Reply #9: Funerals are for the living. [View All]

[politicat]

You would have ended up hurting others who were already in pain if you'd not been a respectful observer of the ritual.

When it comes to atheist behavior at theist funerals, my first rule is, First, Do No Harm.

When my great-grandmother died, I went to the funeral because I knew that it would be supportive for my mother and grandmother and great-grandfather. I hate churches, especially my great-grandmother's (and a lot of my distant family is of the fundy-nasty variety) but the reason I was there was not for the church, not for the religion. It was for the people I care about.

As I used to tell my stepdaugther, being an adult isn't about doing what you want when you want, it's about doing what you don't want with good grace and respect for others.

Pcat