Custom «End of Life» Essay Paper Sample

Death marks the end of the physical life and transforms one into a spirit. According to Lewis (2010), death is inevitable to any human being, thus, every person will die one day. When a person dies, he or she leaves a gap that will not be filled by anyone else. People mourn and sometimes hire professional mourners, so as to give the deceased an important send off. Conducting a funeral is very important so as to give the deceased the last respect on this earth, and pave way to begin the afterlife (Erickson & Hustad, 2001). After the person has died, he becomes a spirit that will always protect the people left behind (Erickson & Hustad, 2001). This paper discusses the cultural attitudes, feelings, beliefs, values, and expectations about death and how the Christian thought affects it.

Christians believe that, the life that a person has lived in this world will determine whether the person will go to heaven or hell (Lewis 2010). If the person was characterized by evil deeds, he or she will suffer in hell, and a good person will go to heaven upon his or her death. Christians also believe that there is a judgment day; that everyone will be answerable to God for all their deeds (Lewis 2010). There is resurrection after death, thus Christians opt for burying the body and not cremating it (Erickson & Hustad, 2001). The Christian belief is similar to the cultural belief on death. The righteous will be happy during the life after death and the evil individuals will suffer (Lewis 2010).

The belief about life after death will encourage an individual to advice the patient about repenting all sins (Lewis 2010). Also the patient should be advised to have a good relationship with other people so as to have a proper send off (Erickson & Hustad, 2001). The patient should be comforted and told that there is also life after death, and that what matters is how he or she will live this life. Death is inevitable, so everybody should be ready to die, and the death of an individual does not consider age, gender, social class or the financial status of an individual (Erickson & Hustad, 2001).