Re-imagining Funerary Rites in the Context of Covid-19

Abstract

Covid-19 has brought about unsuspected possibilities and death on a large global scale since its advent on the shores of the global community in early March of 2020. The novel pandemic has undoubtedly challenged and changed the normative operations of the social, political and economic activities all across the globe. Religious fraternities and activities have experienced challenging dynamics in how fellowship and worship are practised. Businesses and the entertainment industry have their share of suffering and enduring the suspending effect that has since been forcefully occasioned by the strategic global lockdown. The labour market metrics have realised a drastic decline due to companies closing down owing to the challenges that Covid-19 has rendered against their financial fragility and profit share. Academic institutions have also seen drastic challenges and a need for change in how they perform their curricula duties in the unpredictable context of Covid-19. Evidently, the advent of the Coronavirus has pointedly offered the nations of the world an opportunity to re-imagine a number of issues and social conducts. With millions of people dying across the globe, funerals have taken a new, strange turn in how the rites of passage for the deceased are practised. In light of this, the current essay presents the argument around re-imagining funerary rites in the Covid-19 context. The paper adopts Victor Tuner’s theoretical assumptions of ritual purported in his text entitled The Ritual Process: Structure and Anti-Structure, so as to theoretically problematise the idea of re-imagining funerary rites in the undesirable ‘new normal’? situation of Covid-19.

Keywords

• covid-19 context
• culture
• cultural adaptation
• funerary rites
• new identities
• ritual
• spirituality
• ubuntu