Creating Meaning in Funerals: How Families and Communities Make Sense of Death

Creating Meaning in Funerals is a book about the ways in which bereaved families and communities create meaningful ceremonies against a backdrop of what is culturally appropriate, even when their choices might make little economic sense to those outside the culture. The culmination of these customs and practices, this book maintains, is how bereaved individuals, families, and communities are drawn into significant meaning making in early bereavement. Readers will be repeatedly challenged to suspend their own biases, observe the customs and beliefs of others thoughtfully, and provide counseling support and encouragement to bereaved individuals for whom funerals were or were not effective means of coping with their loss. Discussion questions at the end of each chapter make the book useful for educational settings such as funeral service classroom instruction, thanatology classes, and grief counseling courses. Each chapter is also accompanied by its own reference list to make chapters more useful individually.

Table of Contents:
Introduction; 1. Anchors of Ceremony: How Funerals Work; 2. Funeral Ceremonies and the Quest for Meaning; 3. Memorials and the Ever-Changing Landscape of Spirituality and Faith; 4. Childrens, Teens, and Memorial Ceremonies; 5. Culture, Poverty, and the Cost of Funerals; 6. Funerals and Complicated Experiences with Grief; 7. The Pandemic that Changed Everything ... Including Funerals; 8. Honoring the Homegoing: African American Experiences with Funerals; 9. Memorial Ceremonies: Where We Have Been, Where We Are Going; Epilogue

About the Author :
William G. Hoy has spent more than 40 years caring for the dying and bereaved and was Clinical Professor of Medical Humanities at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, from 2012 until 2024.

Review :
“Not only is Creating Meaning in Funerals a great title for a book, it is a theme demonstrated in each chapter. Hoy has written a significant contribution to the field of thanatology and a solid rebuttal of the arguments of funeral critics. Repeatedly, due to the scope of the lit review, as I read—and underlined—I wrote, ‘I didn’t know that!’ I found this a valuable read and will soon re-read it. As they say in Texas, ‘This is a good steer!’” Harold Ivan Smith, DMin, FT, author of Borrowed Narratives: Using Biographical and Historical Grief Narratives With the Bereaving “Dr. Hoy brings a valuable resource to thanatology researchers, practitioners, and educators. Using his signature narrative style, he dives into the value of ceremony and the ways in which bereavement is socially constructed using beautiful, real-life examples. His use of the five anchors from his compass model of grief is superb and links connection to cultural heritage. This book is a must have for everyone working in end-of-life care.” Becky Lomaka, MA, CT, Director of Grief Support and Education, O’Connor Mortuary, California, USA “In this essential book, Bill Hoy draws on his extensive research and clinical practice to offer us insight into the many ways people find meaning and direction through the ceremonial anchors of funeral rituals. Along the way we learn about different approaches to funerals around the world. The illustrative stories help us understand the ways ceremonies can help us all as we move through grief after a significant death. It is a book everyone should read.” Janet E. McCord, PhD, FT, Professor of Thanatology, Edgewood College, Wisconsin, USA