Quaker funerals

Quaker beliefs about death

Quakers have no creed and no required doctrine about what follows death. Quaker faith is described as a search for truth rather than an arrival, and the Religious Society of Friends welcomes people without requiring adherence to any particular belief.

Quaker writing on death records personal experience rather than doctrine, and it doesn't always agree with itself: one Friend writes that death is not an end but a beginning, the escape of the spirit from its old limitations; another writes that she still questions the conventional language of resurrection and everlasting life, and finds eternal life instead in each present moment. Both views are held within the same Quaker tradition.

Quaker funeral ceremonies

The occasion is formally called a meeting for worship on the occasion of the death of our Friend. Friends are explicitly directed not to adopt any rigid pattern for the conduct of funerals.

There is no minister and no order of service. A Friend opens the meeting briefly, then the meeting settles into silence in which anyone present may speak. An elder brings it to a close, and everyone is invited to shake hands. Two formats are common: a brief meeting for worship at the crematorium, which is sometimes all that is possible or wanted; or a fuller meeting at a meeting house on a separate day.

If you have not been to a Quaker meeting before, someone will explain it at the start. Here's what to expect:

• Meeting for worship: Quaker worship: gathering in silence, with no minister, creed, hymns or prepared sermon.
• Meeting for worship on the occasion of the death of our Friend: The formal name for a Quaker funeral.
• Ministry: Words spoken out of the silence when someone is moved to share. Anyone present may give it, including visitors.
• Memorial meeting: A separate later meeting for worship giving thanks for the life of a Friend who has died.
• Elder: A Friend with responsibility for the right holding of the meeting, including bringing it to a close.
• Area meeting: The body responsible for Quaker funeral arrangements, burial grounds and registers.
• Order for burial: The written authorisation required before any grave is dug or ashes interred in a Friends’ burial ground.
• Gathered meeting: A meeting in which worship has deepened, and out of which ministry may arise.
• Inner Light: The direct inward apprehension of God, held to be accessible to everyone.
• Quaker faith & practice: The book of discipline of Britain Yearly Meeting. Chapter 17 covers funerals and memorial meetings.

The cost of a Quaker funeral in the UK depends on the funeral director and the crematorium, cemetery or burial ground you choose. Quaker practice tends towards simplicity, and many families choose an unelaborate coffin and a brief meeting at the crematorium, or a meeting at a meeting house with a separate committal. One point is specific to Friends: it is not Quaker practice to accept a fee for ministry. Your local Dignity funeral director can talk you through everything that is included, and the costs.

At Dignity, we’re here to support people of all religions and none. We can arrange Catholic, Anglican, Methodist, Baptist, Orthodox, Hindu, Muslim, Jewish, Buddhist and Sikh funerals. Call your local funeral director today to talk about your needs.