Funeral Facts
It's a fact. As time moves on, so do beliefs and systems and traditions.
Funerals in the German-speaking Mennonite division are calm, quiet affairs compared to the chanting, wailing, and fainting spells typical of other cultures in Belize. Some people consider them rather stoic.
In the KG, Old Order and Old Colony groups, they have their own graveyards within their colonies. Bodies are deposited into the ground and the grave marked with a simple marker. A church service is held before the burial. After the burying is over and guests and visitors have retired, the direct family and other close relatives stay together for a meal. Usually the evening before the funeral a viewing time is given to the public, an hour or 2. Rarely do they offer food or drinks to visitors. The KG and Old Order do some singing.
In the Holdeman and Beachy churches, the North Americans who are temporarily and permanently living here generally just go along with whatever practice the culture around them has. For example, in the Hispanic culture, an all-night, informal wake is held every evening of the mourning period until the body is released to the family. People come and go throughout the night, including drunks, beggars, homeless tramps and very poor families. Once the body is present, a proper church service is held that evening, a meal is served to everyone present, testimonies and memories are spoken, and whoever wants to can stay with the family all night. Wakes are all-night affairs for many other cultures too. Wailing, fainting, and chanting is done by non-Mennonite family members. After the funeral everyone heads home, rarely do they have a meal together.
In Belize, German-speaking Mennonites are the only ones who always bury their dead under the ground. Other cultures have all been heavily influenced by Catholic and Maya traditions and build concrete or stone tombs above ground, usually facing east towards the rising sun.
Also, the German Mennonites used to avoid noise at funeral services and during maintenance of the cemetery. No hammers were used on the coffins, only preset screws; building tombs would have been too noisy, the grave was dug by hand. In the KG this has all changed with the exception of tombs. Riding mowers are used, excavators dig the grave, vehicles drive over the graves, etc., videoing is allowed and slideshows are shown.
Perhaps the other 2 conservative groups will soon follow.
Funerals in the German-speaking Mennonite division are calm, quiet affairs compared to the chanting, wailing, and fainting spells typical of other cultures in Belize. Some people consider them rather stoic.
In the KG, Old Order and Old Colony groups, they have their own graveyards within their colonies. Bodies are deposited into the ground and the grave marked with a simple marker. A church service is held before the burial. After the burying is over and guests and visitors have retired, the direct family and other close relatives stay together for a meal. Usually the evening before the funeral a viewing time is given to the public, an hour or 2. Rarely do they offer food or drinks to visitors. The KG and Old Order do some singing.
In the Holdeman and Beachy churches, the North Americans who are temporarily and permanently living here generally just go along with whatever practice the culture around them has. For example, in the Hispanic culture, an all-night, informal wake is held every evening of the mourning period until the body is released to the family. People come and go throughout the night, including drunks, beggars, homeless tramps and very poor families. Once the body is present, a proper church service is held that evening, a meal is served to everyone present, testimonies and memories are spoken, and whoever wants to can stay with the family all night. Wakes are all-night affairs for many other cultures too. Wailing, fainting, and chanting is done by non-Mennonite family members. After the funeral everyone heads home, rarely do they have a meal together.
In Belize, German-speaking Mennonites are the only ones who always bury their dead under the ground. Other cultures have all been heavily influenced by Catholic and Maya traditions and build concrete or stone tombs above ground, usually facing east towards the rising sun.
Also, the German Mennonites used to avoid noise at funeral services and during maintenance of the cemetery. No hammers were used on the coffins, only preset screws; building tombs would have been too noisy, the grave was dug by hand. In the KG this has all changed with the exception of tombs. Riding mowers are used, excavators dig the grave, vehicles drive over the graves, etc., videoing is allowed and slideshows are shown.
Perhaps the other 2 conservative groups will soon follow.
