hosts the luncheon will decide with the family to hold the event at a restaurant, banquet hall, or someone's home.
Reception (funeral reception)
A gathering held after a funeral for mourners to informally celebrate the life of the deceased. Food and drink is usually provided. See also wake.
There are two types of “consolation feast”. Which feast to be served depends on whether the relatives are still in their mourning garments or “sackcloth”. If they are still in mourning garments, the feast will consist of seven dishes and one dessert. Otherwise, it will be eight dishes and one dessert.
What Is a Mercy Meal? In the Greek Orthodox and Catholic religions, a mercy meal is offered after the burial service. The mercy meal is an informal event that allows the family to gather and celebrate the deceased's life with one another. It's very similar to a funeral repast offered by other religions.
Whether it's a sumptuous feast you're sitting down to or just a simple bite to eat, repast is just another word for "meal." Based on the Latin word repascere, which means "to feed," a repast is any collection of food served and eaten at one time.
In days past, a Wake was a common form of saying farewell to our deceased. Today we have gentler titles like Repass (repast) or Celebration of Life. The difference in these events is the actual presence of the loved one who has passed away.
Memorial service
In general, “memorial service” is another word for funeral.
It is customary (but not required) to hold a reception following a funeral or memorial service. This gathering offers friends and family the opportunity to meet in an informal environment.
When someone is experiencing grief, sending a delicious warm healthy meal is a wonderful way to show support and comfort. Through this simple act of giving, you can help ease one of the situational burdens families face during the weeks and months following the loss of a loved one.
Nine night is a separate event to the funeral itself. It's like the Irish wake and takes place nine days after the death of the person. You have a celebration of their life at the point at which their spirit traditionally leaves the body. It's a Jamaican practice with roots in an African tradition.
Today, although symbolic rituals around food and mourning still exist, food's most important purpose is to comfort the mourners. Across cultures in America, whether it's Jewish or Mormon, Italian or Southern Black, food is often provided by the community for the family of the deceased.
Leave the bad luck at the funeral, and bring good luck home. In Chinese culture, red is the color of good luck, and the coin represents fortune. Before guests arrive home, they should eat the candy and spend the coin to seal their luck. Families in other regions may present guests with a red thread instead.
There are many Jewish traditions and rituals involving food following the passing of a loved one, during the seven-day period of mourning called Shiva.
A wake, or viewing, usually takes place before the actual funeral. A casket or urn holding the remains of the deceased is usually present. Mourners will usually take this time to pay their respects and offer their condolences to relatives of the departed.
Irish wakes are a celebration of life - one last party to honor the deceased. The name “wake” originated because unknown diseases had plagued the countryside causing some to appear dead. As the family began to mourn, they would awaken. For this reason, the body is waked in the deceased's home for at least one night.
The deceased ancestor's favorite food is typically offered up as well as is pan de muertos (bread of the dead), which is a semi-sweet bread shaped like bones and dusted with sugar, according to NPR. Pumpkin or amaranth seeds are also common and were used to make skulls before Europeans brought sugarcane to the region.
Feasts are the next rank down and are identified with an F. They consist of the celebration of certain saints like the feast of the Archangels or most of the Apostles. The Gloria is required on these days, but not the Creed. Memorials are the lowest rank and are simply the celebrations of most of the saints.
The 40-day service is offered with Holy Bread and Wheat, given by the family in honor of the deceased. It is the Eastern Orthodox belief that the soul of the deceased remains on Earth for 40 days.
Most commonly, an end-of-life ceremony will be called a “funeral,” a “memorial service,” or a “celebration of life.” All of these terms refer to the ritual of gathering family and friends together after a loved one has died.
The grieving individual often is overwhelmed – both by the loss and the outpouring of support by others. Once the funeral is over, the person may feel isolated and alone in the grief. The flood of people is replaced by the emptiness, mundane duties and the ongoing task of sorting through paperwork and possessions.
After a funeral, most people will arrange a reception gathering for guests to go to. This event is designed to enable the deceased's loved ones to have chance to discuss happy memories, and offer their condolences to one another.
A memorial service or memory service is held after, or sometimes instead of a funeral service. A memorial service can take place on a specific date, such as your loved one's birthday or the anniversary of their death, or at any other time following their funeral.
Some common synonyms of tribute are citation, encomium, eulogy, and panegyric.
These days, the term wake can refer to any kind of gathering or reception, held before or after the funeral service. Typically a wake is now held after the more formal funeral service, providing a chance for guests to socialise and celebrate the life of the person who has died.