I attended a Catholic funeral several years ago at the church. It was my first non-JW funeral. I was fascinated. From the time I entered, it was different. From the outside, the building seems rather plain. But inside, it seemed so full of religion. It was so unlike the boring sterile Kingdom Halls I went to. There were statues, paintings, and stained glass. So full of tradition and like Snoozy said, so full of ritual.
As the first time seeing it, I was fascinated, like an anthropologist observing a tribal ritual in a rain forest village. And some parts didn't seem too different. There was one part where they let some sort of smoking cup swing above the coffin. It was like it was some magic potion they were waving over the deceased to scare away evil spirits. Maybe that's exactly what it was.
I think as a first time experience, it was great. If I had to see it all the time and understood it, I'd think it's a bunch of naseating BS.
Unlike the JWs, they did talk about the diseased and I found myself so much more connected to the person than I was before (he was only a guy I kind-of knew from work). It was uplifting.
I also attended a Baptist funeral. That's a whole different experience. It was at a large Baptist church with the jumbotrons in various places and the organs and just the right amount of comfort to put you in that state of awe for brainwashing. Overall, the church seemed kind of sterile too. Except for the cross and the stained glass, it could have been a performing arts theater. It had a more commonly understandable format. They talked about the deceased, about heaven, prayed, etc. People came up and said things. It was a happy medium between the sales-pitch JW funeral and the rituals that only a Catholic would understand.
