[page 04] Funeral rites Dany Tanguay Talking about death and everything around it is not the easiest thing to do. One day or another we face death and all the ceremonial that surrounds it. Most of us have already met with a funeral director to arrange the funeral of a loved one. It's not the most pleasant and comforting thing, but you have to do it. Historical Since the dawn of time, humans have always been preoccupied with their fate from beyond the grave. Funeral rites varied according to civilizations and eras. Ancient Egyptians possessed extensive techniques for the preservation of bodies. Archaeologists have discovered mummies in an amazing state of conservation. The body of the deceased was entrusted to the paraschists who prepared the mortal remains. After a 70-day stay in the natron (natural sodium carbonate), the deceased was washed and then impregnated with aromatic essences. Finally, each limb and whole body were wrapped with strips of linen coated with myrrh oil. The name of the deceased, his relatives, his good deeds were inscribed on the last rows of the bands. His finest jewels were placed on him, placed in a sarcophagus before being handed over to his family. Intermediate techniques were used for the less fortunate, but it was very important to keep the deceased regardless of social status. (1) The Romans perfumed the bodies of their dead. A little dust was thrown at the remains so that the dead man could pass through the hellish rivers. A coin was placed in his mouth to pay for the passage. For slaves and poor people, the ceremony took place at night. The people who followed the procession held a lit torch (funis), from which the word funeral would come. For wealthy families, the funeral was held in broad daylight. The deceased lay in a coffin or on a funeral bed. A long procession of relatives, friends and customers followed the missing man. At the head of the parade were musicians followed by mourners (women paid to mourn and praise the deceased), then came the victim (the one who immolated the deceased's favorite animals at the stake), at the back of the latter, the funeral bed where the fragrant corpse rested, flavored and covered with flowers. Customers of the deceased wore his decorations, honours and insignia. At the end of the procession, the dead man's empty car was found. The coffin preceded a jester who represented by his gestures, his gait and his attitude, the deceased. Once at the stake, which was made of raw wood, in the shape of a square mass, the coffin was laid and a person of the family set fire to it. [page 05] While the body was burning, the funeral oration was pronounced. The ashes were placed in an urn that was placed in the sepulchral chamber (columbarium) or in a tomb. (2) The Vikings buried the deceased with the tools he had used during his life. The warrior was buried with a quantity of weapons, the blacksmith with his hammer, his tongs, his anvil and his file. Jewelry, kitchen utensils and fabric items were available in women's graves. Boats were often used to bury the deceased, even if they were a woman. The remains of a Viking chief were placed in his boat, which measured between twenty and twenty-four metres. The boat was removed from the water and installed in a pit. A burial chamber was prepared behind the mat where the deceased was placed dressed in his finest clothes. Supplies were collected, animals were sacrificed and sometimes a slave who had decided to follow his master into death. A large mound (a pile of earth) was erected above the boat. For some Viking chiefs, the boat was not deposited in a pit, but burned. (3) In the 19th century, in our villages, there was no embalmer. The deceased was being cared for by the family. It had to be washed, dressed and covered with a sheet tied with pins. The deceased was not wearing a shoe. The corpse was placed on a bed in a room or on planks installed on easels. Visitors could come and greet him one last time. We prayed and recited rosaries at regular intervals. We looked after the person day and night. The village carpenter made the coffin free of charge with planks of pine or fir provided by the family of the deceased. Ten-cent iron handles were added, such as those found on chests. Then the deceased was placed in the coffin. The lid was nailed when you went outside the house. The grave was carried to the church on the shoulders of six men who took turns taking turns. No matter the distance, the dead man was carried on the shoulders of men out of respect for the deceased. The parishioners discovered themselves and/or knelt as the procession passed. After the church service, the deceased was placed in a grave in the cemetery. In the winter, the remains were placed in the hinge or in a large pit that the bedeau had dug in the fall. Straw was placed on each of the coffins. In the spring, the deceased were buried in their respective lots. (4) When the funeral directors arrived, the deceased began to embalm. Today, each funeral home has its own living room and sometimes even several for the exhibition of the deceased. Up to about 50 years ago, the body was exposed to the missing person's home. Nowadays, the deceased, when exposed, is less so. Sometimes with his body, other times with his ashes. The funeral field has changed a lot in recent decades. [page 06] Services Today, funeral homes offer a range of services to their clients. The traditional funeral: exposure of the body in a wooden or steel coffin, followed by funeral with body at church and burial at the cemetery. Semi-traditional funerals: the same procedure as traditional funerals except that the person is cremated before burial or installation at the columbarium. In this case, you can still buy a coffin in which the person will be cremated or rent a coffin. If there is a rental, the person is placed in a box specially designed for cremation. A person can be cremated without embalming and the funeral service takes place in the presence of the ashes: Funeral homes offer different models of urns. The columbarium is a space set up and reserved for depositing vases containing the ashes. You can buy a concession like you buy a lot at the cemetery for the same duration. Pre-arrangements allow people to express their choice: coffin, funeral, etc. The amount paid is deposited in trust or the fees are paid at the time of the person's death. Funeral homes also offer complementary services such as card cancellations and various requests to other organizations. More and more people are choosing to celebrate the word at the funeral home. (5) 1 - http://pages.infinit.net/thanato/tanathopraxie.htm 2 - www.dicooerso.com 3 - http://agora.qc.ca 4 - Bulletin de recherches historiques, Vol xxx. no 5, mai 1924, pages 153-154 5 - Courrier Frontenac, 7 novembre 2003, pages c4-c5 [photo] Dany Tanguay Private Collection [page 07] Memorable Funeral at Thetford Mines Dany Tanguay Seven dead at Bell mine (1938) [photo] Inside St. Alphonse Church for the funeral of the seven landslide victims at the Bell Asbestos mine. December 7, 1938. Source: Society of Historical Archives of the Amiante region - Gallery Fund of our ancestors of white gold (Donors: G. Lamonde and Leonidas Lachance). On Wednesday, December 7, 1938, seven Bell Mine workers died buried by a mass of rock that had detached from the tunnel where they were working. The victims are: Albert Lemieux, 37, alderman, Adolphe Théberge, 35, Edmond Emery, 43, Donat Grégoire, 42, Ludger Aubut, 46, Louis Nadeau, 54, and Joseph Perron, 44. There are now 34 orphans at Thetford Mines. (1) The ceremony is presided over by the parish priest Pierre Poulin. St. Alphonsus Church is full. The central aisles are reserved for families and guests. All the parish priests of the neighbouring parishes are present. The coffins of Edmond Emery, Louis Nadeau and Joseph-A. Perron are covered with the British flag. As veterans of the Great War 1914-1918, they are entitled to this honour. They're military people carrying their coffins. The seven coffins are placed side by side. Among the guests, the Honourable Henry L. Auger, representative of the provincial government, Mr. Tancrède Labbé, Member of Parliament for the County, Mayor Joseph T. Beaudoin, the Honourable Laureate Lapierre, Sheriff of Quebec, several members of Parliament from neighbouring counties, Mr. Oliva Cyr, President of the Asbestos Asbestos Asbestos Union, representatives of the mining companies, Mr. O.C. Smith, L. Smith, Herby Smith, S. Smith, G. Smith, J.G. , Georges Dick, A.L. Penhale, G.T. Jenkins, E.L. Rainbath, Telesphore Roy, Andrew Johnson and G.A. McClintock. The soldiers were represented by the 15th Company, the Corps of Engineers and the 5th Troop Army, Instructor Sergeant Dagenais of the 22nd Regiment and Sergeant Major Patrick Lachance. At the cemetery, the seven coffins are placed at the foot of Calvary for the last prayers. The bugle rings one last time and the victims are buried in their respective lots. (2) Bishop Ernest Dubé, P.D., V.F. (1895-1950) Monsignor Ernest Dubé died of a heart attack on August 13, 1950 at St. Joseph's Hospital. He was rushed during Sunday Mass and died in the afternoon. [page 08] [photo] Death of parish priest Ernest Dubé, August 17, 1950. Source: Asbestos Region Historical Archives Society - Gaétan Boucher Collection. Born in Saint-Philippe-de-Néri, he is the father of Louis Dubé and Cédulie Massé. TI studied at the College of Sainte-Anne-de-Ia-Pocatière and was ordained a priest on 21 May 1921. He had served the parish of Saint-Alphonse since March 22, 1944. It is in the living room of the presbytery that the remains of Bishop Dubé are displayed in a fiery chapel. The funeral service is presided over by His Excellency Bishop Maurice Roy, Archbishop of Quebec. (3) To allow more people to attend Bishop Dubé's funeral, two services were sung. A first at 7:30 a.m. presided over by his nephew, Father Armand Dubé, assisted by Fathers H. Masson and G. Dumais. Several employers in the city gave their employees time off to attend the funeral of their esteemed parish priest. Flags are flown at half-mast on public buildings and local radio broadcasts several special programmes. Apart from the immediate family, several priests, brothers from the region and from outside attend the funeral of Bishop Dubé. IT comes from everywhere! Also note the presence of the Mayor of the City and Minister of State, Mr. Tancrède Labbé, Mr. Jean Marchand, Secretary-General of the C.T.C.C., and other union leaders, representatives of the mining companies: Messrs. AL. Penhale, Denis Marcotte, Georges Jenkins and H. McNaughton of the Asbestos Corporation, Georges-G Robinson of the Johnson's Co., Georges , Mr. Albert Lamonde, Chief of Police of the city, as well as several other people. On this occasion, the two funeral homes in the city were called upon to organize the funeral. Viateur Lavallière de la Maison Jos. Lavallière and son proceeded to embalm and gave the coffin. The House Napoleon Hébert provided the false grave and took over the direction of the funeral. Bishop Dubé is buried in a vault under the ordeal of The Cemetery of Saint-Alphonse. (4) Tancrède Labbé (1887-1956) Since 1912, he has been a wholesale trader at Thetford Mines. A former mayor of Thetford Mines (1931-1937 and 1947-51) and MPP (1936-39 and 1940-1957), Tancrède Labbé died on December 13, 1956, at the age of 69. Born in East Broughton on June 17, 1887, he was the son of Theophile Labbé and Odelie Beaudoin. (5) [page 09] [photo] Tancrère Labbé, 1956 Source: SAlIRA - Gallery Fund of our white gold ancestors (Donor: Monique Corriveau). The funeral of Tancrède Labbé was celebrated under the presidency of Canon Jean-Paul Lachance, assisted by the abbots Benoit Lachance and Jean-Charles Baillargeon, all three nephews of the deceased. The parish priests of the city and other regions of Quebec also came to attend the ceremony. The procession arrives at the church with Mr. Albert Lamonde, chief of police, followed by nine prams of flowers. Among the guests was the Prime Minister of the province of Quebec, Maurice Duplessis. He is accompanied by Johnny Bourque, Minister of Lands and Forests, Antonio Barrette, Minister of Labour. Mr. Daniel Johnson, Member of Parliament for Bagot, and several other members of the Quebec legislature. The mayors and aldermen of the region are also present as well as representatives of the mines; G. W.Smith of Bell Asbestos, Mr. Georges Robinson of Johnson's Co, Messrs. J.A. Wayland, Leopold Leclerc and Philémon Payeur of the Asbestos Corporation. There are also several citizens of Thetford Mines. Mr. Labbé is survived by his wife Anne Lachance, his son François Labbé, husband of Marthe Loubier, his daughter Suzanne, wife of Dr. Patrick Laughrea, and his daughter Jeanne-d'Arc Dubois, wife of the late Jean-Marc Labbé. (6) Yves Landry (1938-1998) The City Ambassador of Thetford Mines died on March 15, 1998 in St. Petersburg, Florida. He is 60 years old. He is survived by his wife Henriette Laplante, daughter Danielle and two sons Jean and Philippe. On March 21, the funeral service is held at St. Alphonse Church in Thetford Mines. They are presided over by Father Patrice Vallée. The day before, at The Assumption Church in Windsor, Ontario, a service was held in the presence of 1000 people. They included Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and Chrysler executives and employees. Mr. Landry's body was later transported to Thetford Mines. More than 2,000 people crowded inside the Church of Saint-Alphonse to pay their last respects to Yves Landry. A motorcade of Chrysler vehicles, preceded by three prams of flowers, led him to his final resting place. Father Vallée described the deceased as follows: "He was cut all from a block. He gave himself all over. He had ambition but never at the expense of people." Several personalities attended the event, including the Mayor of Thetford Mines, Mr. Henri Therrien, MPs Roger Lefebvre and Jean-Guy Chrétien, Marcel Aubut, a personal friend, Lieutenant Governor, Lise Thibault, Marcel Massé, Mr. Raymond Garneau, Mr. Robert Guy Scully , Mr. Ronald Corey, Mr. Mario Tremblay and Mr. Gilles Bergeron de Bergeron Automobiles. Several mayors from the region were present, including the prefect of the MRC of L'Amiante, Mr Fernand Huot. [page 10] All these people had only good words towards Mr. Yves Landry: his kindness, his presence, the exceptional man, his strength, his vigour, his passion, his generosity, his roots for his native region. Mr. Gaétan-Yves Landry now rests in St. Alphonse Cemetery in Thetford Mines. (7) Jean Dupéré (1945-2002) Mr. Dupéré died at his home on December 3, 2002, at the age of 57. He was the husband of Mrs. Michelle Thibert and the father of Mathieu, Simon and Catherine. The funeral was held on December 7, 2002 at St. Alphonse Church in Thetford. Several people came to pay their respects to Mr. Jean Dupéré. On December 9, the motorcade carrying Mr. Dupéré left the area for Montreal. The procession made a brief stop in front of the Lac d'Amiante mine where the sirens sounded to greet the president of Lab Chrysotile one last time. Mr. Dupéré is buried in a cemetery in the Montreal area. Several people wished to greet him one last time: the Mayor of Thetford Mines, Mr. Laurent Lessard, who mentioned that the death of Jean Dupéré was a great loss for the region. Jean Larose, President of the Union, praised the strong supporter of the region. Raymond Setlakwe, Marc Bouliane and Gérard Binet referred to Mr. Dupéré as the defender of asbestos from every point of view. (8) Reference 1 - Le Canadien, vendredi 9 décembre 1938, page 1 2 - Le Canadien, jeudi 15 décembre 1938, page 1 3 - Le Progrès de Thetford Mines, 9 aoilt 1950, pages 1 et 13 4 - Le Progrès de Thetford Mines, 16 et 23 aoilt 1950, pages l, 5 et 12 5 - Le Progrès de Thetford Mines, 13 décembre 1956, page 1 6 - Le Progrès de Thetford Mines, 18 décembre 1956, pages 1 et 4 7 - Courrier Frontenac 21 mars 1998, cahier B, pages 19 et 20 Courrier Frontenac 28 mars 1998, cahier A, pages 24 et 25 8 - Courrier Frontenac, 6 décembre 2002, cahier A, pages 14-15 Courrier Frontenac, 13 décembre 2002, cahier A, page 3 ------------------------------------------ Did you know that... Before the 1920s, there were no flowers near the deceased. It's a custom that would come from the English. ------------------------------------------ [page 29] It was the first funeral company in the area to have such a facility. It currently offers two modules, each of which can hold about 75 urns. TI there are two kinds of concessions, one closed and the other glazed. In the first case, there are only individual spaces, in the other case, there are simple, double and family spaces. In early October 2004, a third module was added to meet the many requests for this service. (1), (2) and (3) 1-Courrier Frontenac, 14 juillet 2000 2-Courrier Frontenac 7 novembre 2003 3-Dominic Guay, thanatologue, Maison funéraire de l'Amiante. Protestant Funerals The objectives of such a funeral are no different from ours. We gather to say goodbye to a loved one, to give thanks to God and to live in the hope that life does not end with death but that it continues elsewhere. The family talks to the pastor about the ceremony that can take place in the church, cemetery or house. Texts, music, testimonials and other practical details are chosen. The ceremony lasts from thirty minutes to an hour. Unlike the Catholic religion, it can be done during or after burial. The ceremony begins with music; then it's the family's entrance. The ceremony is divided into four stages: the time of acceptance (prayer), the time of remembrance (evocation of the life of the deceased), the time of speech (reading biblical texts) and the time of prayer (handing to God of the deceased). Then there are the announcements, the blessing, the music, the output and the collection. There is no time dedicated to the Eucharist during the ceremony. (1) (1) http://frenchprotchurch-dc.home.comcast.net/funerailles.htm Did you know that... During the 1940s and 1950s, funeral homes in the area did not have a car to transport the family of the deceased. Mr. Laval Landry, Mr. Joseph and Mr. Borromée Charest, Mr. Roland Doyon and Mr. "Baby" Rodrigue were renting their services to funeral companies. Some of these taxi owners had seven-passenger vehicles. It cost $5 for a person's funeral. (1) (1) Jean-Claude Garnache [page 30] Sayings and beliefs Dany Tanguay - If one observes that a corpse has one leg longer than the other by placing it in a coffin, it is a sign that another person in the family will die in the year and day. - If a fireball (meteor) falls on a land, a person from the nearest dwelling will die in the year and day. - When we "open the earth" on a Friday at the cemetery, we open it again in eight days. - When a hearse, during a funeral, stops in relation to a house, it dies a person in that house during the year. - When a family returns to stay in a dwelling they once lived in, one person dies during the year. - Aniler staying in a new home is unlucky. He dies one person during the year. - When a bird enters a house, it is a sign of imminent mortality in this house. - When a corpse remains exposed on a Sunday, another person from the same dwelling will die during the year. - Screaming dog announces death. - It is the husband who goes to bed first, on the evening of the wedding, who will die first. - If it rains or snows during the funeral, the deceased is not happy. (1) 1 - Historical Research Bulletins, Vol. XXX, No. 5, May 1924, page 1 ------------------------------------------- Did you know that... In 1959, 175 thank you cards cost $12.25, including federal and provincial taxes. (1) Columbariums are available at St. Alphonse Cemetery, L'Amiante Funeral Home and J.A. Savoie House. 1 - Yves Bourassa, invoice by Edmond Desmarais -------------------------------------------